Word of God
Quote: “The second unfailing resource (of Victory) is the Word of God. In the New Testament we discover that two Greek words are translated “word” in reference to scripture. One is the word logos, which means the word in all its meaning and understanding. Rhema is the other expression, and it means “the word spoken and applies.” It means “the word unleashed.” Ephesians 6:17 calls scripture “the sword of the spirit, which is the word of God.” Word in this verse is rhema, which means the word spoken, applied, unleashed, and released. Satan and his demons will flee before the armed believer who speaks the Word of God. Our Lord Jesus, when tempted by Satan in the wilderness, used only scripture to drive him away (see Matthew 4:1-11)” –Demons & Spiritual Warfare by Ron Phillips.
Question; how is your Sword? Can you even find it? Can you even handle it? My thoughts go back to an Airport Security scare some years ago. You see a little old lady was wanting to board a flight but she had something metal that was setting the alarms off. The object turned out to be her walking stick that she now needed, and this she had inherited from her father. One of the security officers had seen one of these ancient articles before many many years ago, so asked if he could examine it closely, and yes, this was actually one of these rare items. He found the secret catch and released it, but nothing worked, but after a period of struggling, the handle finally and slowly withdrew from the stem and the very rusty sword blade was still there attached and saw the light of day for a change.
You see this was a “Gentleman’s Cane,” and it served as a weapon of protection from would be attackers, just trip the secret latch, and the long thin blade withdrew out from inside the stick, and one could then easily defend themselves. A very shocked elderly lady found that she had more than bargained for hidden inside her cane. She kept her walking stick as she is no terrorist threat, along with her little secret.
When Satan attacks you, do you quake and shake in your boots, do you cringe, cry, run and hide, or do you just “roll over and give in?” Why do we not defend and then attack this defeated foe (Jesus at Calvary won) we should instantly whip out our Sword, “Thus saith the Lord,” or “It is Written,” and send him scampering away, send him packing, command “away with you deceiver.”
This Author goes on to quote Matthew 16:18 “And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” We believers often read this as saying “we are hiding behind the Gates of Glory trying to hold them shut” when Satan attacks rattling them forcing his way in, when it actually reads, “we are attacking Satan’s strong hold and beating his gates down and then releasing his captives that he has imprisoned within.
Yes Satan is defeated, we have victory over him through the shed blood of Jesus Christ, and “in Christ” we are more than conquerors. For those silly enough to take Satan and Demons on in their own strength will quickly be destroyed by his frighteningly amazing strength and power.
Quote: “Christ declared to the tempter, “Get thee behind me, Satan.”. . . So we may resist temptation and force Satan to depart from us. Jesus gained the victory through submission and faith in God, and by the apostle He says to us, “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” We cannot save ourselves from the tempter’s power; he has conquered humanity, and when we try to stand in our own strength, we shall become a prey to his devices; but “the name of the Lord is a strong tower: the righteous runneth into it, and is safe.” Satan trembles and flees before the weakest soul who finds refuge in that mighty name.” {CTr 219}
Quote: “Satan is well aware that the weakest soul who abides in Christ is more than a match for the hosts of darkness, and that, should he reveal himself openly, he would be met and resisted. Therefore he seeks to draw away the soldiers of the cross from their strong fortification, while he lies in ambush with his forces, ready to destroy all who venture upon his ground. Only in humble reliance upon God, and obedience to all His commandments, can we be secure. No man is safe for a day or an hour without prayer. Especially should we entreat the Lord for wisdom to understand His word? Here are revealed the wiles of the tempter and the means by which he may be successfully resisted. Satan is an expert in quoting Scripture, placing his own interpretation upon passages, by which he hopes to cause us to stumble. We should study the Bible with humility of heart, never losing sight of our dependence upon God. While we must constantly guard against the devices of Satan, we should pray in faith continually: “Lead us not into temptation.” {DD 12}
In the Sacrificial System Logos and Rhema can be viewed this way; Logos is the blood inside the animal sacrifice, but Rhema is the unleashed blood applied to the Altar. In Passover symbolism, it is the blood in the basin which is Logos, but the blood being applied to the Doorpost is the Rhema. We Christians are often filled to the brim with “Logos” but there it stays as we seldom apply it, sort of like having a jar of ointment, but we never apply its active healing results to festering sin wounds. In the times we live in, when Satan is a roaring lion seeking who he may devour, maybe it is past time that we all Rhema’d up, unleashed the pent up stored up power of God within, clad in the Gospel Armour claimed back huge swaths of lost territory in our personal life, Family, Church, Community and Country. We are in a war, lets us each be faithful warriors, all Rhema’d up.
