Satan knows how we see ourselves is a key element to our relationship with God. His goal is to get us to re-think EVERYTHING about God, about life, about everything. He wants to hinder us from walking in the fullness of God’s plan. 2 Corinthians 2:11 reminds us, “Lest Satan should take advantage of us, we shouldn’t be ignorant of his devices.”

Remember, Satan is the father of lies and God is his enemy. The devil is the author of confusion and the destroyer of peace. His best weapon against any of us is ignorance— what we don’t know. Remember, if the devil can’t deceive you, he can’t defeat you.

TRUTH sets people free.
TRUTH empowers God’s children.
TRUTH is on the other side of the veil.

Growing up, I had a friend who was raised in a very strict, denominational home. I knew her family went to church but I don’t remember ever being invited. All I remember was they had rules that made my house seem very care-free, so naturally my friend liked to stay over with me instead of me going to her house. After high school, we lost track of each other for awhile and then ran into each other a year or so after I got saved.

To my surprise, she had abandoned her beliefs. She spoke of a harsh God that couldn’t be pleased– but I only knew Him as kind and forgiving. I’ve always said how you view yourself will have a greater impact on your life than how you view God… but I quickly leraned: if you view God in the wrong light, it won’t matter how you view yourself.

Your belief system matters.

If I had believed God was hard and judgmental, I’d still be in bondage today — perfect prey for the enemy. The Bible says, “We were foolish and disobedient. We were misled and became slaves to many lusts and pleasures. Our lives were full of evil and envy, and we hated each other. But when God our Savior revealed his kindness and love, he saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy” (Titus 3:3-5, NLT).

There is a veil between this natural realm and the spiritual realm. The natural contains everything we feel, think, see, taste, or smell. The spiritual contains everything we are and have in Christ.

In 1 Corinthians 13:12, Paul said, “Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely” (NLT).

“Now” is a reference to this present life (this life in the flesh), whereas “then” speaks of eternity (when Jesus returns for His church). But no matter which side you’re on, a veil makes things hazy.

The blood of Jesus is the separating factor.

We were declared righteous through faith in the blood of Jesus. First, for salvation (brought from darkness to light) and then also for everyday life. The blood of Jesus is what separates TRUTH from lies. There are truths about God that the devil doesn’t want you to know. Michael Levy put it this way: “You can bend it and twist it… You can misuse it and abuse it… but even God cannot change the Truth.”

When Adam and Eve fell into sin, the relationship between God and man was fractured. To repair the separation, God chose to use His most precious commodity as a solution: BLOOD. Leviticus 17:11 says, “For the life of the body is in its blood. I have given you the blood on the altar to purify you, making you right with the Lord. It is the blood, given in exchange for a life, that makes purification possible.”

In other words, blood covers sin.

But the problem is that the blood of bulls and goats didn’t completely remedy man’s broken relationship with God. Hebrews 10:4 says, “For it is not possible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.” Much like placing a rug over your stained carpet, the Old Testament blood offering merely covered man’s sins. It temporarily hid them but was never a permanent solution.

Before Christ, people only had a promissory note (something claimable later). “But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off (fractured) have been brought near (reconciled) by the blood of Christ” (Ephesians 2:13). The precious blood of Jesus became a permanent solution to man’s separation problem, whereas the blood of bulls and goats had only been a band-aid.

Through faith in the blood, we understand our guilt is gone, the penalty was removed, prisoners are freed, and sin is overpowered. 

We need to fully understand there was a penalty, but there was also a payment. The payment was the blood of Jesus. When you know and believe this truth, things become clear, not hazy. Remember, the devil cannot make a bondage that faith in the blood can’t break!