Tag Archives: Evil

The Devil is a Bully

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Listen to 1 Peter 5:8-10 this morning.  Peter in this passage tells us two very important facts for our lives and our walks of faith today.

Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world. And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.

First, we see in verse 8, the devil, the forces of evil are out to trip us up. There is a such a force as spiritual warfare, there is temptation, there.

Today, you will face temptation. It will happen. There are forces out there, temptations within yourself, things that are going to do their best to keep you from growing, being faithful, being effect for the gospel.

Scripture tells us that the our adversary the devil is prowling like a lion, seeking whom he may devour.

That’s fact one.

Fact two is this – bring it on!

Verse 9 says resist him, stand firm in your faith, and he will flee from you. The devil is a bully. He acts big and bad. He acts like he is strong and is all powerful.

He is not. He is not all powerful. He is not the king of the world. God is.

And through through our faith and the power of the spirit, when we stand firm, he will flee. He will.

Today, stand firm in your faith. Stand firm against the doubts, the temptations, the trials, the fear. Stand firm.

The devil is a bully. He acts big and bad. He is not. Through the power of God, he will flee.

Don’t forget, you can click here to download Asbury’s mobile app and read these devotionals, as well as listen to my sermons on your smart phones.

What to do When Tempted

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There are some things that we are all going to face. There are certain things that every human that has ever lived throughout history has had to face or deal with.

Hunger. Exhaustion. Sadness. Joy. Pain. Wonder. Love. Anger. These are all human emotions, human experiences. Everyone reading this, no matter where you has felt, or will feel these things.

There is another thing that is common to humans. Temptation. Everyone of us in the world will face temptation. Each of us will. It is what it is. It is part of the human experience. We see today, in Matthew 3: 3-4, that even Jesus faced temptation.  Listen to what happened:

And the tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” But he answered, “It is written, “‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.'”

We see the devil come to Him and tempt Him. This is one of the three temptations that Jesus faced in the wilderness.

So, if the devil tempted Jesus, who was, you know, the very son of God, do you thing we will face temptation? Of course we will. You will be tempted. It will happen.

So, what do we do? What do we do when we are tempted? Look what Jesus did. He quoted the Bible back to the devil. He had a firm foundation of scripture that He recite in the time of temptation.

What do we need to do when tempted? First, a verse of two either written down, or even better, committed to memory that you can call up in times of temptation.

For example – James 4:7 – Submit yourselves therefor to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Know that through the power of the Holy Spirit in your, when we stand upon faith, temptation will flee.

Hebrews 12:4 – In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your own blood.

These are just a few, and here is a list of some good verses that may be a help in times of temptation.

And second, pray. When you face temptation, pray. As God to help you. Strengthen you. Uphold you. Be with you. And He will. Turn to Him when you face temptation. And He will be there.

Today, temptation will come. What will you do about it?