A biker was hit right in front of the house. There's a fire truck and a paramedic van and a lot of cars and police right in front of the house, and a big commotion that I slept through.
I took three pictures. There are a lot of bikers that pass by the house on a day to day basis. I'm terribly sorry that one of them was hit. I'm going to pray for that one.
"God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth." The Saviour, in the Gospel According to John Chapter 4, Verse 24.
My love for you is like a butterfly. It appears to give you rise. And suddenly, without a reason why, It leaves right before your eyes. But you have no reason to be crying, Inside, I'm sorry, I'm slowly dying.
My love for you is like a winter breeze. Whispering softly in your right ear. Blowing in you, putting you at ease. Hiding my pain, making it seem sincere. But no need to feel like dying, Inside I'm sobbing, Inside I'm crying.
And when
"If you think this poem isn't complete, think again. That's all that I wrote. I wrote this from when I believe to be the end of my junior year of high school ( the beginning of March). This is evidence because on the piece of paper I wrote it on, I penciled in at the top right "beginning of March," so I'd know when I wrote it if I ever looked back on it. I'm going to destroy the original, which reveals a few changes/mistakes at the beginning of the 8th, 9th, and 10th lines. It's a very ugly poem, to say the least about it. There isn't anything I like about it, and it doesn't seem to show the feeling that caused me to write it. Oh well. Lost poetry."
At around 6:30 or so, I suddenly decided to see a movie. I knew that money might be tight later on in the future, and that I might need that money, but I wanted to take my sister and I to see something, since we've been spending a lot more time with each other. I shower and we go and see the movie before the sun sets. We see Sky Captain: And the World of Tomorrow. It was like a modern rendition of a classical movie. I didn't like the beginning, but the movie was getting better and better. I couldn't help thinking how the movie related to the book I am working on, and how I never work on it to begin with.
At the movie's end, we walk out and I realize that the sun has already set and that the Sabbath day has begun, and that I should be careful. My sister and I walk to the parking garage from the movie theater, Muvico, after walking past large crowds and fresh, young faces 'hanging' on a Friday evening with 'much ado about nothing.' We walk to the area that leads to the parking garage, and as we cross the roadway, there is a young man handing out red cards. He says, "Have I given you one of these already?" As if I was familiar. I gladly accepted the card, gave him a smile, and continued on after noticing the word "Indianapolis" written in large letters on his sweater, and just beneath it in smaller lettering, "University."
On the way, I was attracted almost blindingly by the sultry sound of a well-played violin. My younger sister and I passed by a gentleman dressed in a white hat, blue jeans, and a shirt my guitar teacher Marvin might wear. He sat playing the violin at an unusual angle, crossing his legs. There was a man that walked up that looked a lot like Keith Richards or someone familiar that was saying that he knew the guy and that he plays well, and about how he can toss the bow he plays with and pluck the strings. The violinist said with a smile, "All denominations are welcome!" I stood there captivated by his playing. The other man asks, "Any requests?" I asked, "Is that an electric violin, or is that a pickup on the bridge?" He kindly informed me that it was a pickup, his yellow teeth showing. I studied his violin - there was wear around a certain area of the violin from the bow striking the strings, but the wear was very uniform. Each time he'd play, he strikes the strings in exactly the same place. He played the 4 strings with his fingers and used the bow. I could tell he knew a library of songs. I studied carefully how he did his fingering, and the violin itself, which had f-holes. It was small and brown. The tuning forks were made of wood. There was a place for his chin, but he didn't have it to his chin. The thin electrical wire ran down his arm and hid itself behind him, consealing its source. I must have stood there for about 15 minutes. As I stood, people gathered, and a teenager put change in the man's bucket. I slipped him a dollar bill from my wallet. After the violinist's fan left, I said to him, "Thanks for showing me something new," and we were on our way.
