The Devil Has A Plan For Your Life.

The Devil Has a Plan for Your Life!

The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.

- John 10:10

I realize that John 10:10 is a well-known verse to millions of believers around the world, but today I want to give you fresh insight into this powerful scripture. Rather than simply read it as you’ve read it a thousand times before, let’s dig a little deeper into the Greek words behind this verse to see what we can mine from the treasures of the Greek New Testament!

Jesus said, “The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly” (John 10:10). According to these words of Jesus, the thief comes to steal, kill, and destroy everything good in your life. He wants to destroy your job, your joy, your happiness, your health, your finances, your marriage, and your kids.The thief just wants to ruin anything he can get his hands on!

The word “thief ” comes from the Greek word klepto, which means to steal.: It gives a picture of a bandit, pickpocket, or thief who is so artful in the way he steals that his exploits of thievery are nearly undetectable. This reminds me of the pickpockets who work the streets in certain areas of Moscow.They can slip their hands into a person’s pockets, take what they want, and be long gone before that person discovers they were even there!

Jesus uses this word to let us know the devil is very cunning in the way he steals from people. He knows that if he does it outright, his actions will be recognized; therefore, he steals from people in such a deceptive way that he often accomplishes his evil goal before they even know he has stolen from them!

Often the devil injects thoughts into a person’s mind to steal his peace, his joy, and even his beliefs. The word klepto describes a thief ’s uncontrollable urge to get his hands into someone’s pockets so he can take that which doesn’t rightfully belong to him. I find it very interesting that this is where we get the word kleptomaniac, which describes a person with a persistent, neurotic impulse to steal. Just as a kleptomaniac can’t help but steal, the devil can’t stop stealing because it is his impulse and his very nature to steal. This is precisely the nature and behavior of the thief Jesus told us about!

Not only does the thief come to steal, but Jesus said that he also comes “to kill.” At first glance, it appears that this means to kill, as to take someone’s life. But the Greek word is thuo, which means to sacrifice. It originally referred to the sacrificial giving of animals on the altar. It could mean to sacrifice; to surrender; or to give up something that is precious and dear. It was particularly used in a religious connotation to denote the sacrifice of animals, and it had nothing to do with killing in terms of murder.

Because Jesus uses this word to describe the work of the thief in John 10:10, He is telling us that if the thief hasn’t already walked away with everything we hold precious and dear, he will then try to convince us that we need to sacrifice or give up everything he hasn’t already taken from us.

The thief cannot bear the fact that you possess any kind of blessing. Therefore, if he is unsuccessful at stealing the good things from your life, he will try to cunningly convince you to give up everything you possess and love – simply because he doesn’t want you to have it. He may even try to create stressful situations that cause you to conclude that your only solution is to sacrifice the things you dearly love.

Then Jesus went on to say that the thief also comes “to destroy.” The word “destroy” is from the Greek word apollumi, meaning to destroy. It carries the idea of something that is ruined, wasted, trashed, devastated, and destroyed. By using this word, we discover that if the thief is unsuccessful in his attempts to steal from you or convince you to sacrifice what you hold dear, he will then try to ruin it!

An expanded interpretive translation of John 10:10 could read this way:
“The thief wants to get his hands into every good thing in your life. In fact, this pickpocket is looking for any opportunity to wiggle his way so deeply into your personal affairs that he can walk off with everything you hold precious and dear. And that’s not all – when he’s finished stealing all your goods and possessions, he’ll take his plan to rob you blind to the next level. He’ll create conditions and situations so horrible that you’ll see no way to solve the problem except to sacrifice everything that remains from his previous attacks. The goal of this thief is to totally waste and devastate your life. If nothing stops him, he’ll leave you insolvent, flat broke, and cleaned out in every area of your life. You’ll end up feeling as if you are finished and out of business! Make no mistake – the enemy’s ultimate aim is to obliterate you.”

But Jesus went on to say, “I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly” (John 10:10). The words “they might have” are from the Greek tense that means to have and to continually possess. The “life” Jesus offers us is zoe, which suggests a
life that is filled with vitality. The word “abundantly” is from the Greek word periossos, and it means to be above, beyond what is regular, extraordinary, or even exceeding. This is not just abundance; it is super- abundance.
What a comparison! The devil comes to steal, to kill, and to destroy, but Jesus comes to give life as we have never known it!

An expanded interpretive translation of this second part of John 10:10 could be as follows:

“But I came that they might have, keep, and constantly retain a vitality, gusto, vigor, and zest for living that springs up from deep down inside. I came that they might embrace this unrivaled, unequaled, matchless, incomparable, richly loaded and overflowing life to the ultimate maximum!”
In your walk with the Lord, you will experience times when the devil pushes buttons in your emotions to keep you all bound up and depressed. Other times the enemy will disguise his voice to make you think God is talking to you in order to get you off track or cause you to cast off your deepest dreams as pure imagination. But whenever these attacks occur, just tell the devil to shut up and stop dropping those dimwitted thoughts of nonsense into your head. Tell him to hit the road! Let him know you’re not going to bite that bait any longer, so he might as well go fishing somewhere else. You’re not a sucker anymore! You know how he works now, and you’ve determined that he isn’t going to steal, kill, or destroy one more good thing in your life!
There’s no doubt about it!

” The devil wants you to be defeated.
” The devil wants you to struggle through your entire life.
” The devil wants you to be sick, depressed, down in the dumps, glum, and miserable.
” The devil wants you to feel like you will never hit the target with your life.
” But Jesus wants to give you a life that is unrivaled, unequaled, matchless, incomparable, richly loaded, and overflowing with life to the ultimate maximum!

