We believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing good to all men; in deed, we may say that we follow the admonition of Paul ... if there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy, we seek after these things.

Tuesday, September 23, 2014

We wrestle not aganist flesh and blood.

I moved my office into a different room in my house Saturday and for two days I was unable to find my Scriptures. I uncovered them this morning and it is such a good feeling to have them back. I can certainly pray without those books and think happy uplifting thoughts without them, but to study them I must have them in hand. My Bible was still opened to the scripture I was reading when the people who had agreed to help me with the heavier things arrived.
“For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.”  (Ephesians 6:12)
In other words we wrestle against unseen things, which know what the stakes are and want to detour us from reaching the gates of Heaven.  How well I remember when I was as a teen, Pistol Stearns teaching our Sunday School class and asking what Satan looks like. “Is he dressed in a red underwear and carrying a pitchfork? Does he have a pointed tail and horns on his head? If he did we would surly know him.”
 Some of us even then would still follow him because the way back to God seems so hard and Heaven seems so far away.  Evil is so cleaver. “You messed up too bad. You’ll never get to Heaven now. Come with me,” it says.
Most of us got to that point because of those unseen things that appear good but lead us away from the straight and narrow path. “I’m all right I can still see the path,” we say. Then one day we realize we are too far away to get back without hardship. Been there done that and I bet you have also. Paul certainly did and he thought he WAS doing the right thing. The Lord knew his heart and what he desired. Paul may have even been like my dad sitting out in the bushes with his shotgun praying, “Lord help me see who is cutting my fence so I can shoot at them.” Paul might have been praying, “Lord help me find those horrible Christians so I can kill them.”  
Evil is so cleaver that most of the time it appears good and holy and righteous.      

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