"The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil's work." 1 John 3:8
(NIV) Jesus' arrival in our neighborhood had a purpose: "To destroy the devil's
work." In other words, Jesus triumphed over the evil one when He died on a
lonely cross to save the lost. Yes, we humans erred big time when they listened
to the evil one (See Gen 3:4-10)!
When we live in fear, we let the evil one dominate us. However, the evil one has
no authority over us any longer (See verse above). Jesus destroyed his evil
work. We are victorious through Jesus Christ: "But thanks be to God! He gives us
the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." 1 Corinthians 15:57 (NIV) There are
times, though, when we agree with the evil one. We may be sick, feeling
desperate, or we end up completely demoralized. Why? Because we have agreed with
the evil one. Another possibility is that we have sinned and we agree with the
evil one that we are hopeless. There, too, we lose all hope. But it doesn't have
to be that way!
Why?
"The thief (The evil one) comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I (Jesus)
have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." John 10:10 (NIV)
The evil one is on the loose, and he will do anything to "steal, kill and
destroy." That's why we are admonished to: "Be self-controlled and alert. Your
enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to
devour." 1 Peter 5:8 (NIV). And he will completely devour us if we agree with
him!
There is nothing encouraging that comes from the devil. He is pure evil, and he
wants our destruction. Just because some don't believe in him doesn't mean he
doesn't exist.
Just lately I experienced the evil one. I was diagnosed with an aortic aneurism.
As soon I received this diagnosis, I started feeling pain over my heart from
time to time. It would only stop when I ordered these demons in the name of
Jesus to leave me. This happened several times; but every time they had to flee!
(Amazing things are happening to my heart lately; but more will be revealed in a
future date...)
Jesus gave us significant insight into the battle with the devil when He prayed:
"Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven." Matthew 6:10
(NIV) After all, our purpose is to have God's "will be done on earth as it is in
heaven."
If we agree with the evil one about our diagnosis, no healing will occur.
Instead, fear will reign our lives! When we line up, however, with our Heavenly
Father, we experience inner peace, even amidst horrible circumstances. It's way
better to trust in Him than in the depressing news from the evil one: "He said
to her, 'Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your
suffering.'" Mark 5:34 (NIV) Rather than listening to the one who wants to
destroy us, why not believe in our Heavenly Father! After all, is there disease
in heaven? No way! What is God's purpose? "Your kingdom come, your will be done
on earth as it is in heaven." In other words, God wants us to be healed, just
like in heaven, so that we can fulfill our purpose in life. Our Father gives
life; the evil one wants our destruction: "[Jesus] could not do any miracles
there, except lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them. And he was
amazed at their lack of faith. Then Jesus went around teaching from village to
village." Mark 6:5-6 (NIV) Wanda Rosenberry described her experience when she
ended up with a painful, torn rotator cuff. The doctor urged her to have surgery
quite soon, as it wouldn't get any better. Instead they decided to rely on our
Heavenly Father and have His input. This is what she wrote about their
experience.
"My husband, Randy, was cutting wood, and I was splitting and stacking it, as it
was our only source of heat in the winter. I picked up a huge log and placed it
on the splitter, and suddenly my right shoulder felt as though someone had
yanked my arm off my body.
I could barely use my arm, but I finished splitting that log and then told Randy
I had to stop. Even though it hurt worse than previous attacks of bursitis, I
figured that's all it was. So I treated it the way I had treated the bursitis in
the past. But the pain became worse. I finally went to the doctor about it.
"It's not bursitis," said my doctor. "You've torn your rotator cuff and will
have to have surgery to repair it. Maegan [his nurse] will contact the surgeon
and set up an appointment with him for you."
"May I call you later about that?" I asked. "I don't have the money for the
surgery, and I can't afford the time off work. I have to think and pray about
this."
"All right, but don't wait too long; it'll only get worse."
This was on Thursday. I prayed for healing repeatedly and nothing changed. Yet I
continued to pray.
Sunday morning during the worship service, the pastor called for those who
needed prayer to come to the front. I went down and told him about my torn
rotator cuff. He and his wife laid hands on me and prayed for healing. Nothing
happened, and I sat back down.
By the end of the service, I was still in a lot of pain, but it wasn't as severe
as before. I had faith that God would heal me, and I was going to wait on His
healing.
The next day the pain had lessened considerably, but it still wasn't gone. I
continued to pray for healing. Tuesday morning I woke up, got out of bed, and
without thinking about it raised my arms up and stretched.
"My shoulder is completely healed!" I yelled to my husband. I showed him the
full movement of my arm.
To this day, my right shoulder has not given me any more trouble." Written by
Wanda Rosenberry.
It would have been easy to agree that she should undergo surgery immediately,
but then she would have missed an opportunity to experience our Heavenly Father.
However, our God is not a God of hopelessness, but of hope! After all: "You,
dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in
you is greater than the one who is in the world." (1 John 4:4, NIV2) Who do we
believe?
Rob Chaffart
The Illustrator: This daily newsletter is dedicated to encouraging
everyone to look towards Jesus as the source of all the solutions to our
problems. It contains a daily inspirational story, a Bible verse and encouraging
messages. HTML and plain text versions available.
The Nugget: Published three times a week, this newsletter features inspirational devotionals and mini-sermons dedicated to drawing mankind closer to each other and to Christ.