And there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back.      But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him. Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say: “Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ. For the accuser of our brothers, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down…Therefore rejoice, you heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to you! He is filled with fury, because he knows that his time is short.” Rev. 12:7-12

Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life has set us free from the law of sin and death. Romans 8:1-2

The book of Revelation gives us a glimpse into a battle that took place in the heavenlies at some point in the far distant past. Satan, desiring to be on the throne instead of God, formed a rebellion and was cast out of heaven and hurled to earth along with the angels who had sided with him. He is described as the accuser of the brethren who accuses them day and night. In this text, he is said to accuse them before God but one of his primary strategies is also to accuse the brethren by accusing them in their own minds day and night. Satan is a master at bringing up the past and framing our weaknesses and mistakes as things that disqualify us from serving God or from receiving his blessings.

As a strategy, every time life happens to a believer and a challenge arises or a painful moment comes our way, Satan jumps in to accuse us and plants the thought that we are being punished for our misdeeds or rejected for our weaknesses. In a flurry of thoughts, he loves to heap condemnation on us and reinforce an identity of being a gross sinner, a target of God’s wrath because of our evil hearts, an abandoned child because of our misbehaviors, and a hypocrite who should be ashamed for even posing as a follower of Jesus.

Not only do those condemning thoughts rob us of our security but they also take away our joy and our peace. In addition, they prompt us to become accusers of those around us. Since accusation is based on performance, we find ourselves wanting to point out all the faults and failings of those around us in an effort to level the playing field. If you are prone to fault-finding in others or blaming others for the problems in your life, you are likely living with law as a reference point rather than grace.  You are trying to relate to God on the basis of your performance rather than his grace. Paul points out in Romans 8:1-2 that condemnation thrives in an environment of law in which a record is kept of every violation. Satan has the most success with those of us who still tend to view our relationship with God as a relationship defined by law rather than grace.

Law defines my relationship with God as a relationship based on performance. Under law, I am always asking the question, “Am I good enough or have I done enough to be loved, forgiven, and blessed by God?” Under law, our Father in Heaven becomes a perfectionistic parent withdrawing his blessings and affection every time we fail to live up to his lofty standards. On the basis of law, everything is open to accusation and condemnation. Under a mindset of law, Satan is free to accuse us not only of blatant sins but even of our attitudes by degree. Where we have repented, he will suggest that we did not repent enough. When we think about our love for God, he will accuse us of not loving God with all of our heart. When we acknowledge a weakness he will call us hypocrites for pretending to love Jesus when we still fail so often. When we give generously, he will always suggest that we should have given a little more. The accusation and feeling of condemnation is never ending….day and night.

The only escape from the devil’s scheme is to absolutely know that there is no condemnation in Christ because the blood of Christ has removed us from a system of law and placed us in a relationship based on the unfailing love of a Father who does not love and bless on the basis of performance but only on the basis of his heart. You must know that Jesus became sin for you that you might become the righteousness of God. You must know that you have been given positional righteousness in the eyes of God based on what Jesus did, totally apart from your own righteousness or your own spiritual performance. The good news is that God does not love you because you are perfect, but because he is perfect.

The proper response to the accusations of the devil when he brings up your past or even present weaknesses and whispers that you are falling short of God’s standards is, “Of course, I am falling short. So what? That is why Jesus died for my sins and because of that, God does not hold my sins against me. I live in a condemnation free zone by the blood of Christ and by the grace of God. Satan you have no power here and your accusations have no weight. My past has been blotted out. My present is in process and my future is secure. I am justified in Christ and it is you that are condemned. Now go away!”

When accusation comes, don’t brood but respond with God’s truth. When condemnation raises its head, dismiss it as a lie. When Satan runs up the flag of rejection, ignore it because that sign has no meaning in the kingdom of God. Too many of us believe that punishment motivates us to change. If that were true, there would be no repeat offenders in prison. Too many of us believe that accusation, condemnation, and self-loathing will prompt us to do better and so we agree with Satan’s accusations.

But accusation, condemnation, and demeaning criticism only solidify our identity as broken and worthless. When the prodigal returned, he was given no lecture, no condemnation, no probation. Instead his return was celebrated and he was immediately given back his identity as a son. His true identity as a respected son of a proud Father was reinforced and that is what will bring our own growth and transformation. So remember, when the devil knocks on the door of your mind, post your Condemnation Free Zone sign and send him on his way.

Over the years, I have discovered that anyone who begins to press into the power of God will garner his or her share of criticism and suspicion. Most believers like a tame God and a Holy Spirit who always colors inside the lines. We want God to act in predictable ways so that we can order our lives based on past performance and so that God makes no unexpected demands on our faith or obedience.

