As we mature in God He holds us to a higher standard (e.g. James 3:1, Hebrews 6:4-8), and His discipline for us may be uniquely different from what immature Christians go through. In 2 Corinthians 12:7, Paul recounts a unique discipline He received from the Lord: Because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, for this reason, to keep me from exalting myself, there was given me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me– to keep me from exalting myself! Some have claimed that this thorn in the flesh was sickness sent from God on Paul. But neither Paul nor the Bible said any such thing. Rather Paul told us what this thorn in the flesh was. He said it was a messenger of satan assigned to harass him. First all, messengers of satan do not dwell with God in heaven (Psalm 5:4). Therefore, this thorn in Paul’s flesh, the messenger of satan, was not something that came down from heaven. Neither was it sickness or calamity created by God in heaven and sent down on Paul since messengers of satan do not reside with God in heaven. Rather by Paul’s own admission, a messenger of satan was permitted by God to oppose or harass him to keep him from being proud. If Paul would have never gotten proud on account of the surpassing revelations he received, God will not have allowed the devil’s messenger to oppose him. But once Paul had this messenger of satan fighting him, and his only way to deal with it was to rely on God’s grace (2 Corinthians 12:8-9), he was kept from being proud. From here we can learn a very important lesson. When we choose to walk with God in obedience, He doesn’t send sicknesses and calamities on us to keep us humble. He has already given us His covenant of victory over every calamity and healing over every sickness through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ (Psalm 91, 3 John 1:2, Romans 8:37, 1 Peter 2:24, 1 John 5:4). However, when there is any tendency for us to walk outside His will, He may permit the devil to oppose us so that we may look to His grace alone to survive, and thus be kept in His will.
God is a good God (Nahum 1:7) and His discipline is surely for our good (Hebrews 12:10) because He cares for us affectionately (1 Peter 5:7). In this way, God distinguishes His discipline from the oppression or opposition of the devil, which is meant to achieve these three things: kill, steal and destroy (John 10:10). And among the many things the devil may use to kill, steal and destroy the Bible categorically lists sicknesses, death, and poverty as oppositions of the devil we should never tolerate and accept by choosing to abide in Christ and staying in His will all the time (2 Corinthians 8:9; 3 John 1:2; Acts 10:38; Hebrews 2:14-15; Psalm 103:3). When we move out of God’s will and walk in disobedience, we give permission to the devil to afflict us with sicknesses, and the things that steal, kill and destroy. This is not God disciplining us with sicknesses and likes, but we giving the devil access to do his work in our lives by our decision to live in sin without repenting (e.g. 1 Corinthians 11:29-30). Repentance, and faith in God is the solution to such opposition from the devil: Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper, but the one who confesses and renounces them finds mercy (Proverbs 28:13).
As for the devil, the Bible says “Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. But resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by your brethren who are in the world (1 Peter 5:8-9). The devil does not need to go and ask for permission from God to attack the Christian. He is already moving around as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour. Even so, it is not God’s responsibility to resist him, but ours to resist him firm in faith (1 Peter 5:9) because Jesus has already accomplished the victory for us through His death and resurrection (Colossians 2:13-15; 1 John 5:4; John 16:33). If it were not possible for us to resist the devil, God wouldn’t have told us to resist him. Even so, the devil can never afflict us with the things that steal, kill and destroy unless we give him access through sin (1 Corinthians 1:29-30; 1 Corinthians 5:1-5; Luke 11:24-26) and unbelief (Romans 14:23; Matthew 17:18-19). Therefore, in our walk with God, when we are faced with sicknesses, death, and poverty, let us not make the mistake of thinking that it is God ‘blessing’ us with these things that bring theft, death and destruction to discipline or humble us. Rather, let us examine our lives to see where we have failed to resist the devil, thus opening the door to him, and let us be quick to close that door through repentance and getting back in faith. Under the new covenant, the devil cannot go and ask permission from God to afflict us with sicknesses and be successful if we have faith and are walking in righteousness. This is because God has already given us His covenant of health and healing through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ (1 Peter 2:24; Acts 9:34; 3 John 1:2). And God will not undo the death of Jesus and its benefits, nor break His covenant on account of the devil because it is impossible for God to lie (Psalm 89:34; Hebrews 6:18; Numbers 23:19). However, when we indulge in sin and unbelief – for anything not out of faith is sin (Romans 14:23) – we refuse to resist the devil, and we give him open access to afflict us.
For those Christians who purpose in their heart to continue in sin, rejoicing and glorying in their sin without the need to repent, the Lord takes the unusual step of delivering them to satan for the destruction of their flesh so that their spirit can be saved (see 1 Corinthians 5:1-5). In such situations, the Lord permits the devil to severely afflict such individuals even unto death so that they may see the depravity they have fallen into and repent lest they die in their sin and go to hell. This is not God’s way of dealing with every believer who sins, since He has already made provision for us to repent and receive His forgiveness when we sin (1 John 1:9). But those who may otherwise have never repented do go through such experiences (see 1 Corinthians 5:1-5). This is also the Lord’s mercy and discipline.
Kwadwo Omari, PhD
© November 18 2018