Robbie Burns said: - "Oh wad to God the gift wad gie us, Tae see oorselves as ithers see us!"

This I believe was occasioned by a large and lofty lady majestically proceeding down the church aisle like a liner coming up river whilst from the behind view, a spider industriously was going up and down like a yo-yo from the back of her hat as it made its web! Oh would to God the gift would give us to see ourselves as HE SEES US! OR COULD WE BEAR IT? What a man believes rules him! He does not rule what he believes! This is important! When I believe I bow! What am I bowing to? Superstition? Fashion? Tradition? Custom? Lies? Or Truth? Never before was the man in the street subject to such an onslaught of canvassing, plotting and scheming to woo him as now, from newspaper column and shop window, from T.V. screen and hoarding the avalanche descends. The unsuspecting public slowly but inscrutably are being shaped to BELIEVE what the commercial juggernaut decrees! Our children repeat advertising jargon like they once repeated nursery rhymes! Their parents believe that the joy of living is in a tin of beans! Someone has said that six master-minds influence 18 million women through the columns of Women's Weeklies as to what their vital statistics must be - what they eat - what they wear - what they must not eat - whether skirts are high or low or hair is long or short.

In other words we believe and therefore we bow! It matters what people think of me! I must keep up with the Joneses! "All we like sheep" says Is. 53 "HAVE GONE ASTRAY!"

Hypnotized by Public Opinion I believe what everybody else believes!

The dying soldier on the battlefield was asked by the padre what he believed. "I believe what the Church believes" - he gasped. "Which Church?" "What does your Church believe?"
"The Church believes what I believe!
"Well, what do you both believe?"
"We both believe alike!" - was the reply!

So many Christians' lives are like the packets of seeds sold at the nursery man's. The picture on the packet is marvelous! The end product in my garden??? Negativism and unbelief are no fertilizers for the seed of God's Word! We are all familiar with the pot egg placed in the nest to encourage the hens to lay - The story goes - one man put an ostrich's egg in the laying place with the words "There you are girls - that's just to show what IS being done!" According to God's word which is the divine blue print of the Christian Life - it is oh so wonderful - the end product? Why? At this moment the villain of our story emerges and with great gusto many unbelieving believers will magnify the power of the devil. They will tell you that it is all the devil's fault and many who want to escape responsibility find a convenient scape goat by putting everything on the broad back of the devil! As the newly arrived Irish laborer said on the building site" "Pwhats the government here? Sure bedad phwat ivver it is O'm again it!"

While some blame the government for everything many Christians blame the devil for everything! Is this the key? Jesus did say "Lo Satan hath bound this woman these 18 years." Resist the devil ... your adversary ... going about as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour! . . . the wiles of the devil (I Pet. 5). We wrestle not (Ephes. 6) . . . But against principalities . . . powers . . . the rulers of the darkness of this world, etc., etc. Are we the helpless pawns of a raging, mighty despot who has sent our God reeling back? Is this the 9th round in a ten round contest in which our God, bruised and bleeding is despairingly looking to us, His seconds, to revive Him and thus avert a last minute knockout? Is this the picture? Well, you answer it, IS it? Is this the conception you have of God?

The attitude of many Christians is one of blank negativism - they have a great big devil and a little savior! Fear rules their lives - they see devils on the mantlepiece - demons on the bed- posts - in spite of God's word. Psalm 91:5 which declares "Thou shalt NOT be afraid!" in spite of His word. 2 Tim. 1:7, "God hath not given us the spirit of fear but of POWER and of LOVE and of a sound mind!" - they encourage by negative thinking a God dishonoring fear as if they caught demons, like dirty people catch fleas, hopping from one to the other - no positive faith whatsoever! As someone has said, "There is not one negative note in the New Testament after Jesus rose from the dead" - Hallelujah! If God be for us who can be against us? THINE is the kingdom THINE is the power and THINE is the glory! God is not running around His universe like a scalded cat calling for volunteers to help Him defeat the devil! The devil is NOT going to be defeated - he is defeated! What else does calvary mean? Spoiled is in the past tense (Col. 2:15) regarding principalities and powers, Hath put (Ephes. 1:22) leaves nothing to doubt about the "all things under the feet of Jesus". When God PUTS He is the greatest putter in the Universe and when He PUTS things stay PUT!!

We are not going to win! We have won! When Jesus died His last words were not TO BE CONTINUED! They were IT IS FINISHED!! He said what He meant. He meant what He said! Right believing produces right living even as wrong believing produces wrong living! Be ye transformed by the re-NEW-ing of your MIND! Roms. 12:2. So what? Where do we go from here? 

ONE The devil is defeated NOW!! 

TWO We have won! Roms. 8:2. The Law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus not will make me free but HATH made me free!

If your experience does not tally with God's Word scrap it and find a new one! Satan is a creature and not a creator! You say "If God has all power why doesn't God kill the devil?" Surely a reasonable enough question! If God knows the end from the beginning why did He ever make the devil? 

ONE God does not make devils; neither did God make the Devil a devil. 

TWO The divine plan is to make responsible creatures of choice (they have the power to choose). You can't choose with less than two! You can't choose the way of Life unless there is a way of death, the narrow way, unless a broad way, God unless there is a devil! 

THREE God made a responsible creature of choice who BECAME the devil! This is important! I must not charge the ALL WISE with folly! Satan, heaven's prime minister from many scriptures (Ezek. 28:13-19 etc.) it would seem plotted treason, took glory, exalted himself and was cast out of heaven as lightning. God knows the end from the beginning and declares it (Is. 46:10). He knew what the devil would be! He permitted him! A strong man destroys his enemies! A wise man uses his enemies! God is STRONG and WISE!