QUESTIONS ??

Pr. Geoffrey Kibombo

Often times in our lives the devil brings questions into our minds, and every question that goes unanswered is an area the devil takes advantage of. One of the devil’s intentions is to bring questions into your life and once they go unanswered, he uses them as a foothold to attack and confuse you in order to divert you from God’s plan and purpose for your life.

Plotting a Foothold

This is how the devil will plan his attack; he will ask a question and see how you answer it before he confuses you with more questions marinated with fear and confusion. Genesis 3:1 (MSG) says; “The serpent was clever, more clever than any wild animal God had made. He spoke to the Woman: “Do I understand that God told you not to eat from any tree in the garden?”

In her answer in the verses that follow, Eve responds in Genesis 3:2-3 (MSG) that; “Not at all. We can eat from the trees in the garden. It’s only about the tree in the middle of the garden that God said, ‘Don’t eat from it; don’t even touch it or you’ll die.”

Then the devil confuses her by lying to her in verses 4-5: “The serpent told the Woman, You won’t die. God knows that the moment you eat from that tree, you’ll see what’s really going on. You’ll be just like God, knowing everything, ranging all the way from good to evil.”

And after being confused and fibbed, we read further in Verse 6 that; “When the Woman saw that the tree looked like good eating and realized what she would get out of it—she’d know everything!—she took and ate the fruit and then gave some to her husband, and he ate.”

Questions for Confusion!

Many people have gone through a season when they ask themselves questions such as; “Why me?” Some have even turned it into a way of speech; they ask the question and let it linger. When the devil is attacking you, he will bring many questions into your life and; any question that goes unanswered gives the devil a pass to plant a foothold into your life. Whenever you have questions in your life or start to query God’s plan for your life, beware of the devil’s schemes.

One of the workings of the devil is to bring questions into your life so as to confuse and destroy you. He queried Jesus in Mathew 4:2-3 (HCSB): “He had fasted 40 days and 40 nights, He was hungry. 3 Then the tempter approached Him and said, “If You are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.”

Sometimes the devil will use life pressing situations which will prompt you to query the Sovereign power of God. Amidst disappointment and displeasure, Gideon asked the angel of the Lord in Judges 6:13 (GNT): “If I may ask, sir, why has all this happened to us if the Lord is with us? What happened to all the wonderful things that our fathers told us the Lord used to do—how he brought them out of Egypt?” There is a voice that will often speak into your life but only presenting confusing questions

Whenever you have no authentic godly answers to the questions in your mind, confusion and discontent kicks in. Most times it is Satan that brings these questions in our lives. God on the other hand does not bring questions but gives us revelation to help us see things clearly and from his perspective. 

If God is speaking into our lives, he does not bring questions to confuse us but revelation to know him more; and even though questions come into our lives, He will bring us an answer based on His word. We see that when Jesus was tempted in the wilderness (Mathew 4), He was ready with an answer to every statement and question the devil presented unto Him. Jesus needed food because he had been fasting for 40 days and 40 nights and the devil saw this as an opportunity to confuse him – whenever the devil wants to confuse and destroy you, he will present to you facts about your life. You should be aware that many times the devil will wait for you to do something of purpose or activate your faith and then launch a series of confusing questions. For instance after you have sowed a financial seed or you have done something in obedience to God, then the devil will slot in questions asking you what you have benefited from your past and present acts of obedience. After Jesus had fasted for 40 days in obedience to the Holy Spirit, the tempter tried to confuse and distract him but he lost - Jesus stood on His Father’s word. When the devil plants confusing questions into your mind, what will be the source of your answer? Your logic or the word of God?

Life lies in the Word of God

Sometimes the motive behind the questions the devil brings into our lives is to make us think that God has not been faithful, that all you have attained is because of your wit and hard work; in all that satan’s aim is to make you doubt God and discourage your faith. With questions such as; you have been obedient and serving God faithfully for a long time but why are you struggling in life? He wants you to have unanswered questions so that he can get a room in your heart.

Jesus responded to the devil’s destructing statement in Mathew 4:4 (HCSB) that; “It is written: Man must not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.” 
From Jesus’ response, we learn that there is something more valuable in life than the physical things. He knows that he is hungry and needs to eat, but His life is dependent on something much more valuable than food – Word of God. By saying that man must not live on bread alone, Jesus showed us that life is not vested in the temporary things but in the imperishable word of God (Luke 21:33). This means that there are things we need in life, but our life should not be vested in those things but on the word that proceedeth from the mouth of God.

