God's Counsel for Couples, Part 7

Turn with me in your Bible, if you would, to Job chapter one. Job chapter one. In the book of Job, there's a conversation that takes place between God and Satan. Twice, God asks the same question, and twice God receives the same answer. Job chapter one, verse number seven, and the Lord said to Satan, From where do you come? Then Satan answered the Lord and said, from roaming about on the earth and walking around on it. Then down in chapter 2 verse number 2, and the Lord said to Satan, where have you come from?

Then Satan answered the Lord and said, from roaming about on the earth and walking about on it. God asks a question that he already knows the answer to, but he asked the question in order that you and I might understand more of the character of Satan, realizing that he roams to and fro on the earth, seeking people whom he can devour. And of course, when he was looking for certain people, God would offer one man to him. Of course, that would be the man called Job. Our adversary, our enemy, loves to walk around our planet in order to find someone, some group of people, some church, some family that he can destroy.

Because that's what our adversary likes to do. The word adversary means one who opposes the law, one who opposes the truth, and that is Satan himself. You will note that God is in heaven. And Satan, and the sons of God, present themselves, to God in heaven. Meaning that God himself is on a throne. The Bible says in Psalm 115, verse number three, that our God is in heaven, and he does whatever he pleases.

We see in Job chapter one that not only is our God in heaven, but Satan has access to heaven's throne. That's important. God is on a throne. He is the Almighty one. In fact, the word Almighty is used 31 times in the book of Jerusalem. Job, to express once again that God not only is in control, but is all-powerful himself. Satan has access to God's throne. Unfortunately, people don't understand that today. None of it is he have access to God's throne, he has access to the earth. And yet I'm afraid that more people have been influenced by John Milton's Paradise Lost than they have been influenced by the word of God.

John Milton's paradise lost somehow would take Satan being in hell and ruling the world from hell. Satan is not in hell. In fact, hell is unoccupied at the moment. Hell is reserved for Satan and his angels, and if you've been with us in our study of the book of Revelation, you understand that it's not through Revelation 20, verse number 10, that Satan himself is cast into the lake of fire forever. never. But until that time, he is able to roam the earth. And as he does, he presents himself to God, and God asks him if he has ever considered a servant Job.

You ever think about him? He's an upright, God-fearing man, loves me, and of course, sage responses, of course he loves you, you've protected him, you've watched over him, you're his guardian. and God allows Satan to inflict his life. He allows Satan to do something to his family, to his home, to his possessions. God allows him to do that. That tells us a lot about the character of God, doesn't it? It tells us that God's in control of Satan. Satan is not omnipresent. Satan is not able to do whatever he wants.

wants to do, he has to ask permission from God to do whatever it is he does, because God's in charge. God's in control. The reason Job would suffer, as he did, was to silence the blasphemous accusations of Satan and prove that a man would honor God, even though he lost everything. That's what the book of Job is about. Job's life became a battlefield. Job's life became the battleground where the Satan's forces would battle against the forces of God. The funny thing about this is that Job wasn't able to read about it.

We can go back and we can read about what happened to Job and how things happened in his life and we can kind of get an idea what's going to happen in our lives and how God works in our life. Job had no Bible to read. He just had to trust God and believe that God was going to do a work. He feared God. He was an upright man. He walked in his integrity. We have a supreme advantage over Job because we can read about the account and see the workings of Satan and the power of God at work. The spiritual battle was fierce.

All to decide one question. Is Jehovah God worthy of man's worship no matter what happens to man? Answer? Yes. And the question I want to pose to you this evening is this. Is Jehovah God worthy of your worship no matter what happens to you? I trust that that's the case. Because we're at the point in our series where we have to understand that we have to guard our heart and our home against the enemy. Because your life will be attacked. Your home will be attacked. Your family will be attacked. your church will be attacked.

