Friday From the Heart: Living What I Believe

About two weeks before Christmas I was shopping for books for the kids. That day I was led to this great find at one of the many bookstores that I stopped in. I am a stickler for truth where it comes to authors who write about the things of God. I have mentioned this before, but I have to fully vet a speaker/author against what I know the Bible says before I will really even take the time. Life is too short to be wasting time on something that won't bring me closer to Jesus.

Erwin Lutzer is an author I enjoy reading and when I saw that the forward was written by R.C. Sproul I was very interested. But what caught me was the title. It made sense to me knowing that my God is sovereign and that He controls all that He has created but I stood there in the store wondering if I really live like I believe that the enemy I battle is under God's command.

I don't write very many book reviews but this one I highly recommend. I had cause to stop and ponder almost a decade ago that I give Satan too much power when I believe that he can read my mind. He can't, he doesn't and that was helpful as I struggled through some things and grew in the process. But here, the way Lutzer lays it out we see the argument (which really is a no brainer but isn't something I really ever thought through fully) that Satan is NOT the opposite of God.

So, the "omni's"...all of them...OMNIPOTENT...OMNIPRESENT...OMNISCIENT...Satan has none of those characteristics. But, I think in a way, I have been living like he does have some of those abilities. Not only does he NOT read my thoughts, he also had no idea what would result from his tempting Eve in the garden. He had no idea that God has a plan, that God would use him and so he is wandering the earth, going "to and fro" simply reacting to God's great love for us.

Satan thought he could win us to him by his temptation and has through history been coming up with a game plan with the help of the demons to react to God's plan of grace and salvation from the fall. It is a battle that Satan may still believe he can win...or at least take many with him. These things aren't really what we as believers would like to think and ponder about long.

Here are a few great quotes I noted in my journal as I read so I can go back over them when I need some reminding:

• Incredibly, Adam was seduced by a creature who was beneath him. He withdrew from his God-given responsibilities and accepted the word of a beast. Man, who could have walked tall among the creatures, now stoops to the suggestion of one of them.
• Satan could not foresee this divine intervention. He did not know that God would take the initiative and reconcile humans to Himself.
• The will of God is something all of us would choose if we knew all the facts.
• Even today, through doctrinal confusion and moral degeneration, Satan continues his relentless pursuit of the people of God. He wants us to poison our commitment to Christ through contamination from the world.
• Even righteous people feel sinful in the presence of God. (Zech. 3:1-7)
• Though most agree that at the end of the day God will win, some people live and talk as if it will be a close finish. Well it won't be.
• REMEMBER: Satan will take all the power that our unbelief gives to him!
• As parents we have all taken our children to the zoo. As we have walked past the lion's cage, the children are frightened, but we aren't. That is because children usually look at the lion, but parents usually look at the bars.
• Many times believers might be seeking a quick deliverance when God might be seeking a lasting repentance.
• Do not believe the lie that Satan has a right to you if you have been purchased at high cost by the blood of Christ. (Col. 1:13)
• If he cannot keep us from heaven, at least he can keep us from usefulness on earth.
• Today Satan can no longer tempt Christ to avoid the cross, but he can tempt us to belittle it.
• If we remember that the devil is under His supervision, we will believe that God has a purpose in deepening our walk with Him even while the struggle rages.
• We are blessed when we can still see the face of God even when a demon speaks in our ear.
• Hopelessness is one of Satan's most believable lies.
• If we really feared God, we would have to fear little else.
• If we could see the devil himself in the midst of every sin, we would be more prudent, for while sin attracts us, the devil repels us.
• Though we abhor him, we often find ourselves comfortable with his attitudes and behaviors.
• What is the difference between a believer who slanders the people of God and the serpent who does the same?
• REMEMBER: Satan wants us to ascribe to him what he does not have, namely invincibility. He is as strong as we believe him to be.
• The wolf turns back when the sheep he has been pursuing stay closer to the shepherd.
• We must get beyond the notion that something has to be pleasant in order for it to be good.

As you can see, there is so much to ponder in this, the first book on my 2018 reading list. I will review this often as my human finite mind doesn't always remember that I need to live what I believe. Satan is the father of lies and he throws them out at us all of the time.

If you have read this far in my review, you should definitely read this book! It is reassuring to know that I shouldn't be surprised when my life feels like a battle. Then again, I shouldn't fight it like I am defeated because I know my enemy and I know my God. It really is a no brainer. The trick is living, making decisions and relating to others with the understanding of what is really going on.