After finding the car on level 4 and paying to get out of the parking garage, I suddenly realized that it was the Sabbath day, and that I just sinned by paying the parking person. I'm terribly sorry for this sin. Tonight I've gained a lot. I knew that this was an inspired event. I'm going to hold onto what I've gained tonight, which is partly why I've typed it down. This I do so that the grace lost is regained through the use of the knowledge in how I will glorify Him.
"The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished:" The Second Epistle of Peter Chapter 2, Verse 9.
Before, how to defeat temptation was taken from the Word. Now, how to prevent temptation, which is important to staying away from sin.
In the Book of Proverbs, by Solomon, its written of the ways of temptation. It is very important to understand this. It tells about how temptation works ~ how its able to entice you, begging you to fall from the innocence God gave you by the forgiveness of sins by Christ, and so this is important to understand, so that you, the new man (again, man as in human not male), don't fall from the grace that the Son has given you.
Turn with me to the Book of Proverbs Chapter 7. We start with verse 1. Verse 1, "My son, keep my words, and lay up my commandments with thee." This is what God has always wanted us to do. If this is not done, then therein lies sin! Pay close attention to these following words.
Verse 2, "Keep my commandments, and live; and my law as the apple of thine eye." Life is with God, the Father of lights. Death is otherwise, which is only darkness. God, in this world, exhalts His Word above all else. This means that what is written in the law and the commandments, and the proverbs that God instituted through Solomon, of the line of David through which Christ came, take precedence above all else. If you follow what God has given, you will not fail in this world. Salvation as your success, and the infallible Word as your guide, no man can take away what grace Christ has given you. This is why it is important to refrain from sin, which is a thief to steal grace away.
How do the Commandments Help to Prevent Temptation?
Verse 3, "Bind them upon thy fingers, write them upon the table of thine heart." Verse 4, "Say unto wisdom, Thou art my sister; and call understanding thy kinswoman:" Verse 5, "That they may keep thee from the strange woman, from the stranger which flattereth with her words." What is said here through Solomon is so important: because Jesus Christ, our Saviour, is the wisdom of God. He alone is the Word from God's mouth, to bring man to hear the Lord rather than the sin within them, so that we're like-minded through Christ. When Solomon talks of wisdom and understanding, Solomon foreshadows Christ, who is the Word, which is wisdom.
Verse 6, "For at the window of my house I looked through my casement," Verse 7, "And beheld among the simple ones, I discerned among the youths, a young man void of understanding," Verse 8, "Passing through the street near her corner; and he went the way to her house," Verse 9, "In the twilight, in the evening, in the black and dark night:" Verse 10, "And, behold, there met him a woman with the attire of an harlot, and subtil of heart." Ask the Spirit of Truth, the Holy Spirit, to cause you to understand what you are reading. The truth, the meaning behind this, can only be revealed to the one reading by the Spirit of Truth, by Christ.
Verse 11, "(She is loud and stubborn; her feet abide not in her house:" In Job, satan told the Father that he'd been roaming the earth, when he tried to come to present himself before the Lord with God's angels.
Verse 12, "Now is she without, now in the streets, and lieth in wait at every corner.)" Temptation abounds in the world, but the kingdom of God is within you.
Verse 13, "So she caught him, and kissed him, and with an impudent face said unto him," Verse 14, "I have peace offerings with me; this day have I payed my vows." She comes dressed like a harlot, which we today would call a prostitute. She tells him that she's just married. The peace offerings would be household gifts from the marriage between her and her husband. She seeks to commit the sin of adultery.
Verse 15, "Therefore came I forth to meet thee, diligently to seek thy face, and I have found thee." Verse 16, "I have decked my bed with coverings of tapestry, with carved works, with fine linen of Egypt." Verse 17, "I have perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon." When Jesus Christ defeated satan by the sword of the Spirit, one of the things satan tempted and tried Christ with was with all of the riches and treasures of the kingdoms of earth (which goes to show you how effective satan's temptation is over man without Christ). She comes decorated, and speaks of the pleasantries awaiting him if he'd just give in.
