1 Peter 5:7, 8
As believers, we have the awesome right to cast our cares onto Jesus because He cares for us. This right of casting is a continuous action, meaning that we can cast all of our cares on Him forever; with no limit to how much He will take upon Himself. In fact, Jesus bore a crown of thorns at the cross which pressed into His skull so that we would never have the cares of this life press into our minds.
Notice that the scripture that tells us to cast our cares on the Lord falls just in front of a scripture warning us about our adversary the devil. The equipment to overcome the devil is found in casting our cares upon the Lord. We are helpless to face the foe with the cares of this life weighing us down, so as we cast them upon Jesus, we are free to win the battles of life.
The devil is our enemy and his intent is to “steal, kill and to destroy” (John 10:10). His Hebrew name is “Satan” which means, “the accuser”. Anytime you read a reference to the devil, learn to insert the meaning of his name into the sentence, that way you are quick to remember what his purposes are. He is here to accuse each one of us before the Lord.
Not only does the devil accuse us before the Lord, he also hurls accusations at all of us as well. He is walking about, seeking whom he may devour. A predator does not run into the middle of a flock of sheep while they surround their shepherd; he waits until there is a sheep straggling away on his own and he attacks him there. Satan is watching intently for those believers who have wandered away from the protection of the shepherd, basically carrying their cares and burdens on their own. These sheep are vulnerable to attack and the wolf and the lion are quick to pounce.
The accusations that the roaring lion sends our way will always point to our works or lack thereof. The only weapon that Satan has to use against the believer is guilt and condemnation which are direct by-products of our knowledge of the law. He will heap guilt on you for things you have done and for the things that you didn’t do. This condemnation will cause you to hang your head before your loving Father and oftentimes leads to you doing “spiritual” things to try and appease God and earn His favor. When you begin to live this way, you surrender the free favors of God in order to walk only in what you can earn and maintain. Now, you have fallen back under the curse of the law (Galatians 3:10), and misery is soon to follow.
What kind of lion roars BEFORE it attacks? A lion stalks its prey and never roars until the kill is finished. To roar prior to pouncing would give away his position and intent, giving the prey a crucial heads up in escaping. At the cross, Jesus triumphed over the devil and his kingdom with a complete victory. Hebrews 2:14 says that Jesus’ death literally destroyed the devil, so any fierceness that he has now is perceived, not actual. He roars before he attacks so that the believer will be scared and powerless. Satan knows that he can do nothing to the believer, but as long as the believer doesn’t know that, he will have the same effect as if he could hurt them.
Your enemy has been de-fanged and de-clawed. Don’t let a roaring, powerless predator scare you. You have cast your cares on the shepherd and He definitely cares for you!
As believers, we have the awesome right to cast our cares onto Jesus because He cares for us. This right of casting is a continuous action, meaning that we can cast all of our cares on Him forever; with no limit to how much He will take upon Himself. In fact, Jesus bore a crown of thorns at the cross which pressed into His skull so that we would never have the cares of this life press into our minds.
Notice that the scripture that tells us to cast our cares on the Lord falls just in front of a scripture warning us about our adversary the devil. The equipment to overcome the devil is found in casting our cares upon the Lord. We are helpless to face the foe with the cares of this life weighing us down, so as we cast them upon Jesus, we are free to win the battles of life.
The devil is our enemy and his intent is to “steal, kill and to destroy” (John 10:10). His Hebrew name is “Satan” which means, “the accuser”. Anytime you read a reference to the devil, learn to insert the meaning of his name into the sentence, that way you are quick to remember what his purposes are. He is here to accuse each one of us before the Lord.
Not only does the devil accuse us before the Lord, he also hurls accusations at all of us as well. He is walking about, seeking whom he may devour. A predator does not run into the middle of a flock of sheep while they surround their shepherd; he waits until there is a sheep straggling away on his own and he attacks him there. Satan is watching intently for those believers who have wandered away from the protection of the shepherd, basically carrying their cares and burdens on their own. These sheep are vulnerable to attack and the wolf and the lion are quick to pounce.
The accusations that the roaring lion sends our way will always point to our works or lack thereof. The only weapon that Satan has to use against the believer is guilt and condemnation which are direct by-products of our knowledge of the law. He will heap guilt on you for things you have done and for the things that you didn’t do. This condemnation will cause you to hang your head before your loving Father and oftentimes leads to you doing “spiritual” things to try and appease God and earn His favor. When you begin to live this way, you surrender the free favors of God in order to walk only in what you can earn and maintain. Now, you have fallen back under the curse of the law (Galatians 3:10), and misery is soon to follow.
What kind of lion roars BEFORE it attacks? A lion stalks its prey and never roars until the kill is finished. To roar prior to pouncing would give away his position and intent, giving the prey a crucial heads up in escaping. At the cross, Jesus triumphed over the devil and his kingdom with a complete victory. Hebrews 2:14 says that Jesus’ death literally destroyed the devil, so any fierceness that he has now is perceived, not actual. He roars before he attacks so that the believer will be scared and powerless. Satan knows that he can do nothing to the believer, but as long as the believer doesn’t know that, he will have the same effect as if he could hurt them.
Your enemy has been de-fanged and de-clawed. Don’t let a roaring, powerless predator scare you. You have cast your cares on the shepherd and He definitely cares for you!
