Category Archives: Hope

Satan As a Roaring Lion

Posted on by
Reply

1 Peter was written to Christians facing persecution in Rome and the Roman territories of Asia- modern-day Turkey. Peter warns the believers of all kinds of trials that they would be facing for their faith, gives words of encouragement, and instructs them on how to live during times of persecution. In 1 Peter 5:8, Peter encourages them to be watchful because Satan, as a roaring lion, is “seeking someone to devour”.

As I read this passage the other day, I began to wonder about a lion’s roar: when does he roar and why, so I did some research on the subject. I found out that it is the male lions who roar most and have the loudest roar. They usually roar at night when the air is cooler and sound travels farther. And they usually roar for four reasons: 1) to warn the pride of impending danger, 2) to locate members of the pride who may have strayed and gotten lost, 3) to scare away intruders, and 4) to display dominance. Lions do not roar when they attack their prey because they are sneaking up on them and, therefore, want to be as quiet as possible. So, other than warning of danger and locating lost members of the pride, the purpose of the lion’s roar is to frighten and display dominance.

If it is true that lions do not roar when attacking their prey, then I wondered why Peter said that Satan “prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour” (ESV). To try and get a better picture, I further examined the words he used. The word for prowl is the Greek word peripateo which means “to walk, live, conduct your life, behave, or be occupied with. The word, then, is not just referring to strolling or going from one place to another but is used in reference to their behavior or conduct. We use it in the same sense today when we say someone should “walk the talk”: that their behavior should match their words.

Also, the word devour is the Greek word katapino which means “to drink, swallow, destroy, and consume. But it also means “to be overwhelmed”. It is used in 2 Cor. 2:7: “so you should rather turn to forgive and comfort him, or he may be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow” (ESV emphasis mine). With all this in mind, then, I believe a paraphrase of this verse could be: “Be aware of our enemy Satan for he is occupied with overwhelming us with fright through his roars.”

When Nancy and I were missionaries in Hungary, we lived in the city of Debrecen, the second largest city in Hungary. Debrecen is a beautiful city with a large zoo about a mile from our apartment. The zoo housed some lions and on some summer evenings, we could hear the roar of the lions. They say that a lion’s roar can be heard for up to five miles, so you can imagine how loud and clear the roar was for us. I knew that the lions were in a strong enclosure so we didn’t need to fear, but I could imagine how fearful it might be to hear that sound on the African savanna at night.

I also know that it is easy to be overcome with fear when Satan roars. However, I don’t believe Peter was warning the believers because Satan posed a threat. On the contrary, he immediately tells them that they can resist him (1 Peter 5:9). Instead, I believe that he was warning them of Satan’s tactics: that Satan is going to make a lot of noise to attempt to frighten them. But, because Satan was defeated through Jesus’ death and resurrection, all his roaring is just that—a lot of noise! He has no power or authority over God’s people, so he tries to intimidate and display dominance.

In my opinion, in these verses, Peter is giving the believers instructions on how to handle the adversity they are or will face. He tells them to humble themselves under God’s mighty hand (verse 6). In other words, they should place themselves in God’s care because He is bigger than any problem they face, and they don’t need to worry about the problem (verse 7). They should remember that Satan is defeated and all he can do now is make noise to frighten them. Therefore, they don’t have to give in to that fear but can stand against his attacks (verses 8-9). And they can rest assured in the fact that, in the end, God will restore all things in Christ (verse 10). The message Peter gave to the believers facing persecution in Asia is true for us today. No matter what attacks, persecutions, or problems we face we can stand firm in God’s power and care knowing that no matter how loudly Satan roars, we will not fear because we know that God is bigger, and we win in the end.

And God Remembered Noah

Posted on by
Reply

I am sure most of you are familiar with the story of Noah. In Genesis 6, the Bible says that mankind was so wicked that God was grieved that He had created man and found it necessary to destroy the world (Gen. 6:5-7). Noah was a righteous man and walked with God, so God commissioned him to build an ark to save him and his family along with representatives of every kind of animal (Gen. 6:8-22).

In Genesis 7, we read that after Noah, his family, and all the animals entered the ark, God shut the door. It then rained for forty days and forty nights, the waters of the deep burst from the ground, and the heavens opened up a deluge (Gen. 7:11-12). The flood waters covered the entire earth and rose above the highest mountains. Every living thing, both man and beast, on the earth perished in the flood and all the dry ground was covered (Gen. 7:17-23). The only ones left were those on the ark, and all they could see was water.

Imagine being on the ark and experiencing the horrendous torrent of rain and the dramatic upheaval of the earth bringing a flood that destroyed all of life on the earth. Then, picture yourself living through the next 150 days of seeing nothing but water. How would you feel? Would you feel abandoned? Lost? Without hope? Would you wonder, “Where is God?”

Then we come to Genesis 8:1 which reads, “But God remembered Noah…”. At first glance, this almost sounds as if God woke up one day and, slapping His forehead, said, “Oh my, I forgot I left Noah, his family, and the animals bobbing around in the water on that ark!” However, that is not what this phrase means. It is important for us to realize that Hebrew words have a much fuller meaning than most of our English words do. Lois Tverberg explains it as follows:

In English, our definition of the word remember focuses entirely on the idea of recalling memories and bringing ideas into our thoughts. To forget is to fail to bring a certain memory to mind. Both words are concerned entirely with mental activity—whether or not information is present. But the Hebrew verb zakhar has a much wider definition than just “remember.” It includes both remembering and the actions that are taken because of remembering. It often implies that a person did a favor for someone, helped them, or was faithful to a promise or covenant.a

In other words, with the Hebrew words, the emphasis is on action and not on mental activity. When the Bible says that God remembered Noah, it does not mean that He was recalling lost information. Instead, it means that He was acting upon a promise He had given earlier. It was now the right time to keep His promise to Noah, and to intervene and fulfill His purpose.

We see another example of this in the New Testament in Mark 6:45-51. In this passage, Jesus, after feeding the 5,000, sends His disciples in a boat to cross the sea to the other side while He goes up the mountain to pray. A storm came during the night and the disciples struggled to make any progress. I’m sure they were fatigued and fearful that they might not survive the storm. I also believe they may have wondered where Jesus was and why He wasn’t helping them as He had done before when they were caught in a storm (Mark 4:35-41).  Jesus, however, had not abandoned them. He was on the mountain watching everything that was happening (Mark 6:48), and at the right moment, He went out to them walking on the water, and rescued them.

I believe that everything Jesus did with His disciples was done for a reason. I believe sending the disciples into the storm was a test of their faith. It was an opportunity for them to learn to trust Him, and to know that no matter how difficult the storm, He is always watching them, and He will come at just the right time to help them: He will remember them.

What storm are you going through now? Do you feel lost, helpless, and without hope? Do you feel as if God has abandoned you? I want to encourage you to remember Noah and the disciples. Even though you may not feel God’s Presence in your current situation, He has not forgotten you. He sees you and knows what you are going through. And, at the right moment, God will remember you and will intervene to keep His promise and fulfill His purpose for your life.

aTverberg, Lois. Reading the Bible with Rabbi Jesus. Baker Publishing Group. Kindle Edition. Location 918