Satan's Idle (Yes, Idle) Worship

What would happen if someone came into the assembly and put a bull-like statue engraved with the name Beelzebub on the Communion Table?  I am not sure my mind can fully grasp the response, but it would be swift and certain!  In addition to physical actions, there would be some Bible-quoting going on!  Some would be stating, “You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth.  You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and the fourth generations of those who hate Me, but showing lovingkindness to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.” (Exodus 20:4-6) as others quoted I Corinthians 10:14, “Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry.” 

I cannot imagine this happening today because satan knows that it would not be effective.  He is not going to influence the modern church with such a blatant display of idolatry, so he works in other ways.  The devil’s actions are a bit more subtle, but just as effective – and offensive.  When we look at satan’s temptation of today’s church we will notice things such as:

1.  Distractions.  The Lord’s church is founded on a love of God and a love for our fellow man (Matthew 22:34-40 and John 13:35).  To be successful, all satan has to do is shift our focus to something else – anything else.  When he gets us involved in insignificant issues, he wins. 

2.  Personalities.   To quote Sergeant Joe Friday (of Dragnet fame) our challenge is that “We have to recruit from the human race.”  Satan knows this and tries to exploit it to his advantage.  We are made up of Gen-Xers,  Millennials, Baby Boomers, males, females, liberals, conservatives, go-getters, easy-goers … and on and on.  Satan doesn’t have to unite all these different types against a common enemy – all he has to do is to keep us from becoming one in the Lord. 

3.  Weariness.  There may be some who are just too physically tired to invest themselves in the work of the church, but the bigger problem is emotional weariness.  Whether it is the result of being too busy or allowing the constant wear-and-tear of spiritual issues to dissipate our resolve the devil can use fatigue to damage the church.  Again, he doesn’t have to convince people to actively assault the church, all he has to do is convince us that it isn’t worth the effort and get us to do nothing.

Peter warns, “Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” (I Peter 5:8), but satan also has a stealthy side.  Let’s be on alert because whether he comes as a lion or a serpent he can do serious damage in our fellowship!

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