Verse 18, "Come, let us take our fill of love until the morning: let us solace ourselves with loves." Verse 19, "For the goodman is not at home, he is gone a long journey:" Christ went to sit on the right hand of the Father, as the Son. The Church is the bride of Christ (Church being all men and women saved by the blood of Christ and that will inherit the kingdom of heaven after this world, and not a building of wood, sticks, and brick). While Christ is with the Father, Christ is with us through the Holy Spirit, and not in flesh, as with which He came into the world. This is the journey, that satan deceives you into not seeing Christ when you're tempted. The sword of the Spirit defeats this - you know that God is a shield to those that know the truth (Book of Proverbs Chapter 30, Verse 5), and that God is with you. But God is faithful and wont leave you alone to be tempted. He's with you, and this is one of the ways the sword of the Spirit helps.
Verse 20, "He hath taken a bag of money with him, and will come home at the day appointed." Christ shall return in glory - at a day that the Father chooses. There's a money bag spoken of in the Gospel - the money that Judas Iscariot, the disciple that betrayed Christ, carried. The money bag is what allowed Judas Iscariot to be tempted - why he surcombed to being possessed by satan. Be careful of the money bag. Christ said, "Woe to those that are with child in the day that I return, "(this is not an exact quote). If we lye down and commit adultery with the woman, and Christ returns, it wont go unpunished!
Where Does the Temptation Come Into Play?
Verse 21, "With her much fair speech she caused him to yield, with the flattering of her lips she forced him." This is the temptation! Satan attempted to tempt Christ with sly words, but Christ defeated satan by the sword of the Spirit. The sword that Christ has given you is much more powerful than satan's sword. Christ defeated satan's sword to show you how. In the Gospel According to Matthew Chapter 4, Verse 10, "Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve." Satan fled from Christ after that, defeated.
Continuing in the Book of Proverbs Chapter 7, Verse 22, "He goeth after her straightway, as an ox goeth to the slaughter, or as a fool to the correction of the stocks;" Here, the man, who lacked understanding, gave into the temptation. He didn't resist the devil, and if he did, by the sword of the Spirit, satan would have fled, defeated.
Verse 23, "Till a dart strike through his liver; as a bird hasteth to the snare, and knoweth not that it is for his life." The wage of even one sin is death. This is evident through Adam's sin. All sin leads to and resolves to death. But we, as children of light, know that Christ paid that price for us in the flesh so that we may life through spirit.
By Knowing What God Wants Me to Know?
Verse 24, "Hearken unto me now therefore, O ye children, and attend to the words of my mouth." We follow Christ, the wisdom of God that proceeded out of His mouth from heaven, so that we don't pay for the result of these sins later on.
Verse 25, "Let not thine heart decline to her ways, go not astray in her paths." Verse 26, "For she hath cast down many wounded: yea, many strong ment have been slain by her." Verse 27, "Her house is the way to hell, goind down to the chambers of death."
Those last verses tell a lot: there is no man alive that hasn't sinned. Christ never sinned, so the way out of sin is Christ, who is the way, the truth, and the life. And this is why defeating or preventing temptation is impossible with Him, who makes it possible. Strong men have surcombed to the temptation spoken of in this chapter. So this is why we can't do it alone - because the very nature of the flesh is sin, being taken from the fallen earth. The next time you're tempted and you unsheath your sword, have eyes to see, and see that the house that you're being lead to, with all of its arrangements and decoration, is a chamber of death, whose path leads to hell. To see and understand in terms of the eternity, rather than what your fleshly eyes are being deceived to perceive.
Lets turn again, to Chapter 6, Verse 20. Verse 20, "My son, keep thy father's commandment, and forsake not the law of thy mother:" Verse 21, "Bind them continually upon thine heart, and tie them about thy neck." Verse 22, "When thou goest, it shall lead thee; when thou sleepest, it shall keep thee; and when thou awakest, it shall talk with thee." Christ is the living Word! The Holy Spirit is with us and unites us as the body of Christ. All laws are fulfilled through Christ, because we're saved by grace, Christ bringing all laws under Him in one glorious sacrifice. We keep God's commandments because we love Him, having His grace.
