THE DEVIL PICKED THE WRONG FIGHT

by Pastor Gary Ritchie of One Way Ministries

Eleven days ago Satan took one of his best shots, taking out an influential Christian leader by the name of Charlie Kirk. I remember hearing the news that day and feeling sick to my stomach at the news. First of all, I was incredibly angry. Secondly, I continued to be angry.   Angry at the hate machine Satan has created. It would be easy to blame a group, or even a man, but at the end of the day, we know who is behind all evil in the world.

In some ways I tried to hide from the terrible news, but it seemed to be everywhere. As the days unfolded after the assassination, I have come to learn that a powerful move of God as orchestrated through the martyrdom of one man. All around the world, we are hearing of revival taking place as young Christians are taking a stand of faith. And for this group, they will not be silenced! Clearly, the Devil picked the wrong fight!

Even this morning in church, I brought a message from Matthew 25 about the Ten Virgins.   The title of the message  was entitled “Trim the Wick.” It was a heartfelt message aimed at the younger crowd. At the end of the service, the altar was full with thirty or more. Most of them were under the age of 25. If you have never seen a service where the altar is filled with young people, you are missing out my friend. The beauty of it all was that they came in groups, and upon arriving at the altar, they would kneel and pray for one another. Clearly, the Devil picked the wrong fight!

This afternoon I caught a glimpse of the funeral service for Charlie. His eloquent wife Erika was speaking and she shared the words of forgiveness to the man who had taken her husband and father of two’s life. How could it not remind us of the words of Jesus as he was hanging on the cross, “Father forgive them, for they know not what they do.” For unbelievers, a brief glimpse of how the Kingdom operates was in clear view.   No violence, no burning of buildings, no hate speech.   Once again, the Devil had underestimated his hand and had clearly picked the wrong fight!

Watching reports of revival taking place across the world, I suspect that the Devil has awakened a sleeping giant. Those who were choosing to sit on the sidelines and quietly watch things play out have decided to step into the arena and let their voices be heard. And this time they will not go quietly. For they have decided that their wicks are trimmed and their is oil in the lamp to occupy and finish what Jesus commanded. And it will continue until Jesus returns.    

On many occasions, the Devil has taken out great men of faith: Peter, James, Stephen, Paul, and many others. And every time, he thought he had won. He took aim at taking down the greatest man alive, Jesus Christ. But God defeated the Devil once again as Death could not hold the King of Kings. Jesus simply took the keys to Death, Hell, and the Grave all in one big, bold mood.

Over and over again, the Devil has picked the wrong fight!

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If you would like to reach out to Pastor Gary, he can be emailed at pastorgary@onewaydamascus.org 

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