Today on Bold steps, Mark Jobe explains how to survive a spiritual attack.

Today on Bold steps, Mark Jobe explains how to survive a spiritual attack.

I would encourage you to do the opposite of what a lot of what I would call prosperity preachers would tell you to do. Some of you need to do the opposite of pumping yourself up, and some of you instead need to get on your knees and say, I am weak and I am in need of God. You need to lean in and press in to the power and goodness of God.

I would encourage you to do the opposite of what a lot of what I would call prosperity preachers would tell you to do. Some of you need to do the opposite of pumping yourself up, and some of you instead need to get on your knees and say, I am weak and I am in need of God. You need to lean in and press in to the power and goodness of God.

Welcome to Bold Steps with Mark Jobe, president of Moody Bible Institute and senior pastor of New Life Community Church in Chicago. I'm Wayne Shepherd. Well, Mark, your whole premise for this series has been how to live as a believer in difficult circumstances and as a culture that's antagonistic. And how do we survive in our faith in that culture?

Welcome to Bold Steps with Mark Jobe, president of Moody Bible Institute and senior pastor of New Life Community Church in Chicago. I'm Wayne Shepherd. Well, Mark, your whole premise for this series has been how to live as a believer in difficult circumstances and as a culture that's antagonistic. And how do we survive in our faith in that culture?

Wayne, I don't think there's anybody that's been following Jesus for any time. That does not know the sting of spiritual attack. I mean, it is vicious and it is ongoing and it is incessant. And these days it's strong. And so it's not if you're going to be spiritually attacked, it's when you're going to be spiritually attacked. And so this passage powerfully sets us up to be able to survive the attack that's coming your way.

Wayne, I don't think there's anybody that's been following Jesus for any time. That does not know the sting of spiritual attack. I mean, it is vicious and it is ongoing and it is incessant. And these days it's strong. And so it's not if you're going to be spiritually attacked, it's when you're going to be spiritually attacked. And so this passage powerfully sets us up to be able to survive the attack that's coming your way.

Thankfully, God's Word speaks to this issue. So let's turn there now. First Peter chapter five, verse five.

Thankfully, God's Word speaks to this issue. So let's turn there now. First Peter chapter five, verse five.

