SATAN’S ASSAULT ON THE CHURCH

Blog: Max Dawson
April 24, 2017
The church of our Lord began on Pentecost in . It was a glorious beginning, with 3,000 converts. The brethren shared their lives together with great joy (). The people of Jerusalem even looked upon them with favor.
But sinister forces were at work. According to , there was a group called the Sadducees that hated the gospel message. These men arrested the apostles. Satan was behind the foul deeds of these men who opposed God’s work.
This was only the beginning of the opposition of Satan against the church. The success of the gospel infuriates Satan. He will do whatever he can both within and without the church to try to destroy it. Below are some examples from the book of Acts that show what the devil has done to try to undermine the church.
. Two apostles, Peter and John, were arrested and threatened.
. Motivated by Satan, two Christians lied about giving to the church.
. All the apostles were arrested, beaten, and ordered not to preach.
. Complaints in the church over how some widows were neglected.
. Stephen was arrested, lied about and murdered.
. The murder of Stephen emboldened the enemies of the church. Satan motivated the enemies to bring a great persecution against the church.
Such incidents continued throughout the book of Acts. Satan was behind all the troubles within and without the church. And why? I think the answer is in . The mission of the church and its preachers and teachers was to turn men from the power of Satan to God! Satan was losing in the greatest battle of the ages–the war for the souls of men.
THE FINAL WORD
In spite of all the troubles within and without the church, there is no hint that the saints ever gave up. They continued to preach everywhere ().
What does all this mean to us? Here are eight points for us to remember:
1. Satan never sleeps. He continues his assault on the people of God–even today.
2. Satan will oppose us and our work within the church and without.
3. Satan will do all he can to discourage us with problems and obstacles.
4. Every time we see opposition and conflict–we must believe the devil is at work!
5. Like the early Christians, we must press forward, never giving up the fight.
6. We are on God’s side. He will help us overcome every obstacle of the devil.
7. Our God has called us to conquer and be victorious (ff).
8. We must be people of faith, standing together, victorious in every conflict.
Blessings to you, my faithful and victorious friends,
–Max