Overcoming Evil
“Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.” Romans 12:21
It is quite obvious that the scripture is speaking directly about the evil that is in, and that is done by people. God tells us to address this as a sin problem that we are to overcome, rather than a matter of going to war with the person.
We have a tendency to personalize evil as being unique to the individual that has done evil and develop enmity towards them. This is like a doctor who takes offense to his patients because they are sick, rather than to fight their disease. It is Satan’s purpose to cause us to be overcome of the evil, rather than exercise our faith to overcome the evil with good.
God does not tell us to go to war with the person, but rather to do what is necessary to overcome the evil. And the first cautionary and self preserving step we must take is, “Be not overcome of evil.” When men were doing evil unto Christ, He could have called fire down from Heaven and devoured them. But instead, He prayed, “Father forgive them, for they know not what they do.”
Next, our offense (which happens to be the proper defense also) is to overcome evil with good. “Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head.” Romans 12:20 We cannot defeat anything that is of the Devil, if we respond according to the ways of the Devil, instead of according to God’s Word. Disease can only be overcome with good medicine and by a healing process that overcomes the disease, that will not be corrupted itself by the disease.
There is no question that evil is deserving of judgment. We must teach this, fear it, believe it, but most importantly, we must commit the judgement of all evil into God’s hands, “Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.” Romans 12:19 And in light of the surety and severity of Divine judgment against evil, we should fear for them and seek rather to pray for their conversion from the evil of their way.
Only a righteous God is in the position to judge evil. Since we all are sinners, thus worthy of condemnation ourselves, we must not usurp the “right” to avenge ourselves, but rather fear our own sin condition to the extent that we strive not to be overcome with any more evil than we already have in our adamic self, but rather that we overcome evil with good.
SHARING
The Mark Of The Beast
“And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads.” Revelation 13:16
Had we been in John’s stead, we would have seen and heard exactly what he did. Rather than consent to other people’s speculation about what the mark of the beast is, such as an implanted computer chip, or something else yet to be invented, he would simply affirm, “God showed me, and told me it was a mark in their right hand, or in their forehead.”
A mark is: “a visible trace or impression on a surface.” So to qualify as the “mark” of the beast, it must be according to what a mark is. An implanted computer chip, in and of itself, is not a mark. An implant would take some other device to detect it and read it. Whereas a mark is visible to the naked eye, requiring no other means of detection, except what is self evident from the mark itself. Logically speaking, being on the forehead or hand is for the purpose of being visibly seen. So no matter where or under what circumstances, whether away from other devices, in the jungle or whatever, the mark remains a visible factor. The fear of the beast and the loyalty of deceived hearts and minds (Revelation 13:4) will be the enforcer of this universal law of the anti-Christ, that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, etc.
The Biblical “study guide rules” for the book of Revelation are, “read, hear, and keep” (Revelation 1:3). The word “keep” means: “to observe, and to maintain, or cause to stay or continue in a specified condition.” God also declares that the prophecy of His Word is of no private interpretation, 2 Peter 1:20, and God warns against the adding to or taking away from the words of His prophecy, Revelation 22:18-19.
Human pride loves to be looked up to as an authority on God’s Word. Man’s finite mind finds satisfaction in explaining everything in terms known to his own way of thinking. But in so doing where Bible prophecy is concerned, man limits his understanding and thus closes his heart to the things of God that have properties beyond the finite mind.
To be blessed of God, and leave the door open for spiritual growth and increased understanding by the leadership of the Holy Spirit, we need to follow the context of Bible teaching with child-like faith–“read, hear, and keep.” And remember, it was due to human speculation that the fall of man occurred in the Garden of Eden. Due to people respecting what others say over and above what the Bible actually says, is what has opened the gate wide for the admission of false teachings and spiritual error, in spite of what the Bible teaches.
SHARINGWhen Thou Passest Through The Waters
Isaiah 43:2
Is there any heart discouragement as it journeys on its way?
Does there seem to be more darkness than there is of sunny day?
Oh, it’s hard to learn the lesson, as we pass beneath the rod,
That the sunshine and shadows serve alike the will of God.
But there comes a word of promise, like the promise of a bow,
That however deep the waters they shall never overflow.
When the flesh is worn and weary, and the spirit is depressed,
And temptations sweep upon it like a storm on ocean’s breast;
There’s a haven ever open for the tempest-driven bird;
There is shelter for the tempted in the promise of the Word.
For the standard of the Spirit shall be raised against the foe,
And however deep the waters they shall never overflow.
When a sorrow comes upon you that no other soul can share,
And the burden seems too heavy for the human heart to bear;
There is one whose grace can comfort if you’ll give Him an abode;
There’s a Burden Bearer ready, if you’ll trust Him with your load.
For the precious promise reaches to the depths of human woe;
That however deep the waters they shall never overflow.
When the sands of life are ebbing and I near the Jordan’s shore,
When I see its waters rising and I hear its billows roar,
I will reach my hand to Jesus, in His bosom I will hide.
