When someone threatens those we love, they move into the enemy category. The day my neighbor David tormented my toddler sister at the swing set, my playmate became my enemy. I didn’t plan on doing anything with the baseball bat I raised in protest, but somehow it helped me feel protected. It was an immature response giving me a false sense of safety, which might be why we ran. How can we avoid enemies?
- Enemies are destined for destruction.
- They idolize what delights them, consumed by thinking of what satisfies in the moment.
- They experience glory in the destruction they cause.
“Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is set on earthly things.” (Philippians 3:19-21) Does this sound like someone you know? Like someone who has tormented or teased you or someone you love? Or if this sounds personal, your heart may be living in enemy territory. When I raised my baseball bat, fear and pain confused me. I wasn’t in a peaceful frame of mind.
The first enemies we remember may be the ones on playgrounds. But enemies follow us and those we love into every stage of life. Into the classroom, the dorm room, the board room, and sometimes even the bedroom. We can avoid enemies and avoid becoming like them.
Attackers like the first enemy, Satan, emerge when they lose sight of our purpose. Philippians 3:14 describes our aim as, “the goal to win the prize for which God has called <us> heavenward in Christ Jesus.” Ezekiel 28 explains how beautiful Satan lost sight of his purpose to glorify God, and his pride consumed him. Now, “Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light,” (2 Corinthians 11:14).
Losing sight of our purpose puts us at risk of developing the heart of an enemy. We have the potential to become destructive, inflicting pain on those around us, even those we once called “friend.” The writer to the Philippians gives us 5 ways to avoid being like the enemy. This wisdom gives us strength when staring down our enemy, at the swingset or on social media.
5 Ways to Avoid Enemies (Philippians 3:15-21)
- Keep your eyes on mature examples – “… just as you have us as a model, keep your eyes on those who live as we do.”
- Imitate those godly examples – “Join together in following my example …”
- Remember your heavenly identity – “But our citizenship is in heaven …”
- Focus attention on heavenly behavior – “Their mind is set on earthly things …”
- Expect future change – “… we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.”
The first deceiver who misled the first man and woman is the same one who would love to get us thinking only about earthly things. Getting our way, having control, using other people, and abusing power. He put their lives and ours at risk, since all inherit a corrupt condition (Romans 3:23) and receive a death sentence as a result (Romans 6:23). And this is why God understands how we feel about our enemies.
God understands how it hurts when our loved ones are hurt, because our enemy threatens the ones He created and loves. In serpent form, Satan tormented Adam and Eve with lies. He invited them down a beautiful road leading to destruction. They took the bait, and he still threatens God’s loved ones today. He often uses earthly “enemies” to do his damage, but he’s behind it all. We don’t want to become destroyers of good things, and we don’t have to let him claim destructive territory in our lives.
When God offered His own Son to give his perfect life as a substitute for our debt, winning over death by coming to life. He raised the baseball bat of his power and struck a deadly blow to the Enemy. Some earthly damage will still be done personally, locally, nationally, and even globally, but not without end. A final end of all enemies will come. That’s why it pays to keep our eyes on mature examples, imitate those examples, remember our identity in Christ, look to heaven for guidance, and have the confidence of coming change.
