I heard one of the most powerful sayings recently when I was in a rather deep conversation with a friend of mine who is about to be installed as the new pastor of his own church. Hang in here with me.“When Satan knocks at the door, let Jesus answer it.” Maybe you had to be there, but I found the thought behind this saying absolutely awesome. Can you imagine if you could really do this? I mean what if you knew for a fact every time the devil was responsible for the temptation, the trial, the sinful suggestions, the weaknesses of flesh and spirit? The reality would be that you could see the devil coming from miles away and no matter how slick or innocent the approach, you could never be fooled again. Would you really do as Jesus did in the desert? Would you renounce the promise of riches, fame, and power? Would it be as easy as “Away from me Satan!” Matthew 4:10.
According to scripture, after three times, the devil left and the angels came to attend to Jesus and soon thereafter He began to preach. In today’s world I’m simply asking if you knew where damnation was coming from would you still live a damned life?The real question I’m asking is do you know Jesus well enough to ask Him to answer your front door? It sounds easy enough but that’s the issue now isn’t it? When life and the devil deals you a bad hand, can you get the Lord to sit at the table and play your hand? Is your relationship with the Almighty current enough, causal enough, familiar enough to take His presence in your life for granted? In times of great anxiety, do you need to whisper to God to take over or are you screaming at the top of your lungs hoping He’ll hear your plight?
I don’t get the impression that Jesus was screaming at the devil in the desert trying to keep His courage up in the face of temptation, the likes of which most of us will never see, let alone experience firsthand. At every turn it was the devil who was way out of his league because when he came calling Jesus merely let His father answer the door. “Man does not live by bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord…Do not put the Lord your God to the test… Worship the Lordyour God and serve Him only.” Matthew 4:4-11. I can only imagine because I’m not there yet. But please know, I’m working on it.What would it be like to call upon Jesus so regularly that His presence in my daily life would be second nature. I must admit there are times that I do recognize the turmoil in my life has been or is being manufactured by evil.That recognition allows me the privilege to simply tell the devil to back up because I don’t have the time. If you get my meaning, it’s okay to ask Jesus to handle the situation because your time is better spent trying to do the work He would be proud of. When you’re that busy I truly believe Jesus doesn’t mind getting the door.
May God bless and keep you always.
This column is from “Spiritually Speaking: Reflections for and from a New Christian” by James Washington. You can purchase this enlightening book on Amazon and start your journey towards spiritual enlightenment.