And you have to know how to guard your heart and home against the wiles of the devil. As we continue our study in God's hope for your home, specifically looking at God's counsel for couples. This is so important for your family, so important for your marriage. And hopefully tonight you'll be able to see that as you look at Job's life and look at what Satan did to him and look at the principles that have been given in the Word of God to help us know how to guard our heart and home.

We can see enemy. Principle number one is this. First of all, you must realize his strategy. You must realize his strategy. Over in the book of Ephesians, the sixth chapter, the 11th verse, it says this, put on the full armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes or the wiles of the devil. The wiles is the strategy of the devil, is his plans for war. Paul says you need to put on the armor of God, so you're able to stand against his schemes, his strategy, his plan, because Satan has a plan.

He has a plan to devastate your life. He has a plan to divide your marriage. He has a plan to deceive your heart. He has a plan to destroy your life. Most of us, though, don't even know anything at all about his strategy. He's at war with us. Satan is not after those who already belong to him. He's got them, but he's after those who don't belong to him and are trying to win more of his people to them. He doesn't want that. Because he wants to have company when he burns forever in hell. We need to understand his efforts.

He's got a plan. Number two, recognize its severity. Realize his strategy. Recognize its severity. Recognize its severity. Listen, you need to get this. because I'm afraid that we don't. Go back with being your Bible to Job Chapter 1 for a moment. Job chapter 1. What happened to Job is unlike anything that's happened to anybody I've ever read about or known about, except for Joe himself, of course. The man lost everything. He lost it all. I mean, a guy comes up to him and says him, you know, you've lost your cattle, and this is what happened.

And before he can finish his conversation, Another guy comes running up and says, ah, you lost your house. And before he, he finishes that conversation, another guy comes up and says, well, you lost your family. I mean, it's like the floodgates open, and he lost everything. And then he would lose his own health. And so, in chapter 19, what he does is his appearance is so bad and so despicable that he goes outside the city to the city dump. and in this city dump is a place where they burn the trash and the animals come and and and they scarf up the leftover of food in this city dump is a place where they take all the dung and place it and that's what job is sitting there amidst all that ash heap the city's leading citizen so bad his life was that his wife said these words she said curse God and die now can't be too hard on Job's wife because you realize she lost everything too right she lost everything Job lost she lost her husband for all practical purposes he was worthless to her.

She was still able to help him, but he was unable to help administer to her because of the severity of his physical affliction. And so she says to him, curse God and die. Listen carefully to what I'm going to say. That is exactly what Satan wanted, Job to do. Listen, of all the things that happened to him, the severest temptation Job faced came from his helpmate. The severest temptation he faced came from the one who loved him the most. That's how Satan. will work the finest in your life. Mark it down.

Those closest to you, those closest to you, will be used of Satan to draw you away from God. And what God wants you to understand, that if you're going to guard your heart and your home against the enemy, you must realize he has a strength. strategy, and you must recognize the severity of that strategy, and it is so severe because Satan will use the ones closest to you to draw you away from God. Mark it down. It happens every time. You say, come on, Pastor, you're getting a little carried away here.

No, I'm not. I just read it to you. Job, Matthew 16, Acts 21. Oh, and he's one verse to prove my point. I gave you three chapters. The bottom line is this. that's the way Satan works. He's a master deceiver. Don't be deceived thinking it's not going to happen to you. Don't be deceived because he wants to divide your family. He wants to divide you and take you away from God's mission and away from God's purposes. And that's why you as men need to stand strong in the faith and believe what God says and know what the word of God says so you can follow the word of God so you can stand up.

to your wife and so you can stand up to your children and you can stand up to your parents and say thus saith the Lord thus I will do that's what you need that's the kind of men that we need your wives need to be led by an example that says I am fearless to do what God says because I am fearful of God himself and therefore I will follow God no matter what anybody else says next time the severity the temptation is is growing around about you look backwards you came here with nothing look forward you're going to die one day and you'll leave with nothing the important thing is look upward in the meantime that you might bless god and not blame god and trust him for what he's going to do point number three number one is to realize the strategy number two recognize its severity recognize its severity I wish I had time to spend just on that point alone and the difficulties we face stay in and day out but number three remember your spiritual armor remember your spiritual armor remember your spiritual Remember.