Christ and the Commandments?
Verse 23, "For the commandment is a lamp; and the law is light; and reproofs of instruction are the way of life:" Verse 24, "To keep thee form the evil woman, from the flattery of the tongue of a strange woman." Jesus Christ is the commandment, and He is the law. This is very important. The manner in which Christ sacrificed sin brought the law under Christ so that by following Him, we fulfill the law. You'll also hear being said that Christ is the living 'Torah,' which are the laws, statutes, and commandments of God. When Christ did that, salvation was made through Him. Christ has always been with the Father, from even the foundation of the earth in the first earth age. He has always been who He is - the light. This is evident in Proverbs, when Jesus Christ is mentioned and where parts of Christ's gospel and life are foreshadowed again and again. As well as every other book.
Verse 25, "Lust not after her beauty in thine heart; neither let her take thee with her eyelids." Verse 26, "For by means of a whorish woman a man is brought to a piece of bread: and the adulteress will hunt for the precious life." The adulteress, satan, takes life by the seeds of death - your sins. Now we get to another important part:
Verse 27, "Can a man take fire in his bosom, and his clothes not be burned?" Verse 28, "Can one go upon hot coals, and his feet not be burned?"
Verse 29, "So he that goeth in to his neighbour's wife; whosoever toucheth her shall not be innocent." If you so much as look upon a member of the opposite sex and commit the touching of that person in your heart out of lust, you too have committed a sin - and all unrighteousness is sin. It says in these 3 verses that all men have sinned, and all men are subjected to sin, so don't think that its possible to resist the devil alone - you will fall, and succomb, as every other man. As I have done. But its possible with Christ, who said, "With what's impossible with man is made possible with the Father." This is in the Gospel According to Matthew Chapter 19, Verse 26.
Here we go into the eyes. Satan tempted Christ with treasures, and he will tempt you, too, with the same, as someone who has the Saviour within them. But Christ said this: The Gospel According to Matthew Chapter 6, Verse 19, "Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:" Verse 20, "But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break nor steal:" If you are going to enter into the kingdom of heaven, you need not worry or concern yourself with the treasures of this world. This world's lustful offerings aren't anything compared with the glory that you'll be arrayed with in the kingdom of heaven, or the things that God has waiting for you there. He knows the extent of your mind's imaginations. He has created some of the things of this world to be pleasureful for a reason. Though satan may exploit this, we as the children of light, having eyes to see by Christ, can see past these exploits, having everything in the kingdom of heaven and an inheritance with Christ in salvation.
Treasures Waiting for me in Heaven?
No man can take away or prevent you from having what God wants you to have. No being, not even satan.
Verse 21, "For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also." Verse 22, "The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light." Verse 23, "But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!"
Frequently through the Gospel the Saviour might say, "he that hath ears to hear, let him hear," or, "he that hath eyes to see, let him see," to call His elect to attention. The eye is important to preventing sin. Christ said earlier in chapter 5 and verse 28, "But I say unto you, That whosever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart."
Technology of the Angels?!
While on the road on day-to-day activities, we see a lot of cars. We might spot one we like. We favor it and it becomes appealing to the eye. If I were to lust after this car in my heart and want it for myself - even this would be sin! But the joy comes from resisting that temptation - that you might be whole in Christ, wanting nothing, and having everything in the kingdom of heaven. If you read the Word, you will see that its evident in books such as Ezekiel that the angels possess a technology far superior to anything man can perceive. The glory of the kingdom of heaven is so great, it outdates any technology on the market at any date! What God has made to be greater than this world will be more than sufficient for you. Trust in God, that He will raise up for you all that you will ever want in heaven in that day of rest.
In the very same chapter 5, it reads in verse 29, "And if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell." Any man would think that by doing this, they would be taken away a part of themselves, but this is said so that you know that by not sinning, you would be keeping the innocence that Christ gives you that makes you whole. And that fills the void that you'd feel without Christ.
