Stand up to the enemy
2020-03-31Matthew 13:28 NIV
Jesus told the people this parable: ‘The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat…When the wheat sprouted…the weeds also appeared. The owner’s servants came to him and said, “Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?” “An enemy did this”‘ (vv. 24-28 NIV). When things go wrong in our lives, it can sometimes be because of the enemy. We shouldn’t blame everything on the enemy, but we have to acknowledge that the enemy does attack us. He can come and plant weeds in our lives, even when we’ve done all the right things. So how can we protect ourselves? Paul writes: ‘Put on the full armour of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but…against the powers of this dark world and…spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armour of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground’ (Ephesians 6:11-13 NIVUK). Sometimes we can find ourselves just accepting the work of the enemy in our lives. But we can protect ourselves by wearing the armour God’s provided for us, and use the weapon of His Word to stand up to him. When the enemy was tempting Jesus, He used God’s Word to fight back (take a look at Matthew 4:1-11). And that’s what we can do too. The Bible says: ‘Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you’ (James 4:7 NIV). We need to recognise when the enemy’s at work and stand up to him.