He [the devil] has always hated the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, it is consistent with his character; for he is a liar and the father of lies.
John 8:44b NLT
Can a Christian be under spiritual attack in the middle of a church service? In my experience, the answer is – yes. I found myself in the middle of an onslaught of core shaking lies while singing praises to my God. How can that be? Was it really a spiritual attack? How can one know?
There are so many factors that feed our thoughts and it’s important to understand not every negative thought is an attack from the devil. I could just as easily have contributed my thoughts to the pain medication I’m on for my broken wrist, or the depression that so often tries to take hold of me, or even the gray clouds that overcast the sky. These are all natural influences.
In Ephesians 4:27, scripture tells us we can give the devil a foothold. Natural influences can create fertile ground for the devil’s lies to take root, but scripture is full of ways to combat his schemes.
I recognized the lies when my thoughts turned to attacks on my worth. When our thoughts contradict scripture we can capture it.
The weapons we use are not human ones. Our weapons have power from God and can destroy the enemy’s strong places. We destroy people’s arguments, and we tear down every proud idea that raises itself against the knowledge of God. We also capture every thought and make it give up and obey Christ.
2 Corinthians 10:4-5 ERV
God never devalues us. If you find thoughts creeping in to convince you that you aren’t loved or you aren’t good enough, I encourage you to read the following scripture. Then tell the devil you see his lies and you don’t believe them.
What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us? Since he did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won’t he also give us everything else? Who dares accuse us whom God has chosen for his own? No one—for God himself has given us right standing with himself. Who then will condemn us? No one—for Christ Jesus died for us and was raised to life for us, and he is sitting in the place of honor at God’s right hand, pleading for us.
Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? (As the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.”) No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.
And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 8:31-39 NLT
Grace & Peace,
Sandy
The Far Reaches of Grace 