During Lent, Pastor Payne will post a daily devotional

April 19, 2025 

 Jesus employed the strong man analogy while explaining to incredulous Jewish leaders how he could cast out demons. In brief, when a strong man guards his house, his possessions are unassailable. But when a stronger man attacks the house, he breaks in, disarms the strong man, removes his armor, and divides the plunder (Luke 11:21-22).
Mark says that Satan is the strong man, and Jesus is the one who breaks into his house and defeats him. In the process, he frees those who are held captive by Satan (Mark 3:26-28).
In the immediate context, the strong man’s house represents Satan’s kingdom. Satan is the master of this world, and the people of this world belong to him. For example, in the Temptation Story, Satan tells Jesus that he can give him the world and its kingdoms because they were given to him (Luke 4:6). Since humankind’s fall, the devil has claimed ownership of the world. Jesus does not dispute this.  
Other scriptures affirm this claim. The whole world is under Satan’s power (1 John 5:19). Satan is the god (ho theos) of this world (2 Cor 4:4). Jesus calls Satan the ruler (ho archon) of this world (John 12:31). To be sure, Satan has a delegated authority. He does not have final authority. Nonetheless, God has given him broad leeway to manage his kingdom as he desires.
After Jesus defeated Satan in the Temptation Story, he claimed authority over the demons – Satan’s foot soldiers. That is why they feared him and had to obey him. For instance, a “legion of demons” declared that Jesus was the Son of the Most High God (Mark 5:5-7). The “Most High God” (El Elyon) rules over the sons of God while presiding over the divine council in heaven (Ps 82:1 and 6). Even though the demonic legion parleys with Jesus to negotiate the terms of their surrender, they must obey him (Matt 8:29). A similar event plays out in Mark 1:24 and Mark 3:11.
When Jesus began his public ministry, he attacked Satan’s kingdom. Every time Jesus healed a sick person, cleansed a leper, cast out demons, raised the dead, and gave eternal life to those who were in the grip of sin, he pushed back Satan’s kingdom. Kingdom conflict ensued when Jesus preached the kingdom of God because he battled against Satan’s kingdom.  
So, what does this have to do with Jesus' death on the cross and his subsequent descent into Hades? On the cross, Jesus gave his body as a ransom for our sins. He became the Lamb of God who died for lost humanity. When he descended to Hades, he exchanged himself for us. The Bible says that Jesus ransomed us (1 Cor 6:20, 1 Pet 1:18-19, Gal 3:13-15, Acts 20:28, Eph 1:14). Revelation says that the Lamb by his blood purchased a people for God (5:9). The word ransom signifies how Jesus paid our debt and set us free. It follows the kinsman redeemer typology in the Old Testament.
When a kinsman redeemer purchased the freedom of a slave, the money went to the one who owned the slave. Jesus is our kinsman redeemer. Since Satan owned the world, Jesus gave himself to Satan as the purchase price to set us free. Meditate upon this point.
This truth helps us understand why Jesus did not want to die on the cross and why he begged the Father to let the cup pass from him (Matt 26:39). It also explains why Satan cooperated with the crucifixion. He wanted to own Jesus!
However, something that Satan did not expect happened after Jesus gave himself as an offering for our sins (Lev 16). After “paying our price,” he transformed himself into the glorious Son of God and reclaimed his power while in the presence of the devil. When that happened, Jesus disarmed the powers and principalities, led them in a conqueror's procession, and set the captives free (Col 2:15).
On Holy Saturday, Jesus was not sleeping in the grave waiting for Resurrection Sunday. Instead, he destroyed the power of Hades and bound the strong man.
For a fuller understanding of this, ready Payne, Satan Exposed: A Biblical Theology of Spiritual Warfare, 41-48.

