"Son of God"

"In the beginning was the Word, the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God." (John 1:1-2 KJV)

  "And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness:" (Genesis 1:26a KJV)

  There have been times over these last, almost 40 years, where I have had doubts about who Jesus really is; call it creepiness from the past, or blind spots in my understanding; whatever it is, I have had to rebuke it as if it was from the devil, trying to destroy my faith. That is real, I hope you know! When Jesus told Peter that Satan wanted to sift him like wheat, He was trying to show Peter that what he was about to experience was not something he could overcome on his own. What strength does wheat have against getting crushed and then sifted? None!   

  We have weapons at our disposal to be strong enough to overcome being mislead; but we must be aware of the things we are fighting against: "For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (for the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds;) casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ; and having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled." (2 Corinthians 10:3-6 KJV) 

  I am pretty sure that Peter had no idea what he was in for. Most likely, he shrugged it of, thinking that his strength was enough to overcome whatever this was that Jesus was talking about. That is absolutely the wrong attitude to go into a spiritual battle with the devil! I heard part of a message yesterday, where Pastor Mike was sharing about how roosters crow; and he said that they usually don't crow twice in the same moment: indicating that Peter had a warning about what he was doing, because it crowed most likely after the first time he denied Jesus; then it crowed again after the third time. 

  Why is this something we need to be aware of? Because we have a battle waging around us for our minds and our eternal souls! It is most apparent when we are doubting the power of God in our lives; but it is also most lethal when we are doubting God's power in anything! So you do the math: if you are doubting God's power, remove all doubt, or else prepare to be sifted! 

  Speaking about math, I learned something interesting almost 40 years ago: God prefers multiplication over adding! We say, 1 + 1 + 1 = 3; but when it comes to looking at God, it's: 1 x 1 x 1 = ONE...

"For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God. Everything is naked and exposed before his eyes, and he is the one to whom we are accountable. So then, since we have a great High Priest who has entered heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to what we believe. This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin. So let us come boldly to the throne of our glorious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most." (Hebrews 4:12-16 NLT)