Battle ground

The Pharisees...began to plot (3:6)

'Why do the nations conspire against...the Messiah?' asks the psalmist, and here we have the answer: they plot against Jesus  because they hate what is good. They have every appearance of being upright, meticulously observing religious laws, and yet inside they love evil. And it only comes out when confronted by Jesus.

I've occasionally found something similar. A person has seemed perfectly jolly and pleasant until they find out I'm a Christian and then a streak of nastiness has appeared from nowhere. The most revolting of stories, the most destructive of personal attacks, or the most anti-Christian sentiments all rise to the surface. 

This has left me with the strong conviction that, as Paul puts it, 'our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against...all the powers of this dark world'. It seems that, just occasionally, this heavenly battle touches down into our everyday human experience, but that doesn't mean it isn't going on all the time.



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