Studies by Book
Luke 22 1-6 THE HATCHING OF THE PLOT TO KILL JESUS 05 Luke 22 3 Strong in Jesus
📖 Luke 22:1-6
*FRIEND OF GOD*
Thu01Jul2021 - *Strong in Jesus* - _Luke 22:1-6_ - THE HATCHING OF THE PLOT TO KILL JESUS (05) – Bible reading: _I Peter 5:6-9_
We can live a victorious life over the devil when we are cast upon the Lord and are strong in Him.
_Luke 22:3 Then Satan entered Judas, surnamed Iscariot, who was numbered among the twelve._
Though, Judas was numbered among twelve, yet, he was used by the devil.
This should be a warning to all of us, in the body of Christ. If we are not walking in the will of God, we will be exposed to the devil to enter into us and use us for his purposes. The devil is prowling around, looking for whom he can devour, meaning, whom he can enter in and control. *The life lived on the basis of the self will come under the influence of the devil*.
_James 4:7 Therefore *submit to God*. Resist the devil and he will flee from you._
The power and strength to resist the devil come from being submitted to God. *When we are submitted to God and then resist the devil, he will flee from us. That is a guarantee*.
If we are living independent of God, not being reliant on Him, not considering His purposes but are focused on our own plans for our life, then we will not be able to resist the devil.
_I Peter 5:6-9 Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time,_
The requirement is to be under the hand of God. To be under the hand of God, we need to put aside the self in us.
_(7) casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you._
What does it mean to cast all our cares on Jesus?
Throughout the day, we are to be in constant communion with Jesus. We face several challenges and every experience becomes an opportunity to be God reliant and not self-reliant. Self-reliance is the ideology of the world.
_(8) *Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour*._
The previous study series that we did was to watch on pray. We must be watchful and prayerful for the devil will be quick to enter in and cause chaos and confusion in our lives.
_(9) *Resist him*, steadfast in the faith, knowing that *the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world*._
We must also be aware that these challenges are being faced by all in the body of Christ. This is the reason *we need to be in prayer for each other*, so that, as the body of Christ, we can overcome the evil one.
Let us consider what took place in the life of Simon Peter.
_Matthew 16:21-23 From that time Jesus began to show to His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day. (22) Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, "Far be it from You, Lord; this shall not happen to You!" (23) But He turned and said to Peter, "Get behind Me, Satan! You are an offense to Me, *for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men*."_
Peter, for a short while, was not in tune with the things of God. What he said sounded lofty, from human terms, but from the perspective of God, what Peter said was against God.
*We understand that we may be saying or doing things, that may seem good from human understanding, but it can be far removed from the thoughts of God*.
It is also important to note here the contradictory strategy of the devil. On one hand, the devil is using Peter to prevent Jesus from going to Jerusalem. (The Lord had already made known that He will be killed at Jerusalem). On the other hand, Satan is using Judas to have Jesus killed.
We said earlier that the devil is controlling and driving a network of evil. We need to be aware that the devil’s agenda is to go against God but his plans are always in a state of confusion. When we see chaos and confusion, anywhere, then we can be certain as to who is behind what is taking place.
*If we are rooted and grounded in the will of God, our life will be on solid and safe ground. If we don’t, we will see our life be in a state of chaos and confusion*.
_Luke 22:31-32 And the Lord said, "Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. (32) But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren."_
The Lord is praying for us that we will be on safe ground, which is the will of God. *We must watch and pray so that we do not stray away from the will of God*.
_Luke 22:40 When He came to the place, He said to them, "*Pray that you may not enter into temptation*."_
Peter and the rest did not heed the teaching of Jesus.
_Luke 22:45-46 When He rose up from prayer, and had come to His disciples, He found them sleeping from sorrow. (46) Then He said to them, "Why do you sleep? Rise and pray, lest you enter into temptation."_
The Lord was deeply concerned for all His disciples but very specifically, the Lord longed for Peter to watch and pray so that he would resist the devil.
We know that Peter succumbed to the devil and denied Christ, for he had not watched and prayed, so as to be in the will of God.
When we are not watching and praying, we will fall into the ways of the devil and we know that the devil’s ways are confusion and chaos. This is where many are in, today, in a frightening state of muddle.
*Thought to ponder*
We can live a life that is steady, steadfast and strong because we are living in the will of God.