It says in the same way you who are younger submit yourself to the elders. All of you clothe yourselves with humility towards one another, because God opposes the proud, but he shows favor to the humble. Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. Be alert and sober minded. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him. Stand firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of suffering. Word of the Lord. Alright, so if you're taking notes, I want you to write this down. I'm going to give you five things you need to understand to prepare for spiritual attack. Number one, you need to embrace an attitude of humility. Now, Peter starts in this chapter by speaking to spiritual leaders, and he talks to elders. And by the way, if you've been around the church, God has established a church. And when we call when we say elders New Life Community church, we have a group of elders, that doesn't mean that they're old people. It just is a term that means that they are spiritual leaders that have been given the commission, the ministry of overseeing the spiritual health of a congregation. They're called elders. We meet with those elders on a regular basis. The Bible has qualifications for elders, and it's their responsibility to watch over the spiritual well-being of the congregation. And so Peter is addressing elders, first of all. And by the way, how many of you know that oftentimes, if the enemy wants to really derail a large group of people, he will attack the leaders first. And that's why I would encourage you to pray for the pastors of New Life Community Church and the elders of this church on a regular basis, that God would protect their hearts, that they would walk in purity, that they would be discernment, that they would that they would withstand the attacks of the enemy, because the enemy always seems to attack, first of all, the leaders to try to derail. And on a side note, by the way, can I say that my heart is incredibly grieved when I hear of a pastor that's either fallen in moral failure or financial impropriety, or goes through a divorce in their life? And I've been a pastor long enough to know over 30 years, and I've had so many pastors that I've known that were men of men, women of God, who God had called, who were living a life. But my heart is grieved when I see they've had to step out of ministry sometimes because their marriage fell apart, or because there was moral failure. And people ask me sometimes and approach me and say, well, well, pastor, when you see that happen, don't aren't you like mad and shocked? Like, how could they? And my response is always no, I understand how they could because every single one of us, whether a pastor or not, a pastor, you have a heart that has the flesh in it, and it's by the grace of God that we stand. So our response when we hear someone has fallen from the faith should not be to throw rocks. It should be to get on our knees and say, Lord, help me to stand strong. And Lord, pray for them that they may be restored as well. And so the Apostle Peter, he's speaking to, first of all, some spiritual elders, and he talks to them first of all about elders and standing strong and living. Right. And then he shifts in verse five. And he addresses a broader audience. And then he says, all of you. He's speaking about spiritual leaders, first of all. Then he switches because all of us come under attack. And he says, all of you clothe yourselves with humility towards one another because God opposes the proud, but he shows favor to the humble. Now, you may not understand exactly why, in fighting a spiritual battle, Peter would emphasize humility. Because normally when we think of a spiritual battle, we think the opposite of humility. Have you ever seen warriors getting ready for the battle? And they kind of chant and they scream and they cheer each other up and they pound their chest, and you see these war movies and they're hitting their shields with their spears and making noise. It's the opposite. It feels like it's the opposite of humility. It's courage. It's strength. It's. Hey, look at me. Don't dare to attack me. And so when we're getting ready for battle, I remember when I was a wrestler, um, in high school and on a wrestling team, there was guys that would, uh, on the opposite team that they would come up and they would always, like, jump up and get ready, and they'd run to the front and look at you like this. You know, they were letting you know. Hey, don't mess with me. It was an intimidation. Like I'm strong, I'm tough. Don't mess with me. And so this idea of humility seems opposite to winning a battle. Yet in the spiritual realm, what God is saying is that part of the strength that you have to overcome a spiritual attack is exactly the power of humility. In fact, this is what he says. He says, all of you clothe yourselves with humility. In other words, put on an attitude of humility towards one another, because. And then he goes on to tell us why humility is so important in winning these battles. Listen, because God opposes the proud. That word there God opposes is a very strong Word. It means it's a it's a verb that vividly pictures God as one who places himself in battle array against someone. In other words, the idea is that when someone is proud, God pits himself against the proud. As someone that's ready to do battle with someone that's proud. The Bible says that God hates a proud heart. And if you want to lose the favor and grace of God, quickly let pride enter into your heart and it will quickly sabotage your ability to live for God. In fact, if you study Scripture and find out a little bit about we talk about Satan or the devil or the enemy, we use that terminology. But ultimately, if you study the if you study the history of Lucifer, a angel that was really set apart to guard the glory of God, you will see that it was pride as he exalted himself, as he was around the things of God, and as he guarded the glory of God, he started to touch the glory of God. He started to want some of that for himself. He started to elevate himself. And as he was around the holy things, he said, I want some of that for me. And it was that that caused this angelic being to fall that we know now as Lucifer or the devil. But he wasn't always that way. It was pride that made him fall. And what what Scripture says over and over, not just in this passage, but it says that God opposes the proud, but he gives grace keros unmerited favor, undeserved goodwill to the humble. In other words, picture it this way that the moment that you get a proud heart, the moment that you start to elevate yourself. And how does pride show up? Pride shows up in lack of prayer. Bride shows up and you taking the glory for things that belong to God. Pride shows up in your oh, I'm hitting someone here in your unwillingness to say I was wrong. To ask forgiveness, to humble yourself and initiate reconciliation. Pride shows up when you look down at others who have fallen and are weak, and you act like that could never be you. And instead of trying to go along and help people out, you cast criticism and judgment upon them. Pride shows up in arrogant, rude attitude towards other people. Pride shows up like our opinion is the only opinion that matters and no one else is right or wrong around us. Pride shows up and when we're worshiping, I refuse to humble myself before the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, because people may look at me and think that I'm less. Pride opposes itself to worship, opposes itself to humility, opposes itself to the fruit of the spirit of meekness and temperance and love. Pride sets itself as an ultimate bastion against the grace and mercy of God. Can I say this? Listen. Pride is that incognito sin? It's like carbon monoxide in the house. It's imperceptible at times. You don't know it's there because you can't really smell it. But it's deadly. And we've all heard the tragedy of someone where some furnace was, uh, the oxygen wasn't able to get out, and suddenly the carbon monoxide goes through the house and the family ends up dead because they can't smell it. They can't see it. It's an invisible disease, but it's deadly. And listen, in the spiritual world we see in morality, and we can call it out. We see drunkenness and we can call it out. We see a certain sins that someone's worshiping an idol falling away from God. We see it and we call it out. But pride, oh man, pride can seep itself into a church, into spiritual people. It suddenly gets itself into there. And in the spiritual realm, it looks like the heart of a Pharisee. In the spiritual realm, it shows up by we become very, very religious, but we use our religiosity to pump ourselves up, to elevate ourselves. We pray not so God can hear us, but so others can hear us. We put on a veneer of spirituality so others will will pat ourselves, pat us on the back and say, well, you're really spiritual, you're really good. And it puffs us up a little bit. We're more concerned about what other people think than really what our heart is before God. We are concerned about appearances and the opinions of others more than a genuine sense of what God says about us. We refuse to come to the altar when it's time for prayer, when God has convicted us because we think others may think that we have issues or problems which we all know you have anyways.

