Destroying the Works of the Devil Against Relationships: Unbelief and Distrust

July 11, 2020 / By

We are lifelong learners with the curricula of Christ.  Disciples of Jesus. 

Five primary dimensions of our discipleship are (as identified by the Barna Group):

  • Finances
  • Relationships
  • Physical and mental health
  • Vocation
  • Faith

This conversation reflects upon the destruction of the works of the devil in our relationships.

Relationship between humans and God is absolutely essential to our well-being, individually, as groups and as a race.

Knowing this, the Bible opens with God revealing His relationship with and satan’s attempted destruction of the God/human relationship.

The second chapter of Genesis is written with the love of God for His creation in clear view.

God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, is the First and Primary relationship.

In Christianity it is universally understood that God is love.

Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. 1 John 4:8

For love to exist, there must be another.

God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are Eternal Others loving perfectly from eternity past, present and forever.

The enemies of God would, logically, seek to undermine and destroy perfect love.

In Genesis 3 we see a battle ground of the enemies of God against the perfect love between God and the other.  The Garden of Eden is the setting and Adam and Eve are God’s beloved who are under assault.

Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?”

2 The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, 3 but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’”

4 “You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. 5 “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”  Genesis 3:1-5

From then until now the enemies of God are opposed to every relationship in which perfect love from one to the other can be experienced and expressed.

Destroying the works of the devil against you and your relationships is of vital importance and is the exact mission of Jesus.

Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.  1 John 3:8

It is the devil’s work to damage your knowledge and experience of God’s perfect love.

The enemy of God intends for you to believe that God’s character is tarnished by wrong motives, fear and selfishness.

4 “You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. 5 “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” 

  • “You will not certainly die” suggests that God lied.
  • “For God knows” suggests that God is afraid of what He knows.
  • “Your eyes will be opened” suggests that God wants your eyes closed (figuratively).
  • “You will be like God” suggests that God doesn’t want you to be like Him.

These are always the strategy of the enemy of God against you and your relationship with God and others.

  1. Don’t believe God is who and what He says He is.
  2. Therefore, don’t trust God.

In this way we can state, “The works of the devil (that Jesus came to destroy) include unbelief and distrust of God.”

Prayer is the beginning action in our war against these works of the devil.

“Lord, I ask you to open my understanding so that I believe and trust in you.  Remove, heal or destroy every work of the devil that hinders my capacity to believe and trust you.”

We can strengthen our belief and trust in God by proclaiming the “Hand of Belief and Trust.”

  1. God is who He says He is.
  2. God can do what He says He can do.
  3. I am who God says I am.
  4. I can do what God says I can do.
  5. The Holy Spirit is actively working belief and trust into me.

Jesus destroys the devil’s work against my experience of God’s perfect love and relationship with Him by replacing my distrust and unbelief with tremendous trust and beautiful belief.

MCA LIFE GROUP HOMEWORK

Listen – My Story

  • Do you have a story of something that was harmful or no longer helpful being destroyed?
  • In what life events, situations or concepts do you tend to doubt God?  For example, “It is difficult for me to believe God in _______________.

Learn – Digging Deeper

  1. Believing God is a component of faith. Do you have faith?  Romans 12:3
  • With everyone given a measure of faith, why do so many people not believe God?  2 Corinthians 4:3, 4
  • What brings increased faith to the human life?  Romans 10:17
  • In light of these passages, please proclaim, out loud, together, the “Hand of Belief and Trust.”

Life – Taking it Home

  1. What is the Holy Spirit saying to you through this lesson? 
  2. How can your Bible Fellowship help you destroy the works of the devil in a relationship?

Lift – Prayer

  • May we pray with you about belief and trust?
  • May we join you in prayer for the destruction of the works of the devil in a relationship?
  • Please pray for the guiding coalitions that are studying the best options for the MCA worship schedule in the era of corona virus mandates, regulations and mindsets.