Stepping into the Light

I hope you enjoy another devotional by our good friend Bishop Calvin B. Lockett of Christ the Healer Church in Clarksville, Tennessee.

Luke 10:17 Then the seventy returned with joy, saying, "Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name." 18 And He said to them, "I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. 19 Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you."

My favorite episode of "The Steve Harvey Show" involves a switching of identities. Academically challenged Romeo Santana (Merlin Santana) accidentally received the test scores of the energetic and witty Lydia Liza Guttman (Lori Beth Denberg). Romeo's character suddenly transformed from a "thug ladies' man" into a "nerdy intellectual." His fantasy world ended when he found out he'd been given credit for Lydia's accomplishments. It was hilarious watching Romeo portray an intellectual presence that he really didn’t possess.

For too long, Satan has been accredited for having power he doesn't possess. The devil wants us to believe that he is our greatest enemy; however, that simply isn't true. In Luke 10, the seventy obeyed the instructions Jesus had given them and returned to The Master with great excitement. They told Jesus that, "even the demons are subject to us in Your name." Jesus informed them that Satan had been defeated and that He'd given them power over the enemy (Luke 10:18-19). Amazingly, this was before The Holy Spirit came to earth! How much more victorious should we be now that we have the Indwelling Power of The Spirit of God living inside us!

Since the Bible is clear that our adversary is a defeated one, the question that we must ask is, "Who is our greatest enemy?" Our flesh, the part of us that's not saved and shall never be saved, is the biggest hindrance to our spiritual progress. The Bible says that, "…the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. (Galatians 5:17, ESV) The exhortation today is to recognize and begin walking victoriously over our greatest enemy, the flesh.

Let’s Pray: "Father, we ask for Your Power to walk victorious over our greatest enemy, our flesh. Give us Your Wisdom and Strength to make the right decisions, in Jesus' Name, amen."