It says in the same way you who are younger submit yourself to the elders. All of you clothe yourselves with humility towards one another, because God opposes the proud, but he shows favor to the humble. Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. Be alert and sober minded. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him. Stand firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of suffering. Word of the Lord. Alright, so if you're taking notes, I want you to write this down. I'm going to give you five things you need to understand to prepare for spiritual attack. Number one, you need to embrace an attitude of humility. Now, Peter starts in this chapter by speaking to spiritual leaders, and he talks to elders. And by the way, if you've been around the church, God has established a church. And when we call when we say elders New Life Community church, we have a group of elders, that doesn't mean that they're old people. It just is a term that means that they are spiritual leaders that have been given the commission, the ministry of overseeing the spiritual health of a congregation. They're called elders. We meet with those elders on a regular basis. The Bible has qualifications for elders, and it's their responsibility to watch over the spiritual well-being of the congregation. And so Peter is addressing elders, first of all. And by the way, how many of you know that oftentimes, if the enemy wants to really derail a large group of people, he will attack the leaders first. And that's why I would encourage you to pray for the pastors of New Life Community Church and the elders of this church on a regular basis, that God would protect their hearts, that they would walk in purity, that they would be discernment, that they would that they would withstand the attacks of the enemy, because the enemy always seems to attack, first of all, the leaders to try to derail. And on a side note, by the way, can I say that my heart is incredibly grieved when I hear of a pastor that's either fallen in moral failure or financial impropriety, or goes through a divorce in their life? And I've been a pastor long enough to know over 30 years, and I've had so many pastors that I've known that were men of men, women of God, who God had called, who were living a life. But my heart is grieved when I see they've had to step out of ministry sometimes because their marriage fell apart, or because there was moral failure. And people ask me sometimes and approach me and say, well, well, pastor, when you see that happen, don't aren't you like mad and shocked? Like, how could they? And my response is always no, I understand how they could because every single one of us, whether a pastor or not, a pastor, you have a heart that has the flesh in it, and it's by the grace of God that we stand. So our response when we hear someone has fallen from the faith should not be to throw rocks. It should be to get on our knees and say, Lord, help me to stand strong. And Lord, pray for them that they may be restored as well. And so the Apostle Peter, he's speaking to, first of all, some spiritual elders, and he talks to them first of all about elders and standing strong and living. Right. And then he shifts in verse five. And he addresses a broader audience. And then he says, all of you. He's speaking about spiritual leaders, first of all. Then he switches because all of us come under attack. And he says, all of you clothe yourselves with humility towards one another because God opposes the proud, but he shows favor to the humble. Now, you may not understand exactly why, in fighting a spiritual battle, Peter would emphasize humility. Because normally when we think of a spiritual battle, we think the opposite of humility. Have you ever seen warriors getting ready for the battle? And they kind of chant and they scream and they cheer each other up and they pound their chest, and you see these war movies and they're hitting their shields with their spears and making noise. It's the opposite. It feels like it's the opposite of humility. It's courage. It's strength. It's. Hey, look at me. Don't dare to attack me. And so when we're getting ready for battle, I remember when I was a wrestler, um, in high school and on a wrestling team, there was guys that would, uh, on the opposite team that they would come up and they would always, like, jump up and get ready, and they'd run to the front and look at you like this. You know, they were letting you know. Hey, don't mess with me. It was an intimidation. Like I'm strong, I'm tough. Don't mess with me. And so this idea of humility seems opposite to winning a battle. Yet in the spiritual realm, what God is saying is that