I am All Alone – Lies of the
Enemy #6– Purity 1018
Purity 1018 04/15/2023 Purity 1018 Podcast
Purity 1018 on YouTube:
Good morning,
Today’s photo of a sunrise pathway scene reflected
in the waters at the Vischer Ferry Preserve in Rexford comes to us from Nancy
Saunders Sever who leads the Starpoint Church Divorce Care Group at my local
church and yesterday lead a group of friends from the group on an 6:00 am morning
hike to enjoy a gorgeous morning and the fact that there is freedom and healing,
even after divorce, when Christians come together in unity to support and encourage
one another.
Well, it is Saturday, and even though my shifting
schedule has me working today, I pray that all of my friends with the day off,
and those working, take some time today to enjoy yourselves and thank the Lord
for all that He has done. And if you can
do so in the company of family or friends. As the Swedish proverb says “shared joy is a
double joy; shared sorrow is half a sorrow. " And I can tell you that is the truth!
The Starpoint Divorce Care group was instrumental in
my healing from my divorce. I shared my sorrow, and I can tell you that there
was healing merely in having the opportunity to honestly talk about what I went
through with others who had, were, or were preparing to suffer the same loss of
divorce. The word indicates that confessing
our “sins” to our brothers brings healing (James 5:16) and I know that I
released many burdens through that group.
I also experienced joy! The leadership was
intentional in organizing social gatherings for the group members and it was
through these simple gatherings with new friends that I was able to get over
loneliness and past the fear of “going out” in the world again.
The enemy would have us isolate ourselves because
when we are alone he can more easily condemn us, make us see the world as
hostile to us, and keep us in bondage to addiction, fear, anger, or
depression. But when we come together
as Christians, we can combat the lies of the enemy with the truth of God’s word
and the support of one another.
And so in the spirit of standing on the truth, let’s
continue with our current series which is an examination of some of the common
lies the enemy tells us to cause us to doubt our faith or to choose not to
follow the Lord with the way we live our lives.
So today’s big lie is:
Lie # 6: I am
All Alone.
I purposely put today’s big lie in the “first person”
tense because that is often how the enemy delivers the “fiery darts” into our
minds.
1 Chronicles 21:1 (NKJV) tells us
1 Now Satan stood up against
Israel, and moved David to number Israel.
Here scripture indicates Satan, apparently underneath God’s authority (2 Samuel 24:1), moved David to take a census of the people of Israel but He didn’t follow the guidelines for doing so that God established with Moses (Exodus 30:12) thus acting in pride and against God’s word. Acting in pride and against God’s word, huh? Sounds like Satan to me!
But it probably didn’t sound like Satan to David, it probably sounded like a good idea of his own. It is unlikely that Satan announced his maniacal plot that would result in the deaths of 70,000 Israelites (1 Chronicles 21:14) to David in the second person:
“Hey David, You should do a census!”
Instead it is more likely that the enemy phrased it in the first person:
“I should do a census before we fight. The enemy will be intimidated when they find out how large our army is! That’s a good idea! Boy, I’m smart!”
Little did David know that He was going against God’s word. He had a heart for God after all. But scripture tells us that Satan knows the word and just how to twist it. So when we consider combatting the lies of the enemy, we have to be on the look out of “our own thoughts” because they could be “first person” fiery darts from demonic entities. That’s right. Sometimes our thoughts may not be our own!
Satan did it to David and so he will certainly do it to us.
That’s a big introduction for today’s lie but I wanted to explain those “first person” lies because if we aren’t “taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ” – even first person thoughts, we will be susceptible to deception.
And just like how the enemy likes to take the truth of God’s word and twist it, he will also take the facts of a situation and twist them to afflict us. The best lies are partially true and Satan knows this.
So, the lie of “I am all alone.” can be based on the facts of the circumstances. I am alone. My spouse left me. My family is far from me. I don’t have any close friends.
The enemy will be quick to point out these facts and provided you with commentary to explain them:
“I’m alone because nobody loves me. Nobody wants to be with me.”
But what the enemy doesn’t tell you is that there is Someone that does love you and is always with you: God. No matter what your circumstances on this earth may be there is One who will never leave you or forsake you. God reveals the fact of His omnipresence through out scripture.
