Pastor Tim Brown, Calvary Chapel Fremont, Sunday February 28, 2010

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Serious about Satan

1 Peter 5:8-14

Reality From the moment he slithers n2 the garden of Eden in Gen3 until the time he is slammed n2 the lake of fire in Rev20, Satan seeks to turn people away from the reality of God.  He blinds the minds of the unbelieving and he stalks those who do believe in God.

The Bible presents the devil as the enemy of mankind.  So does popular culture – 

Please allow me to introduce myself/I'm a man of wealth and taste 
I've been around for a long, long year/Stole many a man's soul and faith

And I was 'round when Jesus Christ/Had his moment of doubt and pain 
Made damn sure that Pilate/Washed his hands and sealed his fate 
Pleased to meet you/Hope you guess my name 
But what's puzzling you/Is the nature of my game 
I stuck around St. Petersburg/When I saw it was a time for a change 
Killed the Czar and his ministers/Anastasia screamed in vain 
I rode a tank/Held a general's rank/When the Blitzkrieg raged/And the bodies stank 
Pleased to meet you/Hope you guess my name 
But what's puzzling you/Is the nature of my game 

In sympathy for the devil, he is credited w/ the crucifixion/communism/ Hitler and the Holocaust.  The nature of his game is not puzzling.  The Bible is very clear about nature of his game – kill/steal/destroy.  We see his game in our culture as we plunge deeper n2 moral/ spiritual confusion - where we celebrate sexual perversion, wholesale slaughter of millions of innocent babies, as we see man’s inhumanity to man become progressively more gruesome, and fear grips the heart of more/more people.  And yet, even as the darkness is falling, belief in the devil goes down.  From 1991 to 2007, belief in Satan as a living entity dropped from 35% to 24%.  www.religioustolerance.org/chr_sat4.htm  

We stand at the brink of nuclear annihilation/hatred grips our political system/suspicion rips apart the int’l community – and yet many hold to a doctrine that man is progressively becoming morally superior and we don’t need a Savior.  Our problems are man-made, therefore they may be solved by man.  jfk  There is no Satan and we need no Savior.  This leaves man as Satan and man as Savior.  

The Bible is very clear about nature of his game – kill/steal/destroy.  The Bible pictures him as a roaring lion seeking to devour you.

Recognize the reality  God cares 4u; the devil doesn’t.  

Sober: guarded against advance of drowsiness/confusion – opposite of intoxication/of any kind of mental fuzziness.  Peter is writing about the reality of the devil/danger poses to believers.  1st thing he says – there is 2ba clarity in your mind.  

Alert: watchful because aware of danger.  If not sober, not alert.  If not clear, not careful.  If you told me that someone was stalking me w/ the intent of killing me, I’d get serious real fast – call authorities/ install cameras/locks.  I’d be sober/alert.  

Adversary  antidikos – opponent at law.  Lk. 18:3 widow wanted protection from her opponent.  She was in the right.  Something rightly belonged to her that her opponent wanted to take.  Jesus has clothed you w/ His righteousness/filled you w/ His Spirit/gifted you w/ His salvation/given you purpose/opened your eyes to the truth as it is in Jesus.  The devil would seek to strip you of all this.  And he seeks to do this when ur the most vulnerable – even as the evil man went after a widow (a woman in a vulnerable position).   

The major theme of Peter’s letter is getting a healthy perspective on suffering – how to understand/navigate through/triumph over it.  He knows that many will walk w/ Jesus when the sun is shining and life is hitting on all cylinders.  He also knows that those who don’t have a healthy perspective on suffering stumble in their Christian walk when the sun goes behind the clouds/darkness gathers.  He knows that Satan exploits suffering/anxiety.  Many who are suffering are vulnerable like a widow who is alone in the world.  

How does devil stalk you?  

The devil preys on your weakness to defeat you

The devil filled Judas to betray Jesus (Jn. 13:2)/pushed Peter to deny Jesus.  Why Judas/Peter?  He capitalized on their weakness – deceit of Judas/bluster of Peter - both of them thought these were strengths, but they were actually weaknesses.  What you consider a strength may be a weakness - physical appearance/strong mind/particular skill.  He exploits your weaknesses.  Edinburgh Castle, high on the bluffs, was only taken once.  A shepherd boy led the attackers to an unguarded entrance on the side of a cliff.  What they thought was their strength was their weakness.

The devil preys on your vanity to deceive you

To Judas: You’re a shrewd student of trends.  Jesus won’t deliver what He promised – better cash out.

To Peter: You’re stronger/more courageous than the rest.  You can stand where others would fall.  You’re better than the others.

To You: You can do what others can’t.  You can get away w/ it.  Jesus understands.  Your sin won’t harm you.

The devil preys on your fears to discourage you

You’ll never get what you deserve.  You will suffer for following Jesus - people will reject you.  He will take your anxiety and stir it up.  “God doesn’t care for you.  If God cared for you, things would be different.  Your marriage/finances/health/children/ career would be different.  God could heal/bless/change if He wanted to.  Why is He holding out on you?”  

The devil provokes your anxieties to deform you

Instead of obedience resulting in a greater heart for God, the devil wants to develop a hardness nu toward God/people.  Many plants have thorns which help protect them from herbivores.  A thorn is an undeveloped flower.  God is seeking the beauty/aroma of flowers.  The devil is seeking the hardness/ugliness of thorns. Some of you have taken real hits in life/not allowed the Lord to bring healing to your soul.  A thorn has emerged – when people get to close to a certain spot, you pierce them w/ your defense mechanisms.  When you encounter a thorn in someone else, know that this is a wound that Jesus is still wanting to heal.  Pray for them.

As he preys on your weakness/vanity/fears - as he provokes your anxieties - he is seeking to break your connection w/ Jesus. 

When a lion is stalking his prey he does not roar.  A prowling lion is in the hunt.  Luke 22:31-34.  Peter wasn’t aware of the prowling lion in the courtyard.  But Satan was sifting him using the soldiers/girl.  Peter denied his connection w/ Jesus.

Sometimes the lion silently stalks, sometimes he roars.  Lions usually roar in the hours between dusk and early morning – the darkest hours of the day.  One reason they roar is to assert ownership of their territory.

When might you hear his roar?  When you determine to walk close w/ Jesus – he wants you to know that he considers that you belong to him.  When you set yourself 2b free from crippling addictions – he will roar to let you know that it is hopeless to resist him.  

Resist

Resist the devil w/ firm faith – six faith facts

God cares for me.

Satan is defeated.

I am not alone.  What you face can be/has been overcome.

My sufferings will come to an end.

My glory will never end.

God reigns forever.

Title: Serious about Satan.

Let’s be serious about Jesus.  v14 Are you in Christ?