"Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say: 'The accuser of our brothers and
sisters, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down.'"
(Revelation 12:10b, NIV2)
It's no fun to be accused, especially when you haven't done anything wrong. On
the other hand, when we are accused for something we truly did, isn't that even
more embarrassing? We may try to wiggle our way out, but if guilty, no
explanation can justify the crime.
Such accusations make us feel like we have completely lost our balance, just
like that flying umbrella we encountered in De Panne, Belgium in August 2011.
It, too, had lost its balance! There had been a lot of wind that day. Let's not
forget that the North Sea is called "North" for a reason! The coast of Belgium
seems to be constantly under windy conditions, no matter what time of year. It's
a great place to fly a kite, unless the string breaks, that is!
Back to the flying umbrella, it appeared to be taking a tumbling stroll on the
sands of De Panne, and it seemed to avoid, as if at all costs, a dip in the cold
North Sea. At least it knew its priorities! The sad thing was, it was all by
itself. No one else even noticed that it was tumbling away, head over hills. Or
should I say pole over cloth! It was heading straight for an unknown and
unpleasant destination. Had the umbrella been falsely accused? Was that the
reason behind its trek?
I may be a bearer of bad news, but we have someone who specializes in accusing
us. Especially followers of the Most High! And he doesn't do this just
occasionally. He does it 24/7! "The accuser of our brothers and sisters, who
accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down." (Revelation
12:10b, NIV2)
Naturally we all know who this accuser is: the evil one!
What is he accusing us of?
Anything and everything that we are doing wrong. After all, we, too, have been
misplaced by the powerful wind named sin. At times, he is very persuasive that
we are the very scum of the earth.
Even though many of his accusations are accurate, we have an advocate that stand
up for us, and unlike that wandering umbrella, he can make him stop! "My dear
children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin,
we have an advocate with the Father-Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the
atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of
the whole world." (1 John 2:1-2, NIV2)
You may be the scum of the world, but not so in Jesus' eyes! After all, it cost
Him His very life to justify us completely from any wrongdoing! "They triumphed
over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony..."
(Revelation 12:11a, NIV2)
Even though some of these accusations are quite accurate, we don't have to stand
there embarrassed and completely demoralized. Jesus paid the price for our
crimes! We have been forgiven by the Most High Himself! "For I will forgive
their wickedness and will remember their sins no more." (Hebrews 8:12, NIV2)
"But we are faulty! We have indeed done many wrongs during our lifetime! We are
far from perfect!" Maybe in your eyes, but not according to God, who sees us as
perfect, as long as we have accepted the services of our Most High Advocate.
"For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made
holy." (Hebrews 10:14, NIV2)
We truly have nothing to fear by these constant accusations. We are perfect in
our Father's eyes, thanks to the sacrifice that Jesus made on our behalf! This
is why we are encouraged to: ". . . hold unswervingly to the hope we profess,
for he who promised is faithful." (Hebrews 10:23, NIV2)
It's sadly funny that our accuser is the very one who tempted us to do the
wicked things in the first place. The instigator is also the accuser! Meanwhile,
the One who truthfully has a right to accuse us is the One who willingly
sacrificed Himself on the cross on our behalf, in order that we could be freed
from any of such accusations.
There is thus, "now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus . . ."
(Romans 8:1, NIV2)
You can stop feeling like that tumbling umbrella. The wind has died down
completely. We are free to stand firm on both of our feet now!
Thank you Jesus!
Rob Chaffart
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