Is Satan active even now?
Acts 13:6-12 Then Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked straight at Elymas and said, "You are a child of the devil and an enemy of everything that is right! You are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery. Will you never stop perverting the right ways of the Lord? (9~10)
♬ Hymn for scheduled worship: Korean/English Hymnal #240 When My Life Work is Ended (#231 in previous version)
If we go to the evangelism field, the majority of nonbelievers have fallen into the culture of Satan and are serving demons. If we do not know the severity of these spiritual aspects, we will end up losing hold of the works of evangelism. Our battle is not against flesh and blood. Satan is active even right now. Our enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Therefore, believers must be equipped with the full armor of God. If we look at the Scripture reading, Satan’s activity is recorded in the first region Paul went to for missions.
1. Satan utilizes false leaders
In the region where Paul started his first work of missions, Satan used demons and utilized false prophets. In the same way, Satan raises false leaders and makes people confused. While having them display great powers and tell inaccurate fortunes, he makes people fall into chaos, and ultimately, drags them into lies and destruction.
2. Satan hinders the evangelism movement
Satan hates the evangelism movement the most. What Satan hates the most is emphasis of the Gospel and evangelism. Satan desires for us to know the Gospel inaccurately and evangelize incorrectly. Therefore, in a variety of ways, Satan hinders people who evangelize.
3. Satan creates all kinds of lies
Jesus said Satan is a liar and also the father of lies (John 8:44). Although it seems like demon-possessed people can tell us about our futures, it is all a lie. We must go and rescue them. Satan commits all kinds of evil acts and continues to function as the enemy of God’s work. Piece by piece, we must investigate and inform others about the true character of Satan. That way, people are not deceived. While living on this earth, we must fight the spiritual battle. If we are attacked spiritually and are facing spiritual problems or hardships, there are three things we must absolutely remember. Our thoughts must be upright, our lifestyles must be upright, and our souls must be healthy. The power of Satan has already been broken in the name of Jesus Christ. When we are filled with the Gospel, the forces of darkness flee. The deeper we enter into the Gospel, the more Satan no longer has any place to stand.
● Forum Topic - How can you fight the spiritual battle? Try meditating on how you can see the field with the eyes of the Gospel and start the evangelism movement.
Core Training Message / 2009.12.19