Scripture: 1 Corinthians 10:12
Journal: What ways are you most
susceptible to falling? How are careful
so that you don’t? Are you more apt to
overestimate your own strength, or underestimate the strength of your
opponent? How do you typically try to
protect yourself from the attacks of the enemy?
Reflection: “So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t
fall!” (1 Cor. 10:12) Sound advice,
right? After all, isn’t it the moments
when we don’t think we can fall, when we are actually the most
susceptible? Those moments when we let
our guard down because we either overestimate ourselves or underestimate our
opponent—both of which can lead to disaster.
I’ll be the first to admit
that there are many times in my life where I think, “I got this,” only
to find out that I really don’t. But there
are even more moments in my life when I don’t give my opponent the credit he
deserves. In fact, quite often I do not
even recognize that I have an opponent.
I think that all that is going on within or around me is something that
I’m coming up with all on my own. But
nothing could be further from the truth.
In fact, when I think that way I am playing right into his hands. The best way for my opponent to defeat me is
to convince me that he doesn’t even exist.
Then he can go about his business without any notice or resistance.
The truth is that we do have
an opponent. Or, more accurately, we
have an enemy. The Enemy. The devil himself, whose sole purpose is to
defeat and destroy us. His main weapons
are lies and deception. He wants us to
believe things—about ourselves, our world, and our God—that simply aren’t true. He whispers to us a story that we actually believe
is one of our own making. A story in
which we are the main characters and all of life revolves around us. A story in which we are on our own and must
take care of ourselves, because no one else will. No one else really cares. He whispers to us a story about a God whose
heart cannot be trusted, a God who is not good.
And then he encourages us to interpret the events and happenings and
hardships of our lives in such a way that it only increases our deepest fears, doubts,
and suspicions. All without ever recognizing
or acknowledging that he is the source of these lies. Thus, every encounter and interaction, every
harsh word or hurtful comment just adds fuel to the fire. We recognize that we have fallen, that
our lives are a total mess, we just have no idea how we got there, or how to
get back up. But this fall didn’t
just happen. We were actually led there,
without our knowing it. That is the craftiness
and brilliance of our opponent.
But our God is even more
brilliant. In fact, he (Jesus) is the
way and the truth and the life. And the
truth, once we recognize it and believe it, is always the way back to
freedom. For Jesus tells us a totally
different story. He tells us the real story—the
true narrative. He tells us who we
really are, and how life was really meant to work, and what God is really
like. Jesus is the only firm place
to set our feet. So let us all be
careful to stand firm in him today, lest we fall.
Prayer
Closing
Prayer: To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul; in you I
trust, O my God. Do not let me be put to
shame, nor let my enemies triumph over me.
(Psalm 25:1-2, NIV)
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