Opposition to the Purposes of God
 
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son,
 that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish,
but have everlasting life.
John 3:16 (KJV)
 
Be sober, be vigilant;
because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about,
seeking whom he may devour:
1 Pet 5:8 (KJV)
 
Dear Friends in Christ,
 
God has a plan of salvation which He is carrying out in people's lives, and has included us in His plan. Satan is in opposition to any and all of God's plan and will, and does and will do anything and everything possible to make certain those plans are thwarted and that Jesus Christ is not glorified in this world or the next. Of course we know that his devices will be ultimately futile, but that doesn't seem to stop him. And we still must be prepared to see through his deceptions, and ask God for wisdom, discernment and self-control, and all the other fruits of the Spirit which are ours.
 
As we said, Satan uses various means to oppose God and His plans, and works on three arenas to do so:
 
In the Spiritual Realm
  • Leading the spiritual rebellion of Angels away from God
  • Tempting Adam and Eve to bring Sin into the world
  • Attempting to get Christ to fall down and worship satan before He went to the Cross
  • Attempting to get Christ to commit suicide by throwing Himself off the wall of the temple
  • Attempting to have Christ come down from the Cross to prevent the carrying out of God's plan of salvation.
  • Accusing Christians Before the Throne of God day and night
  • Orchestrating evil and attacking Christians every way he can.
 
In the Arena of Ideas
  • Distorting the Truth so People learn useless errors
  • Re-writing history to hide the truth of his evil past activities
  • Exploiting human foolishness and sin to damage the world
  • Teaching lies and false information to keep sinners from Christ
  • Promoting false teachers and false prophets to lead Christians astray
  • Attempting to intimidate and control the weak and un-informed through various forms of terror and fear
  • Exploiting human frailties and sin so that depravation will flourish
  • Attempting to re-write the Bible and weaken or negate its impact
  • Creating false religions to distract sinners from the Truth of Christ, so they will think they are saved when they are not.
In the Hearts and Flesh-lives of Christians
  • Seeking to cause Christians to focus on material things, and just enjoy the material world and become inactive and apathetic to the Spiritual Conflict. 
  • Tempting Christians to sin
    • To damage our testimonies before lost sinners
    • To incur the wrath of God
    • To fill us with guilt so that we will become distressed and ineffective
  • Tempting Christians to become enamored with worldly riches and luxurious things and thus distracted from fulfilling The Great Commission
  • Causing divisions, dissentions and animosity among Christians, gossip, splitting churches, doctrinal disputes, false teachings, ill-feelings.
  • Tempting Christian leaders into "secret sins" which later become publicly revealed, and destroy lives and ministries, and thereby slander the Name of Christ.
  • Persecuting active Christians to cause them to fear and become timid and ineffective.
  • Outright killing of Christians when they become too effective, (only with the permission of Almighty God).

Related Bible Verses to ponder
 
Rom 12:21 (KJV)
Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.
 
Mat 4:1-11 (KJV)
Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness
to be tempted of(by) the devil.
{2} And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights,
 he was afterward an hungered.
{3} And when the tempter came to him, he said,
If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.
 {4} But he answered and said,
It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone,
but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.
{5} Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city,
and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple,
{6} And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down:
for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee:
and in their hands they shall bear thee up,
 lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.
{7} Jesus said unto him, It is written again,
Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.
{8} Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain,
and showeth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them;
 {9} And saith unto him,
All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.
 {10} Then saith Jesus unto him,
Get thee hence, Satan:
for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God,
and him only shalt thou serve.
{11} Then the devil leaveth him,
and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him.
 
Mat 25:37-41 (KJV)
Then shall the righteous answer him, saying,
 Lord, when saw we thee an hungered, and fed thee?
or thirsty, and gave thee drink?
{38} When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in?
or naked, and clothed thee?
 {39} Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee?
{40} And the King shall answer and say unto them,
Verily I say unto you,
Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren,
 ye have done it unto me.
 {41} Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand,
Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire,
prepared for the devil and his angels:
 
 
John 8:42-44 (KJV) 
{42} Jesus said unto them,
If God were your Father, ye would love me:
for I proceeded forth and came from God;
neither came I of myself, but he sent me.
 {43} Why do ye not understand my speech?
even because ye cannot hear my word.
{44} Ye are of your father the devil,
and the lusts of your father ye will do.
He was a murderer from the beginning,
and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him.
 When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own:
for he is a liar, and the father of it.
 
Eph 4:26-27 (KJV)
 Be ye angry, and sin not:
let not the sun go down upon your wrath:
{27} Neither give place(opportunity) to the devil.
 
Eph 6:10-18 (KJV)
Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord,
and in the power of his might.
 {11} Put on the whole armour of God,
 that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
{12} For we wrestle not against flesh and blood,
but against principalities, against powers,
against the rulers of the darkness of this world,
against spiritual wickedness in high places.
 
{13} Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God,
that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day,
and having done all, to stand.
 {14} Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth,
and having on the breastplate of righteousness;
{15} And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
{16} Above all, taking the shield of faith,
wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.
{17} And take the helmet of salvation,
 and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:
{18} Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit,
and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;
 
James 4:4-10 (KJV)
Ye adulterers and adulteresses,
know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God?
whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.
{5} Do ye think that the scripture saith in vain,
The spirit that dwelleth in us {lusteth to envy}?
(Grk=yearns to be accepted by us with a jealous love) 
{6} But he giveth more grace.
 Wherefore he saith,
God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.
 {7} Submit yourselves therefore to God.
 Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
{8} Draw nigh(near) to God, and he will draw nigh to you.
Cleanse your hands, ye sinners;
and purify your hearts, ye double minded.
 {9} Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep:
let your laughter be turned to mourning,
and your joy to heaviness.
{10} Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord,
and he shall lift you up.
 
1 John 3:8 (KJV)
He that committeth sin is of the devil;
for the devil sinneth from the beginning.
For this purpose the Son of God was manifested,
that he might destroy the works of the devil.
 
Rev 12:7-12 (KJV)
 And there was war in heaven:
 Michael and his angels fought against the dragon;
and the dragon fought and his angels,
 {8} And prevailed not;
neither was their place found any more in heaven.
{9} And the great dragon was cast out,
that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan,
which deceiveth the whole world:
he was cast out into the earth,
and his angels were cast out with him.
{10} And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven,
 Now is come salvation, and strength,
and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ:
 for the accuser of our brethren is cast down,
which accused them before our God day and night.
{11} And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb,
and by the word of their testimony;
and they loved not their lives unto the death.
 {12} Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them.
 Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea!
for the devil is come down unto you,
having great wrath,
 because he knoweth that he hath but a short time.

 
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