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? The Satan answered the Lord, and said, From going to and from in the earth and from walking up and down in it.
Zechariah 3:2 - And the Lord said unto Satan, The Lord rebuke thee, O Satan.
Acts 7: 59- And they stoned Stephen calling upon God, saying Lord Jesus, receive my spirit
Topic: The Lord Rebuke thee Satan!
Satan's goal is to entrap man and then act as a spider to bite him through the teeth of despair, torment, mental confusion, doubt, depression, schizophrenia, lies, deceit, gloom, abuse, drugs, suicide, affliction, trickery and manipulative games.
The Word of God states in the book of Ephesians chapter 2:2 - Wherein in time past we walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience.
This scripture enlightens our minds to the fact that before we became the children of God through our heart faith in Jesus, we walked according to the sinful desires of our human nature. The course of this world can be referred to as the path of conduct and behaviour inspired by this world. The path that we followed was according to the prince of the power of the air. We were by nature slaves to satan and slaves to sin. The prince of the power of the air is Satan, who can also be described as the prince of devils. For the legions of backslidden angels are as one power united under one chief; referred to as the powers of darkness. The air is represented as the seat of satan's kingdom. It is Satan who has power by God's permission in the lower region of the air; there he is near to tempt men, and to do as much evil to the world as he can. Satan delights in accusing God's people and the Word of God states in Revelations 12:10 that he accuses God's people before the Lord day and night.
Rev 12:12 - Woe, to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea. For the devil is with them; having great wrath beause he knoweth that he hath but a short time.
Ephesians 6:12 - For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but aginst principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of thiis world, against spritual wickedness in high places.
Our fight is not against man but we are engaged in combat with Satan and all of the forces of darkness. There is nobody that is exempt from this combat except for those that are unsaved. When one is not saved by the power of God through the grace of Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ through Faith, then one is not fighting against satanic forces, because the unsaved and satanic forces become one. The unsaved are the vessels that Satan and the backslidden angels use to do their work in this world. This is why the Word of God states that Satan is at work right now in the children of disobedience. The children of disobedience are those who choose to disobey God, and to serve Satan. Through the children of disobedience Satan works in a powerful manner.
II Corinthians 4:3-4- But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: In whom the God of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God should shine unto them.
There are many today referred to by the Holy Spirit of God as the children of disobedience whose minds have been blinded by Satan through drugs, blinded through alcohol abuse, blinded by self-pride, blinded by self-righteousness, blinded by false religions, blinded by rebellious hearts, blinded by doubt and unbelief, blinded by the intellect/philosophies of man. Blinded by the teachings of false prophets, blinded by sinful living and blinded by man's own disobedient choice to forsake the church, which is God's method of building and preparing his people as a people without spot and blemish.
Should the everlasting gospel of Jesus Christ shine unto those that are lost, those that have turned their backs on God or those that do not know God, only then shall one either accept or reject God's plan to save them from the destruction of the flesh, from the destruction of the world and from the destruction of a soul unto everlasing dammnation.
Ephesians 2:3 - Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.
In the past our lifestyle was concerning the sinful desires of our flesh. Our carnal mind made us perfect slaves to the vicious appetities of the old man, which is the adamic nature; the carnal nature, the flesh or commonly known as self. The children of disobedience are destined to wrath.
Ephesians 2:1 - But you hath he quickened who were dead in trespasses and sins.
Our past condition was miserable but God who is rich in mercy and loves us with a great love looked down upon us and saw us dying in our sins. He saw us drowning in the sea of stench, decay and spiritual death. God who is rich in mercy stood up concerning our sin situation. God who is rich in mercy stood up concerning our death sentence. God who is rich in mercy stood up concerning our battle with the disease of sin. God who is rich in mercy stood up to loose the chains that were binding us. God who is rich in mercy stood up to break the shackles that fastened us to Satan's hold. God who is rich in mercy stood up concerning our minds that had been scarred by vain imaginations, bad attitudes, lying tongues, workers of deceit, but God who is rich in mercy stood up and rebuked Satan clean out of our hearts, and gave us a new heart.