part of the strength that you have to overcome a spiritual attack is exactly the power of humility. In fact, this is what he says. He says, all of you clothe yourselves with humility. In other words, put on an attitude of humility towards one another, because. And then he goes on to tell us why humility is so important in winning these battles. Listen, because God opposes the proud. That word there God opposes is a very strong Word. It means it's a it's a verb that vividly pictures God as one who places himself in battle array against someone. In other words, the idea is that when someone is proud, God pits himself against the proud. As someone that's ready to do battle with someone that's proud. The Bible says that God hates a proud heart. And if you want to lose the favor and grace of God, quickly let pride enter into your heart and it will quickly sabotage your ability to live for God. In fact, if you study Scripture and find out a little bit about we talk about Satan or the devil or the enemy, we use that terminology. But ultimately, if you study the if you study the history of Lucifer, a angel that was really set apart to guard the glory of God, you will see that it was pride as he exalted himself, as he was around the things of God, and as he guarded the glory of God, he started to touch the glory of God. He started to want some of that for himself. He started to elevate himself. And as he was around the holy things, he said, I want some of that for me. And it was that that caused this angelic being to fall that we know now as Lucifer or the devil. But he wasn't always that way. It was pride that made him fall. And what what Scripture says over and over, not just in this passage, but it says that God opposes the proud, but he gives grace keros unmerited favor, undeserved goodwill to the humble. In other words, picture it this way that the moment that you get a proud heart, the moment that you start to elevate yourself. And how does pride show up? Pride shows up in lack of prayer. Bride shows up and you taking the glory for things that belong to God. Pride shows up in your oh, I'm hitting someone here in your unwillingness to say I was wrong. To ask forgiveness, to humble yourself and initiate reconciliation. Pride shows up when you look down at others who have fallen and are weak, and you act like that could never be you. And instead of trying to go along and help people out, you cast criticism and judgment upon them. Pride shows up in arrogant, rude attitude towards other people. Pride shows up like our opinion is the only opinion that matters and no one else is right or wrong around us. Pride shows up and when we're worshiping, I refuse to humble myself before the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, because people may look at me and think that I'm less. Pride opposes itself to worship, opposes itself to humility, opposes itself to the fruit of the spirit of meekness and temperance and love. Pride sets itself as an ultimate bastion against the grace and mercy of God. Can I say this? Listen. Pride is that incognito sin? It's like carbon monoxide in the house. It's imperceptible at times. You don't know it's there because you can't really smell it. But it's deadly. And we've all heard the tragedy of someone where some furnace was, uh, the oxygen wasn't able to get out, and suddenly the carbon monoxide goes through the house and the family ends up dead because they can't smell it. They can't see it. It's an invisible disease, but it's deadly. And listen, in the spiritual world we see in morality, and we can call it out. We see drunkenness and we can call it out. We see a certain sins that someone's worshiping an idol falling away from God. We see it and we call it out. But pride, oh man, pride can seep itself into a church, into spiritual people. It suddenly gets itself into there. And in the spiritual realm, it looks like the heart of a Pharisee. In the spiritual realm, it shows up by we become very, very religious, but we use our religiosity to pump ourselves up, to elevate ourselves. We pray not so God can hear us, but so others can hear us. We put on a veneer of spirituality so others will will pat ourselves, pat us on the back and say, well, you're really spiritual, you're really good. And it puffs us up a little bit. We're more concerned about what other people think than really what our heart is before God. We are concerned about appearances and the opinions of others more than a genuine sense of what God says about us. We refuse to come to the altar when it's time for prayer, when God has convicted us because we think others may think that we have issues or problems which we all know you have anyways.

