A Life of Ignorance

So many times many of my brothers and sisters in Christ have had a tendency to look at the world around them with a touch of condemnation. On the one hand I can see how they have gotten to that point. I mean I believe as Christians we are called to stand up for God's standard for all of humanity. When we begin to do this it is easy to fall into a mode of condemnation. This is not what God has called us to. To help us avoid falling into that trap we should keep in mind Paul's words to Timothy.

In I Timothy 1:13 Paul explains his persecution of the Christians as acts of ignorance. He was lost and he acted lost. Our world is lost and that is the way they will act. We should not be surprised or shocked when they delve into any variety of morally detestable things. This is what lost people do. Some seem to do more than others but in the eyes of God none is more lost than the other. There are not divisions of lostness. "I once was lost but now I am found."

Like Paul I did many things that I should not have done when I was lost. I am not proud of those things but I am no longer ashamed of them either. God has used them to mold me in to the man I am today. He has used all of my life to mold me and shape. I could not be ministering in the place and with the people God brings my way if I had not made those mistakes. Of course, I still make mistakes and I will continue to do so. I know God uses all things for the good of those who trust in Him and so I know that as I continue on He will take the mistakes I make and turn them around for good. For this to happen though I must be willing to repent of sins and ask God for His forgiveness which He freely gives.

Do the Demons Know Your Name?

Have you ever considered how much the demons know about you? Do they even know who you are? Do they know your actions?

Usually when we consider these kinds of questions we think in terms of all the things we have done wrong. We remember the guilt and shame the devil has placed upon about or past mistakes. In many ways we sell the demons short. They know much more about us than we realize. In Acts 19 (vv 13-16) we see an evil spirit saying that he knows Jesus and Paul but he does not know the ones who are trying command him in Jesus' name. This dialog shows us two important things when it comes to demons.

First, if you want to have power over the demonic you must begin by having the right relationship with Jesus Christ. You must acknowledge Him as your Lord and Savior. In the story in Acts 19 the Jewish exorcist did not know who Jesus was. They had never asked Jesus for forgiveness of their sins or proclaimed Him Lord and Master over their life. This lack of relationship allowed the demon to physically overpower them. This is in contrast to the many times that the Apostles were able to simply cast out demons in the name of Jesus.

Second, the evil spirit knew who Paul was. How? I think it is because of Paul's actions against the evil of the world. Simply out Paul had been an incredible force against the forces of evil in the world and as such he was well know to all of the Demons. I think this kind of reputation would be a wonderful one to have within the demonic world. It is my hope and prayer that all of the demons of the world will know my name because I have made a difference for Jesus.