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The Bible makes it clear: we’re at war with spiritual forces of wickedness. The devil is our adversary. He plays dirty. Romans 6 describes how our old self died with Christ, was buried with Him and we rose again with Him to live a new life. We’re new creations in Christ, but in Romans 7, we read about how Satan tries to resurrect our old nature by tempting us to behave like we used to. If we listen to the devil or give in to his temptations, he accuses us before God and seeks a legal right to torment us. Satan is the accuser; Jesus is our defense lawyer.
Christians submit to God and resist these attacks. We renew our minds through prayer, taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ and confessing God’s promises. In other words, we rebuke any thought or feeling that doesn’t line up with the reality of heaven and replace it with the facts: we’re saved, healed, delivered and blessed in Christ. This is why Satan attacks the Bible; it explains our identity in Christ and God’s promises.
All Scripture is God-breathed. The Bible was written over a period of 1,600 years by roughly 40 men from multiple walks of life. Yet, its consistency is unmatched, its ability to predict the future is unparalleled and its power is unrivaled.
There are over 24,000 New Testament manuscripts, with over 5,000 of them are in the original Greek. When cross-checked, the internal consistency of the manuscripts is over 99% and the minor differences don’t affect any Christian beliefs.
Early Christians recognized God’s Word. Writings had to come from an apostle of Jesus or a close associate of an apostle. If a writing didn’t line up with the essentials of the Christian message, if it contradicted an accepted book or if it had no connection to an apostle or one of their close associates, it was rejected. No organization put the Bible together.
The Old Testament successfully made many predictions about the first coming of Jesus. For example, the Old Testament prophesied that Jesus would be born of a virgin, He would have His hands and feet pierced and He would be resurrected. What are the odds of different writers making several accurate, specific predictions about the future? What are the odds of Jesus fulfilling all of them?
When we let the enemy manipulate us, we’re conduits for evil. When we let the Holy Spirit guide us, we’re conduits for good. We’re not condemned by sin; we’re not saved by works. We’re either condemned by unbelief or we’re saved by faith. Ultimately, your life reflects who you agree with: God or Satan. Who does your life belong to?