April 18, 2025 

 “How deep the Father's love for us, how vast beyond all measure! That He should give His only Son, to make a wretch His treasure. How great the pain of searing loss! The Father turns His face away; as wounds which marred the Chosen One bring many sons to glory.” Townend, S. (2000). How Deep the Father's Love for Us.
During Holy Week, Jesus traveled to Jerusalem to be rejected by the religious leaders and die as the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. The gospel story uniformly emphasizes this theme. Next to the affirmation that God loves people, it constitutes the crux of the gospel message. The validation of this theme reaches back to the Old Testament prophecies (cf. Ps 22 and Isa 53). It was the predetermined plan of the Father. In short, Jesus was born to die on the cross because he is the Lamb of God who was slain before the foundations of the world (Rev 13:8). Due to humankind’s alienation from God and its bondage to sin, people must be liberated by the sinless Son of God, who gives his perfect body as a ransom for sin so believers can escape the penalty of sin (death) and enjoy a right relationship with God.
John 3:16 encapsulates this idea. Because God loves lost humanity, he wants to save it. However, following the rules of divine justice, a price must be paid to redeem humans from their sin. For that reason, “God gave his only begotten Son.” The giving of the Son does not refer to the incarnation (God with us). It points to the cross. God gave the Son as an offering for sin. Anyone who believes the gospel message and puts their faith in Jesus as their Savior will have eternal life. Life is in the Son, and he gives it to those who abide in him (John 3:36, 5:21, and 10:28-39). The giving of the Son is unconditional. Nevertheless, the reception of eternal life is predicated on believing in Christ and doing his will.
At this point, I want to take a dark detour. The Father sent the Son because he loved lost humanity and wanted to save it. Love motivates the Father’s actions. Likewise, John says that Jesus loved his own until the very end (13:1). Yet, love for humanity is not Jesus’ primary motivation for going to the cross.
From the beginning of his ministry, Jesus struggled with the pending cross. Satan knew that Jesus did not want to die on the cross. It was a weak point that he exploited in the Temptation Story when he told Jesus that he would give him a shortcut that would allow him to claim the world without dying on the cross (Matt 4:9). The shortcut required disobeying the Father’s expressed will. For that reason, Jesus summarily rejected the offer.
After Jesus told the disciples that he had to die on the cross in Caesarea Philippi, Satan tempted him when Peter excoriated the notion and told Jesus that he would not die on the cross. Jesus recognized the satanic ploy and rebuked his archenemy (Matt 16:23).
Ultimately, the issue comes to a head in the garden when Jesus cries out with intense emotional agony, “O My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me” (Matt 26:39). Clearly, Jesus did not want to die on the cross.
Why did Jesus consent to die on the cross? Answer: the Father willed it, and Jesus valued obedience to the Father above everything else. The text shows this. Amid his emotional pain and with every bit of his remaining courage, he yells to the Father, “Not my will, but your will be done!” At that moment of brokenness, Christ opened his arms wide and embraced the Father’s will. Jesus loved the Father with a perfect love. Because he desired to please the Father and live in harmony with him, he chose to obey the Father even when the Father told him to do something he did not want to do.
John 14:15-21 uses the same logic when Jesus tells believers to obey him. He says, “If you love me, keep my commandments” (John 14:15) because I showed my love for the Father by keeping his commandments. Yes, those who wish to live in harmony with Jesus must obey him. Furthermore, since he is the door to the Father, no one who lives in disobedience to the Son will have eternal life because life is in the Son.
Once you internalize that the Father loves you so much that he gave his only begotten Son to save you, even though the Son did not want to die on the cross, you will come to the Father with confidence.  
On this Good Friday, consider how much you have been influenced by modern notions of a kindly father who winks at the indiscretions of his wayward children. That’s not a gospel portrayal of God the Father or Jesus the Son. Determine to know God’s will and keep it.