In Joshua 1:9 (NKJV) God says:
9 Have I not commanded you?
Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you
wherever you go."
Wherever you go, there you are with God.
Remember David, the guy who really
messed up more than once, well he knew
this truth about God too. In
1 O LORD, you have examined my heart and
know everything about me.
2 You know when I sit down or
stand up. You know my thoughts even when I’m far away.
3 You see me when I travel and
when I rest at home. You know everything I do.
4 You know what I am going to
say even before I say it, LORD.
5 You go before me and follow
me. You place your hand of blessing on my head.
6 Such knowledge is too
wonderful for me, too great for me to understand!
If you have put your faith in Christ, the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit, Himself, lives in you.
SO in reality, the Christian is NEVER
ALONE. We can’t be alone because God is
with us wherever we go. But if we
forget this, the truth of our relationship with God, the enemy can get us to
believe the lies that will fill us with despair, cause us to be fearful or
angry, and tempt us to look for satisfaction and love in all the wrong
places.
1. You remember word and your relationship with God and go into His presence through prayer, Bible Study, worship, praise, thanksgiving, or doing good works in His name. The word says that in the presence of the Lord there is full of joy.
Psalm 16:11
(NKJV)
11 You will show me the path
of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy;
At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.
God shows us the path of life. In His presence there is fullness of joy! So stay in His presence by walking and talking to God as you follow His path through life.
And the second way you can combat, the lie that “I’m all alone.” Is to
2. Seek the company of family, friends, and brothers and sisters in the body of Christ. Or go out to new places and make new friends, and take your faith with you.
Psalm 133:1 (NKJV) says
1 Behold, how good and how
pleasant it is For brethren to dwell together in unity!
So spend some time making friends in the body of Christ. We need each other but no one will know your need if you don’t seek friendship. I know it is not easy but the Lord directs us to love one another and we can’t do that by ourselves.
So don’t believe the lie that “I’m all alone.” It’s not true, God is with you. But if you are lonely, be bold and courageous and seek out good company where you can confess your sorrows to cut them in half and where you can double your joy.
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For those who want more evidence for Christianity
than my simple apologetic will provide, I offer apologist, Frank Turek’s
website, https://crossexamined.org/ .
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Today’s
Bible verse comes to us from “The NLT Bible Promise Book for Men”.
This
morning’s meditation verse is:
Psalm 90:12 (NKJV)
12 So teach us to
number our days, That we may gain a heart of wisdom.
Today’s verse points to the fact of our physical impermanence and encourages us to live from a heart of wisdom – to make our days count.
All wisdom comes from God so to gain a heart of wisdom we need to know what God’s book of wisdom, the Bible, says and to wisely apply its teachings to our lives.
The Bible will show us that our lives are but a vapor and we only have limited time to enjoy our lives and to contribute to the work of God’s kingdom.
So don’t waste your time in earthly pursuits but seek God’s wisdom and to grow your capacity for being in His presence and doing His will. We have to grow into maturity and it may take some time to gain that heart of wisdom but if we number our days we will be able to focus on what’s really important – what will last for eternity – our character and the work we do for and with the Lord.
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As always, I invite all to go to mt4christ.org where I
always share insights from prominent Christian theologians and counselors to
assist my brothers and sisters in Christ with their walk.
Today we continue sharing from A.W. Pink’s “The
Sovereignty of God.”
As always, I share this information for educational
purposes and encourage all to purchase A.W. Pink’s books for your own
private study and to support his work. This resource is available on
many websites for less than $20.00.
THE SOVEREIGNTY OF GOD
By
ARTHUR W. PINK
CONCLUSION
continues
Let us take up these questions in the
order of mention.
2. God’s Sovereignty and Christian service
If God has determined before the foundation
of the world the precise number of those who shall be saved then why should we concern ourselves about the eternal
destiny of those with whom we come into contact? What place is left for zeal in Christian service? Will not the
doctrine of God’s sovereignty, and its corollary of predestination, discourage the Lord’s servants from
faithfulness in evangelism? No; instead of discouraging
His servants a recognition of God’s sovereignty is most encouraging to them. Here is one, for example, who is called upon
to do the work of an evangelist, and he goes forth believing in the freedom of
the will and in the sinner’s own ability to come to Christ. He preaches the
Gospel as faithfully and zealously as he knows how; but he finds the vast
majority of his hearers are utterly indifferent and have no heart at all for
Christ. He discovers that men are, for the most part, thoroughly wrapt up in
the things of the world, and that few have any concern about the world to come.
