Pray for Your Church: Impact (4)
He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil. 1 John 3.8
Three images
We have considered three images Jesus used to describe the impact of His Kingdom as received, sought, and realized by His people: light, salt, and leaven. As we saw in an early installment in this study, Jesus is building His Church—and all local churches—first, as a sign that the Kingdom of God has come to earth and second, as the outpost from which the Kingdom, like a growing stone, increases to fill “the whole earth” (Dan. 2.35, 44, 45).
Each of these images helps us think about the impact our church should have in our community. Light, salt, and leaven all have pervading and transforming powers. Wherever they are applied, change occurs. Wherever the Kingdom, in the members of local churches, becomes established, transformation occurs.
As church members disperse throughout their community—in their homes and neighborhoods, schools and workplaces, markets and leisure activities—they take the pervading and transforming power of the Gospel with them. We have been called to the Kingdom and glory of God (1 Thess. 2.12). We are to pray for the Kingdom to come on earth as it is in heaven and to seek it as the defining priority of our lives (Matt. 6.10, 33). We are citizens and ambassadors of this new reality, and it infuses us with a hope that is so constant and true that people can’t help but see it (Col. 1.13; 2 Cor. 5.20; 1 Pet. 3.15). We have been saved to do good works (Eph. 2.8-10) and are appointed by Christ Himself to bear witness to Him with true and edifying words (Acts 1.8; Col. 4.6).
It is thus reasonable to expect, as the shepherds of our churches equip each member for the work of ministry, for loving and serving others and bearing witness to Jesus, that the salt, light, and leaven of the Kingdom will begin to affect others in powerful ways. We should be able, like Barnabas in Antioch (Acts 11.23), to see the grace of God at work in specific ways, increasingly.
And the first of those ways is the expanding destruction of the works of the devil.
The work of the church
John tells us that Jesus came to destroy the works of the devil. He thus establishes a strategic focus for our own work as light, salt, and leaven. The works of the devil are to promulgate lies, sow deceit, encourage hatred and division, and move people to violence and murder. How should we and our churches expect to carry on the work of Jesus in destroying these various works?
First, by our own sanctification. We will be in no position to confront the work of the devil in our Personal Mission Field and our community if we are not waging unrelenting warfare against it in our own souls. By earnest study of God’s Word, devoted prayer, mutual love and accountability, wielding the gifts of the Spirit, and bearing His fruit in our lives—by all these means we keep our own “house” swept and tidy, not allowing any place for the devil to get a foothold in our soul through lust, pride, covetousness, or any other of his many stratagems. We and our churches must work tirelessly to increase in the likeness of Jesus Christ (2 Pet. 3.18; Eph. 4.12-16). Thus we will be strong in the Lord to confront and destroy the works of the devil as we encounter them each day.
At the same time, as we grow in the Lord and take up the work of ministry in all that we do, we will overthrow the devil’s work of hatred and division with love for our neighbors, which is the fruit of knowing the Lord. We will bring the truth of God into our conversations, community concerns, and common interests. Those who are living the devil’s lie and are trapped in lives of deceit will see the hope that is within us and some will ask a reason for it. Thus we will have no shortage of opportunities to explain what Jesus has done for us and how others can come to know Him.
Where the devil seeks to destroy, we will work to edify—people, culture, institutions, creation. Where the devil sows violence and death we will come with peace, patience, and life. The people in our communities will not need to come to our churches to find out about Jesus and His Kingdom of righteousness, peace, and joy in the Spirit. They will experience these, hear about these, and be touched by these through the members of our local churches dispersed as light, salt, and leaven throughout our community.
Consistency over time—continually seeking the Kingdom and righteousness of God in all things—will lead to significant advances in destroying the work of the devil. Thus we expect to see the work of the devil diminishing, not increasing, in our community. And when we as members of local churches are faithful in our calling, this is precisely what we will see.
Pray for your church
And like everything else, this effort must begin in and be sustained by prayer. Here’s a prayer you can use for doing the ongoing work of destroying the works of the devil:
Lord Jesus, make us light, salt, and leaven
in our community! Sanctify us, Jesus,
that we might be more like You
in all we do, at all times, with all the people
in our Personal Mission Field.
Give us a vision of our community
freed of the lies, deceit, hatred, and violence
of the devil to know more of
the righteousness, peace, and joy
of Your Kingdom.
Show us each day
how You would use us and our church
to bring Jesus to this community.
For reflection
1. What evidence do you see that the work of the devil is still operative in your community?
2. What do you need to do to make sure you are personally ready to destroy the works of the devil?
3. What can churches do to target specific manifestations of the devil’s work, to destroy it?
Next steps—Preparation: Make sure your work of sanctification is where it ought to be. How can you improve in your struggle to be more like Jesus?
T. M. Moore
Give thanks
If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment and give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Cor. 4.15).
Other columns of interest this week: Our Read Moore podcast is concentrating on praying the psalms to seek revival—why we should and what we might expect. Do you ever wonder about what God’s will for you is? Patrick—echoing Paul—makes it clear, as you can see in last week’s Crosfigell. And new in our bookstore, our book, The Ongoing Work of Christ shows us how the book of Acts provides a template and footprint for all who take up the work of building Jesus’ Church.
Thank you.
Many of you are faithful and generous in praying for and supporting Crosfigell and The Fellowship of Ailbe. Thank you. I encourage all our readers to seek the Lord about becoming a supporter of The Fellowship of Ailbe. It’s easy to give to The Fellowship of Ailbe, and all gifts are, of course, tax-deductible. You can click here to donate online through credit card or PayPal or Anedot, or send your gift to The Fellowship of Ailbe, P. O. Box 8213, Essex, VT 05451.
Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
