Do You Know 1- Your Enemy

BIBLE STUDY:  July 27, 2016

Scripture:

Psalm 56:9:

 When I cry unto thee, then shall mine enemies turn back: this I know; for God is for me.

 

Theme:

Do you know 1 – Your Enemy

 

Introduction:

• When I rededicated my life to Christ when I was 19 years of age, I did as many people tend to do to mark a new period in their lives…I got a brand new bible. I guess we tend to blame the mistakes from before on the bible that we had.   Anyway, I got the bible and proceeded to have all of the closest people and family in my life to sign it.  I succeeded in getting family, friends and girlfriends to sign it.  One day as I was looking over the various messages written in the “yearbook” of the newfound commitment in my life, I found the note left by my Uncle George.  He wrote simply, “Take Time to Know!”  These words have always lingered in my mind as I grasped to understand their simple yet profound meaning…take the time to get to know.
• The first obstacle is to realize the essence of what knowing truly is and where its value stands.
  • Exodus 31:3, “And I have filled him with the spirit of God, in wisdom, and in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship,” — Knowing, or knowledge, is one of the four primary traits used to select Abraham to be the Father of all Nations.
    • Knowledge is the POSSESSION of information.
    • Understanding is the correct ANALYSIS of information.
    • Wisdom is the successful APPLICATION of information.
    • All manners of workmanship are the PRODUCTS of working with information.
  • 2Chronicles 1:10, “Give me now wisdom and knowledge, that I may go out and come in before this people: for who can judge this thy people, that is so great?”
    • Wisdom allows you to go out – Knowledge allows you to come in
    • Wisdom allows you to end – Knowledge allows you to begin
    • Wisdom allows you to close – Knowledge allows you to open
    • Wisdom motivates you to talk to God – Knowledge motivates you to seek God.
  • KNOWLEDGE IS THE FOUNDATION OF SOUND CHRISTIAN LIVING

However, “get to know” what?

 

Body:

• ENEMY:
  • Satan, the Devil, Lucifer, the adversary…He is the sole enemy of the Believer in Jesus Christ. As it says in Acts 13:10, “And said, O full of all subtlety and all mischief, thou child of the devil, thou enemy of all righteousness, wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord?”
  • Why know your enemy? Luke 21:8 says, “And he said, Take heed that ye be not deceived: for many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and the time draweth near: go ye not therefore after them.”
  • Traits of the enemy:
    • Satan has little regard for mankind and wants to destroy our relationship with God – Job 2:4, “And Satan answered the Lord, and said, Skin for skin, yea, all that a man hath will he give for his life.”
      • However, we have hope as Jesus explains in Luke 22:31-32, “And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat:  But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.”
    • Satan can provoke us to sin — 1Chronicles 21:1, “And Satan stood up against Israel, and provoked David to number Israel.”
    • There is no where to hide from Satan – Job 1:6-7, “Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan came also among them. And the Lord said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? Then Satan answered the Lord, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it.”
    • Satan is always ready to resist our efforts to glorify God – Zechariah 3:1, “And he shewed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right hand to resist him.”
      • And also, Paul exclaimed in 1Thessalonians 2:18, “Wherefore we would have come unto you, even I Paul, once and again; but Satan hindered us.”
    • No matter who you are, Satan can get into your life and heart if you let him in – Luke 22:3, “Then entered Satan into Judas surnamed Iscariot, being of the number of the twelve.”

Conclusion:

                However, there is hope and encouragement through God, our Father:

• The power of God can and will rebuke Satan – Zechariah 3:2, “And the Lord said unto Satan, The Lord rebuke thee, O Satan; even the Lord that hath chosen Jerusalem rebuke thee: is not this a brand plucked out of the fire?”
• Satan’s power, presence, and influence WILL come to an end – Revelations 20:1-3, “And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled…”

 

The power and presence of Satan will cease.  In this we have hope…in this we have joy…in this we can have confidence.  We have the victory through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.  He has given us the right to claim the victory by accepting Him into our lives and becoming heirs, joint-heirs.

Know your Enemy

But also,

KNOW THAT BY ACCEPTING JESUS YOU ACCEPT THE VICTORY OVER HIM!!!

 

That’s why you can know>>>>

When you cry unto Him,

THEN SHALL YOUR ENEMIES TURN BACK:

this we know; for God is for us.