October 11, 2023 -- Proverbs 11:5-8 & Revelation 17:15-18 -- Why Evil Tears at Itself

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

The righteousness of the blameless keeps his way straight,
    but the wicked falls by his own wickedness.
6 The righteousness of the upright delivers them,
    but the treacherous are taken captive by their lust.
7 When the wicked dies, his hope will perish,
    and the expectation of wealth perishes too.
8 The righteous is delivered from trouble,
    and the wicked walks into it instead.
Proverbs 11:5-8 ESV

And the angel said to me, “The waters that you saw, where the prostitute is seated, are peoples and multitudes and nations and languages. 16 And the ten horns that you saw, they and the beast will hate the prostitute. They will make her desolate and naked, and devour her flesh and burn her up with fire, 17 for God has put it into their hearts to carry out his purpose by being of one mind and handing over their royal power to the beast, until the words of God are fulfilled. 18 And the woman that you saw is the great city that has dominion over the kings of the earth.”
Revelation 17:15-18 ESV

It is the frustration of ministry. You see someone, work with someone, help them to see right from wrong and then. Then he chooses the wrong. You help him up, and he chooses the wrong. He leaves for a while, comes back to you, realizing your offer of help is real, and then he chooses the wrong. The same wrong which has already so often been destructive to him, his children, his ex (or ex’s) and his support system.

The Revelation passage prophetically speaks to this. The woman, the great prostitute, who represents wickedness and lusts and folly is calling people away from God. She is the anti-bride. She is the user of people who is used by unholy people. By way of sharp contrast believers are the Bride of Christ. The Bride of Christ is by Jesus purified from evil and being made holy. The Bride of Christ are the people captivated by the love of Christ and living in relationship with Him. The people of the city which rages and makes war against God’s Jerusalem are named Babylon. The prostitute, Babylon, by her wily ways seduces people into sin and brought them into service to the beast—the great evil. You’d think the beast and the prostitute would continue to work together. Surprisingly, today’s Revelation reading reveals that the beast (who has increased in power by taking the people that Babylon has seduced) humiliates the prostitute Babylon (makes her naked), devours her flesh (kills her) and burns her with fire. Why would evil turn on evil?

The LORD our God restrains the power of evil by making it grow in on itself and its tendrils coil around itself so that these chokes evil itself. In its lust for power and desire for more, evil will tear at itself and at other evil. Now to Proverbs. This also explains why the wicked fall into their own wickedness. The LORD keeps them from multiplying their wickedness even further into their own life and family network. The treacherous will be walled in by their lusts and destroy their lives with such destruction and humiliation that the people around them will back away so as not to be pulled into the whirlpool of ugliness which is drowning them.

Pray for the Spirit to reveal areas in your own life where you are toying with wickedness, lust and treachery. Repent from it and turn to Jesus! Pray for those in your life who are captured by the evil of their lives. Pray for the LORD to break the cycle of sin and treachery and lust. A life guard at a beach knows that a drowning man has such a fear of death and is in a grip of powerful panic so that he is stronger than many men. So a life guard needs training and help to keep the drowning man from pulling his rescuer down as well. Pray for those who minister to the people who are drowning in their sins. Pray for the wisdom to know when to offer help and when to wait on the Spirit’s direction that a person is finally ready to receive help from God through your presence and care. Jesus is the Captain of Salvation leading the charge against the enemy. He will direct His Spirit to teach you when to act and help; and where the enemy is still too strong in the life of an unbeliever. Understand this, the treachery of the treacherous, the wickedness of the wicked are being used by the LORD of Glory to expose their sins so that they will one day be so spent and exhausted by sin that they will turn to the LORD in holy fear, or they will be so hardened in sin that they destruction in hell will be revealed as a warning to all the righteous.

Our Father in heaven hallowed be Your Name. Thank You for the Kingdom power You bring into our lives through the in-dwelling Holy Spirit. Thank You for the glory of Jesus Christ and His reconciling work by which the stronghold of evil has been broken in the life of every believer. Triune God let us not be led into evil—either through the world’s pressures, or our own lusts or through the trickery and cunning of the Devil. Instead, let us rise up and praise You, choosing the way of righteousness, following in the footsteps of Jesus our King. Give to us holy boldness to know which brother or sister is truly ready to be snatched from the fires of wickedness and which people are not interested in help, but only in pulling others down with them into perdition. Thank You Jesus, that You have bound the Strongman and are now plundering his house and rescuing many sons and daughters and bringing them to glory. Raise up laborers for Your harvest field, Jesus, Savior. Amen.

https://youtu.be/MZmS81yLjMg?si=uYd-5E6HJhp99ZKU “Church of God Arise” Getty Music

Copyright © 2023 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.