2 Tim 3:12
“Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.”
The discussions about persecution regarding the believer is not an ‘if’, but a ‘when’. For it shall surely come. It is a natural consequence of living godly in this present world.
In the light of the above, the believer is to ‘deal’ with opposition in every shape and form it presents itself, never relenting, and never daunted.
The first step in dealing with opposition is to understand it: where and from whom it is coming, and what it is aimed at doing to you.
Opposing the children of God is the mission d’etat of Satan.
Jesus declared in John 10:10;
“The Thief (Satan) cometh not, but to steal, to kill and to destroy…..”
That’s his agenda. To STOP you. To ROB you of joy. And to QUENCH the spirit, if it were possible.
Like every warrior, your response to Satan’s advances is critical.
First it must be based upon knowledge.
When you know why delays, difficulties and losses occur, you are better prepared mentally and emotionally to deal with it.
Here is Apostle Paul’s attitude to opposition which is based upon knowledge :-
Col 1:24-25
“I want you to know how glad I am that it’s me sitting here in this jail and not you. There’s a lot of suffering to be entered into in this worlcd—the kind of suffering Christ takes on.
I welcome the chance to take my share in the church’s part of that suffering. When I became a servant in this church, I experienced this suffering as a sheer gift, God’s way of helping me serve you, laying out the whole truth.”
It’s important to let believers know that suffering for the work of the Lord is part and parcel of answering the call. Otherwise we shall be churning out lily-livered cut-and-run christians, who think that the kingdom of God is meat and drink only. We will populate the Church of Jesus Christ with babes suckling milk and needing pampering all along the way.
2 Cor 1:8-10
“For we would not, brethren, have you ignorant of our trouble which came to us in Asia, that we were pressed out of measure, above strength, insomuch that we despaired even of life:
But we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God which raiseth the dead: Who delivered us from so great a death, and doth deliver: in whom we trust that he will yet deliver us”
Yea, Satanic opposition shall come, but we are are more than able to overcome it.
It calls for preparation. As they say in the military :
“Sweat more in training, so you bleed less in battle”.
Situations and circumstances only bow to ‘what you know’ already. So, settle it in your heart. Believe!
John 10:10 (b)
……but I come, that they may have life, and the abundance of it.
Proverbs 24:10
“If thou faint in the day of adversity, thy strength is small.”
Between John 10:10 (a), and John 10:10 (b), there is a void which can only be filled by you, the believer.
It’s between the Satan’s agenda and Christ’s.
Satan’s agenda is already dead upon arrival because of the Cross. The Bible makes it clear that Christ conquered all principalities and all powers triumphing over them in it. But you can still give a platform for the Devil to oppress you by choosing to listen to his lies and deceitful lusts.
On the other hand you can choose to stay focused on Christ, operating as the New Creature that He has made you.
If you do the former, you are prone to Death, Losses and Destruction.
If you did the later, you shall have Life, and that more abundantly. Selah!
Secondly, your response must be offensive at the enemy. When the Devil comes at you, you dare not remain passive or on the defensive. Just how much can you take?
How?
Glad you asked.
Mk 11:14
“And Jesus answered and said unto it, No man eat fruit of thee hereafter for ever. And his disciples heard it.”
“Jesus answered”, NOT “Jesus said”.
Answered means Jesus was responding to something spoken to him by the tree.
Opposition from the enemy often comes from voices speaking to our minds. The target is to kill faith and hope in God.
Satan spoke through the tree mocking Jesus, but He answered in the offensive…
(TO BE CONTINUED )
-Dr Nich Mbaezue-Daniel