Know The Enemy

KNOW THE ENEMY

I Peter 5:8

Several weeks ago, Hurricane Hugo blew through America - Hugo "Citgo" Chavez! While he was here he had a few remarks concerning our president, going so far as describing him as the Devil himself!

The New York Times reported a study about the diminishing belief in the devil among Americans. Two-thirds of Americans do not believe in the devil as a living being In a randomly selected survey of over 1,000 Americans, pollsters asked whether they agreed the statement that Satan is “not a living being, but a symbol of evil.” Sixty-two percent agreed with the statement. That means nearly 149 million Americans believe that Satan has no influence but that Satan is just a symbol of evil. We should know and understand that Satan is real

The devil is real, and he is not President Bush. He is a determined fiend. He is a destructive force. But thanks be to God he is a defeated foe.

Most battles are lost because the enemy is either unknown or underrated.

We need not to be like the boxer who, after the first round, went back to his corner ,and his trainer patted him on the back and said, "Go back and get him the next round; he has not laid a hand on you yet." He went back and fought the second round, and his opponent almost knocked him out. He staggered back to his corner, and his trainer patted him on the back again and said, "Go back and get him this round; he hasn’t laid a glove on you."

He went back out the third round and was knocked down twice for the count of nine and then only saved by the bell. They dragged him back to his corner, his trainer patted him on the back again and said, "Go back and get him the next round; he has not laid a hand on you yet." The boxer then aid to his trainer, "I am going back and get him this round, but keep your eyes on that referee; somebody is beating the tar out of me!" The devil is doing a pretty god job of working many of us over simply because we are not aware of his methods and tactics.

It is my prayer that you will see this morning some the tactics of the devil VERY clearly. As God is revealed not by argument, but by His work. We know what He is from what He does. In like manner we can learn what the Devil is by what he does.

I. He attempts to cause DISCREDIT TO THE WORD OF GOD (Genesis 3:1-3)

The devil hates the Word of God. It pronounces his doom, and it proclaims the his devices. We cannot stand against the wiles of the devil by our wits, but WITH GOD’S WORD! Jesus defeated the Devil, and each and every time it was with the WRITTEN Word of God!

A. BY TRYING TO GET MEN TO DEBATE IT

The Bible does not need to be debated; it just needs to be used.

1. Its Authority

This Bible does NOT CONTAIN the Word of God…- it IS the very Word of God! Attempt to persuade men that the Bible was just written by men and not holy men of God that the Spirit of God moved along.

2. Its Accuracy

It is without any errors.

3. Its Acceptability

Attempt to convince men that the Bible is out of date. The Bible is up to date.

B. BY TRYING TO GET MEN TO DISTORT IT

If he cannot get you to DENY the Bible, he will endeavor to twist the scriptures and make it say something it does not.

C. BY TRYING TO GET MEN TO DILUTE IT

Attempt to get me to watered down and weakened it down to make it more user friendly.

YOU DON’T CORRECT GOD’S WORD; YOU LET IT CORRECT YOU!

II. He attempts to CAUSE DOUBTS ABOUT THE WISDOM OF GOD.

He wants people to doubt God PROMISES and PRECEPTS.

A. He wants to get you to think negatively about God.

B. He want to get you think skeptically about God

C. He wants to get you to think suspiciously about God

He wants to misrepresent God to us.

He attempts to persuade us that what is good is evil, and what is evil is good. He attempts to persuade us that God does not mean what He says when He says it.

He attempts to convince men that you can do wrong and get away with it. He attempts to convince men that God does not know what is best for man.

He attempts to convince parents that spanking will warp a child, and that time out works better than the rod.