“So Satan went out from the presence of the LORD and afflicted Job with painful sores from the soles of his feet to the top of his head.”
(Job 2:7NIV)
One of the things anyone that is involved in any kind of warfare must know is who their enemies are. Why is this important? It is important because unless we know who our real enemies are and what they are capable of doing, we will most likely underestimate them or give ourselves to fighting the wrong persons. And that will surely result in defeat and perhaps destruction for us.
For instance, as we see in our opening text, the one responsible for the afflictions of Job and his family was Satan. He was the one that took away his children and possessions from him. He was also the one that afflicted his body with painful sores. But because Job was at that time ignorant of this, he blamed God for everything and even quarrelled with his friends, who also did not know any better than him. This man held God responsible for all his ordeals instead of rebuking and resisting the devil, who was the source of all his woes and miseries. Why? It was because, as I pointed out already, he was ignorant of who his real enemy was. And if God had not shown him mercy, dealt with his ignorance and healed him, he would most likely have died a bitter man.
In like manner, many today have remained in their problems and sufferings because they are fighting the wrong enemies. Instead, of facing the devil with the weapons of righteousness and resisting him in their lives and affairs, they fight God, parents, siblings, friends, colleagues at work and so forth because they think they are the ones responsible for their problems. But God is never to blame for any of man’s problems. He loves and cares about us and is daily committed to doing us good and bearing our burdens for us, for He is our salvation (Ps 68:19; 1Pet 5:7). So, if things go bad for us, He is never to blame, for He is not our enemy but our Father, Saviour and Friend.
Then what about people, especially those that are obviously working against our peace and progress, are they our real enemies? No! Human beings are never our real enemies, for the bible says, “Our fight is not against people on earth but against the rulers and authorities and the powers of this world’s darkness, against the spiritual powers of evil in the heavenly world.” (Eph 6:12-13NCV) It also says, “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” (1Peter 5:8NIV)
Did you see that? Human beings are not our real enemies. Our real enemies are spirit beings. Our real enemies are the devil and his wicked angels. They are the source of all our miseries. And they are the ones that always incite people to come against us and do us harm. Therefore, if we really want to be walking in victory over every kind of problem that we may face in life, we should stop dealing with people that we can see. That will merely amount to dealing with the symptoms of a sickness. Instead, we should deal with the root of the problem. In other words, we should deal with the devil and his angels. They are the ones we are to rebuke with our prayers in the name of Jesus. They are the ones we are to hinder and frustrate with our devotion to the practice of righteousness.
So, stop fighting the wrong enemies. Instead, submit yourself to God and begin to resist the devil and his evil servants in your life. And before you know it, the victory that Jesus has already obtained for you will manifest in every area of your life where you are being troubled or afflicted. It is well with your soul.
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By: J.O. Lawal | Date: September 02, 2020 | Series: Youth for Jesus | Number: Vol. 3, No. 16