He beseeches men to be reconciled to God and pleads with them over their soul’s
salvation. But it is of no avail. He becomes thoroughly disheartened and asks
himself, What is the use of it all? Shall he quit, or had he better change his
mission and message? If men will not respond to the Gospel, had he not better
engage in that which is more popular and acceptable to the world? Why not
occupy himself with humanitarian efforts, with social uplift work, with the
purity campaign? Alas! that so many men who once preached the Gospel are now
engaged in these activities instead.
What then is God’s
corrective for His discouraged servant? First, he needs to learn from Scripture
that God is not now seeking to convert the world, but that in this Age He is
“taking out of the Gentiles” a people for His name (Acts 15:14). What then is
God’s corrective for His discouraged servant? This: a proper apprehension of God’s plan for this Dispensation. Again:
what is God’s remedy for dejection at apparent failure in our labors? This: the
assurance that God’s purpose cannot fail, that God’s plans cannot miscarry, that God’s will must be done. Our labors are not
intended to bring about that which God
has not decreed. Once more: what is God’s word of cheer for the one who is
thoroughly disheartened at the lack of response to his appeals and the absence
of fruit for his labors? This: that we
are not responsible for results: that is God’s
side, and God’s business. Paul may “plant,” and Apollos may “water,” but it is God who “gave the increase” (1 Cor.
3:6). Our business is to obey Christ and preach the Gospel to every creature,
to emphasize the “Whosoever believeth” and then to leave the sovereign
operations of the Holy Spirit to apply the Word in quickening power to whom He wills, resting on the sure promise of
Jehovah: “For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth
thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may
give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: So shall My Word be that goeth forth
out of My mouth: it shall not return unto
Me void, but it shall accomplish that
which I please (it may not that which we
please), and it shall prosper in the thing whereunto
I sent it” (Isa. 55:10, 11). Was it not this assurance that sustained the
beloved apostle when he declared “Therefore (see context) I endure all things for the elect’s sake” (2 Tim. 2:10)!
Yea, is not this same lesson to be learned from the blessed example of the Lord
Jesus! When we read that He said to the people “Ye also have seen Me, and believe not,” He fell back upon the
sovereign pleasure of the One who sent Him, saying “All that the Father giveth Me shall
come to Me, and him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out” (John 6:36,
37). He knew that His labor would not be in vain. He knew God’s Word would not
return unto Him “void.” He knew that “God’s elect” would come to Him and believe on Him. And this same assurance fills
the soul of every servant who intelligently rests upon the blessed truth of
God’s sovereignty.
Ah, fellow-Christian-worker,
God has not sent us forth to “draw a bow at a venture.” The success of the
ministry which He has committed into our hands is not left contingent on the
fickleness of the wills in those to whom we preach. How gloriously encouraging,
how soul-sustaining the assurance are those words of our Lord’s if we rest on
them in simple faith: “And other sheep I have (“have” mark you, not “will have;” “have” because given to
Him by the Father before the foundation of the world), which are not of this
fold (i.e. the Jewish fold then existing): them also I must bring, and they shall
hear My voice” (John 10:16). Not simply, “they ought to hear My voice,” not simply “they may hear My voice,” not “they will if they are willing.” There is no “if,” no uncertainty about it.
“They shall hear My voice” is His own
positive, unqualified, absolute promise. Here then is where faith is to rest! Continue your quest,
dear friend, after the “other sheep” of Christ’s. Be not discouraged because
the “goats” heed not His voice as you preach the Gospel. Be faithful, be
scriptural, be persevering, and Christ may use even you to be His mouthpiece in
calling some of His lost sheep unto Himself. “Therefore, my beloved brethren,
be ye steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch
as ye know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord” (1 Cor. 15:58).[1]
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