Now lets go back to chapter 6. In verse 23, Christ talked about the light of the body being the eye. Christ healed many and opened the eyes of the blind. Without the truth, we are in darkness, but Christ brings us to the light, opening the eyes of every one quickened by His holy Spirit. By looking at these things - the cars, the clothes, the jewelry, and all of the things that we know that are wants and are lusts to the heart, we fill ourselves with wants! We pollute the light that Christ has given us. But by knowing that our wants are fulfilled through salvation, and that the light of men will glorify us and array us in beauty and elegance and will give us more than what we desire, we know that lusting after the things of this world in our own hearts is futile, and will only hurt is with darkness.
The Lord gives us gifts and fulfills what we need, but we have no lust after these things in our hearts. This is what Job had to learn the difficult way in the Book of Job. We have supper with the Master, but we love the Master more than the Master's table, and the bread that He gives us to eat.
So Keeping the Way Prevents Temptation?
This is how we can prevent temptation, and how to not give satan the opportunity to use the desires within us. He will show you treasures, and he will ask you to come and lie with him on the bed decked with decorations, but the result of those ways are death. By Christ, we have turned from them, and by Christ we will keep His way.
Verse 24 completes this: "No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon."
Mammon is a word that means money. People personify the riches of the world. They worship their new car or they might violate the Sabbath and work to get more money. They idolize cars or strange women or authorities such as being famous in their hearts. But what foolishness that is - we know that there is no higher authority than God, and that the only way to God is the Son of God. We know that there is but one God. And one Son of God. And even so, we know that God possess even greater technology than what might sit in your wealthy neighbor's front yard, and that God provides for His children and those that are His. We know that clothes are nothing and that God knows we have need of these things and will give them to us (Gospel According to Matthew Chapter 6). We have no need to worry about extra money - like manna falling from heaven to the people God lead out of Egypt in the Book of Exodus to the desert, God will give us the abundance that we need without having to violate His commandments, and without having to sin. We know that we can find another way, because we have the Way in our hearts. So we don't allow trials or tribulations to concern us. We don't worry in our hearts over food or clothes or money, serving God. So when you see something that you might lust after, remember the Word of God, and know that you have no need for it, having salvation. All the things of this world will perish and pass away, at the coming of the kingdom of heaven.
It's very important to know that the Way spoken of is Jesus Christ. We follow the commandments because Christ followed the commandments. Salvation isn't through laws, and it isn't through remaining sinless. But through following Christ, whom the Father sent for man. Your perfection isn't through the law, but through grace. This is how to prevent temptation - by trusting in God, that Christ is the way, and that you wont fall from that way.
So Why Do I Always Fail Resisting Temptation Alone?
The Gospel According to Matthew Chapter 26, Verse 41, "Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak." The Saviour said this to His disciples after they tried to stay awake with Christ before He would be delivered into the hands of the betrayers to be crucified. They fell asleep, though they were willing. The flesh is weak and able to be tempted. This is why its so important that we not resist temptation alone - but by Christ. And so the Saviour tells them to turn to God.
And this is how to prevent temptation - by keeping the Way of God in your heart. So that your entire body is filled with light, being a child of light. Walk in the Spirit, so that all of your steps might be made to glorify the Lord, being righteous and true.
May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all.
I just came home from my guitar lesson. It started at 8:30, but he had his son Luke there and we were carried away after the lesson jamming on the guitar. I played rhythm. Boy can Luke play lead... He goes just as fast as his father does. Of course, he's been playing for 3 1/2 years, but I have to figure out this lead thing quick! I learned a lot tonight. And I can't wait to finish my homework and pray in order to finish the next study.
I will praise the Lord with music some day. But right now I have to finish this homework before school tomorrow. Oh why do I leave everything until the last second of the day?! I had two weeks to do this English homework!
In the last, how to defeat temptation was taken from the Word. Now, how to prevent temptation is taken. We take this from Jesus Christ, the Saviour's, teachings. Turn to The Gospel According to Luke Chapter 11.
