June 28 “ Neither Give Place To The Devil” Ephesians 4:27-32 Good morning from Pastor Glen Brock, Baptist Tabernacle Church, Wendell, North Carolina… “Neither give place to the devil. Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth. Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers. And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.” (Ephesians 4:27-32)
We have all heard it said, “Give the devil an inch and he will take a mile!” The Bible is not talking about an inch, or even one half of a mile. God tells us, “Neither Give Place…”---Give NO place to Satan! Why? Because the Devil does not want just a little place in your life. Satan is fully aware that if he is ever going to conquer a life, he must, first, establish a “Beach-Head!” Christ warns us not to let him do this, “Neither Give Place to the Devil!” Stan is sly and tricky and cunning and he uses several ways to enter our lives. He does it by false pretenses. He has deceived millions of people that he means no harm. The Bible tells us that Satan is a “LIAR” and a “DECEIVER” and a “MURDERER” and He warns, “NEITHR GIVE PLACE TO THE DEVIL!!” Satan makes a big push through our minds. The devil tries, every day, to gain entrance through our minds. He knows that if he can place a few bad thoughts there and get us to dwell on them, we will soon, act on these thoughts. DO NOT ALLOW SATAN TO DECEIVE YOU OR TO USE YOU TO HINDER GOD’S WORD FROM BEING SPREAD! When I look at what is going on in our world and, in my human thoughts, try to make some basic “Common Sense” of it all, I am left with the realization that Satan and his minions are hard at work trying to alter your thoughts and to influence you to succumb to his LIES! Please listen to the guidance of the HOLY SPIRIT! God loves you and Satan does not, so, ignore all of those thoughts and ideas that are not edifying to our Savior and do not give any room in your life for the “EVIL ONE!” Folks, this is the answer to the Evil that has beset us and our nation! We are to Stand Strong and Love our neighbor and Share His Good News! May we love, as God loves us, and gave himself up for us!! May we lay aside the attitudes and behaviors that would hinder our service and would open a door to Satan, and dig deeper in the Word and exercise spiritual growth and embrace the responsibility to serve Him and to edify Him! What God does with you, depends upon what you do! It Always has; It Always will!! Be sure, be productive and continue to share the Love of God with others! To God Be the Glory! Stay Strong, Stay Focused…Remember, THE BEST IS YET TO BE!