Forgetting the Lies that Devour Us

All of us make mistakes. It never had to be, but it is a guarantee. We start at a young age and begin challenging the world around us to see if we get different results that please us. We may be challenged with authority, so we rebel against that authority. We use it to validate what we believe, or want to believe, about the world around us. One mistake can turn into two, and two can expand into three, four, five, six, and eventually we lose count becomes a way of life. It can even mold our mind so that “the lies” becomes “our truth.” It doesn’t have to be like this. We just need to know how to escape.

1 John 1:8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.

Illuminate It!

If I walk into a room at 1 am, I figure I have two choices. I can either flip on the light switch, which gives me the ability to master the room, or I can take a shot at it in the dark. I may get where I’m going or find what I need, but odds are that it will take longer, I’ll need to exercise more caution, and it may take a few tries to find the correct path or item. In short, my efficiency is dampened by darkness.

The great thing about “truth” is that it is always pure and illuminates. If I know something, I may not like it, but my accuracy on that subject is locked in at 100 percent. Even if I second guess myself, the truth still retains its identity. If I’m challenged by darkness or the unknown, my first reaction should be identifying how to “illuminate it”, so that I have pinpoint accuracy on the subject.

The Great Deception

One of Satan’s greatest tactics is to control our belief. After all, belief is a powerful thing. If I believe I am going to fail at something, or even succeed, my result has a higher chance of matching my belief. So if Satan can convince you that you are going to fail or that you are weak, then you are at a disadvantage. This was his own undoing that led to his fall. He chose to deceive himself and set himself as God, and in doing so put himself in direct opposition to the Truth (Isa 14:12-14). Now he wants to draw us into that same fate by accusing us and trying to bring us below him. However, the Bible has declared us as “the head” and not “the tail. (Deut 28:13)” We have been declared as royalty is God’s Kingdom (Eph 2:6), and are not subject to Satan’s deceit. At least we don’t have to be. We must choose not to believe those deceptions.

1 Peter 5:8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:

Lies… Be Gone!

Mistakes happen. That’s why erasers were put on pencils. Someone knew that humans can err. We may not mean to, but such is life. Sure, it’s better if it never happened, but that’s what grace is about. God knows that we will slip up but He is willing and able to remedy it if we have that same willingness to be corrected.

1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

This means that we have the ability to become separate from lies and various other forms of sin, through Christ. The wondrous thing about that is once we are free from that sin, it is literally removed and forgotten by God. Yes, God willfully casts the sin into oblivion so that not even He remembers it.

Psa 103:12 As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.

Heb 8:12 For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more.

Woah! That’s some heavy stuff. So if someone steals a cookie and at some point comes to sincere repentance, God will no longer remember that they stole the cookie. It’s gone, it’s eliminated, and the Great Judge has rendered His verdict. That is what Jesus has done for us. He has created a pathway past the sin and to the Father (John 14:6, 1 Tim 2:5). Our sins don’t need to define us. They are simply mistakes we made that we need to learn from and eliminate.

Illuminate to Eliminate

If something doesn’t feel right, it probably isn’t. That’s when it’s time to take a good look at a situation. We may even need to bring others end. This could be a friend, family member, or even a pastor. Just find someone you can trust, then take whatever it is that is challenging you and light it up. Sometimes we need the eyes, and heart, of someone else to see what we can’t. More importantly, have God’s Word with you so you can challenge your findings against scripture. It there is a deception, God’s Truth will illuminate it.

1 Cor 2:10 But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.

Once you’ve identified the problem, then there is one final and important step. Don’t set out to defeat it. Let God handle it. You may be involved in the process, but you don’t need to be the finisher. You just need to be a willing vessel while God does His part. Michael the Archangel knew this when he was challenged by Satan and wisely turned it over to God.

Jude 1:9 Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee.

Final Thought

Sin is a reality, but so is grace, and it is stronger. Grace has the ability to devour those things that would devour us. Even to the point that they no longer exist and have been forgotten. As such, grace is a quality that needs to exists within us as well.

Romans 5:20 Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound:

Each day we must be willing to both accept and share grace, for it is the things of God that conquer darkness and causes it to flee. Hopefully that’s what we all want. To eliminate any darkness that would attempt to hold us down while it consumes us. God has made us more than conquerors (Romans 8:37), and it is time for ALL of us to live free. Thank you for reading and God bless.

Questions

1. Can you identify anything from your past that is attempting to follow you?
2. What are three scriptures you can use to remind yourself of who God intends for you to be?
3. What is something you could change about yourself today so that you can live more freely through Christ?