We'll continue this important message on bold steps in just a minute. You're listening to the Bible teaching of Mark Jobe, and if you'd like to find more content to supplement these daily programs, including teaching videos and books, even our weekly email devotional, be sure to visit us at Bold Steps. Org.

We'll continue this important message on bold steps in just a minute. You're listening to the Bible teaching of Mark Jobe, and if you'd like to find more content to supplement these daily programs, including teaching videos and books, even our weekly email devotional, be sure to visit us at Bold Steps. Org.

Yeah, and hey, while you're on the website, we love to hear from our listeners. And so leave us a message, leave us a question, leave us a comment. And you know, on a regular basis we get prayer requests. I'm looking at some of those prayer requests right now for husbands and families, for finances, for spiritual renewal, specifically for children, for healing, for loneliness issues. And, you know, we we read through all these prayer requests and our desires to join you in prayer. Yes. Um, and I know that some of you are in the middle of crisis, and some of you it's lesser. But I would encourage you, leave us a comment, please. We care what God is doing in your life.

Yeah, and hey, while you're on the website, we love to hear from our listeners. And so leave us a message, leave us a question, leave us a comment. And you know, on a regular basis we get prayer requests. I'm looking at some of those prayer requests right now for husbands and families, for finances, for spiritual renewal, specifically for children, for healing, for loneliness issues. And, you know, we we read through all these prayer requests and our desires to join you in prayer. Yes. Um, and I know that some of you are in the middle of crisis, and some of you it's lesser. But I would encourage you, leave us a comment, please. We care what God is doing in your life.

Yeah. And I'll give all the contact information in a moment. But here's someone who wrote to us with a question mark. If you want to take a moment and answer this one, Isabel said, my question is, how do I know what my calling is? I'm 70 years young. I like that attitude and have been working in the children's ministry in every church I've attended. Is this my calling? It's not like I heard God telling me this is what I've been called to do. I've just done it. How do I know what this is? What I'm supposed to be doing? By the way, I love Bold Steps and Moody Radio and hope to come to Chicago to hear you speak sometime.

Yeah. And I'll give all the contact information in a moment. But here's someone who wrote to us with a question mark. If you want to take a moment and answer this one, Isabel said, my question is, how do I know what my calling is? I'm 70 years young. I like that attitude and have been working in the children's ministry in every church I've attended. Is this my calling? It's not like I heard God telling me this is what I've been called to do. I've just done it. How do I know what this is? What I'm supposed to be doing? By the way, I love Bold Steps and Moody Radio and hope to come to Chicago to hear you speak sometime.

Well, hey, Isabel, if you're in Chicago sometime, make sure you come up to me and let me know that you're in town.

Well, hey, Isabel, if you're in Chicago sometime, make sure you come up to me and let me know that you're in town.

Absolutely.

Absolutely.

And that you're a bold step listener, by the way. I always love it when I have people drop by. I have I've had many truck drivers drop by and say, hey, is that right? And I happen to be in town.

And that you're a bold step listener, by the way. I always love it when I have people drop by. I have I've had many truck drivers drop by and say, hey, is that right? And I happen to be in town.

Oh, neat.

Oh, neat.

And wanted to. So it's always fun to see that. But Isabel, let me just say this about calling. Sometimes we think that our calling has to start with a Damascus Road experience, knocking us off of our horse, a light from heaven, and a voice that speaks to us. And sometimes it does happen that way, but normally it doesn't. And a calling is determined several ways. You don't always necessarily have this great sense of I know exactly what I'm called to. For example, I would say if someone is is a father and you have children, then you are called to fatherhood, period. The fact that you have children means that you are called to fatherhood. If you are married, it means that you're called to marriage. That's part of your calling. Typically, God has given you Isabel some gifts, and it may be the gift of compassion, the gift of helps, the gift of administration. Usually, those gifts go hand in hand with what we would be good at in our calling. And so the fact that you have been serving in children's ministry for a year. Let me just give a big shout out for all those that serve in one of the most underappreciated yet vital ministries and churches. All over, all.

And wanted to. So it's always fun to see that. But Isabel, let me just say this about calling. Sometimes we think that our calling has to start with a Damascus Road experience, knocking us off of our horse, a light from heaven, and a voice that speaks to us. And sometimes it does happen that way, but normally it doesn't. And a calling is determined several ways. You don't always necessarily have this great sense of I know exactly what I'm called to. For example, I would say if someone is is a father and you have children, then you are called to fatherhood, period. The fact that you have children means that you are called to fatherhood. If you are married, it means that you're called to marriage. That's part of your calling. Typically, God has given you Isabel some gifts, and it may be the gift of compassion, the gift of helps, the gift of administration. Usually, those gifts go hand in hand with what we would be good at in our calling. And so the fact that you have been serving in children's ministry for a year. Let me just give a big shout out for all those that serve in one of the most underappreciated yet vital ministries and churches. All over, all.

Over, you brave soul world. And I know.

Over, you brave soul world. And I know.