If God spoke a word (Rhema Word) in your life, that word has life – anointing and creating power; and is much more valuable than food or any other earthly material. If for instance one person has money and the other does not have, and God speaks a word concerning money, even the person without the physical money has the money even though they do not have it physically yet. Your life is not in the things that you need but in the word that comes from the mouth of God; for its all you need!

It does not matter if what you are today is deemed insignificant or you are despised, however, what is important is what the word of God says concerning your life. What matters are not people’s opinions but what God says about you; for our life is not in the things the world exalts but in the word that comes from God because from it springs forth life. During temptation, Jesus stood still on the rock – word from God. If you are asked in life to show something physical or material that proves that you are Born-again, point them to the Rhema Word – what the word of God says about you. Man must not live only on tangible things but on the word that comes forth from God, that is the source of life (both tangible and intangible).

Do not give audience to the questions that the devil brings into your life, for he intends to bring fear, hopelessness and discontentment. When the devil quizzed Jesus, He had appropriate and divine answers to his questions. Every question that has no answer leads to more questions and that gives the devil a foothold to set up site in your heart and mind.

In Mathew 4:4, bread represents something tangible, physical or material possessions that you can be able to show physically; but Jesus’ response shows us that we can only overcome the devil not by looking for answers from the world but from the word of God - to be able to answer the questions of life we have to look outside the world; this world never answers the questions presented unto us; the answer is found in the word of God because the world was created by the word that emanated from the mouth of God (Genesis 1).

Heart on Target

In throwing you all the various realistic heart wrecking questions, what is the devil looking for? The answer is in Proverbs 4:23 (AMPC); “Keep and guard your heart with all vigilance and above all that you guard, for out of it flow the springs of life.” Every question the devil brings is aimed at your heart; for he is looking for that part of life where life springs forth so that he can contaminate it. But how do you guard your heart amidst all the questions the devil brings? The bible says in 1 Peter 3:15 (GNT) that; “Be ready at all times to answer anyone who asks you to explain the hope you have in you.”

Do you have answers to the questions in your life? Jesus had answers to questions the devil presented. Whenever the devil brings questions to you, his aim is to puncture your faith. Many of the questions come so that he can lead us to do things in our own way not as per the will and grace of God; for he knows that once you are doing things as per your will and not that of God, you are bound to fail.

Hear First, Then Act In Faith

The second query that the devil projected to Jesus was in Matthew 4:5-7 (HCSB)

“Then the Devil took Him to the holy city, had Him stand on the pinnacle of the temple, 6 and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down. For it is written: He will give His angels orders concerning you, and they will support you with their hands so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.  7 Jesus told him, “It is also written: Do not test the Lord your God.”

The devil conveys questions so that we can make biased decisions which are fearfully and ignorantly conditioned. From the scripture above, the devil is talking to Jesus and referring to the scriptures. So the devil tells Jesus to jump because the scripture says; “God will give his angels orders concerning you”

What does temptation from the devil imply? It means that there are promises the devil knows and is aware that it is God to work upon them since it is His will towards us; however, he doesn’t want your life to sprout and be purposeful as per the will of God. He wants you to act in fear and confusion which is disastrous. Remember no word from God’s mouth will return to him void (Isaiah 55:11). Any word that does not originate from the mouth of God even though it is identical to what God spoke will not be alive.

We learn from Jesus’ response that for even what it is written in the bible, the devil wants to lure you to do it ignorantly so that you do not get results and thus perish. If Jesus had jumped then this scripture would not have been alive. Why? It wasn’t initiated by God, and the motive was ungodly (not for the glory of His name). Many times we test God with the scriptures saying; ‘for it is written’ or at times we say; ‘am doing it by faith’. But faith is not a risk undertaking, but comes by hearing from God first and then act on what you have heard from the Holy Spirit.  If you start or do something without hearing from God first - the Alpha and Omega (Rev 22:13), it will not bear fruit as the scripture had intended it to. 

Many times the devil has tricked us into doing things impulsively without hearing first from the Holy Spirit and in the aftermath we end up in anger and disappointment. But remember that if God is not your Alpha, He will never be your Omega; He will never start or sustain what He didn’t start. Never test the Lord your God!

Blessings Turned Idols

The devil paused a third question to Jesus in Matthew 4:8 (HCSB)

“Again, the Devil took Him to a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. And he said to Him, “I will give You all these things if You will fall down and worship me.” Then Jesus told him, “Go away, Satan! For it is written: Worship the Lord your God, and serve only Him”

The devil deployed another set of tricks as seen in the scripture above. Some times when God blesses us just like he did to king Uzziah (2 Chronicles 26) and Jehoshaphat (2 Chronicles 20), we end up worshiping the blessings given unto us.

