There are always two spirits at work: the Holy Ghost and a satanic or false spirit. Witchcraft comes from a satanic spirit and opposes God's Spirit.
The God of the Bible is a God of truth. On the other hand, the Devil is the great enemy of truth. The Bible says of him, “there is no truth in him.”
A wise man is strong and a man of knowledge increases strength. While the world focuses on physical strength, the greater strength is that which is spiritual.
The Bible does not always paint man in a positive light, yet it always paints him accurately. According to scripture, there is no man that sinneth not.
The Bible says, “Wrath is cruel, and anger is outrageous” (Proverbs 27:4). Yet, these two emotions generally adversely affect all who come into contact with them. The believer should not only abstain from ungodly anger within his own heart but also guard himself against making friends with those who are angry. This is why Solomon said, “Make no friendship with an angry man; and with a furious man thou shalt not go: Lest thou learn his ways, and get a snare to thy soul.” Generally, believers take on the traits of those with whom they spend the majority of their time. This is why it is imperative that believers spend much time with the Lord and avoid ungodly, close friendships.
Anger is often viewed by others as a symbol of strength. From youth, men are taught that one’s strength and authority can be best conveyed through the use of anger. Yet, the Bible teaches that the manifestation of an ungodly anger exhibits a sign of weakness. Anger is a foolish practice (Proverbs 14:17) that resteth in the bosom of fools (Ecclesiastes 7:9). According to Proverbs 16:32, a man “that is slow to anger is better than the mighty; and he that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city.” This is why the Bible admonishes believers to “be swift to hear, slow to speak,” and “slow to wrath” (James 1:19). This trait is so important that God included it as one of the requirements for those who would desire the office of a bishop (Titus 1:7).
We are promised that the word of God works effectually in those that believe (1 Thessalonians 2:13). Yet, the Devil works hard to choke out the fruitfulness of the word. In order to achieve his ultimate objective, the Devil uses any means within his arsenal. Pleasure-seeking serves as one of his choicest weapons. In order to convince people that they do not need the Lord or His word, the Devil convinces people that they have everything they could possibly ever want or need without Him. The Devil convinces them that they are happy or satisfied and there is nothing better than their lot in life. He keeps them preoccupied so that they do not take time to reflect and recognize that they are “wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked” (Revelation 3:17) apart from the Lord.
As is often the case, men’s opinions and those of God are at opposite ends of the spectrum. For instance, man emphasizes celebrating the day of one’s birth and mourns the day of one’s death. Scripture points out that the day of one’s death is far better than the day of one’s birth. Why? The day of one’s death comes with very few questions concerning the individual. The person has lived his life and left behind a reputation, good or bad. However, when a child enters into this world, he does so with numerous uncertainties. What kind of person will he be? Will he love and serve the Lord, or will he live wickedly? Only a life fully lived answers these questions. Each day’s work contributes to a man’s reputation so that death leaves few questions.
Man is made up of three parts: spirit, soul, and body. Death takes place when the soul (Genesis 35:18) and the spirit (Genesis 25:8) leave the body. This event happens to everyone regardless of the individual’s spiritual state at death. Saved or lost, a person’s spirit returns to God who gave it (Ecclesiastes 3:21; Ecclesiastes 12:7). However, the soul’s destination is based upon whether or not a person has trusted Jesus Christ as Saviour during this life. There exists no midpoint between earth and heaven (or hell) to purge one’s sins, including places invented by religions to do so. For a saved person, the Bible declares that to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord (2 Corinthians 5:8). Unfortunately for the lost, this same outcome is not true. Following death, the Bible reveals that the lost man’s soul immediately goes to hell (Luke 16:23).
The various dieting trends push for several additional times that man should eat. The Bible clears up any question concerning the number of meals an individual should eat in a single day. Believers should be very careful not to accept the latest trends as though they are the best or even from the Lord. Within scripture, one finds someone partaking of the meal commonly called breakfast (Judges 19:5), at other times, one finds someone partaking of a meal at noon (Genesis 43:16), and at other times, partaking of an evening meal (Luke 24:29-30). In the case of Elijah, the Lord only fed him twice a day (1 Kings 17:6). The most important truth to realize and consider: know that food purposes to give man the necessary strength to fulfil the will of the Lord.
