I'm reading through James in my personal devotion time, and I came across this verse the other day: "resist the devil and he will flee from you (James 4:7)." How we apply this verse might look different for different people in different settings. It might mean that you are actively counter-punching the lies of Satan with the truth of the gospel. But resisting Satan's attacks and his concomitant "leave-the-scene" promise of this verse doesn't negate the need for actively leaving places of temptation.
Here's an example where Satan fled from Texas Ranger's outfielder Josh Hamilton, who is clearly an alcoholic and former drug user (and Christian). Of course Hamilton's resistance took the form of his intentionally leaving the celebration of beer and champagne spraying after his team clinched a post season spot. In place of this celebration, which would be fine for most people, he volunteered to speak about his faith at some sort of big rally. It might on the surface appear that Josh was the one who fled; but that is far from the truth. In the end, we know who resisted and who retreated.
No comments:
Post a Comment