Tidings for Tuesday
Neither give place to the devil. Ephesians 4:27
What is the biggest room in your house? That should be easy to answer, although it will differ from one person to another, depending on the house. Some will have a kitchen that is bigger than the other rooms, some will have a large living room or bedroom suite. Still others might have a huge rec room. Now, let’s change the question a bit and ask what is the largest room in your life. That too should be easy to answer, it’s the area of life where we spend the most time and exert the most effort. For some, their biggest room is their job, for others, it’s their family, their sport or entertainment, or their hobby. Someone once told me my biggest room was the one for improvement. For a Christian, the biggest room should be reserved for the Lord Jesus and spiritual things. But there is somebody else who wants that room, and he doesn’t want it for anything good.
Our text speaks of not giving any place, or room, to the devil. Our enemy will do everything he can to move into our lives and rob us of the joy of our salvation. The devil will try to get as much of our time as he can. He doesn’t care much how we spend our time, as long as it’s not at anything that brings glory to our Lord. Even things that appear legitimate and proper can be in the devil’s domain if that time could have been better spent in worship or service to the Lord. The devil also likes to get control of our intellect and our abilities. Everything that God has given us to enable us to become more Christ-like becomes a waste when the devil gets us to spend it on unprofitable things. Money that we could use for the furtherance of the Gospel is given to the devil if we don’t direct it aright. Oh, there are so many ways that the devil can sneak into our lives and erode those things that we ought to reserve for our Lord.
Our text comes on the heels of Paul’s admonition to not allow anger to drag us into sin. A Christian who gives no place to the devil is a Christian who controls his emotions and his reactions to the things around us. Giving no place to the devil involves self control and discipline. It involves maturity, honesty, and integrity in our dealings with all those around us. We can live so as to give no place to the devil, and this should be our goal.
If you give the devil an inch, he’ll want to be the ruler. If you give him no place, you’ll have more room for the things of Christ. -Jim MacIntosh