I am convinced God has amazing plans for His church. I am also convinced and watchful that the enemy is, in fact, prowling and roaring.
YES! You did read that title correctly!
Buck Parsons, a pastor in South Florida stated, “While all true believers know Satan exists, many have succumbed to the notion that spiritual warfare is not that big of a deal. I fear that there are even some Christians reading this now, saying to themselves, “Yeah, okay, sure, I know Satan exists, and yeah, I know spiritual warfare is real, but I don’t believe that Satan or his demons are lurking behind every bush, and I don’t believe that I can really do anything about spiritual warfare anyway.” That is the attitude I most fear for myself, for my family, and for the congregation I serve.”
It is so foolish to underestimate the enemy that we have in Satan. The Bible reminds us to, “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith. (1 Peter 5:8-9)
DON’T UNDERESTIMATE HIM.
Satan is real. He is really smart. He is really working. He really hates the church here at FBCW. He is a liar, deceiver, destroyer, disrupt-er, conniver, and accuser. He is not a joke and to ignore him would be perilous.
Make no mistake, Satan hates the people of God. He hates a church that holds unswerving to the truth of God’s Word. He hates a church that takes the Great Commission seriously. He HATES US AND IS WORKING TO STOP US. The more our churches become “Go and Tell” churches, the more I believe we will see attacks from the enemy. We should not consider it strange.
RESIST HIM
What do we do? Scripture calls us to “Resist him, firm in your faith.” (v9) By God’s grace, He is allowing our church a season of favor and growth. With growth will come change. We will need to make individual changes, all of us, in order to accomplish the “Go and Tell” vision and mission ahead of us. We will ALL have to work together to make this vision a reality. ALL of God’s people will have to remain rooted in God’s Word, consistent in prayer, eager to step up and give more, serve more, contribute more, bend more, forgive more, understand more, promote peace more, communicate biblically, and look to Jesus MORE. If we do not, I fear the enemy will have a field day. Let’s resist!
I am convinced God has amazing plans for His church. I am also convinced and watchful that the enemy is, in fact, prowling and roaring. He is most effective when God’s people don’t notice him and when they are not in the Word. It is then, that we begin to have agendas that don’t line up with God’s. Be watchful friends and family.