That because my wife has led the children's ministry for many, many years. And so, first of all, I want to say that could be very well, a part of your calling. You identify calling by it. Am I passionate about this? Am I good at it? Am I gifted by it? And do I have a burden towards it? And if all those things align, then it may not be the entirety of your calling, but it could be a portion of your calling. And so I want to encourage you just to pray, God, continue to give me a greater passion and a burden for those things that you want me to do. And I think as we follow our passion and our burden, and coupled with our gifting, that we usually end up in our calling when we're sensitive to God.

That because my wife has led the children's ministry for many, many years. And so, first of all, I want to say that could be very well, a part of your calling. You identify calling by it. Am I passionate about this? Am I good at it? Am I gifted by it? And do I have a burden towards it? And if all those things align, then it may not be the entirety of your calling, but it could be a portion of your calling. And so I want to encourage you just to pray, God, continue to give me a greater passion and a burden for those things that you want me to do. And I think as we follow our passion and our burden, and coupled with our gifting, that we usually end up in our calling when we're sensitive to God.

Yeah. And, Isabel, since Chicago and Moody is on your bucket list, we hope to see you here sometime. Thanks for your question. Hey, if you've never reached out to us before, we encourage you to take a moment today and send us your letter or message online. You can share your questions with us at bold steps. Org or you can give us a call and leave your message on a recorded line. And that number is 312329 2011. (312) 329-2011. Thank you. Mark, let's get back to your message. Now here's Mark Jobe with today's bold steps.

Yeah. And, Isabel, since Chicago and Moody is on your bucket list, we hope to see you here sometime. Thanks for your question. Hey, if you've never reached out to us before, we encourage you to take a moment today and send us your letter or message online. You can share your questions with us at bold steps. Org or you can give us a call and leave your message on a recorded line. And that number is 312329 2011. (312) 329-2011. Thank you. Mark, let's get back to your message. Now here's Mark Jobe with today's bold steps.

And the Bible says God resists the proud. Not only does he resist, he sets himself in battle array against the proud. Christian or non-Christian. But he gives grace favor. Undeserved, unmerited favor flows when he finds a heart that is humble. A heart that acknowledges I need God. A heart that says I don't have it all together. A heart that says I can be corrected. I asked for forgiveness when I need to ask for forgiveness. I acknowledge my sin. I know that I am weak and I need the grace and strength of God. I don't have it all together. I'm a broken person in desperate need of God's goodness in my life. That's humility. The grace of God is pushed Away by pride. But the grace of God is attracted to humility, like mosquitoes, to a good bite on a summer day. And basically, the grace of God is attracted. There's a scent that that's attracted. It's like a a an aroma that draws the grace of God. When God smells humility, when he perceives humility, then the favor of God, the unmerited, undeserved favor of God starts to flow towards a heart that is humble before God Almighty. And that's why he says in verse six, humble yourselves therefore, why therefore? Again, you've heard the expression, when anytime you see the word, therefore, you ask that after yourself, why is it therefore it's building on a previous thought because God's favor flows towards the humble. He says, therefore, humble yourselves under God's mighty hand that he. Oh, listen to me, that he may lift you up. Aren't you happy that it's God that can lift you up? That you don't have to strive and fight and push and press and connive and manipulate to try to be lifted up. Some of you just need to let go and stop trying and just say, God, I'm going to humble myself before you. I'm going to do what's right before you. I'm going to let you fight some of my battles that I cannot fight, because then God will lift you up when you operate in a spirit of humility. By the way, it's not the only place that it says it. In James chapter four, which is a parallel passage, I would call it Scripture. It says James chapter four, verse six through ten. It says, that is why Scripture says God opposes the proud, but he shows favor to the humble. Submit yourselves, then to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God, and he will come near to you. Verse ten, humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up because he shows favor to the humble. So the first thing that I would say is you're preparing for a spiritual battle. If you're in the middle of a spiritual battle right now, that's intense. That's powerful. I would encourage you to do the opposite of what a lot of what I would call prosperity preachers would tell you to do. Some of you are looking at yourself in the mirror and saying, you've heard this being told to you. You need to look yourself in the mirror and say, I'm a champion, I'm a winner. I can do this, I am great, I am strong, I am powerful. And that's what you look. You look yourself in the mirror and you say, that's who I am. No one can mess with me. I'm strong, I'm powerful, I'm great. I'm confident, I'm courageous. I'm smart. And you go out to fight the battle and you fall flat on your face. Because in essence, what you're doing is you're pumping up your pride. You're focusing on yourself, and some of you instead need to get on your knees and say, I am weak and my confidence is not in myself and my strength and my ability and my verbal expression. My confidence comes from God. And no, I am not strong. And no, I am not super intelligent. But I depend on the intelligence of God and the power of God and the grace of God. Some of you need to do the opposite of pumping yourself up. You need to lean in and press in to the power and goodness of God.