April 17, 2025 

“After [Judas] received the piece of bread, Satan entered him. Jesus said to him, ‘Do quickly what you are going to do’” (John 13:27).
Both Luke and John say that Satan entered Judas when he betrayed Jesus. In Luke 22:3, Satan possessed Judas after Jesus rebuked him for complaining that the woman who anointed Jesus’ feet with costly ointment was wasting the perfume. According to Judas, had the perfume been donated to the disciples, they could have sold it for a fortune and used the money to help the poor.
Jesus saw through the smokescreen. The woman’s act of devotion did not matter to Judas because he did not share her feelings. Money mattered to him. Because he kept the moneybag, he wanted to sell the perfume to profit from it. After Jesus rebuked Judas for disparaging the woman who washed his feet with costly perfume, Judas became angry. Immediately after this, he went to the high priest and negotiated Jesus’ arrest (Mark 14:10-11).
To understand the possession of Judas, we need to study how the demonic manipulates emotions. When Jesus chose Judas to be one of the Twelve, he fantasized about ruling over others after Jesus ascended his throne. He wasn’t alone; each of the disciples wanted to be the greatest in the soon-to-be-realized kingdom. For example, when Jesus entered Jerusalem, James and John asked to sit on his right and left when he ruled the world (Mark 10:37). They did not know he was entering Jerusalem to die. They thought Jesus was about to be inaugurated as the Messiah. Also, shortly after this, the disciples argued among themselves about who would be the greatest in the kingdom (Luke 22:24).
When Jesus told the disciples that the leaders would kill in Jerusalem according to the eternal purposes of the Father, Peter scolded him because he was fixated on a predetermined outcome that he desired. Jesus saw through Peter’s self-serving protestation when he said, “Get behind me, Satan” (Matt 16:23). In this case, Satan took advantage of Peter’s inordinate desires by using them as a tool to tempt Jesus not to die on the cross. In short, the desire to profit from Jesus caused the disciples to align themselves with Satan.
Back to the story. When Jesus rebuked Judas, he told him that the woman was anointing his body with the perfume in preparation for his burial (Mark 14:8). At that moment, Judas realized that Jesus was not going to be king, he was not going to get a throne, and he would not be powerful. In Mark, that is the reason he betrayed Jesus.
Judas displayed three emotions that allowed him to be possessed by Satan. The first was extreme disappointment. The second was the desire to get rich. As these feelings percolated within him, they generated anger. Satan exploited his evil desires to intensify his anger. Jesus teaches that anger is the root of murder (Matt 5:21-22). In his mind, Judas betrayed Jesus to get even with him by cutting a deal with the high priest because Jesus did not uphold his end of the agreement.
Most likely, Judas did not realize that Satan possessed him until he witnessed the consequences of his sin. At that point, repentance was beyond his reach. He had betrayed God. His intense remorse led him to commit suicide. Often, homicide and suicide are linked to demonic possession.
The lesson is clear. When Christians believe in Jesus, they trust him to meet their needs and satisfy their deepest longings. When they experience negative emotions, they refuse to dwell on them. Instead, they allow God to replace those feelings with the Fruit of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control). For instance, Jesus tells followers to forgive those who sin against them and not to give place to evil thoughts (Matt 5:21-48).
When believers manage their emotions, they close doors that the demons use to gain access to them. Unchecked emotions are a primary way through which evil spirits gain access to unsuspecting individuals. Guard your hearts and minds by submitting to the work of God in your life.

April 15, 2025
"Early in the morning, as Jesus was heading back to the city, he was hungry. Seeing a fig tree by the road, he went up to it but found nothing on it except leaves. Then he said to it, 'May you never bear fruit again!' Immediately, the tree withered" (Matt 21:18-19).
Why did Jesus curse the fig tree? This vexing question has annoyed Bible readers because it portrays Jesus as an angry, unloving, and capricious person. A closer look establishes that Jesus lacked a just reason to curse the tree. For starters, it was out of season for figs. Also, since the tree was by the road, one can assume that countless other pilgrims had scoured it for food before Jesus came to it. Indeed, the fig tree was innocent. It did not deserve to be cursed by the God-in-flesh.
Second, after Jesus cursed the fig tree, it withered. The roots and all the leaves died. Nothing was left alive. For that reason, it could not resprout.
Third, the text says that Jesus killed the tree because it did not bear fruit for him. The tree may have borne fruit for others at a different time. Nonetheless, when the God-man inspected it, he did not find the fruit that he wanted to see.
If one interprets the story as a living parable, the meaning aligns with what Jesus said in other parables in Matthew (13:24-30, 13:47-50, 25:1-12, 25:14-30, and 25:31-46). In the story, Jesus is God, Israel is the fig tree, the fruit represents Israel’s works, and the context is judgment.
In Matthew, John the Baptist warns the national leaders to repent and bear good fruit. Otherwise, God will destroy them in the coming judgment. He says, “The axe is already laid at the root of the tree. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is chopped down and thrown into the fire” (3:10).  Jesus makes a similar point in Matthew 7. “Every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them” (7:17-20).
Repeatedly, John’s gospel declares that life is in the Son, and he gives it to whomever he wants. Death abides with those who reject the Son. According to the parables, on the day that Jesus returns, he will save the righteous and cast the wicked into a place of eternal weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Based on an allegoric reading of the fig tree story, Israel will be judged because it does not bear good fruit. In fact, it bears bad fruit because it rejects God when it kills his Son, the Messiah. The judgment will include the destruction of the Temple, the dismantling of Jerusalem, and the scattering of the survivors to all the nations. True to his words, all of this happened in AD 70 when General Titus of Rome sacked the city.
The example of the fig tree also has meaning for modern believers. God inspects the saints for good works that reflect their alignment with him and their desire to “bear” his image. He rewards those who show the Fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:22-23) and disciplines those who live carnal lives (Gal 6:8). During this Holy Week, inspect yourself to see what type of fruit you are bearing.

