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SATAN HINDERED US!
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 30
1 Thessalonians 2:17-18

Matthew 13:18-23

 

“…once and again;

but Satan hindered us.”

 

SATAN HINDERED US!
 
From the first temptation in the Garden of Eden, Satan, the adversary, the Devil, has been locked in a spiritual warfare with mankind. Satan’s objectives are simple: He hates God and so is opposed to all who are serving God. He craves the worship of men and will do all he can to turn their hearts away from God and towards himself.
 
His targets are those who are doing a good work for the Lord. If you are serving the Lord, faithfully doing His work, you will be a target of Satan’s attacks. We cannot run away from this fact. A faithful Christian will always be in an ongoing fight, a spiritual warfare.
 
Paul understood this. He knew that when he was chased out of Thessalonica, it was not just a physical battle, but also a spiritual one. Paul’s simple desire was to preach the Gospel, to encourage the new converts and strengthen their faith. But that was directly against Satan’s purpose, and therefore there was a conflict. The persecution he faced was the work of the devil, and the hindrances that prevented him from making a swift return was also Satan’s doing. Furthermore, it was not just a one-off event. It was happening again and again. It seemed that no matter what Paul did, Satan somehow had a way to prevent him from returning to Thessalonica.
 
These are the same tactics that Satan continues to use against faithful Christians in the present. Like the birds that come to devour the seeds that fall on the wayside, Satan swoops in to prevent the Word of God from being preached, heard and received. He uses social media to distract us from our daily quiet time; he poisons the minds of the people to cause them to hate Christ and to reject the Bible; he fills the world with a myriad of activities on Sundays to prevent people from having the time to come to church. Yes, Satan continues to actively hinder us from following the Lord, and from witnessing for Him. Will you stand firm against the wiles of the Devil?
 
THOUGHT: Satan has spent thousands of years perfecting his art of deception and temptation.

PRAYER: Help me, Father, to submit to Thee, and to resist the Devil.

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