I was dreaming that I met my friend Christian, whom I go to college with, in some sort of room with a display case. I looked at the items and they were all futuristic. One particular item whos shape and display, but not function, had a remainder in my mind when I awoke was a square device the size of my palm with rounded and sort of bevelled corners that had a display that had Windows XP in it, and right below, a larger panel that was completely transparent, from which you could see straight through the device. I suppose that was the keyboard, which is great because it doesn't lock you down to just one set of keys - it could have thousands of arrangements in one touch-screen. Then on the back of the see-thru panel it had basic buttons, like play and stop or pause. It was a wonderful dream, and I prayed afterwards because I'm getting ideas from these. And there was another, but I don't remember it quite as clearly.
The only way is by Christ. And by Christ alone. I tried to resist temptation alone. But in the end, or what seemed to be the end, I alone was too weak. Because the flesh is weak. This is how to defeat temptation.
What is Temptation? The word means solicitation to that which is evil. Satan is called 'the tempter.' Temptation is often thought to be internal. But in the end, temptations in this world are a result of this being. This is what must be realized: that temptation doesn't come from you, who you are in spirit, but from a force in you. It's a force that man is doomed to inherit, but which Christ defeated. This tendency doesn't exist within the spirit, but within the flesh, which is a part of this world. Satan uses this nature called sin within the flesh and tempts us. Now, I know that everyone that reads over this will most likely know what sin is. But I wanted to restate so that its made apparently clear. Sin is unrighteousness. Whoever sins transgresses the laws, commandments, and statutes that the Lord has put forth. It's important to know that if one goes against God's commandments, one is trying to go against God, and that's not what God likes. So, the wage of sin is death. The ways of sin are death, and lead to death.
It's important to remember: it's not a sin to be tempted. The sin is made manifest when a man (man being human, not male) gives into temptation. You can see why this is an important topic, because Christ was manifested in this world to defeat sin, so that no man with Christ within them dies (death isn't natural, and by the Spirit of God, man was to live forever). But if our own hearts, as the mind of the flesh, condemns us, remember that God is greater than our heart (the First Epistle of John Chapter 3, Verse 20).
How Do I Defeat Temptation? To defeat temptation is to defeat satan. Jesus Christ sits on the right hand of God in glory! He is arrayed in power and beauty! The throne of Christ, in our heart, is a throne of power. And if Christ defeated satan, defeating death, and created a way for man to live in the Spirit, then quite surely Jesus Christ can give you the power to not only resist temptation, but to defeat it! And every man that has ever been tempted and defeated satan, as Christ did, and in Christ's name, will be raised in glory with Christ, rest assured of that (The Epistle of James Chapter 1, Verse 12). He will resist a crown of life, living water to never thirst again, and a place in the kingdom of heaven. Be assured that you don't do alone.
Satan is like a roaring lion, roaming the earth, seeking those he can devour (The First Epistle of Peter Chapter 5, Verse 8 ). But be assured, this liar, deceiver, and tempter also tries the faith of all of your siblings in Christ. No temptation is upon you that the tempter hasn't tempted all of us, and our ancestors, with. But there's a difference: you have Christ! He is the way, the truth, the life, and the only way to defeat temptation, having defeated it and the tempter's ways already.
It's hard, and the writer of this message to you knows this just as well as you do. But, in Christ, the temptation and trying of your faith will will strengthen and make perfect what you are: in spirit. Like the forging of a samurai sword: the sword is heated, pounded and layered with metal over a dozen hundred times to make thousands of layers of a nearly unbreakable sword; its heated and tested by the hammer over and over in the fire until its nearly perfect. It doesn't happen over night. One sword may take months to make. But in the end, a finely sculptured and crafted work of art is made. Or again, think of how God created man out of the dust of the earth: after the potter sculpts the pot out of clay, it has to go into the kiln to be heated and tested by the fire before it can be useful.
