Thoughts From Ephesians 6 - Part 4

 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. 11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12 For we are not contending against flesh and blood, but against the principalities, against the powers, against the world rulers of this present darkness, against the spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. 13 Therefore take the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.   Eph 6:10-13

        Is it possible to hate the Cubs without hating its players? I mean, any given year any player on the Cubs could be traded to my team and then I'd love him. It's not like they are Cubs; they are just playing for the Cubs. (unless it's Ernie Banks but who in their right mind hates him). Paul would say in the same way, don't hate the players on the devil's team, it's not like they are devils. Hate the devil. I mean, Lord willing, all those on the devil's team would come play for our team. (unless it's the Antichrist and who doesn't hate him)

       Therefore, remember when you get angry at the next person who responds to your post as if Satan himself wrote it, he probably did just use that person. Don't get mad at that person. Get mad at Satan or his demons that are putting thoughts into their mind. Pray for that person and try to get them playing for your team. Respond as Christ would with love and care. Ask if they want to meet over coffee and discuss it. Maybe respond with a Bible verse to show them where you are coming from. Satan hates scripture - look at Jesus' responses when He dealt with Satan.

      I had one episode in my life when I was fully aware of demonic presence. I was open air sharing the gospel in Honduras before we gave out jars of peanut butter to literally starving people and a lady with a low voice and angry face came up to me and said, "I hate Jesus" in English!  That was the only English I heard in those 2 weeks in that impoverished, rural, uneducated part of the country. I guess demons are multilingual! I've heard missionaries tell many more dramatic stories, but it doesn't have to be overt to realize that Satan is alive and active in our present world. The Lord's prayer even instructs us to pray for deliverance from his wily temptation and Paul here is in agreement. Be aware. It will help you identify and resist and help you to hate the team, not the player.