And the Bible says God resists the proud. Not only does he resist, he sets himself in battle array against the proud. Christian or non-Christian. But he gives grace favor. Undeserved, unmerited favor flows when he finds a heart that is humble. A heart that acknowledges I need God. A heart that says I don't have it all together. A heart that says I can be corrected. I asked for forgiveness when I need to ask for forgiveness. I acknowledge my sin. I know that I am weak and I need the grace and strength of God. I don't have it all together. I'm a broken person in desperate need of God's goodness in my life. That's humility. The grace of God is pushed Away by pride. But the grace of God is attracted to humility, like mosquitoes, to a good bite on a summer day. And basically, the grace of God is attracted. There's a scent that that's attracted. It's like a a an aroma that draws the grace of God. When God smells humility, when he perceives humility, then the favor of God, the unmerited, undeserved favor of God starts to flow towards a heart that is humble before God Almighty. And that's why he says in verse six, humble yourselves therefore, why therefore? Again, you've heard the expression, when anytime you see the word, therefore, you ask that after yourself, why is it therefore it's building on a previous thought because God's favor flows towards the humble. He says, therefore, humble yourselves under God's mighty hand that he. Oh, listen to me, that he may lift you up. Aren't you happy that it's God that can lift you up? That you don't have to strive and fight and push and press and connive and manipulate to try to be lifted up. Some of you just need to let go and stop trying and just say, God, I'm going to humble myself before you. I'm going to do what's right before you. I'm going to let you fight some of my battles that I cannot fight, because then God will lift you up when you operate in a spirit of humility. By the way, it's not the only place that it says it. In James chapter four, which is a parallel passage, I would call it Scripture. It says James chapter four, verse six through ten. It says, that is why Scripture says God opposes the proud, but he shows favor to the humble. Submit yourselves, then to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God, and he will come near to you. Verse ten, humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up because he shows favor to the humble. So the first thing that I would say is you're preparing for a spiritual battle. If you're in the middle of a spiritual battle right now, that's intense. That's powerful. I would encourage you to do the opposite of what a lot of what I would call prosperity preachers would tell you to do. Some of you are looking at yourself in the mirror and saying, you've heard this being told to you. You need to look yourself in the mirror and say, I'm a champion, I'm a winner. I can do this, I am great, I am strong, I am powerful. And that's what you look. You look yourself in the mirror and you say, that's who I am. No one can mess with me. I'm strong, I'm powerful, I'm great. I'm confident, I'm courageous. I'm smart. And you go out to fight the battle and you fall flat on your face. Because in essence, what you're doing is you're pumping up your pride. You're focusing on yourself, and some of you instead need to get on your knees and say, I am weak and my confidence is not in myself and my strength and my ability and my verbal expression. My confidence comes from God. And no, I am not strong. And no, I am not super intelligent. But I depend on the intelligence of God and the power of God and the grace of God. Some of you need to do the opposite of pumping yourself up. You need to lean in and press in to the power and goodness of God.

You're listening to the Bible teaching of Mark Jobe here on Bold Steps. Today's message titled How to Survive a Spiritual Attack, and we'll continue with part two tomorrow. In the meantime, I want to make sure you know about Mark's brand new resource on prayer called Teach Us to Pray The Six P's of the Lord's Prayer. If you've ever struggled to pray or don't know where to start, this beautiful prayer journal will help you pray as Jesus taught his disciples to. You're sure to develop a deeper and more consistent prayer time with God as a result of this journal. Go to Bold steps. Org and look for the devotional tab and receive your copy today with a gift of any size to the Ministry. Again, the website is bold steps.org.

You're listening to the Bible teaching of Mark Jobe here on Bold Steps. Today's message titled How to Survive a Spiritual Attack, and we'll continue with part two tomorrow. In the meantime, I want to make sure you know about Mark's brand new resource on prayer called Teach Us to Pray The Six P's of the Lord's Prayer. If you've ever struggled to pray or don't know where to start, this beautiful prayer journal will help you pray as Jesus taught his disciples to. You're sure to develop a deeper and more consistent prayer time with God as a result of this journal. Go to Bold steps. Org and look for the devotional tab and receive your copy today with a gift of any size to the Ministry. Again, the website is bold steps.org.