So count it as joy to suffer in Christ's name. Account it to joy when you fall into diverse temptations (the Epistle of James Chapter 1, Verse 4). It will only add to your character, and strengthen who you are in spirit. You will have eyes and senses exercised to see good and evil. This next thing I'm about to say may not seem plausible to those that are still a babe in Christ and are still being fed with milk (the Epistle to the Hebrews Chapter 5, Verse 14), but you will also be able to discern (the First Epistle of John Chapter 4, Verse 1) the spirits: to see whether they are of God or not.
Yes, But How Do I Defeat Temptation?! With the sword! Temptation can be avoided by prayer (the Gospel According to Luke Chapter 22, Verse 46). But if a man of Christ (man as in human, not only male) is tempted by the deceiver, one must take up the sword of the Spirit to defeat him. The only way to defeat the deceiver is to resist the deceiver. Submit yourself to God, and resist the devil, and he will flee from you (The Epistle of James Chapter 4, Verse 7). It is truth. And this truth is evident in Christ.
What is the Sword of the Spirit? The sword of the Spirit is a vital part of the armour of God. Christ used the sword of the Spirit to defeat satan when He was being tempted by him in the wilderness (). That's right, ladies and gentlemen. As a son of God, you carry the sword of the Spirit with you wherever you go: past airport security, in schools, to work, and even at home in front of the television. No man can take it from you, and wherever signs of temptation are, you can surely unsheath it and be prepared to do battle, knowing that you wear the armour of God at all times. Pretty interesting? Interesting is severly understated: the armour of God is of the spirit. Just as flesh can't enter into God's kingdom, fleshly eyes can't perceive what lies in the spirit, but if you walk in the Spirit (Epistle to the Galatians Chapter 5) you will know that you have it on. You have salvation over your head, as a son of God. This is the helmet of salvation. But the sword of the Spirit comes from knowing the Word of God. From knowing Christ through love, by knowing what He taught you, and by carrying His words with you. By knowing Christ, you can also discern spirits (The First Epistle to John Chapter 4, Verse 1), and know who's of God. By knowing what Christ says, which is truth, you will know what someone else says is true or not and know whether they're by the tempter or by Christ.
The sword of the Spirit is quick and powerful, cutting not only past bone and marrow and the ways of the flesh, but also to the dividing of soul and spirit (the Epistle to the Hebrews Chapter 4, Verse 12). It's how we can discern, as children of light. The Samurai sword, by definition the katana, is made of thousands of layers of metal and forged to be nearly unbreakable. Its heavy when picked up, and it can cut through tree trunks as if it were a hot knife through butter. But the Word tells you that the sword of the Spirit that Christ asks you to take up (the Gospel According to Luke Chapter 22, Verse 36) is sharper than any sword. This is the humble power of the children of light. Not fleshly, but in spirit, cutting past flesh. This surpasses any technology at any date. And it's what Christ gave and left to you, from the Father, as worldy inheritance (just as you inherited the flesh) to defeat the trials and tribulations that the world and the prince of this world tries to use to defeat you.
To wield the sword of the Spirit is to know and to understand the Word of God (the Epistle to the Ephesians Chapter 6, Verse 17). We know the words of Christ, and we know Christ through love, having been touched by Christ personally. Jesus Christ is the living, breathing Word, and this is who we know. Knowing the Word is our sword, and faith in God is our shield.
Knowing this, also know that with the sword of the Spirit, we do battle with satan and all of his ways.
How Do I Battle Satan and the Ways of Temptation? By knowing what God wants you to know, you will have all that you need to defeat satan. God is faithful, and if He allows you to be tempted, He will also allow a way out of temptation so that you can bear it and escape it. This is why, if you battle satan and resist temptation, you will always come out stronger and exercised more against it in spirit. Believe this to be true because the Word said it and what God left for you is infallible. This means, it cannot fail and will not. It will work every time, because God will create a way out for you ever time. It's written in the First Epistle to the Corinthians Chapter 10, Verse 13.
