Sermon Central
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When The Enemy Attacks
Contributed by Melvin Maughmer, Jr. on Feb 28, 2022 (message contributor)
Summary: When the enemy attacks it is with the intention to damage our faith, bring fear and to make us feel useless to be used by God. Whenever we are attacked by the enemy, we need to realize Jesus is with us to strengthen us and intercede for us.
When the Enemy Attacks
By
Bishop Melvin L. Maughmer, Jr.
OPENING: - On Thursday morning at 3:04 am I received a text message from one of my friends in the Ukraine. She said Please Pray they are shelling the Air Base here in Lutsk. The windows are shacking, and we don’t know what will happen next. Unable to contact family and friends in other parts of Ukraine. As the days have progressed, we see on the news that Russia has raged an all-out war against Ukraine. People are fleeing Ukraine and many everyday citizens have taken up arms trying to defend their homeland against the sadistic and unprovoked slaughter that is taking place.
Now some of you may know that before I started pastoring, I went on several mission trips to Ukraine. I know a lot of people in Ukraine from Kiev to Lutsk and my friend in particular I know well. She was my translator on most of my mission trips. I am good friends with her husband, I have a picture of me and her daughter who was 3 years old then playing patty cake, she is now 16. I stayed with her mother and Father when I was there, so I know the family and have a special concern for what is happening there. As I watched CNN and how the threat of attack was on the news, I contacted her and said we are praying and make sure you all are safe, then I get the text and see the news of Russia has declared war on Ukraine.
I am not prophesying, and I pray that I am wrong on this, but it is quite possible that we may be looking at WWIII beginning. Nevertheless, regardless of how evil, vile, and wicked Putin, Kim Jong-un, Jinping, and other world leaders might be they are not the enemy about whom we must be most concerned. The Bible lets us know who our adversary is in 1 Peter 5:8 says, “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour”.
There's a war going on and I am not talking about Ukraine, there is a war going on for your soul. Today I want to deal with this subject “When the Enemy Attacks”.
PRAYER:
SCRIPTURE: - 1 Peter 5:8 says, “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour”.
Ephesians 6:12 says “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places”.
There's a war going on and I am not talking about Ukraine, there is a war going on for your soul. Understand Satan has launched an all-out attack the people of God. He knows time is running out and he has his sights on you. His desire is to cause your downfall.
Luke 22:31 says, "And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat." To sift like wheat means to separate. Satan wants to separate you from Jesus because if he can separate you then he can devour you. I like to watch animal planet when they have the big cats. What they do on the hunt is they separate one of the gazelles from the rest of the pack, once they can separate it then they can devour it. That’s what the devil desires to do to you. If he can separate you from, the church, the people of God and God then he is able to devour you.
The most dangerous thing about an enemy, opponent, or adversary, is not the strength of their army, team, how well they trained, or how fierce of a fighter they are. The true danger lies in not knowing how they fight and the arsenal they will use. So, I want to give you some of the ways the enemy will attack you then how to fight against those attacks.
Attacks the devil uses against you.
The first thing I want to warn you of is the attack of fear. The devil desires for you to live in fear. Understand fear is not the absence of faith, it is the misplacement of faith. The devil’s desire is not to steal our faith, but he wants our faith to be in anything and everything but God. Life in Christ is life not in fear.
As I was watching CNN, they were interviewing the former president of Ukraine. He was in Kiev, and they asked him what they will do if and when the Russians come to Kiev. He said holding up a military weapon we will fight. Putin must understand we are not afraid we will fight.
