Understanding the Enemy!

[S. Carpenter]

On 12/3/2003 at 7:22 PM, George said:

Hello my dear brothers and sisters in the Lord,

I thought I write about the flip side of a topic, and how to recognize the attempts of the enemy to destroy lives and how you can walk in His victory!

For the Apostle Paul taught us not to be ignorant of enemy's tactics and strategies.

2 Corinthians 2:112  Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices. 

So often, we can learn lessons by learning and playing "devil's" advocate.  When we read this passage,

Mar 3:26  And if Satan rise up against himself, and be divided, he cannot stand, but hath an end. 
Mar 3:27  No man can enter into a strong man's house, and spoil his goods, except he will first bind the strongman; and then he will spoil his house. 

Here we learn a lesson that in order to plunder one's house you must first BIND up the strongman.  While we realize in this particular passage this is referring to God binding up the strongman (Satan) and this is how Satan's house is plundered.  But if you carefully analyze the enemy -- you realize that he uses the same tactics on us!  Your house cannot be plundered -- unless you are first bound.   And then Satan can plunder your house!

Let's take a marriage situation.  A husband and wife are newly married and they are just getting by.  The wife hasn't had a new dress in some time, and while she's out and about -- she stumbles across a dress that is 75% off and a steal!  She's in need of some new clothing and thinks to herself -- I should get this while it's soo cheap!  Meanwhile, her husband is looking over a mountain of bills and thinking to himself, the only way to get out of this mess is to work "overtime" and starts to figure out how much he needs to work to cover all their bills.  When the wife comes home, she's looking fine in her dress and the first thought of her husband -- planted by the enemy -- can you believe that your wife spent money on a dress?  Of course, this feeds into his mind and reacts to the thought -- and gets angry at his wife and demands that she take the dress back.  So he's ignoring the fact how good she looks in the dress, and ignores how cheap it was -- and allows a foothold to be set!  The wife can't believe it -- and let's the emotion burn in her while biting her tongue.  

A few weeks goes by, and the husband is out and about and sees a fishing rod on sale -- and buys it!  The wife sees the new fishing rod -- the enemy then brings back that emotion of what happened a few weeks prior about the dress -- and suddenly she explodes!  And now you have the beginnings of how the enemy has taken footholds and then created strongholds -- and for the ultimate purpose of dividing a marriage!

Now let's look at Luke and see what lessons we can learn from it.

Luk 11:20  But if I with the finger of God cast out devils, no doubt the kingdom of God is come upon you. 
Luk 11:21  When a strong man armed keepeth his palace, his goods are in peace: 
Luk 11:22  But when a stronger than he shall come upon him, and overcome him, he taketh from him all his armour wherein he trusted, and divideth his spoils. 
Luk 11:23  He that is not with me is against me: and he that gathereth not with me scattereth. 

If you notice this, the strong man who's armed -- ready for battle -- ready to face whatever comes his way -- he's living in PEACE!  

If we recognize the first steps of the enemy's work in our lives -- knowing he's trying to create footholds -- you'll begin to understand why?  He can't rob, kill and destroy you -- unless you are FIRST bound up!  So we need to be armed with the Word, armed with the knowledge of the enemy's tactics, and be ready to defend what is rightfully ours!  We need to take authority over the powers of darkness because that authority was given to us at the cross!

Luk 10:18  And he said to them, "I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.
Luk 10:19  Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you.
Luk 10:20  Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven."

So we fight the good fight of faith, standing in His victory and be ready to pounce on every thought that is not of God -- that is being used to BIND US up!   Be prepared to battle today -- put on the full armor of God -- and be ready to pounce on every thought that would seek to create a foothold in your life!  When you do this, truly you will become a strong man who's possessions are at perfect peace!

Your brother in the Lord with much agape love,

George

Hello George,

Starting at the top, I got curious about the context.

2 Corinthians 2:7-11 New International Version "7 Now instead, you ought to forgive and comfort him, so that he will not be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow. 8 I urge you, therefore, to reaffirm your love for him. 9 Another reason I wrote you was to see if you would stand the test and be obedient in everything. 10 Anyone you forgive, I also forgive. And what I have forgiven—if there was anything to forgive—I have forgiven in the sight of Christ for your sake, 11 in order that Satan might not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes."

What comes before that, as I'm sure we're all familiar with, is the whole upset found in 1 Corinthians about the man who was having sex with his father's wife. Paul wrote to them "And you are proud!" in his alarm that they were not mourning this being in their midst. So it's got quite a story behind it. However, I think context is important. What has happened here (right near 2 Corinthians 2:11  Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices.)  in 2 Corinthians 2:7-11, is that Paul has seen the response of the Corinthians which was obedient to do discipline on the man, and because the man responded with great sorrow and repentance, his sins are forgiven by God, thus also by Paul, who is urging the church at Corinth to also forgive the man before his sorrow becomes excessive and overwhelms him. They were told to reaffirm their love for him (thus not holding a grudge, a sure sign of a lack of forgiveness).