Turned in your Bible to Ephesians chapter 6. We realize that our commander in chief, the Lord Jesus Christ, has already won. He's already won the war. The war is over in the mind of God. He's already accomplished. It's a finished act. He has mapped everything out from the beginning of time to the end of time. He's already won the war. But during that time, during our life, there are constant wars, or constant battles happening day in and day out of it. in our own spiritual lives. And God has given us a responsibility to put on the spiritual armor of God.

You often lost sermons on the armor of God and what exactly the armor is. And I don't want to spend all night on this this evening, and I'm not going to do that. We have a whole tape series that deals with the specific armor of God in each of the pieces and the intricate detail of those pieces, and you can go back and you can get that tape on that. But you just need to understand what God says about putting this armor on.

Because you see, if we are being defeated by Satan, it's not God's fault. It's our fault. Because God says, this is what you need to do.

You need to be ready for battle. And so he says in Ephesian chapter 6, 1st number 10, finally be strong of the Lord and the strength of his might.

Put on the full armor of God that you may be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rootles, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the full armor of God. that you may be able to resist in the evil day. And having done everything to stand firm, stand firm. Therefore, having girded your loins with truth. The very first armor is to be able to put on the belt of truth, the gird your stuff with truth.

Very simple, it's this. It's the content of truth. It's who God is in what he said in his word. So important. I talked to the men this past week who told me He's been coming to our church regularly for eight months. He's over 40 years of age. He's learned more in eight months at Christ Community Church than he has learned in all the years that he's been a Christian. He says, I come here, and I realize that for the very first time, I am learning things I had never heard before, never seen before, never known before, and I'm leaving knowing what I should be doing every single day of my life.

And I finally gave victory in my life. Why? Because you see, he's girding himself with the truth of Almighty God. That's why. And now he knows his responsibility before God. The breastplate of righteousness. What is the breastplate of righteousness? The breastplate would be that which would cover the intestines, the heart, the lungs, the vital organs of an individual in battle. And the breastplate of righteousness is that which guards the seed of your emotions. as a man thinketh in his heart so is he.

The center of learning, the center of who you are as a person is guarded by the breastplate of righteousness. And all that is is this, listen, we are declared righteous by God. We have been given the righteousness of Christ. All it is is living in obedience to the truth that you girded yourself with. That's the breastplate of righteousness. Obedience to the Word of God. A holy life. A holy life defeats Satan. Look at Job.

He was an upright man. He feared God. He was a holy man. And Satan could not get an inward into his life. He would not blame God because he had the proper perspective on God. He had the breastplate of righteousness. And he couldn't even read Ephesians chapter 6. He didn't even know who the apostle Paul was. But he knew that a holy life would stand against. the onslaught of a diversity in his life. The Bible says that we are to, as it says in Ephesians chapter 6, having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace.

And I read all these commentary saying, well, the key to the armor is that you go out and share your faith. That's not what it says. It's not about going. It's about standing. It's not about sharing your faith. It's about fighting a battle. Listen, when you go to war, you've got to have the right shoes, man. You ever have had shoes that don't fit? I mean, what a pain, man. I didn't even get rid of them and get another pair of shoes. I like my shoes to be comfortable on my feet. You know what I'm saying?

You know, when I'm standing, I want to be standing in comfort. It deals with our standing in Christ, and that we are on his side, not Satan's side. We have the peace of God ruling in our hearts, ruling in our lives, And that peace enables us to stand strong because no matter what happens around us, inside we have peace. And Paul says, listen, you've got to remember your spiritual armor. If you're going to fight, you've got to remember that you've got armor available to you, and you have to put it on.

