The devil as the source of tragedy

ByPastor Rufus Ajiboye Reading Time: 4 minutes
Greetings to you, dear friends! Grace to you and peace from Father God and our Lord Jesus Christ!During these past days we have been discussing how our sins and the sins of others cause different tragedies in society. Also we talked about how repentance and life in compliance with God’s Word brings healing, blessing and prosperity. Today I would like to talk about the devil as the source of tragedy.We have already established that the devil also causes suffering for people. The Bible calls him ‘god of the present age’ and our adversary. 
 «Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Resist him, steadfast in the faith…» (1 Peter, 5:8-9).
 You might want to ask why the devil (and not God) is the ruler of this earth. The answer is that God entrusted the rulership of the earth to humans for a time and He cannot take it back before the set time. 
 «May you be blessed by the LORD, Who made heaven and earth. The heaven, even the heavens, are the LORD’s; but the earth He has given to the children of men» (Psalm, 115:15-16).
 God Who has created heaven and earth has blessed people living on earth and gave him the rulership rights. Afterwards a man who walked under God’s rule had to govern this earth. But, unfortunately, the man gave these rights to the devil. The devil openly spoke about it to Jesus when tempting Him in wilderness. 
«Then the devil, taking Him up on a high mountain, showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. And the devil said to Him,„All this authority I will give You, and their glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I wish. Therefore, if You will worship before me, all will be Yours» (Luke, 4:5-7).
 Did you notice that during the temptation the devil told Jesus that all the kingdoms had been given to him? Who gave him all of it? Was it God? No, it wasn’t! It was Adam and Eve who disobeyed God. 
«Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness?» (Romans, 6:16).
 We become the slaves of the one we obey. Adam and Eve had a choice. But since they gave themselves to be slaves of sin and death, death (the devil) started ruling over people and everything that was entrusted to them. By his choice the man made the devil his god; for this reason he controls the lives of people, families, cities and countries. The devil is the specialist in three areas: stealing, killing and destroying. 
 «The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly» (John, 10:10).
 The devil is a thief, and even though he tries to mask his actions, the fruit of his rule are obvious on earth: they are death, poverty, tears, misery and tragedy. Here is why the Bible calls us to pray this way: “Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven”.If people will pray for it, then the fullness of God’s original purpose will be established on earth. There are no tears, no poverty, no hatred, no illness, and no death in heaven where the fullness of God’s will exists.We will continue tomorrow! God bless you!Pastor Rufus Ajiboye

Similar Posts

  • In order for us to do the works of Jesus, we must ask for it in prayer!

    AutorsPastor Rufus Ajiboye Reading Time: 3 minutes
    «Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father. And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son» (John, 14:12-13).When Jesus Himself says ‘most assuredly’, it means He wants us to pay attention. These two verses are connected. Jesus says that we can do the works that Jesus did and even more, if we pray. Jesus tried to tell His disciples that He has been given all authority in heaven and on earth and that He will represent them in heaven, because He will be sitting with Him on the heavenly throne. Jesus told His disciples that they should ask in His name and that He would do what they ask so that His Father would be glorified.

  • There are three main types of believers: observers, consumers/users and servants!

    AutorsPastor Rufus Ajiboye Reading Time: 5 minutes
    What type of a believer are you? What are you: an observer, a user or a servant? Today we will attempt to establish what distinguishes observers and consumers from servants.Observes do not care for what goes on around them; they demonstrate indifference. What happens in church does not concern him; he thinks that he only needs to attend Sunday services. He is there for the worship and the sermon and it is enough for him. Such a believer has no problems; he is doing fine at work and at home. He simply observes the events around him and he is happy.

  • Spiritual discipline

    AutorsPastor Rufus Ajiboye Reading Time: 4 minutes
    The paradox is that most Christians, who discipline themselves in other areas of their life in order to be successful – like job or carrier, do not believe they need to be disciplined in the area of godliness. We are talking about good Christians who are faithful members of the Church of the Living God. These are people who love God’s Word and often are very enthusiastic about the work of God. But because of the lack of discipline they do not reach their potential in God’s Kingdom.

  • Changed people think and act like God III

    AutorsPastor Rufus Ajiboye Reading Time: 4 minutes
    Talking about transformation we mean changes of our point view, changes in our hearts, in our characters and our circumstances. Any changes should take place within us first. I have to allow God to change myself and my character. Jesus said:«There is nothing from outside of the man, that going into him can defile him; but the things which proceed out of the man are those that defile the man.» (Mark 7:15).

  • Through prayer we invite God to take part in our lives

    AutorsPastor Rufus Ajiboye Reading Time: 3 minutes
    God does not come into our lives without being asked. Praying means to invite God to come and help us. It is a realization of the fact that I am weak and there is One Who is stronger than me, Who loves me and cares for me. Prayer is an invitation to the One Who is stronger than me and my circumstances.Do you remember Jairus? We read about him in Mark (5:22-23). He had sent his people to Jesus to invite Him to his house, because his daughter was on the verge of death.

  • The conclusion about potential benefit from hardship, painful times and problems

    AutorsPastor Rufus Ajiboye Reading Time: 4 minutes
    *) We talked about how God uses our pain and problems for our spiritual growth; *) We talked about the fact that there is benefit in our times of hardship. Problems and pain focus our attention as nothing else does. They teach us to lean on God, they test and refine our faith, form our character, prepare us for eternity and Problems give us a chance to obtain the necessary experience for ministry to other people. *) We talked about the importance of making right choices, because if we do not make the right choices, times of hardship by