When John Paton was translating the scriptures for a South Seas tribe, he was unable to find a word in their vocabulary for the concept of believing, trusting, or having faith. He had no idea how he would convey it. One day while he was struggling in his hut, a native came running into the study and dropped into a chair, exhausted. He said, “Feels so good to rest my whole weight in this chair. “Instantly John Paton knew he had his definition: Faith is resting your whole weight on God. Faith is trusting completely and unconditionally in God and His Word. True faith doesn’t need to ask any questions or seek any explanations, Hebrews 11:1 reminds us that Faith is the assurance that God’s promises have essence, and competent, and reality. Remember how in the book of Genesis, Joseph had the nation of Israel promise that when they returned to the promise land that they would carry his bones?!! Joseph understood That God would fulfill His promises to the nation of Israel and that He would return them to the land He had promised. Although the exodus didn’t take place for another 420 years, we read in the Word … READ MORE

If all the biblical about the awesome power of Satan is unnerving, remember this basic truth: We do not need to fear our adversary. He has alarming capabilities but God has greater abilities, and as a follower of Jesus Christ God is on our side. While the Bible tells us often and emphatically that this war is real and the foe is to be respected, it never tells us to fear him. In fact, it gives us reasons to be confident. Let me share with you a few of those: 1. Remember that the Devil is a created being, he is ot God’s counterpart and he is not even Jesus’ counterpart. the devil has power, but is always limited by God.2. Satan can be resisted by the Christian who relies on God. James 4:7 tells us to draw near to God and resist the devil, and if we do that, the devil will flee from us. This happens by learning and following the Word of God (Psalm 119:11). The Devil cannot compete with God in the life of a submitted Chrisian.3. God places limitations on Satan. Satan wanted to wreak havoc in Job’s life and God always limited what he … READ MORE

Western culture has a reluctance to acknowledge Satan’s presence which demonstrates that the devil is able to disguise himself well. Somehow, he has convinced us that he is a cartoon character (a man dressed in a red suit, horns and carrying a pitchfork), or a football mascot (Red Devils, Blue Devils, Sun Devils), or just a philosophical metaphor for evil (the dark side of “the force” or the secret desires of human nature). The reality is that the Devil is not a metaphor for evil. He is a powerful enemy who committed treason against his Creator and convinced a third of the angels along with him. The Bible is very clear that He is a real being as we see him appear in scripture in the very beginning in Genesis 3 tempting the woman, and bringing about the fall of mankind. He seems to be a powerful enemy, and yet, we see in the book of Job that he is answerable to God, and cannot do anything that God does not permit him to do. With that permission, God has a specific plan and purpose for those events. We must understand that as followers of Jesus Christ we have a … READ MORE