A couple weeks ago, I was contemplating the exchange in Job 1 between God and Satan. I thought to myself, "How amazing and humbling it would be for my Father to speak so glowingly of me." Satan is subject to God's will like anything else, so this dialogue has nothing to do with God trying to win a war. The outcome has been determined. God is doing nothing more than showing off His wonderful creation.
Satan, who has been removed from the Lord's Glory, roams the earth to wage petty battles against those who display God's image. He seeks to discourage, disarm, and defeat. He understands that his only workable tactic is to remove God from the equation. But even through temptations and trials, God's creation is offered the spiritual strength to keep the scales drastically uneven...every single time.
At this moment in time, I am living as blamelessly as I ever have. I don't say that to boast, but to acknowledge the work that God has done and how far He's brought me to the likeness of Christ. Right now, the battle is upon me, whether I want it or not. Somewhere in the spiritual realm, my Father challenges my proud accuser and trusts me to remain in Him.
This is tough. I can count at least three crucial decisions on the horizon, and Satan is hammering me with every lie I've ever believed. In these few hours awake, I've been considered impure, unloved, unattractive, unworthy, fruitless, and a failure. God delivers His message of truth, and I am left to believe in faith that Satan's words do not describe me. I almost wish he would burn my possessions instead, but the enemy knows that words resonate greater in my life. When I brand myself with my inadequacy, I disqualify myself as a vessel of glory. When I accept God's inheritance as Son, Satan loses grip.
I would be grateful for your prayers. I'm not accustomed to this level of accusation. I stand on the witness chair before the persecutor, and he would have me live condemned. But the Judge is high on His throne, and deliverance has been my sentence. There is no second trial. I am free.
1 comment:
Beloved, you will stand, with God your lover leading the way. No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And GOD IS FAITHFUL. He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out, so that you can stand up under it. And he has given you affirmation throughout Scripture and throughout your life. He is the one who defines us as his beloved children. And he, the maker, and redeemer, knows best. So you can be sure of your position. His chosen beloved. How beautiful are the feet of him who brings good news. And on what body are the feet more attractive than the hands that do his work, than the mouth that speaks his praise, than the heart that honors his authority?
Ps. The more I read your posts, the more I think it would be in your best interests to tell me no.
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