When you begin to press into the power of God, things can get unpredictable. That makes you unpredictable and a source of discomfort to all those who don’t want God “acting up.” Miracles put a demand on our faith. First of all, the demand is expressed in terms of whether we believe that God is a God of present-day miracles or not. The second demand that miracles make is expressed in terms of whether we have faith to join God in those miracles or not.

Living with an expectation of miracles or, at least a hope for miracles, is both exciting and challenging. It is exciting when we see God move. It brings the Bible to life and our faith is confirmed experientially. If we have seen God move in response to our prayers or declarations, we feel affirmed and are excited by that partnership. The challenge comes when we don’t see God move as we expected. Then the questions flood in. Why was our friend not healed? Why did we see no deliverance when we were certain a demonic presence was infecting the person to whom we ministered? Why is the man we’ve been praying for still unemployed? Why is our son or daughter still addicted when we have done all the right things? When we don’t see the manifestation of God, we can struggle with our own faith, our own sense of “being okay” with God, and our own understanding of how God works.

Believe me, life was easier when I was a cessationist. When I believed that God no longer moved in miracles and that he essentially did whatever he wanted to do regardless of my input, life was easier. Live a decent life, go to church, pray for the children in war-torn Africa, give a little to missions, serve a little, then die and trust Jesus to take you to heaven. I felt little responsibility for God’s purposes on the earth and I never had to struggle with the theological questions surrounding the miracles of God. When I believed that God only spoke through the Bible, I never had to struggle with discerning his voice from my own or the enemy’s voice.

When you start pressing in to the power of God and asking others to do so with you, you get push back. Suddenly God is not so predictable. Suddenly, men and women have to wrestle with questions of faith and their view of God that were never unearthed before. Suddenly, they become responsible for most of what God wants to do on the earth. Suddenly, you are asking them to step into unfamiliar territory. They push back…at least emotionally. Often that push back will come in the form of criticism, suspicion, and even accusation. The enemy will fuel that criticism, trying to discourage your walk into greater realms of the Kingdom.

You will most likely be told you are being deceived; that you are spiritually arrogant; that you are rejecting sound teaching; or that you are causing division in your congregation. Friends may distance themselves from you and leadership may offer you fewer opportunities to serve. All of that may create self-doubt for you personally and cause you to question the direction you are moving. If it helps, remember that Jesus was accused of the same things – even being in league with Beelzebub.

Without exploring everything attached to this, I want you to consider what to do with the criticism. I like what Stephen Mansfield has to say about this and I hope it will be hopeful to you. Let me quote from Stephen’s blog.

One of the maxims that has helped me is from the great missionary/statesman E. Stanley Jones. He said, “My critics are the unpaid guardians of my soul.” Now, these weren’t easy words for me to hear. Jones wanted me to look fully into what my critics and my enemies said about me to see if there was any truth. Then, he wanted me to get busy changing what needed to be changed—based on the hurtful words of people who wanted to hurt me.

 When I heard Jones’ words, I decided to try. I wanted so badly to be an exceptional man. I began listening to what people said to me. Sometimes, they were angry. Sometimes, I heard that veiled criticism we pick up in the humor of friends. There were also the side comments from people I hardly knew. Once in a while there was kind, direct, hard-hitting correction from someone who wanted to help me.

I got in the habit of writing down the core of each bit of criticism I received, and then I would write what today they would call an action statement from it. I don’t want to give you the wrong impression. It wasn’t as though I was constantly criticized. I also hadn’t descended into some type of self-abuse that had me addicted to the pain of harsh words. Instead, I had simply come to accept three possibilities for any harsh words said about me. First, they weren’t true and needed to be discarded. Second, they weren’t true but needed to be addressed. Third, they had some truth in them that could help me be a better man. The benefits of thinking like this changed my life.

Hearing criticism is hard but sometimes God speaks to us even though our enemies. If we are to move in the greater things of the kingdom we must guard our hearts and humble ourselves before the Lord. Consider Stephen’s approach and the wise sayings of Proverbs. “Do not rebuke a mocker or he will hate you; rebuke a wise man and he will love you. Instruct a wise man and he will be wiser still; teach a righteous man and he will add to his learning” (Pr.9:8-9).   If you chafe at criticism, you might also consider Proverbs 3:11-12, 10:17, 12:1, 13:8, 15:12, 15:32; 27:6).

Don’t worry, if you are doing anything noteworthy in the Kingdom of God, criticism will come your way. View it as a tool God will use to deepen your character and guard your heart. Discard what is unjust and receive what the Holy Spirit confirms. Like a ship sailing across vast waters being pushed by winds and currents, our path will need constant correction. Welcome it, even if you don’t enjoy it. It will bear great fruit in your life. Be blessed today.