Key #2 All You Need Is …

It’s a great Beatles song.

I am sharing the keys that I have learnt to use against the enemy of your soul and your life – the devil.

Sound interesting?

Key #1 was about knowing who you are and whose you are. I believe this is the first and most important key of all.

Here is the second powerful key.

There are movies about it. There are books, poems and songs about it. There are even many sermons about it.

What is this key?

LOVE!

Have you ever thought about why so many people followed Jesus in the New Testament? Was it just because he was in the ‘in’ crowd, wore the latest fashion or because he had 1 million ‘Likes’ on Facebook (just kidding)?

No. It was because the people saw in Him something that they wanted. He gave them unconditional love and acceptance.

One of Jesus’ disciples, John, decided that he would know what it was to be truly loved by God.

This is a major weapon in warfare against the enemy.

Love keeps away offence, hatred, unbelief, selfishness, idolatry, etc. – it keeps your heart and your soul healthy. These are just some of the areas that Satan can get a foothold in your life. 3 John 1:2 says “in every way you may succeed and prosper and be in good health [physically], just as [I know] your soul prospers [spiritually].” 

You can only love IF you know you are loved first. You can’t give out of what you don’t have.

“Foxe’s Book of Martyrs” by John Foxe mentions how the Apostle John was boiled in a cauldron of oil yet he miraculously survived. Hence why he was banished to the Island of Patmos – he couldn’t be killed at that point of time.

This totally fascinates me. What made him different from all of the other Apostles that John was banished instead of murdered? The answer is to some degree ……. HE KNEW HE WAS TRULY LOVED BY GOD.

There is a deep truth in this.

Do you KNOW that you are loved by God? 

I have asked many people this over the years and most people answer yes. I probe further. Do they really, really know it, deep down in the their very soul? Most people then answer, “No.”

Why this key stops so many plans of the enemy.

Sin opens the door to the devil.

As I mentioned above, these sins (offence, hatred, unbelief, selfishness, idolatry, etc.) allow the devil to come and attack you.

There is no judgement from God (until Judgement Day) but you do suffer the consequences of your actions. There are consequences for any choice you make. Make a good decision, good consequences come. Make a bad decision, inevitably bad consequences will come – maybe not straight away, but they will come unless a change of attitude and actions come.

1 Peter 5:6-8 tells us to be humble and give all of our cares to God BECAUSE the devil is prowling around, waiting to devour someone who is not humble or not trusting God, or is acting in another sin.

You can only be humble, trust God and stay out of sin when you know, without a shadow of a doubt, that God loves you, He is for you, He leads you, walks besides you and at times, even carries you.

Satan does not want you to know that God loves you. This is first thing he went to Jesus about and tried to persuade him otherwise. In Matthew 4:3, the devil says to Jesus, “If You are the Son of God ….” but he conveniently left out the word “beloved” which God had declared about Jesus in the previous chapter. Why? Because if Jesus remembered that God loves Him and who He belongs to, the devil has no power over Him, AT ALL!

LOVE CONQUERS ALL!

1 Corinthians 13:13 says that the “greatest of these is love.”

What are these? In the verses and chapters before, they talk about things that you do and the gifts and talents you can have. Basically Paul is saying you can do all of these things, have all these things but if you do any of these without love ….. it’s all worthless.

Practically Speaking

Ok. So love stops the devil. What do I do with this?

I’ll go back to what I said earlier. You can’t give out of what you don’t first have.

If I said I would give you an apple from the bucket I was holding except the bucket was empty, how could I give you an apple? See what I mean?

The very first thing to do is to learn how to receive God’s unending love for you. Yes you!

I did this very exercise with our children the other day. After our prayer time together, I got them to sit still and close their eyes. I then asked Holy Spirit to come and give them a picture or a word describing how their Heavenly Father sees each of them, individually. It took only a little time but one by one, they nearly all got a picture, including myself. We each wrote it in our journals and we are asking Father God to reveal to us even more what that means.

Might I suggest you try this too.

Secondly, which I found incredibly difficult at first, was to say to myself each day, “God loves me just as I am.” It took a while but I can say that I now believe it. No matter what you have done, what you look like, or even where you are in your life now ….. you too can say this, “God loves me just as I am.”

You are worthy, indeed you are!

I pray that you would know, in a deep and personal way, the love of Father God for you. Let this journey begin today, right now. God is not a man that He should lie (Numbers 23:19) and He loves you with an everlasting love that never diminishes (Jeremiah 31:3).

How about you? Do you KNOW that your Heavenly Father loves you personally and intimately? How about doing the exercises and share your experiences. I would love to hear from you in the comments below.

Have a truly exciting week!

Keys For Spiritual Warfare

Key #1 – Know Who You Are
Key #2 – All You Need Is …
Key #3 – Silence is Golden
Key #4 – Know Your True Enemy
Key #5 – Prophecy – Your Secret Weapon
Key #6 – Thanksgiving and Praise
Key #7 – Sing Your Victory Song
Key #8 The Truth That WILL Set You Free! 
Key #9 Conversations With God
Key #10 Stand In Your Victory

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