Ezekiel 36:26-27 - A new heart will I give you and a new spriit will I put within you.
Stephen Stepping out for Jesus! Acts 7:51-60
I can almost see Stephen - the first Christian to be murdered for his belief. I see Stephen stepping out for Jesus through the faith that he had for the Lord, he spoke out for Jesus. He did the thing that God willed for his life, and when he had told the people about the Power of God through the Word of God, the people responded through the demonic spirit that was in them.
When the people heard the Word of God through Stephen they wre cut to their hearts, and they gnashed on Stephen with their teeth. They bit Stephen by stonning him to death through their rage and wickedness which viciously motivated them to let Satan use them to do his work.
When we give Satan an inch to motivate us to do evil, he will take a foot hodl of us so that He may use us to hurt someone else. This is why it is so true to never act out of anager, but pray that God will intervene into any situation, so that Satan can't be glorified through our lives. And the demons from the pit of hell can be horrified when we keep Satan in back of us. The Lord Rebuke thee Satan! Phil 3:2 - Beware of Dogs. The unbelieving people were acting just like dogs they way they treated Stephen for ministering words of life and healing unto them.
So we find the powers of darkness coming down on Stephen. We're talking about principalities, powers and rulers of the darkness of this evil world. The dark parts of the world (are the seat of Satan's empire). People are enslaved by darkness because of the absence of the saving light of the gospel. Men without God in their lives are tools of the enemy used to work out his will upon earth. We find that Satan's will was to kill Stephen. Satan desired to kill Stephen's body, to steal Stephen's faith and to destroy Stephen's body. St. John 10:10- The thief cometh not but for to steal, kill and to destroy. But Stephen being full of the Holy Ghost looked up steadfastly into heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing on the right hand of God. Jesus was standing with all of the authority of God. This is why Stephen was stoned to death, because he claimed that Jesus was God!
Because Jesus was standing up for Stephen the powers of darkness were limited. Acts 7:57 - When Stephen's persecutors heard him calling otu to God, they ran upon him with one accord. We see how Satan's armies were on one accord with their intents to do evil. How much more should God's people be on one accord at alltimes when we come into the hosue of God. If we are not on one accord, the powers odf darkness will ccccep into the church and have us debating with one another. The powers of darkness will creep into the church and have us backbiting on one another.
AND THEY STONED STEPHEN WHO WAS CALLING ON GOD TO RECEIVE HIS SPIRIT.
STEPHEN WAS KEEPING HIS EYES ON JESUS AS THE FORCES OF SATAN CAME DOWN UPON HIM. HOW MANY OF US HAVE MASTERED THIS SKILL OF KEEPING OUR EYES ON JESUS WHEN THE POWERS OF DARNESS ARE COMING IN ON US THROUGH EVIL HAPPENINGS OCCURING IN OUR LIVES?
Satan may have thought that he had an advantage over Stephen when he stoned him to death through man, but The Word of God teaches us in 11 Corinthians 5:8 - That we should be confident and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present wtih the Lord. When Jeus stood up for Stephen, his actions were saying, The Lord reuke thee, Satan! Satan had power to destroy his body, but praise God, Satan has no power over man's soul. Satan did not have the last say over Stephen's situation because Stephen's mission was completed, and he did his job well. I can hear Christ saying, Well done thou good and fiathful servant, thou has been faithful over a few things. I wil make thee ruler over many tings, enter into the joy of thy Lord.
When we have the power of God in our lives, we must realize that Satan is nothing but a defeated coward.![]()
God has a leash on Satan and he cannot do anything unto God's people without God's permission. There may be some that fear the Christian walk when they review how Stephen was murdered because he stood up for Jesus. But, when we look at the fact that Satan had no advantages over Stephen. God was calling Stephen home, and although Stephen's body was stoned to death, his soul was preserved blameless before God. We need not fear Satan for God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, and of love and of a sound mind.
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