by Pastor Afolabi Oladele

And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat: But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren. And he said unto him, Lord, I am ready to go with thee, both into prison, and to death. And he said, I tell thee, Peter, the cock shall not crow this day, before that thou shalt thrice deny that thou knowest me. And he said unto them, When I sent you without purse, and scrip, and shoes, lacked ye any thing? And they said, Nothing.

Then said he unto them, But now, he that hath a purse, let him take it, and likewise his scrip: and he that hath no sword, let him sell his garment, and buy one. For I say unto you, that this that is written must yet be accomplished in me, And he was reckoned among the transgressors: for the things concerning me have an end. And they said, Lord, behold, here are two swords. And he said unto them, It is enough. And he came out, and went, as he was wont, to the mount of Olives; and his disciples also followed him. And when he was at the place, he said unto them, Pray that ye enter not into temptation. And he was withdrawn from them about a stone’s cast, and kneeled down, and prayed, Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done. And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him. And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground. And when he rose up from prayer, and was come to his disciples, he found them sleeping for sorrow. And said unto them, Why sleep ye? rise and pray, lest ye enter into temptation.

And while he yet spake, behold a multitude, and he that was called Judas, one of the twelve, went before them, and drew near unto Jesus to kiss him. But Jesus said unto him, Judas, betrayest thou the Son of man with a kiss? When they which were about him saw what would follow, they said unto him, Lord, shall we smite with the sword? And one of them smote the servant of the high priest, and cut off his right ear. And Jesus answered and said, Suffer ye thus far. And he touched his ear, and healed him. Then Jesus said unto the chief priests, and captains of the temple, and the elders, which were come to him, Be ye come out, as against a thief, with swords and staves? When I was daily with you in the temple, ye stretched forth no hands against me: but this is your hour, and the power of darkness. Luke 22:31-53

Our text today outlines the single dark moment, a moment of ultimate chaos and uncertainty, when the Lord anticipated the cross and the accompanying separation from the Father. Two things stood out:

1. In verses 31-33, the strong possibility of the failure of faith of the most confident disciple; and
2. In verse 53, the moment where leverage is fully in the hands of Satan and will appear that Satan will triumph!

The present reaction of the authorities of all the countries of the world regarding the mandatory enforcement of COVID-19 vaccines is reminiscent of such a time. The ostracizing, the exclusion from society, and the pitching of society at large against those who regard it as the exercise of their rights to decide the acceptance of the vaccines, brings to the fore the control that Satan has sought over man – Isaiah 14:13-14 (TLB/TPT). Compare Ephesians 1:10 (TLB/TPT).

There are two issues to guard against at this time as believers.

• The first is our understanding of what is at stake on this vaccine matter. Plain lack of knowledge and ignorance of the scriptures may let us live comfortably and conformably in a sinful culture and be led into irreversible captivity by Satan; and
• The second is for those who have full understanding of what is at stake. How many are willing to take a bold stand even though such may have no fear of losing their lives? What about the threats of rejection, ridicule and being seen as narrow-minded and inconsiderate just to keep such silent and blackmailed into compliance?

Our text outlines that in the hour of darkness, you are powerless, but the God who loves you is not. He encourages us to:

1) Understand that the trials in your life are spiritual in nature and you are inadequate to overcome them;

2) Rely on the grace of the God who works all things for your good; and

3) Accept that evil will triumph temporarily.

The Lord is looking for people like Daniel, followers of Christ, full of His knowledge that will stand by their convictions, regardless of threats or temptations to compromise for profit or for acceptance. Let’s go back to the timeless hymn ‘In the warfare that is raging, may the Lord depend on you.’ Selah

Photo by christopher lemercier on Unsplash