This seems to me to be the way Satan "outwits" us. Satan is called 'the accuser of the brethren' (Revelation 12:10). So that lines up with the ongoing accusation, without forgiveness of the man who had sinned.

The next passage George quoted I found interesting:
"Mar 3:26  And if Satan rise up against himself, and be divided, he cannot stand, but hath an end. 
Mar 3:27  No man can enter into a strong man's house, and spoil his goods, except he will first bind the strongman; and then he will spoil his house."

Jesus is explaining, as I think you already pointed out, George, that He is binding Satan (aka the strong man in the parable) and plundering his house -- of souls, by freeing them from demon possession.

What's interesting to me is how many times people see this as a power given to us, when it was only given to the Apostles. How do I know it wasn't? Or claim I know?

Acts 19:13-20 "¹³ Some Jews who went around driving out evil spirits tried to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who were demon-possessed. They would say, “In the name of the Jesus whom Paul preaches, I command you to come out.” ¹⁴ Seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, were doing this. ¹⁵ One day the evil spirit answered them, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know about, but who are you?” ¹⁶ Then the man who had the evil spirit jumped on them and overpowered them all. He gave them such a beating that they ran out of the house naked and bleeding.

^"17 When this became known to the Jews and Greeks living in Ephesus, they were all seized with fear, and the name of the Lord Jesus was held in high honor. ¹⁸ Many of those who believed now came and openly confessed what they had done. ¹⁹ 

"A number who had practiced sorcery brought their scrolls together and burned them publicly. When they calculated the value of the scrolls, the total came to fifty thousand drachmas. ²⁰ In this way the word of the Lord spread widely and grew in power."

 

From what I can gather from this passage, trying to cast out demons without the direct giving of that power from Jesus, and as an Apostle of Christ, seems to be seen as sorcery. Is it perhaps that the way these people were attempting to cast out demons was by using their own means rather than God's?

I would like to know, if you have the time, brother George, what you think, please? Thank you for reading it.

 

 

 

 

Edited July 26, 2022 by S. Carpenter
Restating the second to last line.

[Marilyn C]

On 12/4/2003 at 1:52 PM, George said:

Hello my dear brothers and sisters in the Lord,

I thought I write about the flip side of a topic, and how to recognize the attempts of the enemy to destroy lives and how you can walk in His victory!

For the Apostle Paul taught us not to be ignorant of enemy's tactics and strategies.

2 Corinthians 2:112  Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices. 

 

Hi George,

This is so very important and all the more nearly 20 years later, 2022. The enemy is very busy trying to get believers divided over all sort of things. Whereas the Lord has told us to -

`draw near with a true heart....hold fast the confession of our hope....consider one another.....exhort (warn and encourage) each other and all the more as you see the day approaching.` (Heb. 10: 22 - 25)

 

And I also like what the Jews will do in the trib, -

`Then those that feared the Lord spoke to one another, and the Lord listened and heard them; so a book of remembrance was written before Him for those who fear the Lord and who meditate on His name....` (Micah: 3: 16)

 

Something we can do instead of always talking about the worries and fears and what the world is doing. We can talk more about the Lord, His wonderful character and what He is doing amongst us and over the world.

 

regards, Marilyn.

[com7fy8]

On 7/26/2022 at 1:06 AM, S. Carpenter said:

From what I can gather from this passage, trying to cast out demons without the direct giving of that power from Jesus, and as an Apostle of Christ, seems to be seen as sorcery. Is it perhaps that the way these people were attempting to cast out demons was by using their own means rather than God's?

I would like to know, if you have the time, brother George, what you think, please? Thank you for reading it.

Hi  

In any case, I would say that we should not try to do anything by our own means.

In the case of those guys who could not cast out the evil spirit, I have understood that was because they were not with Jesus. They needed to be filled with the Holy Spirit. It was not, then, about if they were apostles, but they did not even have the Holy Spirit.

So . . . your question remains > what if they were Spirit-filled but were not apostles; would it have been possible for them then to cast out demons, even if they were not apostles? Is it possible that Jesus does give direct authority, as you say, to non-apostles, to cast out evil spirits?

Well . . . for one thing . . . if there are no apostles today to cast out demons, how is this going to be done with someone who needs to be saved?

We'll see what George has to say.

I personally do not know of scripture which directly says only apostles can cast out devils. But I do trust that we need to do only what Jesus has us doing in sharing with Him. We need to not take anything into our own hands.

"without Me you can do nothing," Jesus says in John 15:5.