April 14, 2025
According to Matthew, after Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, he went to the Temple. When he arrived and saw what was taking place, he overturned the money tables of those who exchanged currency and sold “approved” animals for sacrifices (Matt 21:12-17). He justified his behavior by quoting, “For my house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations” (Isa 56:7). After this, he healed the blind and the lame who came to the Temple. Also, the children were singing, “Hosanna to the Son of David.”
When God gave King David the design for the Temple (1 Chr 28:19), he included a court for the nations (Gentiles). Later, King Solomon asked Yahweh to answer the prayers of the Gentiles who came to the Temple to seek Yahweh (2 Chr 6:32-33). Because of the Temple’s layout, when Gentiles brought their sacrifices, they could enter the outer court to worship God. In other words, God designed the Temple with an outer court because he wanted the Gentiles to come to him. However, when Jesus entered the Temple after his triumphal entry, the outer court had been repurposed.
In Jesus’ day, the High Priest and his family used the outer court to conduct financial transactions. First, if a person brought an animal from his flocks, they would find a reason to reject it. This practice goes back to the Hasmoneans. Afterward, they sold the pilgrim an approved animal at a hefty surcharge. Second, to make the Temple offering (the half-shekel tax) and buy sacrifices, people had to exchange their money for the Tyrian Shekel. The exchange fee was an outrageous abuse. In both cases, the Temple establishment used its control over the Temple to cheat religious pilgrims to make huge profits.
Jesus is the Lord of the Temple. As the Messiah, his claims superseded those of the High Priest. To that end, when he witnessed priestly abuse, the Spirit of God within him became furious. Both the Old and New Testaments employ violent language to describe the Day of the Lord and God’s judgment when the Messiah comes. In Matthew 3, John the Baptist calls the Jerusalem leaders a “brood of vipers” and tells them to flee from the wrath to come. Speaking about Jesus, John the Baptist says, “His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor and gather his wheat into the barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire” (Matt 3:12). The religious leadership is the chaff that Jesus will throw into the fires of judgment when he comes.
Along with the triumphal entry, the cleansing of the Temple should be seen as a prefiguration of the Second Coming. The next time Jesus comes to Jerusalem, he will complete the cleansing of the Temple, ascend the Throne of David, and rule the nations (Ps 2:6). On that day, he will purge Israel of sin and unbelief. This image is the lens through which one should interpret Jesus’ cleansing of the Temple.

April 13, 2025
Most of us are familiar with Benito Mussolini. His journey from being applauded as Italy's savior to being a despised tyrant represents one of the most dramatic shifts in modern history.
On October 28, 1922, Mussolini led his followers in the March to Rome. Faced with the threat of a civil war, the King reluctantly appointed him as Prime Minister. Mussolini’s ascension was met with widespread applause and celebration. Many Italians saw him as the strong leader who would restore their nation's glory and fix vexing social and economic issues.
Even though his reforms had early success, his alliance with Adolf Hitler and the Axis powers proved problematic. For example, Italy's military campaigns in Africa and Greece ended in disaster by weakening the nation's resources, killing countless Italians, and lowering morale. Also, the Allied invasion of Sicily in 1943 exposed the regime's vulnerability and sparked widespread discontent.
On July 25, 1943, Mussolini was deposed. In October, Italy declared war on Germany. In 1945, while attempting to flee to Switzerland, Mussolini was captured and executed. Afterward, people spit on his dead body as it hung upside down on a rope in Milan. This humiliating end underscores the complete reversal of his fortunes and the depth of hatred he incurred.
Obviously, there is a historical parallel between Mussolini and Jesus. Both were hailed as saviors. Both were rejected by the people who once adored them. Romans executed both. And both left this world with brutalized bodies.
After being desecrated, Mussolini’s body was placed in the family crypt in 1957. It is still there. After being tortured and beaten to a pulp, Jesus’ broken body was also placed in a tomb. However, unlike Mussolini, Jesus was resurrected from the dead. His body was glorified. All of heaven falls before it in praise and adoration. To be sure, it still has the scars on the hands and a spear mark on his side. They symbolize his sacrifice and point to his honor. Mussolini is dead and hated. Jesus is alive and forever praised.

