RECOVERING MYSELF FROM THE SNARE OF THE DEVIL
TEXT - 2 Timothy 2:25-26
25 In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth;
26 And that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will.
The snare of the devil is what snared the devil. Psalm 91 calls it the snare of the fowler where those that were born to fly are brought down to ground level and trapped by their own soul’s lusts and desires. If our soul is Spirit-led, God gives us the desire of our heart so the very things we desire, long for, and pray for are the will of God so God can answer His prayers and our prayers at the same time. Otherwise, we’ll be drawn away and enticed by our own lusts.
1 John 2:16
For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.
The lust of the flesh – I want it!
The lust of the eyes – I’m looking for it! (It's window-shopping and channel-surfing for sin.)
The pride of life – I deserve it! ("I know what the word of God says, BUT...")
We’re drawn and enticed by the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes then ensnared by the pride of life. The snare of the devil is what snared the devil… it’s the pride of life.
Isaiah 14:12-14
12 How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!
13 For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north:
14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.
"I" is the center of every sin (S-"I"-N) because “I” is the center of pride (P-R-"I"-D E). In order to recover myself from the snare of the devil, I must deal with the “I” of selfish, soulish pride. I need to be delivered from myself so I must recover myself from the snare of the devil by doing these 12 things:
*1. Examine myself.
2 Corinthians 13:5
Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?
Examine yourself and admit to yourself when you make a mistake.
*2. Prove myself
2 Corinthians 13:5
Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?
It’s called taking a step of faith. Get back up on the horse (or wagon) and start over again. In an experiment, the difference between testing yourself and proving yourself is whether or not you already know the outcome. When you received the Lord, Jesus Christ, you were born again to win. So the end result is sure. The outcome is, you win! So don’t try again.. Prove yourself! How many times did great men in history like Thomas Edison fail before they proved what they were sure of from the start. You are more than a conqueror… you are an overcomer. Keep proving it until you prove yourself right.
*3. Know myself - I have Jesus Christ in me.
2 Corinthians 13:5
Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?
1 John 4:4
Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.
To know myself is to know your worth! A thing is worth what someone is willing to invest in them.
1 Timothy 3:146
16 And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.
Colossians 1:27
To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:
*4. Behave myself - (inside and outside the house of God) 1 Timothy 3:15
1 Timothy 3:14-16
14 These things write I unto thee, hoping to come unto thee shortly:
15 But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.
*5. Exercise myself unto godliness –
1 Timothy 4:6-7
6 If thou put the brethren in remembrance of these things, thou shalt be a good minister of Jesus Christ, nourished up in the words of faith and of good doctrine, whereunto thou hast attained.
7 But refuse profane and old wives' fables, and exercise thyself rather unto godliness.
The way I exercise myself unto godliness is by exercising our senses.
Hebrews 5:12-14
12 For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat.
13 For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe.
14 But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.
The way our senses are exercised to discern both good and evil is by physical training:
Closing our eyes to things we shouldn’t see.
Covering our ears to things we shouldn’t hear
Pushing away and staying away from things we should not touch.
Learning to discern both Good and evil is recognizing how Satan packages sin. If it was just out-right evil, we wouldn't fall for it. Satan packages sin as both good and evil. He presents evil through something at looks good, smells good, sounds good, feels good, or starts out with good intentions. However, ultimately it’s twisted and wicked (like a wicker basket used to trap prey). It's called a compromise. Satan always packages something evil inside something good. (Example – When an old friend tells a recovering alcoholic “Just one toast for old time’s sake). Anything that is both good and evil is just evil! A drink that is ½ Cyanide and ½ Kool-aid is all poison!
*6. Give myself wholly - giving myself W-H-O-L-L-Y (my spirit, soul, and body) is how I live H-O-L-Y.
1 Timothy 4:15
15 Meditate upon these things; give thyself wholly to them; that thy profiting may appear to all.
1 Thessalonians 5:23
And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Romans 12:1 –2
1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
The only way to present myself Holy unto God is to give myself wholly unto God! Anything less is unacceptable.
*7. Watch myself –
1 Timothy 4:16
16 Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee.
(watch and pray).
Matthew 26:41
[41] Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.
*8. Keep myself pure - (keep my motives pure)
1 Timothy 5:22
22 Lay hands suddenly on no man, neither be partaker of other men's sins: keep thyself pure.
*9 Withdraw myself – from people and places that influence me to go backward or go astray.
1 Timothy 6:5
Perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth, supposing that gain is godliness: from such withdraw thyself.
*10 Humble myself -
1 Peter 5:6
[6]Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:
To humble myself is being willing and obedient to God. It's not just obeying God's word. It's submitting my will to say "Not my will, but thy will be done... because you are God and I'm not!"
*11 - Encourage myself
1 Samuel 30:6
6 And David was greatly distressed; for the people spake of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and for his daughters: but David encouraged himself in the Lord his God.
When I humble myself, I often alienate myself because the way of the word are diametrically opposed to the ways of the world. Therefore, sometimes the only person I may have to encourage me to do what is right may be ME. I have to encourage myself to recover myself from the snare of the devil.
*12 – FORGIVE MYSELF – If I still think of myself as a low, down, dirty sinner, I'll find my way back to low, down, dirty sin. So, If I find myself falling or failing at any point of this 12 step program, I need to go directly to step twelve and forgive myself then go back to step one. This is how I recover myself from the snare of the devil. This is how you recover yourself from the snare of the devil.
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Be Blessed!!!
