"STEAL AND KILL AND DESTROY!"

John 10:10                         (ESV)
"The thief comes only to "STEAL AND KILL AND DESTROY". I came that they may have life and have it abundantly."

Genesis 3:1                        (ESV)
"Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the LORD GOD had made. He said to the woman, "Did GOD actually say, 'You shall not eat of any tree in the garden'?"



Recently I wrote a message to a friend, that while looking at it later, convicted me to the point of doing my study this morning about it.  The statement was: "The enemy will disguise himself in many different forms in an attempt to steal our joy!" As the LORD spoke to my heart about my words, I began to understand more clearly what must be going on in the Spirit World surrounding us?

Ephesians 6:12 says "For we do NOT wrestle against FLESH and BLOOD, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the COSMIC POWERS OVER THIS PRESENT DARKNESS, against the spiritual FORCES OF EVIL in the heavenly places".   Genesis 3:1 talks about our enemy being "crafty" beyond anything else GOD had made.  GOD made satan the way he was made, just like GOD you and I the way we are.  The Spiritual War comes into play when our "natural man" begins gravitating toward darkness, instead of being in the LIGHT where sin is exposed!

The enemy must want to "STEAL AND KILL AND DESTROY" that which he doesn't have, that which he cannot control.  He can only do that through "deceiving"!  When we are faced with a seemingly wonderful windfall, we must be VERY aware that the enemy, the great deceiver, CONTINUALLY offers us "any tree in the garden" to satisfy our worldly lusts in an attempt to get us in his camp.  It is incumbent upon us to be able to recognize his tactics and schemes.  To develop a KEEN sense of identifying the enemy is one of the most crucial things a good warrior can achieve!

Recognizing the great deceiver can be a trait many prefer not to engage in.  Seeing evil in its vilest form is sometimes a grueling, uncomfortable task.  But the enemy can disguise himself as beautifully, even as "an angel of light" (2 Corinthians 11:14), in an effort to deceive those who are unlearned, immature if you will!

Being able to "see" the enemy can best be achieved when the LIGHT shines brightly in your life.  The enemy can't stand LIGHT, for it exposes his filth and hurt.  My aim is to not allow his to "STEAL AND KILL AND DESTROY" my joy as I serve the LORD, but I pray that I "may have life and have it abundantly."