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Food For Thought


          But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen you and protect you from the evil one. (II Thessalonians 3:3)

Then the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil. And he still maintains his integrity, though you incited me against him to ruin him without any reason.”     
“Skin for skin!” Satan replied. “A man will give all he has for his own life.  But now stretch out your hand and strike his flesh and bones, and he will surely curse you to your face.”
The Lord said to Satan, “Very well, then, he is in your hands; but you must spare his life.” (Job 2:3-6)

          Oh, I need this today. I need this every day. As I think about what it means to be protected from the evil one, I think of a term that is being bandied about a lot recently: privilege. Others have pointed out “not privileged but blessed.” I’m going to suggest “not privileged (by man) but protected (by God.) But the moment that idea came to mind, Job came to mind. And Corrie Ten Boom, and people who have had very difficult, pain-filled lives. Hebrews 11 people fit into this category. 
          Protected doesn’t mean that the evil one can’t do a lot of nasty stuff. It means that the evil one can only do just do much nasty stuff, and only during our physical lifetimes. That’s the struggle I face at the moment. I am wonderfully protected, and I am privileged to be so protected, but my automatic reaction to the slightest breeze or a ripple on the water I’m trying to tread is “Lord, help! I’m sinking.” At which point, He tends to say, “The water is only a millimeter deep.” 
          Another thought comes to mind. It’s completely reasonable that we should feel reluctant to face the evil one’s full wrath (even though it’s not likely we’ll ever face it.) However, Jesus faced God’s full wrath. Just a thought to nibble on for the morning.

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