Jesus is the Lord. All things are managed and coordinated by God in relation with Jesus. So, not only must someone have personal direction of Jesus to cast out an evil spirit, but we all always need to be with Jesus in His personal guiding - - - in His "yoke" (Matthew 11:29) with Jesus proving Himself with us in His "rest for your souls." 

But those guys were not operating with Jesus and the church, I would say. May be they were making things up as they went along, and so they were isolated, not guided by God in sharing with us together.

There are ones nowadays who claim that we are supposed to get ourselves to do what God wants. But this can be a device, also, of Satan, which gets someone isolated and burnt out and so busy and dizzy > ones claim that God does not want to personally guide us, in every thing; they say we would be unthinking puppets if we were to depend on our Father to guide us all the time.

But we are alive in His love while we are ruled by God > Romans 5:5; and in the ongoing ruling of His peace > Colossians 3:15 > we have our Creator's creativity for how to love each person.

Isolated self-guided people do not have this. But in Jesus >

"it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure." (in Philippians 2:13)

 

[Duck]

^{Acts 19}

¹¹ Now God worked unusual miracles by the hands of Paul,

 ¹² so that even handkerchiefs or aprons were brought from his body to the sick, and the diseases left them and the evil spirits went out of them. 

¹³ Then some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists took it upon themselves to call the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, “We exorcise you by the Jesus whom Paul preaches.” 

¹⁴ Also there were seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, who did so.

¹⁵ And the evil spirit answered and said, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?”

¹⁶ Then the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, overpowered them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded. 

[JimmyB]

On 12/22/2003 at 8:56 AM, RGR said:

I am, as stated before, Pentecostal. I certainly don't speak in tounges all of the time and really I'm not sure how often, etc. dealing with this myself. I've heard it said that it should be once a day, but really I don't know. I also find the Bible strangely silent on this issue as well. We read of the situation of tounges used in church discussed by the Apostle Paul, but we find nothing saying frequency. I suppose that's between the person and God. Maybe I should talk in tounges more? Don't know. Really don't give it much thought. I would suppose, also, that maybe this is something I should be praying about!

I don't think there is a required frequency.  When I pray, I'd say it's in tongues 75% of the time.  It's the Holy Spirit within me communicating with God; I don't know what's being said.  It's reconnecting, sort of like inserting a plug into a socket to get electricity flowing.

[Walter and Deborah]

Tuesday 10-4-22 3rd. Day Of The Weekly Cycle, Tishri 7 5783 12th. Fall Day

Hi George, and how are you all? just going over your posts, they are great!

Love, Walter and Debbie

[com7fy8]

On 10/3/2022 at 7:38 AM, johann pretorius said:

“Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” Isaiah 41:10

"casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you." (1 Peter 5:7)

[believeinHim]

I seem to remember another version of this posted on facebook somewhere 

[S. Carpenter]

On 12/3/2003 at 7:22 PM, George said:

Mar 3:26  And if Satan rise up against himself, and be divided, he cannot stand, but hath an end. 
Mar 3:27  No man can enter into a strong man's house, and spoil his goods, except he will first bind the strongman; and then he will spoil his house. 

Here we learn a lesson that in order to plunder one's house you must first BIND up the strongman.  While we realize in this particular passage this is referring to God binding up the strongman (Satan) and this is how Satan's house is plundered.  But if you carefully analyze the enemy -- you realize that he uses the same tactics on us!  Your house cannot be plundered -- unless you are first bound.   And then Satan can plunder your house!

You are bound already prior to salvation. "He who sins is a slave to sin"
All people are born in sin, therefore, we all start out "bound" to this, though none of us knows this.

Until....

We are saved by God in Christ Jesus. Then the ransom price Jesus paid on our behalf on the cross has purchased us or "ransomed" us from sin the devil and death.

At this point one can no longer be "bound" by Satan and plundered.

It doesn't seem like I would have to quote scripture to you. But if you're not sure where I get this from scripture, just let me know, and I'll be happy to look it up.

[Michael37]

3 hours ago, S. Carpenter said:

You are bound already prior to salvation. "He who sins is a slave to sin"
All people are born in sin, therefore, we all start out "bound" to this, though none of us knows this.

Until....

We are saved by God in Christ Jesus. Then the ransom price Jesus paid on our behalf on the cross has purchased us or "ransomed" us from sin the devil and death.

At this point one can no longer be "bound" by Satan and plundered.

It doesn't seem like I would have to quote scripture to you. But if you're not sure where I get this from scripture, just let me know, and I'll be happy to look it up.

Hi @S. Carpenter 

Are you familiar with the strawman fallacy of logic? I believe your comment qualifies as this with an argument against what has not been stated or implied.

I hope you will appreciate Worthy Ministries and its founder George Whitten's leadership and stewardship during your time with us as many of us find these to be of great benefit in promoting the spiritual growth of the Body of Christ and its members.

Blessings from Michael37