Today’s scripture: Matthew 13:19, 24-30, 36-39; Ephesians 6:12 (NRSV) (The Message) (KJV) What might God be saying to me?
My thoughts (Steve Adams):
“. . . the evil one comes and snatches away what is sown in the heart . . .”
Jesus clearly speaks of an opponent who comes for a purpose, and that is to steal the concepts of the Kingdom of God before they can take root in faith. He’s talking about people who don’t understand. We all automatically think “Oh, I understand what Jesus is saying. I get what he’s saying!” All the while, earlier that day I didn’t even realize it when the spirit gave me a thought to give some money for the starving people of Africa. The thought passed by without even making a minimal impact. And I get Jesus?
“. . . but while everybody was asleep, an enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat . . .”
So there’s an enemy, and it comes when everybody’s asleep. Lots of Christians are like that, aren’t they? Many are asleep, I’m afraid, because they don’t realize there’s an enemy. “I don’t believe in the devil! That’s just a paranoid fundamentalist illusion!” We don’t realize that awareness of a spiritual Enemy can be part of an intelligent theology.
Whether you personify the Enemy by calling it Satan or the devil, or see it as the nameless cause of suffering and injustice in the world, it’s there. And it operates by looking for weaknesses and vulnerabilities, similar to an adaptive virus or a clever terrorist network. In order for me to have a quality relationship with God, I need to realize what my weaknesses are. That’s hard, isn’t it?
Think about the national security of the United States in the last twenty years. How much better off today would we be if in 1993 we would have realized our airport security procedures had gaping holes that could allow terrorists to hijack planes and crash them into buildings? And then what if we had followed through and done all the work necessary to tighten security? The obvious answer is that 9/11 might not have happened. Did most people realize how active, strategic, and intelligent our Enemy was? No.
As Jesus taught, the Enemy tries to steal what’s in the heart. It constantly chips away at our faith, love, and hope. It will try to persuade me in whatever way it can to make a foolish decision. It may pressure me until I think I cannot survive another minute. Then it may offer me a pleasure that’s wrong, and I cave into it because my ability to reason has been compromised. Or it may work in a thousand other ways.
While we need to realize the presence and power of evil, there is also danger in over-emphasizing it. Even that’s one of the Enemy’s strategies! I think the goal is to be aware so we can outsmart and “outfaith” evil, all the while keeping our focus on God and our Lord Jesus Christ. The Name of Jesus becomes all the more precious after I’ve taken some time to face evil realities. 1 John 4:4 assures us that God is greater than the evil of the world.
Thought for the day: Maybe I don’t want to take the time for an honest look at how evil is strategizing to exploit my vulnerabilities. But, Lord, give me the courage to do exactly that, so I can become a wiser, stronger, more effective follower of you.
We encourage you to include a time of prayer with this reading. If you need a place to get started, consider the suggestions on the How to Pray page.