April 11, 2025
“Gospel” means good news. It is mentioned 93 times in the New Testament. It’s also used in the Greek translation of the Old Testament. For example, when the lepers discovered that the siege against Samaria had been broken and the fleeing enemy had left an abundance of food, they shared the good news with the gatekeepers. Upon hearing it, the overjoyed gatekeepers shouted the good news to the city (2 Kings 7:1-20).
In this context, the gospel is the good news that God kept the promise he made to the prophet by driving the enemy away and saving the people from starvation. To receive God’s salvation, the people had to believe the message, leave the confines of their locked city, and possess the gift. This text foreshadows how the New Testament writers would use the term.
Matthew declares that Jesus came preaching the Gospel of the kingdom (4:23). As he preached, he healed the sick, cast out demons, cleansed the lepers, and told people that the reign of God was at hand. Jesus embodied the kingdom because he was the King. The works of Jesus are signs of the kingdom because they point to God’s coming reign.
If you want to know what the good news is, look at what Jesus did and what he said. As Jesus announces God’s reign, he saves people from their bondage to Satan. It is a tangible gospel. A gospel that only tells people how to go to heaven is not the whole gospel.
The gospel of the kingdom mandate was transferred to the disciples and to the church when Christ empowered them with his authority to do his work (Matt 10 and Acts 2). In particular, when Phillip healed the sick, cast out demons, and fixed cripple people in Samaria, it says that he “preached the good news of the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ” (Acts 8:6). The people were converted, healed, and delivered.
In 1 Cor. 15:1-8, Paul gives an abstraction of the gospel message. He calls it the good news that Jesus died, was resurrected, appeared to the church, and reigns from heaven. In verse 3, Paul adds “according to the scriptures” because the prophets foretold the entire process. He expands on this in Romans 1:1-6 when he says the gospel was promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures.” This shows the eternal mission of God.
Paul’s abstraction does not compete with Jesus’ teaching on the topic. Rather, Paul points to the ageless foundations for the kingdom of God. He says that Jesus is the eternal good news for those who are being saved. The ancients looked forward to it, and the people of his time experienced it firsthand. Today, with one eye, we look back on it, and with the other eye, we look forward to its completion.
That’s correct. The gospel points to a future eschaton in which God’s reign will be universal and unchallenged. For example, in 1 Cor. 15:27, Paul says that Jesus must reign until he has destroyed all dominion, authority, and power in the heavenly places. When all the enemies are subdued and defeated, he will hand the kingdom over to the Father. At its core, the gospel teaches that Jesus will destroy sin, death, and the demonic as he restores humankind to its divinely determined place as God’s cosmic coregents.
That’s good news.

April 10, 2025
A humble leper approached Jesus and said, "You can heal me if you will." In response, Jesus touched him. Then he said, "I am willing. Be cleansed" (Matt 8:1-3). The man identified himself with his disease and the associated social curse. As such, he did not believe that he merited God's attention. Jesus recognized that he suffered from low self-esteem, spiritual distress, and leprosy. In the ensuing encounter, Jesus healed his body, his mind, and his soul. In the end, the man was “made whole.” That is, he was reconciled to God, his faith, his family, and his former self - the part the disease stole from him.
Like Jesus, the church affirms a holistic theology that teaches that people are a complex whole – mind, body, and spirit. Each part is interconnected and dependent on the others. For example, a person has a body but can’t be reduced to a body. When modern medicine emphasizes the body as a biological system and minimizes the other aspects of the person, people suffer from second-order problems. Covid is a classic illustration of this.
During the Covid lockdown, the body focus caused great harm when medical officials imposed draconian measures that isolated vulnerable people from pastors, family members, and friends. The resulting human suffering was predictable. The church should not follow this error. We must see the whole person when we do ministry. Additionally, we should oppose medical approaches that do not consider the whole person.

April 8, 2025
Paul claims a messenger of Satan was attacking his body (2 Cor 12:7). In his mind, the Satanic messenger (angelos) was a demonic spirit. At other times, he was attacked by false brethren, idol worshippers, government officials, shamans, and bandits. From the perspective of a single attack, one could argue that these were random occurrences. After all, everyone suffers from something. Nevertheless, when Paul examined the big picture, he discerned a pattern that pointed to a multifaceted attack. More precisely, he believed that Satan coordinated the conflict. That's why he wanted to be protected from the "evil one" (2 Thes 3:3).
When moderns confront a plethora of evil, they should consider Paul's perspective because the "wicked and evil" people who hurt them are tools through which the evil one works (2 Thes 3:2). Paul sees them as proxies for Satan. Think of it this way. Just like God works through spiritually gifted Christians to complete his mission, Satan works through evil people to disrupt God's work, multiply his malice, and keep spiritually blind people in bondage to him.
When contemplating this, do not submit to fatalism by assuming you have to endure your suffering because God wants you to suffer. Instead, imagine that the evil you experience is a spiritual attack. If you discern an attack, fight against it following the directions in Eph. 6:10-20.

April 7, 2025   

As I prayed, I saw a man treading water in the ocean. Staying afloat tired him. When he called out to God, the Lord showed him an island and told him to swim to it. As he swam toward dry land, he renewed his strength and did not struggle to keep his head above the waves. The meaning is clear. Christians need an external point of focus to stay motivated in their walk with God. To what are you moving?