From the beginning of time, God in His infinite mercy has always wanted to find and rescue His lost children and reconcile them to Himself.
2 Corin 5:21 'For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.'
God incarnate in the flesh in the person of Jesus Christ who became sin so that we can become the righteousness of God. This is what the cross is about.
Many of us are often overwhelmed with suspense whenever there is a news flash on our TVs or newspapers that someone we know or a child in the community is missing. There is also a great relief and celebration when that child is found.
Our Heavenly Father is the good Shepherd who is always reaching out to rescue His lost children.
When Our first parents (Adam and Eve) fell, the scepter of authority was lost and satan (the deceiver) took possession of it and then God spoke:
Gen 3:15 And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, And you shall bruise His heel."
Satan must have said within himself “who is the seed of this woman” that God is referring to?
Satan did not know who the seed of this woman would be. From the fall of Adam to the cross, he has always waged wars against the seed of this woman.
Beginning from Abel he perpetrated violence against all of God’s children. Then came the Magi from the east (Satan through Herod put to death all the male children in Bethlehem from two years old and under in an attempt to kill the Child Jesus but failed (Matt 2:16).
At the wilderness of temptation, satan tempted Jesus but when he couldn’t, he tried to strike a compromising gesture but failed again.
In Matt 4:8 & 9 Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. 9 And he said to Him, "All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me."
The Church of today is powerless not because of sin but because of compromise.
Satan must have said within himself, alas! I have at last found the seed of the woman spoken about in Gen 3:15.Matt 4:9 says “.... if You will fall down and worship me”.
Satan is after your worship. For those who profess to follow the teachings of Jesus Christ, satan does not care if you don’t worship him, inasmuch you don't worship God and His Christ, he is happy.
After satan failed in the wilderness of temptation, Luke 4:13 said Now when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time.
That opportune time came when he stirred the chief priest, the leaders of the Jews and Pilate to crucify Jesus.
Satan did not know that by crucifying Jesus, God through Christ was reconciling fallen humanity back to Himself.
In 1 Cor 2:7-9 But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory, 8 which none of the rulers of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.
There are many things about you as a child of God that the devil does not know. We must be careful not to attribute to the devil what he is not. He is NOT omniscient - GOD IS.
The devil does not want the lost to be found. In 2 Cor 4:4 whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them. NKJV
Those who are lost, who believe not, we are told here that, "the god of this world, being satan, has blinded their eyes or the minds of them which believe not.The only way they can be found is in Mat 16:19 “whatsoever you bind …’. With the authority God has given us, we must bind satan’s work in their lives that has prejudiced and poisoned their minds against the Gospel, so that they may see clearly to consider the truth of God without this ungodly pressure from satan.
Make it the focus of your prayer so that God will take away the blinders that satan has put over their mind, so that they’ll see rationally and clearly the offer that God has made to them through Jesus Christ.
Those of us who profess to be the disciples of Jesus Christ have a role to play in seeking those who are lost. You and I were once lost and now you are found. It is our Christen responsibility to pray but also seek those who are lost. The complete work of Jesus on the cross of calvary set the pace for those who have been captured by their sins to be set free.
Your friend,
Tony.