Matthew 11:28 Come to me all you who labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest.
As I am writing this Morning Message, I find it interesting that it is being published on December 6th. Written numerically, it would be 12-6. The number 12 is 6 + 6. So the numbers 12-6 are actually 6 6 6 which is the number of the anti-christ.
This Morning Message will define how Satan works in our lives to destroy us. He does it through our thoughts and thought patterns. If you will go back and read the Morning Message from yesterday (Dec. 5th) you will have a basis upon which to continue with this Message.
Both God and Satan speak into our lives through thoughts. We hear them both. The ones we listen to will determine our identity in Christ, which is the single most important aspect of us. A single thought can change our entire lives forever if we believe it. The moment we received the thought that Jesus died on the Cross for us personally, and believed it, we were Saved! That single thought changed everything forever; not because we heard it but because we BELIEVED it. For with the heart one believes unto Righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto Salvation. (Romans 10:10)
The Word of God warns us to not be ignorant of the enemy’s devices. lest Satan should take advantage of us; for we are not ignorant of his devices. (2 Corinthians 2:11) One of the strongest weapons Satan has against us is planting negative thoughts in our minds and it all goes downhill from there.
Please remember that Satan is a liar and only speaks lies. He is not capable of telling the truth. Spiritually speaking, a negative thought or word spoken over us (if believed) will become a foothold and cause us to stumble and fall.
The Word of God and the Voice of the Holy Spirit of God will combat Satan’s lies. At that point, we have somewhat of an argument going on in our minds. EXAMPLE: Satan causes us to remember a sin that we committed a long time ago and tells us that because of this, we are a failure and no good to God. The Holy Spirit reminds us of the Word of God that tells us that if we confess our sins He is faithful to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9) Do you see the argument? Satan says because of your sin you are a failure. God says you are forgiven and He wants to use you in a mighty way. Who are you going to believe?
If we recognize the lies from Satan and discard them, we will believe the Truth of the Word of God and be free from the commendation. If not, we will remain in bondage of this sin and not know the Joy of the Lord. At that point, the evil thought became a foothold and tripped us up causing us to be down and out. If we continue to dwell on that thought and the fact that we are down, that foothold will become a stronghold in our lives and we will have a much harder time recovering from it.
The answer is found in the Truth of the Word of God. Jesus said, the Truth shall make you free. (John 8:32) Satan would love to keep us bound up, on the ground flat on our face where we can’t do anything for God or even know who we are in Christ.
On the other hand, Jesus said, Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. (Matthew 11:28) Strongholds control our lives. Take hold of Jesus’ Hand and hold on tight. Let Him be your stronghold. The Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; (Nahum 1:7)
The Truth will set you free and ……….turn the tide……..in your life.
Holding tight to God’s unchanging Hand! Doreen
