In your anger do not sin. Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry,
and do not give the devil a foothold.
-Ephesians 4:26, 27
The Bible makes numerous references to our old adversary, the devil, and we know that since the beginning of the world he has been our enemy. I believe that we do well to often stop and remember that. We need to be certain that we understand that our adversary, our enemy, is in fact the devil. Our enemy is not other believers. We are not to be at war with or fighting against one another. Rather, we are called to come together in a common cause of spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Now, in order to accomplish that task we must be willing to lock arms against our common enemy – the devil. A pastor friend of mine was telling me about a new ministry he began in another church, and he said that he immediately discovered that the congregation was divided. This division was causing much turmoil within the church. In an effort to find out what was going on and how the situation could be resolved, he sat down with some of the people in the church and had what we’d call a “sit down.” It was an informal and calm kind of discussion. The next day he received a call from an angry church member who accused him of “siding with the opposition.” Take note of that terminology. Here were brothers and sisters in Christ identifying one another as the opposition. I do not believe we should ever identify one another as the enemy. Our enemy is the devil, not each other.
Let us strive to love one another as the Lord has commanded. And let us work together as brothers and sisters in Christ.