Wayne. Right now we have an exciting, bold step gift that I want to tell everybody about. You've probably heard about it, read about it, seen it, but you get a chance to actually experience it for yourself. And this is the New York Times best selling book, The Case for Christ by Lee Strobel.

Wayne. Right now we have an exciting, bold step gift that I want to tell everybody about. You've probably heard about it, read about it, seen it, but you get a chance to actually experience it for yourself. And this is the New York Times best selling book, The Case for Christ by Lee Strobel.

None other. Right?

None other. Right?

None other. Lee, so good to have you with us here today. This book has made such an impact with literally hundreds of thousands of people. And I know that your background is as an investigative reporter, journalist. So tell me how that impacted the writing of this book.

None other. Lee, so good to have you with us here today. This book has made such an impact with literally hundreds of thousands of people. And I know that your background is as an investigative reporter, journalist. So tell me how that impacted the writing of this book.

Yeah, great to be with you, Mark, and I'm thrilled that you're making use of this book. You know, I was a skeptic, as you know, an atheist for much of my life. My background is in journalism and law. I was legal editor of the Chicago Tribune newspaper and, um, involved with many investigative projects at the paper. And my wife became a Christian, which really ticked me off and, and set me off and made me mad. And I wanted to rescue her from this cult that she got involved in. So I decided to take my journalism and legal training and systematically investigate, you know, is there any credibility to Christianity? Figuring I could disprove it in a long weekend. And it took me almost two years to come to the conclusion that in light of the evidence that points so powerfully toward the truth of Christianity, it would have taken more faith to maintain my atheism than to become a Christian.

Yeah, great to be with you, Mark, and I'm thrilled that you're making use of this book. You know, I was a skeptic, as you know, an atheist for much of my life. My background is in journalism and law. I was legal editor of the Chicago Tribune newspaper and, um, involved with many investigative projects at the paper. And my wife became a Christian, which really ticked me off and, and set me off and made me mad. And I wanted to rescue her from this cult that she got involved in. So I decided to take my journalism and legal training and systematically investigate, you know, is there any credibility to Christianity? Figuring I could disprove it in a long weekend. And it took me almost two years to come to the conclusion that in light of the evidence that points so powerfully toward the truth of Christianity, it would have taken more faith to maintain my atheism than to become a Christian.

I love that. Yeah, we want to put this book in your hands and Wayne will tell you how to do that.

I love that. Yeah, we want to put this book in your hands and Wayne will tell you how to do that.

Yeah, thank you, Lee, and thank you, Mark. That's right. Again, the book is called The Case for Christ, and you can request your copy when you give a financial gift of any amount. To support bold steps, just pick up the phone and give us a call at 800. D.L. Moody. Again, that's (800) 356-6639 or give online and request the book by going to Bold Steps. Org or you can write to us. As always our address is bold. Steps 820 North LaSalle Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois 606 ten 820 North LaSalle Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois 606 ten. I'm Wade Shepherd, and that's going to wrap up our program today. Be sure to join us again tomorrow when Mark continues explaining how to survive a spiritual attack. Be clear minded in your faith as you learn how to live as a believer in a culture that is antagonistic. The message coming up Tuesday on Bold Steps with Mark Jobe. Bold Steps is a production of Moody Radio, a ministry of Moody Bible Institute.

Yeah, thank you, Lee, and thank you, Mark. That's right. Again, the book is called The Case for Christ, and you can request your copy when you give a financial gift of any amount. To support bold steps, just pick up the phone and give us a call at 800. D.L. Moody. Again, that's (800) 356-6639 or give online and request the book by going to Bold Steps. Org or you can write to us. As always our address is bold. Steps 820 North LaSalle Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois 606 ten 820 North LaSalle Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois 606 ten. I'm Wade Shepherd, and that's going to wrap up our program today. Be sure to join us again tomorrow when Mark continues explaining how to survive a spiritual attack. Be clear minded in your faith as you learn how to live as a believer in a culture that is antagonistic. The message coming up Tuesday on Bold Steps with Mark Jobe. Bold Steps is a production of Moody Radio, a ministry of Moody Bible Institute.