Every person is the devil’s target. In fact the topic should have been written in the first person ‘I am the devil’s target’ or ‘You are the devil’s target’. No wonder the Bible forewarns us in the book of 1 Peter 5:8 where the Bible says, ‘Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour’ (NIV). There are a number of verses that forewarn us about this unfortunate position, and it is sadly a permanent one. This is a clear warning to you and please don’t make the mistake of directing it to someone else.
The devil’s target is to take everyone to hell when they die, a place he makes people not to believe exists. I will highlight a few things that may not be obvious yet form evidence of the devil’s works to destroy us.
- The thoughts he suggests to us. One may want to know as to what evidence do I have that the devil influences our thoughts. I pick this from the story of Ananias and Sapphira as recorded in the book of Acts 5:1 – 11. In verse 3, we hear Peter saying, ‘Ananias, how is it that Satanhas so filled your heart that you have lied to the Holy Spirit and have kept for yourself some of the money you received for the land?. I’m sure this couple was not aware that the decision was influenced by the devil until Peter revealed it to them. The devil really likes to be anonymous and I believe with his vast experience on how to deal with humans he knows that this strategy works.
David of old understood the spiritual battle that goes on in our minds when he said in Psalm 19:14, ‘May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing to you, O LORD, my rock and my redeemer (NLT). David goes on to make a solemn prayer to God in Psalm 51:10 when he said ‘Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me’ (KJV).
- The temptations that he exposes us to. Temptations run in our minds, get a chance through our eyes, ears, mouths and body’s natural desires. You will notice that the tempter is the one who initiated the conversation of temptation with Jesus Christ. This is not to say that all temptations come through the devil’s initiative.
Temptations are aligned to the common definition of how sins can be committed, that is; omission, commission and the mind. As already stated, Jesus himself was tempted by the devil but He overcame. At every stage in life, there are things that are appealing yet are not godly. I realize that all sins come as a temptation to us and if we succumb to it we fall into it. Let me make an example of laziness. Laziness is the temptation to do nothing about something that you should be auctioning. There are so many things that we should have done that would have brought glory to God but because of laziness we ignored the call and did nothing about it. I would like to pick the great commission as an example of laziness which many Christians fail to take up.
- Making the world look and feel so good a place to live in. The Bible confirms that the devil is the ruler of this world (John 14:30). It is also stated in the Bible that loving the world is enmity to God (James 4:4). The world and its pleasures is proclaimed an enemy to the believer. As such, it is common for a believer to abandon fellowship time with other believers for something else. Some would compromise the standards from the word of God just so they are accepted in their communities.
I also want to distinctly elaborate on being worldly. This has more to do with one’s lifestyle. The things a person dresses, how he speaks, walks, etc. Being worldly is very related to being wealthy. See how wealth and earthly riches influences the behavior of many people and you will know that they have been blinded to believe that they still have a long time to live in this world. I cannot avoid talking about the revelation God gave Abraham Yakubu. Pastor Yakubu wrote a book entitled ‘Don’t Glory Yet’, which give explicit details of what worldliness means. I suggest you follow the link ‘Don’t Glory Yet’ to get firsthand information on the subject of worldliness.
- Deception. The great liar, the devil, blinds people to the truth in many ways. It does not worry the devil if you accept the truth but deny just a few things about it. This is what he does with other religions and cults. Some religions and cults are very close to the truth such that the followers feel comfortable in part truth yet God is only satisfied with a 100% compliance.
The entire Bible is the true word of God. No part of it should be adjusted to suit an individual’s purpose. God’s word is sovereign.
I want to conclude by bring up the topic again, ‘You are the devil’s target’. You therefore must be sober and alert, otherwise you will lament having been blinded to the truth on something that was written in the Bible in simple words, but because of common or worldly interpretation of God’s word, you were led astray. There is no excuse for not doing what the Bible says you must do or not doing what is says you must do. We all have limited time to comply and therefore you must set your priorities right. If you respond now to God’s call, you are helping yourself into being a pleasant servant to God.
You are welcome to read my other articles and may God bless you.