Be Strong in the Lord

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Scripture: 1 John 4:2-4 (ESV)

2 By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, 3 and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already. 4 Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.

Devotion:

            The Apostle John here is writing to shore up the faith of some Christians who apparently had gone through some tough times. The advice John gives on testing the spirits is as true today as the day John first wrote these words. This world seems to be filled with more devilish and demonic forces than ever. Discerning the truth from the lies gets harder each day. Some lying spirits might even attempt to pass themselves off as truth-tellers but do not be deceived, they will show their true colors soon enough.

            But we must ask God for discernment because we can be so easily deceived by the voices we hear out in the world. We can have confidence though because Jesus defeated all the evil in the world as he hung on the cross for us and died. Three days later Jesus’ resurrection proved to be a death blow to death itself. Jesus who won that victory reigns with God in heaven today. He looks longingly at the world he created, to the people he breathed the breath of life into, to see if any will turn to him and be saved.

            By the testimony of all the apostles, disciples, saints, and believers over the millennia we can know that these words are true. Jesus Christ our Lord will return one day for the purpose of judging those who would not believe in him. Our culture is full of such people today, unfortunately. Never have I seen so many people determined to do evil while calling it good. I fear for the children in the coming generations. They will face tremendous odds to make it into the kingdom of God. Their very souls are being hunted by our culture that does not want them to grow to be men and women of God.

            The world is changing rapidly for the worse. All manner of evil is not only tolerated but celebrated. If you refuse to celebrate their evil revelries, you are marked for destruction. The armies of Satan take no prisoners. They are after souls of men and women, and they do not care what they must do to get their human cattle into hell to burn with them for all eternity. They promise those who follow them a party after death. They are liars to the end.

Prayer:

            Lord help us to remember that you are stronger than this world’s rulers, both physical and spiritual. We need not be afraid of anything men can do to us because you are stronger than the world. Let us give thanks for such a mighty and powerful God who can never be defeated. Glory to God in the highest and peace to His people on earth, both now and forevermore. Amen.

            

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