The Bait of Satan (Part 1)
Then He said to the disciples, “It is impossible that no offenses should come, but woe to him through whom they do come! Luke 17:1
One of John Bevere's best-selling books is "the Bait of Satan", which is essential reading for ministries dealing with inner healing and deliverance. The book exposes one of Satan's deceptions to go against believers out of God's will and destroy our relationship with God and others. What is the bait about? Offense is the bait.
In today's key verse, the word offense is skandalon, which means trap and snare and as the devil schemes to set our trap in our path, it means this trap is hidden and used like a bait to ensnare us into falling from it, just like trapping animals or fishing.
Once we fall for the bait, we may be entrapped by the enemy for a long time, even for years and a lifetime. It is God's will for us to grow spiritual fruits, but when offenses enter our hearts, they can bear strife, anger, division, bitterness, and Satan's favorite fruit, hatred. As a result, many Christians are not able to walk with God's destiny and fulfill their potential because they harbor offenses.
It is undeniable that many of us will fall into this trap as Satan uses this device to split churches, families, and marriages, or to sow discord and separation through people close to us, and harboring offense gives us a false sense of safety. Often, when we build walls of protection that lead to betrayal, as defined in the book, betrayal is the ultimate abandonment of relationships, so many people give up relationships easily these days just to gain self protection at the expense of abandoning relationships.
An untreated offensive condition can add more offense to offense, since offended people tend to react to situations and people and are unable to respond in love and peace easily. Offenses can be deeply hurtful when they are traumatic, or they come from loved ones. These offenses often take a long time and deep healing to heal. Part 2 will discuss one of the remedies to free ourselves from the bait of offense.
Blessing prayer: Help us to stay away from offense but stay in the will of God, and may the Holy Spirit help us to identify the traps so we can be free. In Jesus’ name, Amen
