What did I do?
by Pastor Greg Fowler
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But make up your mind not to worry beforehand how you will defend yourselves. For I will give you words and wisdom that none of your adversaries will be able to resist or contradict (Luke 21:14,15).
Read Luke 21:5–19
One of the things that surprised me about maturing in the faith is the reality of spiritual attack. The whole idea of evil forces working against God, and particularly his people, seemed a bit fanciful to me. It really shouldn’t have. If I see God at work powerfully in the world, opposition to God will also be active. I have seen these spiritual attacks come in many guises, including physical problems and relationship issues, but they mostly come as frustrations in getting things done. People have described a spiritual attack as trying to walk through quicksand and a feeling of pushback all the time. It can also be a direct emotional or physical attack. It leads us to wonder what we did to be in this situation.
Jesus had some great words for this situation reflecting the reality that the evil one’s power is much less than God’s. Indeed, all we need to rebuke spiritual attack is to faithfully use God’s word. Jesus says he will provide us with those words when we need them; they may be parts of Scripture that come to mind or deep truths we live by. In the face of God’s powerful word, the evil one has no choice but to retreat.
Using God’s word against the attacks of the evil one is not as difficult as we think. The hardest part is believing we are under attack. So often, we try to explain spiritual attack in practical terms. When we finally acknowledge the attack is real, prayers to Jesus and speaking his word are all we need to do to blunt the attack. We then get to witness our all-powerful God in action.
Lord Jesus, we know the evil one will target us because we bear your name. Protect us from evil. Show us when there is spiritual opposition in our lives, and give us the words to use. We praise you for your faithfulness. Amen.
Pastor Greg lives in beautiful Redland Bay with his wife, Connie, where they enjoy the beaches, weather and outdoor lifestyle of South Brisbane. He serves Faith Lutheran College, Redlands, as the college pastor.
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