And ’twill only be a moment till I reach the other side.
It is then the fullest meaning of the promise I shall know:
When thou passest through the waters they shall never overflow.
–Anonymous
SHARINGNew Evangelicalism Is Dangerous
In every age, there are those who profess the name of Christ, but who do not want to bear the reproach of the Cross. They cannot stand to be looked down upon by the wise of the world. They are more concerned with making the Gospel “respectable” than in declaring the whole counsel of God. They have made a complicated system of “gears” so as to “gear” the Gospel to youth, to the athlete, to the politician, to the movie star, etc. The whole program is deceptively dangerous for it appeals to the flesh in the name of the Spirit, and invariably glories in size rather than striving for fidelity to the Truth.
Some of the symptoms of the New Evangelical disease are:
There can be no true love without sound doctrine (1 John 5:2-3; Romans 16:17; John 14:21).
Faith in the Word of God and the Son of God are matters of God’s revelation, not man’s investigation (2 Timothy 2:15; 1 Corinthians 2:14).
It is always God’s will for the faithful believer to withdraw from any fellowship that has departed from sound doctrine and practice (2 Thessalonians 3:6,14; Romans 16:17; 2 Corinthians 6:14-18).
If man knows more than his Creator, then God is dead! (Genesis 1:1; John 1:1-3; 1 Corinthians 1:20).
Nothing is better for modern man than the absolute truth of God’s Word (Colossians 3:16; 1 Timothy 6:20; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; John 17:17; 1 Thessalonians 2:13).
God calls every believer to win souls, but He also commands every believer to contend earnestly for the Faith (Jude 3-4; Actus 20:24-31).
This suits the devil just fine for it confuses the battle lines (Ephesians 5:11; 1 Corinthians 15:33).
Cooperation with apostates usually starts with united welfare, mission, or evangelistic programs. God has given specific instructions regarding the believer’s responsibility to identify and to separate from all such false teachers (2 Corinthians 6:14-18; 2 Peter 2:1-3; 2 John 10-11).
New Evangelicalism is wrong because it is unscriptural and must, therefore, be guarded against on every hand. This obligation is in no way modified because some highly respected Christian leaders embrace and promote its dangerous strategies today. Don’t you be deceived by it!
–Fundamental Evangelistic Association
SHARINGThe Mini-Skirt Speaks
By Don W. Hillis
I want to make it clear that I am a Christian miniskirt. That is, I go to church every Sunday. What’s more, I attend an evangelical Church. Of course, I am not the only Christian miniskirt in town. There are many others who go to my church.
Though we represent a variety of colors and patterns, there is one thing we have in common: We all have a way of revealing attractive thighs, especially when the legs are crossed. They tell me that’s the most comfortable way to sit.
Unless I am misreading the situation, we seem to make our wearers a bit self-conscious. At least the girl who wears me is always tugging at my hem. Though I am not an expert on human nature, this appears to indicate some kind of complex.
I have also noted that we miniskirts have the ability to attract a good deal of masculine attention, even at church. At first, I took pride in the fact that men are fascinated by my pattern and color design. However, just this morning, I heard the preacher say that this was not really what the young men (and some not so young) were looking at. Though I was all ears when he started to preach, “The Appeal Of A Miniskirt,” I was embarrassed before he was through.
He claimed that the miniskirt does not appeal to the aesthetic. According to him, there are dozens of other dresses more beautiful than I am. His blanket statement that miniskirts do not make an aesthetic, academic, economic, moral, or spiritual contribution to their wearers left me with a feeling that I was not such a great Christian after all.
He said the only appealing thing about me was my appeal to the flesh. Then he spoke for ten minutes on the carnality of human nature. He publicly accused me of contributing to the lust of the flesh. I felt a hard tug on my hem when he said that!
You could have heard a pin drop in the sanctuary when he quoted the following statement from Kerry Elliott: “To flaunt sexuality in public is a betrayal of your femininity, not an endorsement. It is like playing the tuba on the subway to prove that you are a musician.”
“It isn’t honest to expose a man to the aroma of steak and apple pie….and then accuse him of being a glutton because he licks his lips.” I think everyone got the point.
I really blushed when he began asking questions about what we miniskirts did when we were out in the work world. He wondered what we thought our testimony amounted to in the presence of men who couldn’t care less about feminine purity. He said it doesn’t take much to trigger a man’s thought in the direction of sex. That’s why Jesus said, “He that looketh on a woman to lust after her hath already committed adultery in his heart.”
The preacher claimed that there is nothing about a miniskirt that would suggest to the man on the street that the wearer’s body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. He said that the Spirit-indwelled body should be adorned in modest apparel (1 Timothy 2:9-10). Furthermore, he had secured some statistics from somewhere that prove that there is a vital relationship between miniskirts and immodesty and the increase of rape in America. I began to feel as though I was abetting the crime wave.
I suppose it is the truth that hurts. That’s why I hurried out of church this morning. I saw several other miniskirts slinking out, too.
I guess what we really need is to be converted into something more modest.
SHARING
