BE ON GUARD!

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In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Therefore, dear friends, since you have been forewarned, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of the lawless and fall from your secure position.

2 Peter 3:17

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Blasphemers. Scoffers. False teachers and prophets.

As we have seen through our study of 2 Peter, the Christian believers in first century A.D. had a lot to be concerned about because Satan was bound and determined to keep the church from becoming a force in the religious world. He’s still working to that end today and this is why no Jesus follower can afford to let down their guard and offer up a point of vulnerability to the enemy.

This one of two exhortations we find Peter conveying as he concludes this second letter, two exhortations that will compose the final two messages before we move onto 1 John. Look at these words found in chapter 3, verse 17:

Therefore, dear friends, since you have been forewarned, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of the lawless and fall from your secure position.

As mentioned, Peter had spent a lot of time forewarning his brother and sister Christians in “the provinces of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia” (1 Peter 1:1) about internal dangers within the church and now it was on them to avoid being “carried away by the error of the lawless”, those who would seek to mislead and corrupt the purity of the Gospel. As we looked at in yesterday’s message, the way to do this, whether today or more than 2,000 years ago, is to saturate yourself in the Word of God and submit fully to the influence of the Holy Spirit who dwells within every Christian. When this is done in tandem, a believer will always be protected from deception and the devil will be left with no chance for victory.

In writing to the church in Ephesus, the Apostle Paul shared additional instruction on staying protected from the ever looming attacks by Satan. Here’s what we read in the sixth chapter:

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. Vv.10-18

Want to be fully armed and protected against your greatest enemy?

Stay fully connected to the Lord so you can be strong in Him through His mighty power.

Put on your full spiritual armor each and every day, not omitting any part so to not allow the devil any point of vulnerability.

Stand firm in your daily battles knowing that if God is for you, who can stand against you (Romans 8:31).

And finally, be alert as you pray for your spiritual safety and the safety of all others.

Friends, Satan is not ever going to give up. He desires nothing more than to take any Christian down this side of Heaven.

Don’t let that happen. Be on guard!

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.