Him

"The kingdom of heaven in like a treasure, buried in a field, that a man found and reburied. Then in his joy he goes and sells everything he has and buys that field." Matthew 13:44

To know Jesus.
To really know Him.
To see His face.

It is a new adventure that unfolds with every sunrise.
Each day is a glorious unveiling of His love and goodness.
With every season comes the growing realization of total dependance on Him.
He is the Source.

There is an ever-increasing awareness of His nearness.
He is always present.
His presence warms our hearts in the coldest of seasons.
His company brings us inexpressible peace in the most tumultuous of storms.

His words are as sweet as they are unfailing.
His speech illuminates the deepest recesses of our hearts.
It reveals the depths of His nature, His thoughts, His ways.
His voice brings order to chaos.

Of all the pursuits this brief existence offers, He is the most satisfying.
This great Treasure far exceeds all other riches.
To possess Him and to be possessed by Him is more valuable than any other possession.
His value is immeasurable.

He calls and awakens us to a measure of intimacy we have never known.
His love doesn't make sense.
But His love makes everything else make sense.
There is no other love like it.

Knowing Him.
Seeing His face.
It is everything.
He is everything.

Battle of Belief

In 1 Kings 19, we find Elijah running scared for his life from an evil queen named Jezebel. 

Here’s the quick backstory… 

God had just miraculously proved to a nation of Baal worshipers that He was the one true God, not Baal. A flaming fireball of glory rained down on Elijah’s altar atop Mt. Carmel. Elijah then orders all the prophets of Baal to be killed. Jezebel was a Baal worshiper, so she’s obviously ticked considering what just happened. She vows to have Elijah killed in return. 

It’s not every day that you get to see something like that, right? Elijah should be filled with courage, right? Nope. He’s terrified. 

A look into 1 Kings 19 gives us insight into how the Enemy of our souls attacks us following seasons of great victory. The spiritual battle you and I were born into is real. And we have a very real Enemy. While I think we shouldn’t give Satan too much credit or even talk about him that often, I do think we need to be aware of his schemes so that we won’t be blindsided.

Here’s how the Enemy of our souls attacks us. 

Fear

“Then Elijah became afraid and immediately ran for his life…” (1 Kings 19:3)

Fear is the gateway to spiritual bondage. For some of us, the fear of man (or in Elijah’s case, the fear of woman!) is the first strategy of the Enemy. If he can get us to believe that people’s opinions carry more weight than God’s, he has us tricked. 

Sometimes you can actually feel the spiritual attack coming on. There is an absence of peace. Your mind becomes chaotic as you give in to the lies being whispered into your mind. Many times, our first reaction is to run. It’s only natural. But that’s exactly what your Enemy wants you to do. He’s afraid of your power and authority as a Kingdom Son or Daughter. He wants you out of the picture so he can do what he wants. We have a bad habit of grossly underestimating our identity. Don’t run! Stand firm. 

“Stand, therefore, with truth like a belt around your waist…” (Ephesians 6:14)

Isolation 

“When he came to the Beersheba that belonged to Judah, he left his servant there, but he went on a day’s journey into the wilderness…” (1 Kings 19:3-4)

One of the ironic responses to spiritual attack is to isolate yourself. It’s ironic because we are more vulnerable to further attack once we separate ourselves from other believers who can speak truth into our lives. Once Elijah isolated himself, things began to spiral out of control. 

Hopelessness

“He sat down under a broom tree and prayed that he might die” (1 Kings 19:4). 

When facing spiritual attack, it’s difficult to recognize truth from lies. But one evidence that you are under attack is a sense of hopelessness. When we feel hopeless, it is a result of putting our hope in something other than God. Someone has said, “Any thought that does not inspire hope is under the influence of a lie.” 

Set your mind on Jesus and His unchanging faithfulness. Choose to be hopeful. You do have that ability in Christ. In fact, you have the mind of Christ (1 Corinthians 2:16). 

“Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable--if there is any moral excellence and if there is any praise--dwell on these things” (Philippians 4:8). 

Frustration

“He said, ‘I have had enough! Lord, take my life…” (1 Kings 19:4)

Hopelessness breeds discontentment. It works the other way around as well. Discontentment breeds hopelessness. When the dark cloud of hopelessness surrounds, we often look for something or someone to blame. Some people take it out on their families. Some blame the Church. The cry of a hopelessly frustrated heart is “I have had enough!” 

Keep in mind that this downward spiral started when we first believed the lie of the Enemy. Every level of agreement that we enter into opens more doors to his influence. The spirit of suicide doesn’t just come out of nowhere. The door is opened somewhere down the line when we believe what Satan has said to us. 

“Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, so that He may exalt you at the proper time, casting all your care on Him, because He cares about you” (1 Peter 5:6-7). 

Guilt

“Lord take my life, for I’m no better than my fathers” (1 Kings 19:4). 

Satan’s other identity is “the Accuser of the Brethren.” There is a difference between conviction and condemnation. Conviction from the Holy Spirit is specific and leads us out of our sin into freedom. Condemnation is often very general and we can’t quite put our finger on it. We just feel guilty and beyond restoration. That is the voice of the Accuser, not your Redeemer. 

“There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1). 

False Reality 

“‘I have been very zealous for the Lord God of Hosts,’ he replied, ‘but the Israelites have abandoned Your covenant, torn down your altars, and killed Your prophets with the sword. I alone am left, and they’re looking for me to take my life” (1 Kings 19:14). 

In the midst of attack, our sense of reality is skewed. Our perception has actually been influenced by lies we have chosen to believe. And in a sense, we can quickly find ourselves living in a dream world. Elijah was convinced that he was the only man alive in Israel who still served God. God was quick to state the real facts.

“Go and return by the way you came to the Wilderness of Damascus… I will leave 7,000 in Israel - every knee that has not bowed to Baal and every mouth that has not kissed him” (v. 17-18). 

We stand firm in the fight by standing on truth. We must believe what God says about things. We cannot afford to believe any other way.

So, next time you find yourself in the heat of spiritual attack, remember this. Jesus has already won this war. We don’t fight for victory. We fight from victory! Know what He has said. Believe what He has said. Walk in the victory that belongs to Kingdom Kids.