God provided a way out for Job when He allowed satan to tempt him and take away all of the good things God gave him in the Book of Job Chapter 1, Verse 12. He wouldn't allow satan to take Job's life, and wanted him to see the end result of his temptations, and to answer the questions that he asked. If you read the Book of Job, that a lot of people talk away, you will see that the many chapters of arguments with his friends where he poses questions that man still asks today (where is my tempter, why do bad things happen to good people, and the like) are all answered in Christ. If you don't believe me, the writer of this message, believe its author, because God authored these words that I share with you today, seeing as how it's all truth. Christ is the key and if you seek to defeat satan and all of his ways, He is the only way.
Christ battled temptation in the wilderness after He was baptized: this is how to use the sword of the Spirit, in grace and in truth.
Lets step by step go through how Christ defeated the temptations of satan, the devil.
This begins in Matthew Chapter 4.
Verse 1, "Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil." Temptation came to many named in the bible. Joseph, Daniel, David, and Solomon were all tempted.
Verse 2, "And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungred." This signifies the weakness of the flesh. There was no guile or sin in Christ, but all flesh is weak.
Verse 3, "And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread." Verse 4, "But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by ever word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God." Ever since I was reborn of Christ, I have been fed daily by the Word. The flesh may live by bread, but life is given to the spirit by God's Word. This is how the sword of the Spirit is sharpened, in a sense: by knowing what God wants you to know.
Verse 5, "Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple," The body is the temple of God, where no man violates. The Church is the body of Christ: but the Church are everyone that is reborn in Christ, having the Holy Spirit within them and uniting them as brothers and sisters. The Church are the followers of Christ which house the Spirit and not a building of rocks and wood. This is why knowing the Word is so important: your salvation is through Christ, not some building with fancy windows. It's written that the things of this world will come to pass away. The Word dwells within, so don't put your faith in that going to a building once a week will save you from the hellfire satan will be in, because this is another way that satan has the world deceived. But that by going there, Christ is among the people.
Verse 6, "And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone." Satan tries to tempt our Lord Jesus Christ to jump from an exceedingly high place. This is satan's way: he makes people proud, putting them in a high place, and sets them up for a fall. He deceives people and makes them think that they'll be okay if they fall, and tempts them to take the jump. God did gave His angels charge to take care of Christ in that way, but here satan is perverting God's holy scripture. He deceives.
Verse 7, "Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God." It is important to note that in every answer Christ gave, He uses what's written: He takes from His Father's work and uses it to do battle. This is the sword of the Spirit, and how Christ set as an example of how we can defeat satan, and how he will flee from even us.
Verse 8, "Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them:" Satan is the prince of the world, and he's often underestimated. This is what makes it so hard for some to believe that temptation is from this being.
Verse 9, "And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me." Now, God created everything. This is something we'd know from Sunday school. It's fact. Jesus is God's Son, and God has everything. The things that satan will try to offer you: know that they're nothing. And compared to the glory that is in store and will be waiting for you when you defeat satan, that God has in store for you, will be far greater and eternal than anything satan can offer. The things that satan offers Christ, satan will give to the anti-christ, who will pretend to be Christ at the beginning of the third age of earth, which you can read about in the Book of Revelations.
Verse 10, "Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve." Christ once and for all defeats satan with the sword of the Spirit. Satan fears Christ more than anything. This is why the evil spirits cowar in fear when a Christian is near. In His name is how we cast out demons, which satan also uses.
Verse 11, "Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him." And if you know the Word and take up the sword of the Spirit, satan will flee from you, too!
Christ used His Father's words when He defeated satan. It's so important to know the Word: how can you do battle without knowing?
Here is some scripture that you can become familiar with that you can use to unsheath your sword:
"Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you." The Epistle of James Chapter 4, Verse 7.
"My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into diverse temptations; Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience." The Epistle of James Chapter 1, Verses 2 and 3.
Know, brethren, that Christ defeated temptation and the works of satan! If you know the Word, having Christ in you, you too can defeat satan every time.
This I do in service to those that are saved by the blood of the Lamb, God's Church. May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Marana tha,