Which leads me to point number four, recite scripture. Recite scripture, which goes with the sword of the spirit. You've got to recite what God's word says. Remember Matthew 4, verses 1 to 11, When Christ was tempted, he quoted Deuteronomy chapter 8 and Deuteronomy chapter 6. And at the end of Deuteronomy, Deuteronomy chapter 32, what does Moses say? He says, these words of this book and Deuteronomy are not empty words, but these words are your life. Deuteronomy 32, verse number 46 and 47. These words are your life.

Christ knew that because they were his words. So when he was tempted in the wilderness, he went back to the book of Deuteronomy, the words which were the life. of the nation of Israel, and he would quote those words. He would recite those words. And Satan had nothing to do with that. He could not conquer that, because that's the sword of the spirit. The sword that's quicker and sharper than any two-edged sword. It says in Proverbs 22, incline your ear and hear the words of the wise, and apply your mind to my knowledge, for it will be pleasant if you keep them within you, that they may be ready on your lips so that your trust may be in the Lord.

I have taught you today, even you. Listen, when the words are ready in your lips, they cause you to trust God. That's why you need to recite scripture. Number five, resist Satan. Resist Satan. Book James, fourth chapter. Submit, therefore, to God, resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Resist him. Peter says, resist him steadfast in the faith. He goes about like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour, so you resist him steadfast in the faith. Now that's very important. Why? Because the word steadfast is a military term.

It's a military term designed around what they call it the Greek phalanx. And the phalanx was when the soldiers got together and they put themselves arm and arm together, and maybe it would stretch even a mile long and even five to ten different soldiers deep. and they'd all be arm and armed together, front to back together, and they'd all march together. And that was the phalanx. And if at any time that phalanx was broken, that army would be defeated. But if they stood strong together, not allowing any gaps in that phalanx, they would be able to conquer the enemy.

And Peter is picking up on that and saying, listen, you resist him steadfast in the faith. That is, you develop your own spiritual phalanx. so that you are so strong in the faith that there are no gaps in your armor there are no gaps in your walk with God There is no gaps in your spiritual development so Satan doesn't have an in road to get in there and you resist him steadfast in the faith That's the important thing if you resist him he will flee He says James says submit to God submit to God. He's your authority.

He's your ruler. He's the one over you therefore submit to God if you submit to God You can resist Satan if you don't resist Satan is because because you're not submitting to God. Submit to God, resist the devil, and he will flee. He will flee. And you draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. But you can't draw near to God if you're not submitting to God. And you can't draw near to God if you're unwilling to submit or to resist Satan. And lastly, rely on the Savior. on the Savior. Ephesian 610 says finally my brethren be strong in the Lord in the power of his might and put on the whole armor of God be strong in the Lord in the power of his might.

Parv of 18.10 says the name of the Lord is a strong tower. The righteous run to it and are safe. unless you rely upon the Lord Jesus Christ, you not be able to guard your home and your heart against the enemy. It comes down to dependent upon him and walking with him and falling on your knees and saying, God, I cannot do this alone. I am incapable of doing what you've called me to do. I am incapable of standing strong against temptation. I need your spirit to lead me and guide me. I need to be strong in the power of your.

might. You are the strong tower. I will run to you that I might be safe. It was Martin Luther who wrote a mighty fortress is our God, a bulwark never failing. Our helper he amid the flood of mortal ills prevailing, for still our ancient foe doth seek to work us woe. His craft and power are great and armed with cruel hate. On earth is not as equal. Did we in our own strength and fight? Our striving would be losing. We're not the right man on our side, the man of God's own choosing. Dost ask who that may be, Christ Jesus it is He.

Lord Sabbath his name from age to age the same. He must win the battle. He must do it. Guard your heart in home against the enemy. Realize his strategy. Recognize its severity. Remember your spiritual armor. Recite scripture. Resist Satan and rely on your Savior. And you'll be well on your way to protecting the most valuable possessions that God has given to you. Your family.