Very recently an off-duty Cocoa Beach police officer in Florida jumped into the ocean to rescue a boogie-boarding boy to safety after a shark was seen swimming toward him.  The officer grabbed the boy and dragged him through the surf toward the shore as the shark passed dangerously close to him.  Police reported that the officer did what officers do best – protect and rescue the public from harm.   

        “Words from Above” in the Bible tell us that there is someone who protects and rescues the entire human race from harm and danger brought on by the enemy of our soul.  That enemy is the devil, and he constantly attacks our soul and seeks to destroy it if he gets even half a chance.  The one who protects and rescues us from the devil is Jesus, the son of God. He is on duty at all times, and He is ready to rescue us from the attacks of the devil at all times

        The apostle Peter describes the devil in I Peter 5:8 as a “roaring lion, walking about, seeking whom he may devour.”  Jesus describes the devil in John 10 as seeking to “steal, kill, and destroy” us by any means possible, but Jesus seeks to “give us life, and to give it to us abundantly.”  The devil makes promises that he will make our lives better, but he is lying when he says this.  He does not keep his promises, and therefore we cannot trust him in the least.  Jesus calls him “a liar and the father of lies”, which means that he teaches those under his control to also lie.  When Jesus does make any promises to us, we can absolutely and totally depend on Him keeping those promises.

        Adam and Eve found out the hard way what happens when we listen to the lies of the devil.  He deceived them, and it cost them eviction from the Garden of Eden, a perfect paradise.  They were not able to return to the garden, but God made a way for them to be delivered from the power and control of the devil.  God had a plan to redeem the human race from the devil, and that plan involved His very own Son coming to the earth from heaven.  He was born into the world in a miraculous way, and one day He willingly sacrificed His life on a Roman cross to pay the penalty for the sins of all the people of the world.  When the sinners of this world accept what Jesus did on the Cross, they too can be rescued from the devil and be made free from his power and control.                                                                                                                                                           

Larry R. Steffee is pastor of the Center Hill Brethren In Christ Church on Miller Road in Smithville.  Everyone is welcome to attend.  For informa-tion, you may email lrsteffeetn@yahoo.com.