God Good Devil Bad

God Good, Devil Bad

John 10:10-11

John 10:9-11, "I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. 10 "The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly. 11 "I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep."

This Scripture makes it very clear that there is only one way to be saved. It also makes it very clear what the Good Shepherd's role is and what the enemy's role is. I am a firm believer that there is a misconception of God that we must clear up if we ever want to receive breakthrough in some area of our lives. I want us to leave with one sentence going through our mind, "God is Not My Problem." There is one term that I use here at the church that pretty much everyone that attends knows! God Good, Devil Bad!

In our text, John 10:10, Jesus clearly identifies the origin of good and bad: "The thief (the devil or satan) does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I (Jesus) have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly."

I want to make something very, very clear. Abundant life is the will of God for you!!!

John 10:11, "I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd gives His life for the sheep."

These verses give a very clear picture of God on one side bringing goodness and abundance, and the devil on the other side stealing, killing and destroying. It is essential for us to understand that Jesus and the devil are not working together. There is no secret coalition between them. They are each other's arch enemies.

The devil was an archangel of God. He rebelled against God because of pride.

Isaiah 14:12-17, "How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How you are cut down to the ground, You who weakened the nations! 13 For you have said in your heart: 'I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will also sit on the mount of the congregation On the farthest sides of the north; 14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High.' 15 Yet you shall be brought down to hell, To the lowest depths of the Pit. 16 "Those who see you will gaze at you, And consider you, saying: 'Is this the man who made the earth tremble, Who shook kingdoms, 17 Who made the world as a wilderness And destroyed its cities, Who did not open the house of his prisoners?'

Satan is known in the Bible as the destroyer, liar, thief, murderer. He rebelled against God and he has never changed. Jesus and the devil are not partners! God Good, Devil Bad! Most of us say, obviously we know this. But this leads me to another point. The Lord is not using the devil to do His work. The Lord is not using the devil to develop you, train you, or to prepare you for something greater. Jesus is not using the enemy to discipline you. That is actually a pretty ridiculous thought when you actually think about it. Jesus paid for our sins. Jesus paid for our sicknesses, Jesus paid for our poverty! To say that Jesus puts any of those things on us is saying that Jesus is using the devil's tactics to do His work. Jesus is smarter than that. He doesn't need the devil's curses to get through to you.

We acknowledge that there are bad things that have happened to people. I am not saying that the devil has not affected, touched, influenced, or impacted people. He has, but what is important is that we know that God is Not Our Problem! We cannot blame God for these things.

When Adam and Eve sinned, a corruption came into the earth that affected all of creation. God did not plan to put beautiful people on the earth, then kill them with hurricanes, or destroy them with tornadoes or some other disaster. I know society calls these things "Acts of God." But God has nothing to do with these things. God's plan is good from beginning to end. God is a good God! He has good plans for you!

We serve a Good, Good God. What is important for us is that we do not perceive God as the One who is against us. God is not our problem! He is not against us! God is more for us then we are! He loves us more than we love ourselves. He wants the best for us more than we want the best for us. His love is truly amazing!