So now that you know the devil wants to make your life a less-than-gratifying, unhappy, uneventful life – a life that no one will even notice is gone once it’s over – what are you going to do about it? I urge you to put on the brakes and stop Satan from wreaking havoc in your life. Jesus will give you the power to resist every attack and to overcome every strategy the devil ever tries to use against you!

This was from the Book Sparkling Gems By:Rick Renner! Great Book

Technorati Tags: heart, Holy Spirit, Rick Renner, Sparkling Gems

Are These Signs Following You?

Today I wanted to put this up so that we could learn about signs and wonders…I had a amazing thing happen that I will share in my next blog but I wanted to first put some meaning out so that what I will share you can understand.. Be Blessed!<

p>And these signs shall follow them that believe

— Mark 16:17

Moments before Jesus ascended to the Father, He told the disciples, “And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover” (Mark 16:17,18).
According to Jesus, these supernatural signs are supposed to follow those who believe. Since you and I believe, that means these signs are supposed to follow you and me! So let’s look carefully at this supernatural list to see precisely what Jesus said to us.
First of all, the word “signs” comes from the Greek word semeion, which described the officialwritten notice that announced the final verdict of a court. It also described the signature or seal appliedto a document to guarantee its authenticity and a sign that marked key locations in a city.
Jesus was sending His disciples into the world to preach the Gospel. As He sent them forth, He said that God’s signature would be upon their ministry. These “signs” were to be the signature of God — the official declaration that they were sent by Heaven and that the Gospel message was true. For unbelievers, these “signs” would authenticate the fact that this was no manmade message, but a message straight from God Himself. And just as street signs point a traveler in the right direction,these signs would point the unbeliever to the Lord if he would only pay heed to them.
The specific signs that Jesus mentioned are as follows:
• They will cast out devils.
• They will speak with new tongues.
• They will take up serpents.
• If they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them.
• They will lay hands on the sick, and the sick will recover.
The Lord said that these signs would “follow” those who believe. The word “follow” is the Greek word parakoloutheo, from the words para and akoloutheo. The word para means alongside o be near or in a close proximitthee word akoloutheo means to follow or to go somewhere with a person, as to accompany him on a trip. When the word paraandakoloutheoare joined to form one word as in this verse, it means to tirelessly accompany someone; to constantly be at the side of an individual; to always be in close proximity with a person, like a faithful companion who is always at one’s side.
Because the word parakoloutheohas such a strong sense of following someone, it eventually came to convey the idea of discipleship. A true disciple faithfully follows his teacher anywhere he goes and is committed to his teacher’s instruction.
This picture of commitment to another person — of someone’s faithfulness to follow and his determination to never be out of step with his leader — is very significant in the context of this verse. It tells us that signs and wonders are to faithfully follow us and the Gospel message. These signs and wonders are continually to be in step with us and with the message we preach. To preach without these miraculous signs should seem very strange to us, for God intended these signs to persistently follow us and the message anywhere and everywhere we go.
These signs are God’s signature that the message is true. Hence, every time the Gospel is preached — whether at church, on the mission field, in a large crusade, in the bus or subway, at your job, or at the grocery store — you should expect these supernatural signs to be present in some form.These signs should accompany you everywhere you go because they are a part of your spiritual equipment, faithful partners of the Gospel message!
But if this is true, why don’t we see more of these signs following Christians? The answer to this question is found in Jesus’ words in Mark 16:17. He said, “And these signs shall follow them that believe.”
I want to draw your attention to the word “believe.” Because of the tense used with this Greek word, this verse would be better translated, “These signs shall follow them that are constantly believing.” In other words, these signs don’t come automatically just because a person once walked the aisle and gave his heart to Jesus. These signs follow those who are constantly believing for them to occur. If a Christian isn’t believing for these signs to be manifested or expecting them to follow him, they probably won’t. Like everything else in the Kingdom of God, signs and wonders are activated by faith.
Through the years of my ministry, I have observed that people who regularly experience the miraculous are those who regularly expect to see it. Rather than being passive, they are very aggressive about pushing forward in the Spirit to see the miraculous manifested in their lives or ministries. Those who press forward and release their faith to see the supernatural are the ones who see more of it than anyone else. Because they are believing for signs and wonders, they often see them manifested in their lives.
The number of signs and wonders that follow you will be determined by how intensely you Are constantly believing for them to be in manifestation. As noted above, everything in the Kingdom of God is activated by faith. If you’re not releasing faith for the miraculous to occur, very little of the miraculous will be in manifestation in your life. If you want signs and wonders to faithfully follow you, you must be constantly believing for them to happen!
So when you preach and share the Gospel, expect things to happen!
• When you pray for the sick, expect them to be healed.
• When you confront someone who is demonized, expect that person to be set free.
• When you are in a situation that requires the miraculous, expect the miraculous to occur.
• When you need protection, expect God’s hand of protection to be upon you.
If you haven’t been experiencing the supernatural in your life, it may be a signal that you haven’t been releasing your faith to see signs and wonders follow you. Remember, these signs always follow wherever the Gospel is preached and believers are believing for them to occur. This was Jesus’ promise! He guaranteed that God’s supernatural signature would be on anyone who preaches the Gospel and who opens the way for the supernatural to come to pass by believing.
Today I want to encourage you to ask the Holy Spirit to rekindle the flame in your heart to see the supernatural signature of God on your life, your church, or your ministry. God wants to show up when you preach or share the Gospel. He wants to authenticate and guarantee that the message you preach or share is truly Heaven-sent. But for the miraculous to occur, He needs you to be constantly releasing your faith — for it is your faith that activates the supernatural !

Technorati Tags: believe, God, signs, Sparkling Gems, wonders