Jesus who came to declare God to us, did everything that was good and He set the oppressed free! We have a good Father in heaven. Therefore, it is easy to identify what comes from God and what is the work of the devil.
There are many who have made God an adversary rather than a source of help during times of crises. We have forgotten that there are demonic forces that work against us too. The devil doesn’t want us to succeed nor enjoy the abundant life that God has planned for us. He wants us to believe that God is the source of our problems. He would like us to feel that God has abandoned us and doesn’t care to help us, even though He is the supreme God. The devil makes us feel condemned and pushes us away from God. He throws fiery darts at us and brings tribulations into our lives to steal the Word that has been planted in our hearts. He wants us to be bitter with God!
God is not our adversary but our ever-present help in times of need! He is a Good God who has given us a mediator and an advocate in heaven! He ensured that nobody is able to condemn us because it is HE who has justified us. He has made PEACE with us through the shed blood of Jesus Christ. He is not trying to torment us nor make life difficult for us. He loves us with an everlasting and unconditional love. He has bound Himself to help us by establishing an everlasting covenant with us through the blood of Jesus Christ. When God establishes a covenant with us, He wants to journey with us when we are faced with a crisis. Covenant is the highest form of commitment understood by man.
We will not be able to fully comprehend everything especially during a period of crisis but we will have to rest our faith in God. This is especially true when we know that He is compassionate and merciful. Our faith can be shaken during a time of deep suffering unless we have our faith rooted in the love of God. The very foundation of our relationship with God is built on His unconditional love for us. This is especially true for us who have the full counsel of the Word and the help of the Holy Spirit as our teacher.
It is the work of the devil that kills, steals and destroys. Therefore, we need to constantly remind ourselves that we do not have an adversary in God. We have a good Father in heaven, full stop.
Sermon Series: Job and I (Part 3)
神不是我们的敌人
雅各书 1:17各样美善的恩赐和各样全备的赏赐都是从上头来的，从众光之父那里降下来的；在他并没有改变，也没有转动的影儿。
马太福音 7:11你们虽然不好，尚且知道拿好东西给儿女，何况你们在天上的父，岂不更把好东西给求他的人吗？
耶稣来把神表明给我们，行了一切的善事，叫那受压制的得自由！我们在天上有位良善的天父。因此，辨别什么来自神，什么是魔鬼的工作并不是什么难事。
有许多人在危难时视神为敌人，而不是帮助的来源。我们已经忘记了还有各种恶魔的权势在与我们作对。那恶者不希望我们得胜也不希望我们享受神为我们计划的丰盛生命。牠想让我们相信神是我们问题的根源。牠要我们感觉那至高无上的神已经离弃我们、任由我们自生自灭。魔鬼使我们觉得有罪，把我们推离神。 牠把火箭投向我们、给我们的生活带来患难，以偷取撒在我们心中的道。牠希望我们对神心存苦毒!
神不是我们的敌人，乃是我们在患难中随时的帮助! 祂是良善的神，赐给我们中保和保惠师在天上！祂确保无人能定我们的罪，因为是祂使我们称义。神藉着耶稣基督所流的宝血与我们和好。祂不是在折磨我们，也不是让我们的生活变得困难。神以永恒的无条件的爱来爱我们。祂藉着耶稣基督的血与我们立了永恒的约，制约自己好帮助我们。当神与我们立约时，祂希望在我们面临患难时与我们同行。盟约是人类所能理解的最高形式的委身。
我们无法完全理解每件事，尤其是在艰难时期，但是我们必须使信心安息在神里面。当我们知道神满有恩慈与怜悯，这一点尤其真实。除非我们把信心扎根在神的爱里，不然我们的信心在患难中就会动摇。我们与神的关系的基础，是建立在祂对我们无条件的爱上。对于我们这些有着圣经的完备教导以及圣灵导师之帮助的，更是如此。
恶者的工作就是偷窃，杀害，毁坏。因此，我们需要不断提醒自己，神不是我们的敌人。在高天之上，我们有位好天父，这毋庸赘言。
讲章系列：约伯与我 （第三部份）