Team Jesus, please pray for all the people in Syria. Pray that Satan be gone.
The Christian Post
By Anugrah Kumar, Christian Post Contributor
Christians and other religious minorities in Syria are sounding the alarm as more than 1,000 people have been killed since last Thursday in what rights groups describe as some of the worst atrocities since the ouster of President Bashar al-Assad in December.
The violence, centered in Syria’s coastal regions, has primarily targeted Alawites, Christians and other minority communities, GB News reported, explaining that tensions escalated after an ambush on a security patrol near Latakia by gunmen loyal to Assad. This triggered a severe response from forces linked to Syria’s Islamist-led interim government. More Here
Enemy attack? There was a time in my life when I had no enemies. Once I began ministry, however, that changed. It should come as no surprise that many who serve God in full-time ministry become targets of demonic assaults, especially those who serve in regions where the powers of darkness are commonplace. But enemy attacks are by no means limited to those dark corners of the world. The adversary is working overtime anywhere he can find a relational rift to exploit or a habitual sin to manipulate. How grateful I am for this song in Scripture. It, like few other scriptural passages, comes to grips with enemy attacks and gives us hope to get beyond them.
Every ancient song, like every great hymn, has its own special tone. The magnificent hymn “And Can It Be?” has a tone of assurance. The lovely “Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah” has a tone of dependence and trust. The moving strains of “O Sacred Head, Now Wounded” carry a tone of passion and pain, while “I Am His, and He Is Mine” conveys love and acceptance. Psalm 91 has a unique tone in its message as well. We discover this by reading it through and looking for words or phrases that communicate similar thoughts. Let me list some:
Verse 1: shelter
Verse 2: refuge…fortress
Verse 4: refuge…shield
Verse 5: terror by night…arrow by day
Verse 6: pestilence…destruction
Verse 7: a thousand may fall
Verse 9: refuge
Verse 11: guard
Verse 15: rescue
There can be little doubt about the tone of Psalm 91; it is warfare, battle, conflict, fighting. It is a song for battle in that it conveys an atmosphere of daily, oppressive enemy attack. And who is this enemy? Israel’s national foes? No. A human being who opposes the writer? I don’t believe so. An actual, visible war on a bloody battlefield? No, I doubt it. Look at several more verses as we identify the enemy:
Verse 3: the trapper
Verse 8: the wicked
Verse 10: evil
Then consider the promise of angelic assistance (91:11–12) as well as divine deliverance (91:14–15). When you put all the evidence together, I think it builds a strong case for a song about surviving the attacks of our spiritual enemies, Satan and his demons. It talks about a battle in the unseen spiritual realm. This explains our need for angelic and divine intervention. Because our supernatural enemy comes at us with supernatural strength, we need supernatural help.
Unfortunately, we have neither the space nor the time to examine the full spectrum of enemy attacks, but perhaps an example or two would help. There are certain people whose presence throbs with evil. Being near them unleashes depressing powers which are both frightening and unavoidable. I have encountered these individuals throughout my ministry and have never forgotten the attacks. Frequently the people have trafficked in mind-bending occult practices and/or have been heavily involved in the drug culture. I have seen weird, even bizarre things occur in my family during such times. Fitful nightmares, passionate outbursts of rebellion and arguments, a heavy cloud of depression, strange accidents, and uncharacteristic marital disharmony can follow in the wake of these attacks. I shudder as I recall those awful times.
Not all demonic attacks are overt. In fact, most take more subtle, insidious forms such as turning people against one another or keeping someone bound in habitual sin in order to destroy the lives of everyone they know. Several years ago, I witnessed the sin of just two people shake two otherwise stable ministries all the way to their foundations.
Keep this in mind when digging into Psalm 91. The tone is warfare and the enemy is our evil adversary who comes at us with persistent regularity. Let me suggest four distinct parts to this song about divine deliverance from supernatural evil:
I. Protection amid Evil (91:1–4)
II. Attitude toward Evil (91:5–10)
III. Assistance against Evil (91:11–13)
IV. Security from Evil (91:14–16)
Not all demonic attacks are overt. Some turn us against one another or keep us bound in habitual sin.
— Charles R. Swindoll
From the writings of the Rev. Billy Graham
Evil has been present in the world from the moment sin invaded God’s perfect world. Wars have raged around the world from the beginning of time. But part of the angst that is present today can be the result of a 24-hour news cycle, something that hit in the last part of the 20th century with the coming of cable news and the internet. People are forever hearing about bad news. But the Bible says that in the final days before Jesus returns to this earth there will be “terrible times.” Jesus Himself declared that we “will hear of wars and rumors of wars” (Matthew 24:6, NKJV). More than any other time in history, more Christians are martyred for their faith.
Our world is filled with hatred, anger, conflict, turmoil, and insecurity. Jesus said the basic problem is in our hearts—and the reason is because we are alienated from our Creator. Instead of giving God His rightful place at the center of our lives, we have substituted the gods of this world that claim to satisfy mankind’s longings. But only Christ can change our hearts.
Does this mean that we can never make any progress against the massive problems that assail society? No, of course not; God wants us to fight evil wherever it is found. But our greatest need is for repentance and spiritual renewal and to keep Christ at the center of our thoughts and actions.
“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear.” … “Be still, and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:1–2, 10, NKJV).
