May The Lord Rebuke the Agent of Darkness Against my Life

[Chrysostom]

Your earnest prayer has been heard and I join my faith with yours before the Lord who is our deliverance.

Scripture teaches that there is indeed a ruler of the darkness of this world, and that name speaks of the devil and of evil deeds which are darkness. Yet he does not rule heaven and earth, he rules only over those who give themselves up to him. In Christ he has nothing, for Christ said he has nothing in Me, and Christ went to the cross not because the enemy overpowered Him but because He willed it for our salvation. If you are in Christ, the enemy has no rightful claim upon you.

This world is like a moonless night, a thick mist and cloud spread over the earth, but God has given us a bright lamp by kindling in our souls the grace of the Holy Spirit. Some make that lamp brighter by faithfulness, others extinguish it by neglect, by contempt for holy things, by clinging to present things, by not giving heed to the reading of Scripture and by keeping company with the wicked. Keep your lamp burning. Hold fast to what is good and abstain from every form of evil, prove all things and keep what is true, stay in the light and do not return to darkness.

The Lord who delivered His servant from the mouth of the lion will deliver you also. That first deliverance was from outward danger, but the greater deliverance is from every evil work, so that He will not suffer you to depart with condemnation and will keep you so that you may resist sin and not yield to the devil, who is like another lion seeking to devour. Through His coming Christ has accomplished two great works for us, deliverance from evil and supply of good. He has delivered us from the curse and has brought us into sonship, so that we have put on Christ and have received the Spirit of adoption. That is your standing, not as one exposed to every curse spoken against you, but as a child of God.

Do not fear an evil tongue that speaks or thinks or wishes negativity against you. No tongue can curse whom God has blessed, and the soul that wills what is good is from God, while evil willing comes from our own choice and from those who choose darkness because they hate the light. Those who remain in darkness do so because they will not come to the light, not because the light is weak. Stay near the light.

So I pray with you now. Father in heaven, in the name of Jesus Christ Your Son, rebuke every agent of darkness arrayed against this life. Let every evil word, every evil thought, every wish for harm be rendered powerless and come to nothing. Cover this soul with the blood of Christ, fill the heart with Your Holy Spirit, keep the lamp burning bright, and deliver from every evil work. Grant strength to walk in the light, to love Your Word, to fellowship with holy people, and to turn away from all that is evil. Let peace and protection rest here, and let Your will be done. Amen.

 

[Silas]

Your prayer for the Lord to stand against darkness and to silence every tongue that speaks against you is heard, and I join you in bringing it before Him.

Scripture shows us what that evil is and where it comes from. There are those who leave the straight path to walk in darkness, who speak perverse things and even find joy in doing wrong and delight in the crookedness of others. They do not rest unless they have caused harm, living as if wickedness is their bread and violence is their drink. The Bible warns not to walk in that way at all, but to avoid it, turn from it, and pass far from it.

God defines evil not as a small mistake, but as anything that destroys you or destroys others. His commands are given to protect you from that destruction. To fear the Lord is to hate evil, and to hate evil is to depart from it. That is the pattern of a life like Job, who was called upright because he feared God and turned away from evil. The two always go together.

The promise for those who listen to the Lord is that they will dwell safely and be quiet from the fear of evil. He is able to deliver you from the way of the evil person and from perverse speech. His eyes are upon all our ways, nothing is hidden from Him, and He calls us to seek good and not evil so that we may live, to hate what is evil and love what is good.

He also holds out mercy. When He warns of judgment, His purpose is that people will turn from their evil way so that He may forgive their sin. If we turn from evil, He turns from the judgment He had pronounced. That turning is not only outward, it is a turning of the heart to Him through Jesus Christ, who alone brings salvation and safety.

So I pray with you now that the Lord Himself would rebuke every work of darkness aimed at your life, and silence every perverse tongue, every evil thought and wish formed against you. May He cover you and cause you to dwell safely in Him, quiet from fear. May He teach you to fear Him, to hate evil and to depart from it, to seek good and walk in His upright ways, and to find health and peace in Him. May He forgive, cleanse, and keep you by His grace as you trust in Jesus. In Jesus name, Amen.