The Bible makes it very clear that the believer’s life here on earth is a battlefield. We are at war, and our enemy, the devil, is a formidable foe. What makes him formidable is the fact that he is a master strategist. He has a clear and specific plan for the church, the home and the individual Christian. It is therefore imperative that the Christian home be aware of the schemes of Satan in order for them to stand against his fiery darts. Having highlighted Satan’s agenda for the church last week, we now look at what the Bible says is his agenda for the home.
1. To usurp the husband’s leadership in the home- Genesis 3:6
So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate.
2. To prompt adultery in the home- 1 Corinthians 7:3-5
The husband should give to his wife her conjugal rights, and likewise the wife to her husband. For the wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does. Likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does. Do not deprive one another, except perhaps by agreement for a limited time, that you may devote yourselves to prayer; but then come together again, so that Satan may not tempt you because of your lack of self-control.
3. To promote sibling rivalry in the home- 1 John 3:11
For this is the message that you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. We should not be like Cain, who was of the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own deeds were evil and his brother’s righteous.
There is more that can be said as to what Satan’s agenda is for the home (i.e. misplaced values, disregard for the Bible, etc.). However, the ones listed here are merely representative. The goal here is to awaken us to the reality of the battle we have in the Christian home. We have to be vigilant and diligent in ensuring that our homes are embassies for the kingdom of God. Fathers have to be spiritual leaders and disciple their wives and children. Mothers have to be godly dispensers of God’s truth, and the children have to be obedient and seek to live out the truth of God’s Word. The Christian home should be a place where the Word of God is taught, lived out and proclaimed to the unbelieving world in order that Christian homes may withstand the strategic and deliberate plans of the evil one.
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