{"id":87780,"date":"2025-06-14T10:36:50","date_gmt":"2025-06-14T15:36:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/?p=87780"},"modified":"2025-06-14T10:36:50","modified_gmt":"2025-06-14T15:36:50","slug":"sifted","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/sifted\/","title":{"rendered":"Sifted"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\t<p>by Terry Wane Benton<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/sifting-300x205.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"205\" \/>The Lord told Peter that Satan would <em>sift<\/em> him like wheat. He sifts through our character and principles to find that vulnerable spot that he can use to bring us down. With David, it was lust; with others, it is alcohol or chemical addiction. The weak spot in some is the desire to fit in and be accepted by those around them who seem to be cool. The weak spot in others is a lack of depth in commitment and love for God. This will be sifted out and used by the devil (the Accuser).<\/p>\n<p>With some, it is bitterness about something that happened in the past, and now Satan is using it to squelch involvement and growth in the Lord&#8217;s church. Verbal backstabbing becomes a handy device when Satan sifts for lack of love and finds an opportunity to spread dissatisfaction and murmuring.<\/p>\n<p>The point is that neither Peter nor we know how the devil may be sifting and sifting through us to find that weak spot and then use it to create division and weakness among God&#8217;s people.<\/p>\n<p>Pride is an easy target for many. Lust of the eye is another easy avenue to sift out and identify. Lust of the flesh, the selfish and self-centered will of man, is also a favorite place to sift for weakness. However, since we know that we will be sifted, we must continually monitor our vulnerable areas and strengthen them with the power of God&#8217;s word.<\/p>\n<p>His word is powerful, and it gets down to the very thoughts and intents of the heart (Hebrews 4:12). Let it work mightily with you and let God be the One who is greater in you than the devil (I John 5:1-3) who is in the world.<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>by Terry Wane Benton The Lord told Peter that Satan would sift him like wheat. He sifts through our character and principles to find that vulnerable spot that he can use to bring us down. With David, it was lust; with others, it is alcohol or chemical addiction. The weak spot in some is the&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[188],"class_list":["post-87780","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article","tag-trials"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":36955,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-wiles-of-the-devil\/","url_meta":{"origin":87780,"position":0},"title":"The Wiles of the Devil","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 1, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Ephesians 6:10-18 \u00a0 I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Satan is a real being \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jesus warned Peter that Satan wanted him - Luke 22:31 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a01.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Much like Satan wanted Job - Job 1:6-12 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0B.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Peter warned us that Satan wants to devour us - I Peter 5:8-9 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0C.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Thus, we have to know our\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Audio&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":15765,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/are-christians-to-rebuke-satan-or-resist-satan\/","url_meta":{"origin":87780,"position":1},"title":"Are Christians to rebuke Satan or resist Satan?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"July 14, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Hi.\u00a0I love your\u00a0exhaustive presentation of the literal days in Genesis!\u00a0 I am praying about how best to present this to our youth pastor, who is an old ager and teaches it privately to the youth.\u00a0 Thank you. My question involves prayer and whether we as God's children ought to\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Answer&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":38555,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-reality-of-satan\/","url_meta":{"origin":87780,"position":2},"title":"The Reality of Satan","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"October 8, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"by Doy Moyer \"Satan\" is a descriptive term that means \"adversary.\" \"Devil\" means \"slanderer.\" These terms aptly describe the being who is known as the enemy of God and His people. The first encounter with the devil is seen in Genesis 3, where the creature here slandered God's severity by\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Article&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":3897,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/when-did-the-devil-fall\/","url_meta":{"origin":87780,"position":3},"title":"When did the Devil fall?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"January 23, 2006","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Please comment on the fall of the devil. Was it before the creation of the world (Earth) or after the creation of the world? Where was he thrown? Answer: The Bible contains only a little bit of material concerning the origins of Satan. See the lesson \"Satan\" in the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Answer&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":19199,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/do-you-believe-the-devil-is-controlling-people-today\/","url_meta":{"origin":87780,"position":4},"title":"Do you believe the devil is controlling people today?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"January 28, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Do you believe the devil is controlling people today to mobilize his plans to multiple his kingdom on the earth by destroying God's people? Answer: If Satan controlled people, then he alone would be responsible for the actions that they commit. This is not what the Bible teaches. Satan\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Answer&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":33955,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/what-if-it-became-a-crime-to-assemble\/","url_meta":{"origin":87780,"position":5},"title":"What If It Became a Crime to Assemble?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"April 7, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"by Terry Wane Benton In China, it is reported that if you do not renounce your faith in Jesus you will be tortured till you do. If that is so, I wonder how many of us would renounce Christ? In parts of Nigeria, you will be killed for believing in\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Article&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/87780","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=87780"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/87780\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=87780"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=87780"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=87780"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}