Many of us have material things we exalt; they have become priority in our lives and eventually turned into idols; but God shares not His glory. The devil wants us to put other things above God. He wants you to contradict God and His word. He wants you to take your eyes off God and put them on the temporary physical things that can perish instantly. So whenever the devil brings questions that are aimed at making you proud or try to replace God’s glory, the answer to that question should be; “For it is written: Worship the Lord your God, and serve only Him”

The Jews came with riches from Egypt such as gold and silver among others. They planned to use them to build the house of God, but when Moses went to the mountain to seek God, the people decided to make themselves a god - golden calf because they felt that Moses had delayed. They made a calf and started to worship it in place of God (Exodus 32). 
The calf symbolizes the blessings God has given you and then later turn them into an idol. Our God is jealous and we should serve and worship only Him. Exodus 20:4-5 (NLT) says; “You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind or an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea. 5 You must not bow down to them or worship them, for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods.” 

Never worship the blessing that God has given you. For some believers unintentionally end up worshiping the things God has blessed them with such as; children, job, wealth or talent - all their time and joy is conditioned to them, for they take the number one position in their life which is wrong.

Remedy to the Questions – Holy Spirit

What can help us to the answer the questions of life and the ones the devil throws at us is the Holy Spirit. Every Christian or believer needs the Holy Spirit; to be filled with Him and have fellowship with Him always (2 Cor 13:14). According to the bible we see that it is the Holy Spirit that led Jesus into the wilderness to be tempted (Mathew4:1) - the Spirit of the Lord will never lead you where His grace cannot sustain you. For all the questions the devil brings into our lives, it is only the Holy Spirit that can provide us with the appropriate answers. 

One of the things that show that you are filled with the Holy Spirit is the ability to be able to pray in tongues. But there is something else that sets apart a believer filled with the Holy Spirit and that is the fruit of the spirit. Galatians 5:22-23 (TLB) teaches; “But when the Holy Spirit controls our lives he will produce this kind of fruit in us: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,  23 gentleness and self-control”

When the Holy Spirit dwells within a Christian, He gives birth to the fruit of the Spirit and the ingredients in that fruit are very beneficial to a Christian. For example; a believer will face a number of challenges, problems and persecutions but remain filled with joy (the joy of the Lord is our strength). Even when realistically the problems would have made him or her sorrowful and teary, the fruit of joy and peace (Philippians 4:7) chips in to neutralize the sorrowful and frantic arrows of the devil.

In persecution and long suffering, we abound in love. 1 Peter 4:8 (AMPC) says; “Above all things have intense and unfailing love for one another, for love covers a multitude of sins [forgives and disregards the offenses of others]” If you are filled with the Holy Spirit and you face a situation that would necessitate you to hate someone, you won’t but will forgive and make up for all transgressions. Proverbs 10:12 (EXB) warns; “Hatred stirs up trouble [conflict; fights], but love forgives [covers] all offenses”.

The devil does not want you to have joy and peace; he also doesn’t want you to live a purposeful and fruitful life as per God’s plan, and that is why Jesus promised the Holy Spirit (John 14:16-17). You can tell a Christian who is filled with the Holy Spirit by the way he or she reacts and responds to the problems and challenges encountered. When the devil brings questions into our lives, the Holy Spirit (Counselor) helps us by giving us the necessary answers. The fruit of the Holy Spirit helps to bring life within you; every fruit adds unique nutrients to your spiritual life just as the natural fruits we eat do, and that is why we become carnal if the Holy Spirit is not in us.

The fruit of the Holy Spirit helps us to heal spiritual diseases like hatred, misery, confusion, impatience, cruelty, pride, fear and lack of self-control. Jesus was filled with the Holy Spirit, and during temptation, we could see faithfulness and self-control (fruit of the Spirit) at work. God’s plan was for Jesus to go to the cross and save humanity but the devil wanted to divert him from God’s purpose and plan. When you are not filled with the Holy Spirit, it’s very easy for the devil to confuse and divert you from the perfect will of God.

The fruit of the Spirit is very essential for a believer in the Salvation journey because as we trek, a myriad things attack and prickle us but it’s only those filled with the Holy Spirit that will be able to walk through the narrow road and even have answers to the lethal questions of the devil.

Yearn to be filled with the Holy Spirit in order to overcome the destructive strategies of the devil.