The Accuser is Alive and Well

Of all the names the Bible gives Satan, none is more telling than the one in Revelation 12:10:

"I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night."

One of this enemies greatest tools is his ability to accuse us to each other in such a convincing way that we often do not question where the accusation is coming from, and more often just believe it as founded on some logic our mind wraps around it. There are some timeless rules that apply and help us to hear him when he speaks:

1. If it is an accusation, it is from the devil, no matter what it is about. God does not ever accuse us to one another, nor does He speak to us about each other in a way that rouses suspicion or violates His Word in any way. If the voice says pray for or love somebody, it may be the voice of God. If the voice says "look at how that person is dressed," or "Did you hear what she said about my president," it is not from God.

 2. You cannot know another person's thoughts or motives, no matter how much you think you can. Whenever you get a thought that includes a person's thoughts or motives, you can be sure it is not from God. Only God knows the thoughts and intents of the heart. We cannot know others', however our own can be revealed by spending time in God's Word. 

 3. If you fall in love with God and His Word, you will never be offended. Psalm 119:165 says, "Great peace have they which love thy law: and nothing shall offend them." If you have a problem being offended by what others say or how they act, it is most likely the problem is not with them. We do not have the opportunity to change how others act, we do, however, have the opportunity to change how we react to the stimulus.


4. Love is the antidote (Matthew 24) . If you love people you will not be offended by them (see I Corinthians 13). 

5. Try every spirit whether it is of God. We should cultivate a sensitivity to the spiritual in our lives through prayer, fasting, reading the Bible, and walking with God daily. The Bible tells us it is possible to exercise our senses to the point that we are sensitive to both good and evil (Hebrews 5:14).

The accuser is working full steam in our day. I can say not a day goes by without some strange thought passing through my mind about one of my brothers or sisters. Among the many prophesies Jesus left us concerning the time just prior to His second coming, he said:

"And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold ( Matthew 24:10 &12)"

One of the hallmarks of the end of days is that people will be easily offended. Sound familiar? We are taught in our public schools that it is not only OK, but that it is your right to be offended. Nothing could be further from the truth. Let us remember that we are not fighting a battle against flesh (other people) but against spiritual wickedness in high places, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, and let us make sure we are prepared for the battle that we face daily.

Put on the whole armor of God (Ephesians 6:11-18)!