Fervent Prayer: Marriages (Families under attack!)
OUR ENEMY
Jesus said to them, "If God were your Father, you would love Me, because I came from God and I am here. For I didn't come on My own, but He sent Me. Why don't you understand what I say? Because you cannot listen to My word. You are of your father the Devil, and you want to carry out your father's desires. He was a murderer from the beginning and has not stood in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he tells a lie, he speaks from his own nature, because he is a liar and the father of liars. Yet because I tell the truth, you do not believe Me. Who among you can convict Me of sin? If I tell the truth, why don't you believe Me? The one who is from God listens to God's words. This is why you don't listen, because you are not from God." John 8:42-47 HCSB
First of all, our enemy is the Devil. But secondly we ourselves are our own enemy when we cannot listen to the Word of God and will not believe Jesus and instead carry out the wishes of the enemy of our soul, the Devil.
LIGHT
In Ephesians chapter 5 and the beginning of chapter 6 Paul is giving instructions to husbands, wives, children, parents, fathers, slaves (employees), and masters (bosses), to wake up.
Get up, sleeper, and rise up from the dead, and the Messiah will shine on you. Eph 4:32 HCSB
The Holy Spirit wrote through Paul that in our past the Lord Jesus was the light that shined into our darkness. But now, today we are instructed to “walk as children of light” and to not “participate in fruitless works of darkness.”
For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light— for the fruit of the light results in all goodness, righteousness, and truth— discerning what is pleasing to the Lord. Don't participate in the fruitless works of darkness, but instead, expose them. For it is shameful even to mention what is done by them in secret. Everything exposed by the light is made clear, for what makes everything clear is light. Eph 5:8-14 HCSB
This blog is titled, “Marriages (Families under attack!).” I suppose that is true but every one of us is under constant attack by that roaring lion – the Devil – who has been a “murderer from the beginning.” Go ahead and read through Ephesians 5:1–6:9 and you’ll see what light vs darkness looks like in marriage, as a husband, a wife, a parent, a father, an employee, and as a boss. I think you’ll see what living in this life is really about.
Get up, sleeper, and rise up from the dead, and the Messiah will shine on you. Eph 4:32 HCSB
WAR
The Holy Spirit has acknowledged that the Devil is seeking to murder us but that our Lord Jesus has vast strength and has given us all we need to stand against the Devil’s tactics. Our God is clearly stating that we are in a war “against the world powers of this darkness.” So if this be the truth then clearly we must be a people who listens to our Lord Jesus for He said…
The one who is from God listens to God's words. John 8:47 HCSB
So let’s do that please. I understand that you are in a war. But sincerely I appeal to you to be one who is listening to the Word of God and are of the Light. Please do not give up the battle against darkness and let Light who is Jesus be lifted up for all to see. “Listen” to how the Holy Spirit finishes the letter to the Ephesians and to us.
Finally, be strengthened by the Lord and by His vast strength. Put on the full armor of God so that you can stand against the tactics of the Devil. For our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the world powers of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavens. This is why you must take up the full armor of God, so that you may be able to resist in the evil day, and having prepared everything, to take your stand. Stand, therefore, with truth like a belt around your waist, righteousness like armor on your chest, and your feet sandaled with readiness for the gospel of peace. In every situation take the shield of faith, and with it you will be able to extinguish the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is God's word. With every prayer and request, pray at all times in the Spirit, and stay alert in this, with all perseverance and intercession for all the saints. Eph 6:10-18 HCSB
PRAY
Please pray for yourself and for your brothers & sisters that we are able to hear and listen to the Word of God. And pray too for the saints that may be “opposing themselves” and “that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil.”
…be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient, In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth; And that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will. 2 Tim 2:24-26 KJV
Taking Marriage from Good to Great
I know this is going to sound a lot like "the dog ate my homework" excuse but honestly I had planned a blog post for this week entitled "What Marriage is Really For" and it was meant to be a response to what appears to be a popular blog post that has been going around entitled "Marriage Isnt For You" by Seth Adam Smith.
I know this is going to sound a lot like "the dog ate my homework" excuse but honestly I had planned a blog post for this week entitled "What Marriage is Really For" and it was meant to be a response to what appears to be a popular blog post that has been going around entitled "Marriage Isnt For You" by Seth Adam Smith.
I found the post to be good. Good not great. It expresses a good idea of not seeing marriage as being about you but as a means of serving your spouse. The problem is it misses the great idea that marriage isnt about either of you but, in the life of the believer, it's about Jesus. As I was planning that post I was sent a link to someone who had the same reaction I had. There is a good response written by Benjamin Pontius at his blog "The Everlasting Fallout." It expresses the idea really well and I would encourage you to read it.
The only point I would add to his well written post is, since the "main reason that our King created marriage was to give the world an image of what his love for his people looks like", we can see the reason why God calls us to fidelity in our marriages and why Malachi says God "hates divorce" (Malachi 2:16) and why Christ paints a very narrow exception for divorce (Matthew 19:3-9). He is faithful to His church, He endures for His church and He provides for His church. We are called to do the same in our marriages.
Marriage isn't for either of us, it's for Jesus.