It Is Written ...
Do you ever feel like Satan is beating you down ... with negative thoughts, temptations, trials, struggles, fears?
Do you know that there is a weapon available to help you fight against him and his schemes?
It is the Word of God!
The Sword of the Spirit!
But I just learned something about this Sword of the Spirit from Tony Evans. According to the concordance, the actual meaning of the "Word of God" in this verse (Ephesians 6:17) doesn't have to do with the whole Bible, the written Word of God. It's about the spoken word, about speaking the Word of God, about using Scripture out-loud to battle the lies of the enemy.
The power of this weapon is in speaking it, not just knowing about it or reading it or having a Bible on your shelf. It's vocalizing specific verses about your particular struggle or temptation or fear or whatever ... to defeat the enemy and make him flee.
Jesus did this when Satan was trying to tempt Him in the wilderness.
Three times Satan tried to offer Jesus something, to get Jesus to do things Satan's way.
And three times Jesus answered with "It is written ..." followed by Scripture that spoke to that temptation.
If Jesus needed to do this, what makes us think we don't have to?
Jesus knew the power of knowing God's Word and speaking God's Word. If we did to, I think we'd have a lot more success when battling the enemy.
It's time to start memorizing Scripture - the verses that speak to your particular struggles and trials and temptations and fears. And then when the attacks come, don't just try to talk yourself out of temptation or into a better attitude. Don't turn to temporary distractions. Don't try worldly methods.
Start with "It is written ..."
And watch the Sword of the Spirit do what no other weapon can!
Do you know that there is a weapon available to help you fight against him and his schemes?
It is the Word of God!
The Sword of the Spirit!
But I just learned something about this Sword of the Spirit from Tony Evans. According to the concordance, the actual meaning of the "Word of God" in this verse (Ephesians 6:17) doesn't have to do with the whole Bible, the written Word of God. It's about the spoken word, about speaking the Word of God, about using Scripture out-loud to battle the lies of the enemy.
The power of this weapon is in speaking it, not just knowing about it or reading it or having a Bible on your shelf. It's vocalizing specific verses about your particular struggle or temptation or fear or whatever ... to defeat the enemy and make him flee.
Jesus did this when Satan was trying to tempt Him in the wilderness.
Three times Satan tried to offer Jesus something, to get Jesus to do things Satan's way.
And three times Jesus answered with "It is written ..." followed by Scripture that spoke to that temptation.
If Jesus needed to do this, what makes us think we don't have to?
Jesus knew the power of knowing God's Word and speaking God's Word. If we did to, I think we'd have a lot more success when battling the enemy.
It's time to start memorizing Scripture - the verses that speak to your particular struggles and trials and temptations and fears. And then when the attacks come, don't just try to talk yourself out of temptation or into a better attitude. Don't turn to temporary distractions. Don't try worldly methods.
Start with "It is written ..."
And watch the Sword of the Spirit do what no other weapon can!
