Do Not bow To The Level Of The Devil

God worked through my dad for the title of the blog from a conversation we had on Thursday.

Today, we celebrate Jesus, who died and rose again for our sins. But, to go through the pain, mockery, insults, and people humiliating Him, Jesus had to love, forgive, and trust God.

1 Peter 2:23 says 23 When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him, who judges justly.

Jesus rose from the grave, went through everything for us, and trusted God for justice. We can rise above every devil attack by trusting in God and His righteousness. In the end, Jesus got the victory and took back everything the devil stole.

Personal testimony: Thursday, I received a call from a customer who was already angry because the customer did not get what was promised to him. The customer got so upset that he kept using profanity and racist remarks toward me and immediately hung up the phone. After the customer hung up the phone, the phrase Jesus used came to me, ‘Forgive him, Father, for he knows not what he does.” Because of the love of God that dwells within me, it gave me the power to be quick to hear, slow to speak, and slow to get angry. I told my dad about the situation, and the blog phrase came about. God turned it around for my good, what the devil meant for evil.

Biblical Life Application: Romans 12:21 says, do not be overcome by evil but overcome evil with good.

Matthew 5:41 If your enemy compels you to go one mile, go two miles.

Matthew 5:43-48: 43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, 45 that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. 46 For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? 47 And if you greet your brethren only, what do you do more than others? Do not even the tax collectors do so? 48 Therefore, you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.

We as believers, will never know what is in us until we are put to the test. It is easy to love those who love you; it takes little effort. However, when you show love to people who are evil to you, it will either transform them, or they will run. The customer I dealt with on Thursday wanted me to get upset because he was upset. I remained calm, and that is when he became angry. The enemy operating through the customer hung up quickly before I could say anything to him. I submitted to God, resisted the devil, and he fled (James 4:7). We do not wrestle against flesh and blood but evil in high places (Ephesians 6:12-13). We can also resist the devil by not entertaining people who say abusive things towards us. Thankfully, the customer hung up, but if the customer kept using offensive language, my comment would have been,” I will be more than happy to assist you, but I will be releasing this call if you continue with abusive language.” My dad would take a drive when he was angry and not participate in an argument.

In one of his sermons this past week, Pastor Gaines mentioned how people could be so mean and hateful, especially on social media. We as believers should use social media for the glory of God, not ourselves, or to hurt others. Vengeance is God’s, and He will repay (Romans 12:19). Do like Jesus and say, “Forgive them, Father, for they know not what they do.”

We can rise above any situation because of what Jesus went through. God gave us the power when we accepted Him as Lord and Savior of our lives. Those who are not saved, if you confess with your mouth that you are a sinner in need of Jesus, believe in your heart that Jesus died and rose from the grave, then salvation is yours (Romans 10:9-10). You can then start your journey to true transformation by reading the word of God. The best place to start is in the book of John because it deals with love. Faith works by love, and the greatest commandment is to love.

Do not let the devil steal from you. Paraphrasing, John 10:10 says the thief comes not but to steal, kill. And destroy, but Jesus came so you can have life in abundance.

Do not fall to the level of the devil!

Prayer: Lord, I magnify and love you because you first loved me. Lord, I thank you for your gift of Jesus’ blood that cleanses me from all sin. Thank you, Lord, for wiping my slate clean. I repent for allowing the devil to rob me. I rise above every evil that comes my way through the word of God and your Holy Spirit living on the inside of me. Because of what Jesus went through for me, I can rise above any situation. Hallelujah to the Lamb of God! In Jesus’ name, Amen.