the bait of satan

The devil has had thousands of years to study man and discover his weaknesses.  In most cases he knows us better than we know ourselves.  We are creatures of habit and our habits can be anticipated and plotted against.  All humans have a sense of self-preservation, we have a guarded kind of life.  We tend to become independent, trusting in very few people and reluctant to reach out.  We become our own watch dog, thus we become militant when others appear to encroach our space. 
 
Mathew 11:6 Blessed is he, whosoever shall not be  offended in Me.
 
If we are to lead and live the blessed life we must be willing to yield our life to Jesus.  When a believer “feels” like they are called to surrender too much they are easily offended at what Jesus calls them to do.  We spend our entire lives “raising ourselves” and now the Lord is asking for that responsibility.  We really don’t realize it but we take offense at the way the Lord wants to bless us.  When Jesus came to His own people He began to testify of the works He saw His Father do.
 
Mark 6:3 Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary along with his brothers and sisters?  And they were offended at Him.
 
These people did not accept Jesus as Messiah or even a minister because they didn’t believe He came from the right family.  They were offended at Him and so He could not minister to them as the Son of God.  The bait of satan is offense and it manifests commonly in ignorant people.  When folks do not understand what God wants to do in their life, they snub Him and rely on themselves.  That spirit is still among us today, some Christians won’t receive an anointed man unless they are of the same denomination.  We get offended at the power of others when all the while God sends His ministers to everyone.  We are so foolish, we just stand there and let the devil rob us of our blessings.  As I previously stated, people who think too highly of themselves are easily offended.

2 Corinthians 5:17 If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away: all things are become new.
 
When you were born-again you became a new person, your old self was forgiven and forgotten, now it’s time for a new attitude.  In the spirit you got a new lease on life but in the natural nothing changed.  We do not become this new creature until we begin to renew our mind and this does not happen over night.  Some born-again Christians never change, they remain the same old man.  They do not feed their spirit with the food it needs to become more Godlike.  Consequently, the devil still has a voice in their life and the fruit of Christ is very obscure.
 
I talked to a dying friend one day, I wanted to be sure he was saved.  Here is what he told me, “Jerry, I always believed, I just didn’t act like it”.  My friend never renewed his mind, I had no clue he was a believer.  I am not ashamed of the Gospel, I want the world to know Jesus is my Lord and satan is defeated.

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