Slamming The Door In The Devil's Face

Hi, thank you for looking at this sermon. I hope it helps. Please do not say the sermon did not help you just because you did not like the style or could not use the entire message. Please rate the message if you think God’s people would be blessed by the message below. Our sermons are online at our church website at www.mountzionfamily.com. God bless you as you share Jesus with the world. Thank you.

Slamming the Door in the Devil's Face

Scripture Reference: Genesis 4:1-8

Preached at Mount Zion Baptist Church on June 1, 2019

Delivered by Rev. John Daniel Johnson

Read Text

In the garden, at Creation, the Bible tell us that God dwelt in the presence of man. We find that our LORD God spoke directly with His creation. He walked in the garden with mankind. But something severed that relationship. It was not God who caused the relationship to fail, but man. Adam and Eve violated God’s command; therefore, sinning against God. The devil tempted Eve to eat of the fruit, Eve then tempted Adam. Then because both of sinned against God they were both condemned to die.

Scripture tells us that when God confronted Adam and Eve about their sin, they immediately passed the blame. Eve said, “The serpent made me do it.” Adam went further and said, “The woman that You gave me made me do it.” In realty, Adam was not only blaming Eve for his sin, but also blaming God.

Ever since that first sin, the fellowship between God and mankind has been severed. God wanted fellowship with His children, but since God is Holy, He cannot be around sin. But, thanks be to God, He made a way to restore that relationship. Throughout the Old Testament, God used ‘shadows’ or ‘types’ of thing that are revealed in the New Testament.

In the day of Moses, God directed Moses to build a Tabernacle.This portable tent housing would be a temporary place that God could come down and again dwell with His creation. That Tabernacle was designed with only one door leading into the room where He dwelt. There was but one way man could come into the presence of the Almighty.

In the days of Solomon, God allowed the construction of the Temple to be built in Jerusalem. Again, there was only one entrance for mankind to have contact with the Holy God.

Then God sends His Son, Jesus Christ who said, “I am the door; if anyone enters through Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.” - John 1:9

Jesus said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.” - John 14:6

The New Testament makes it perfectly clear that God never intended on dwelling with mankind in some tent or Temple made by human hands. God desires to live in us. Scripture tells us that we are the Temple of God.

Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? - 1 Corinthians 3:16

Just like in the Old Testament, there is but one way of entering the presence of God. One way to heaven. Only one way. Jesus is the only way. Our favorite passage, John 3:16, declares that.

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” - John 3:16

“And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.” - Acts 4:12

Now, the ground-work has been laid. There’s one way to the Father and that is through Jesus Christ. Once we trust in Him for salvation, our body becomes the Temple of God because His presence now dwells inside of us. Through that one door, that one entrance, we have access to God.

Jesus stands at our heart’s door and is asking us to let Him enter.

“Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me.” - Revelation 3:20

Transitional Sentence:

Jesus Christ is at the door of our heart ready to enter and give us the heavenly blessings, but also at the door is sin. Just like Christ, sin won’t enter unless it’s invited. This morning we are going to examine a few steps we can make to slam the door in the face of the devil, while opening it wide for Christ. So, how can we slam the door shut in the face of the enemy?

In today’s text, we read of the terrible sin that Cain committed on his own. He can’t do like his parents did. He just can’t pass the blame. God warned Cain that sin was crouching at the door, but it was Cain, himself, who opened the doorway for sin to enter.