But he turned and told Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are an offense to Me because you’re not thinking about God’s concerns, but about man’s.”
Matthew 16:23 HCSB
In this Scripture passage, Jesus is trying to prepare His disciples for His crucifixion. But Peter rebuked him saying, “Oh no, Lord! This will never happen to You!” If we look at it from Peter’s perspective, he had been traveling with Jesus and watching Jesus perform miracles. He had walked on water with Jesus. He had seen Jesus feed the multitudes with just a few fish and a couple loaves of bread. He had seen Jesus heal the sick and bring the dead back to life. Now for Jesus to be telling them that he is about to go to Jerusalem and suffer at the hands of the elders and die and be buried and rise on the third day is just not something that Peter can wrap his head around. Often times we, like Peter, think about what is good for us but we don’t think about what is good for the church or what is best to further God’s kingdom.
The disciples didn’t really understand what was about to happen to Jesus. I mean just imagine that you have seen someone perform all these miracles, you would think he’s indestructible, right? Why would He die when He could just perform a miracle and stop the whole thing? Why wouldn’t He call HIs angels down to save Him? Jesus didn’t do this even though He clearly did not want to suffer the crucifixion. He prayed in Luke 22:42, “Father, if You are willing, take this cup away from Me-nevertheless not My will, but Yours be done.”
When all is well, beware. This is when the devil is most likely to attack. He doesn’t like to see us grow as Christians. He doesn’t like to see us do the things God calls us to do. He doesn’t want us to get into a close relationship with our Lord and Savior. He certainly doesn’t want us loving others. He doesn’t want to see our churches grow. In any of these cases, you can be prepared for the devil to attack. You can be certain that He is prowling around like that roaring lion Peter talks about in ! Peter 5:8. The lion that is seeking someone or some church to devour. Peter has experienced this firsthand. He was distracted and lost faith and was stopped from walking on water in Matthew 14:30. He cut the ear off the Roman soldier in John 18:10. He denied Jesus three times as predicted in Luke 22:54-61). But Peter loved the Lord and would overcome the devil’s attacks and go on to lead many others to Christ.
The devil likes to distract us and get our focus off of God. He will use whatever he feels is most appealing to us. It may be a hobby. It may be a situation in our lives or in our church. He likes to slither in like the snake we saw in Genesis in the Garden of Eden. He likes to stir up trouble, He likes to disrupt our close relationship with God and our fellow Christians.
There are times when I think we can clearly see what is going on as the devil attacks but there are times when he is more sneaky about it and will have us convinced that it’s everyone else’s thinking that is flawed. We have to be careful when we find ourselves at odds with others. We have to be sure that we are doing God’s will and not submitting to the devil’s attack and believing his lies. We are told in James 4:7 to submit ourselves to God, resist the devil and he will flee from us.
Peter warns us to be serious and alert. Be aware of what is going on. If you find that you are growing in your Christianity and enjoying your relationship with the Lord and your church is growing, better be careful. The devil is on the prowl and he’s wanting to destroy whatever good thing you have going on. He wants to kill your enthusiasm for Christ, he wants to steal your joy and he wants to destroy your witness. Don’t let Him do it.
In Ephesians 6, Paul encourages Christians to stand strong. In Romans 8:28-39 Paul reminds us that in Christ we cannot fail. He tells us God will work all these things out for the good of us who love the Lord and are called according to His purpose. Nothing can separate us from Christ. He also reminds us we are more than victorious in Christ.
Have a great day!