The Goal is the Soul

“Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you; but rejoice that your names are written in Heaven.”

Luke 10:20 RSVCE

When considering the subject of spiritual warfare, it is easy to get caught up in the supernatural and unusual nature of the cases looked at, the “oohs and ahs”. After watching “The Exorcist” for the first time and discussing the subject with a good friend, I was inspired to meditate further on the subject. In “The Exorcist”, the two priests battling for the young girl being held captive are surprisingly less interested in the “stunts” being “performed” and far more concerned with the girl’s freedom and well-being as a person. My friend, who is so much like the Lord Jesus, was also surprisingly less interested in the supernatural details of my stories and more concerned with the subjects’ souls as individual people. These reactions led me to consider the question “What does Jesus see He looks at a person who has been subjected to satanic culture or demonic possession?”

As God, Jesus is more mature and focused on what’s truly important than we are as materialistic people. Despite the dramatic insults to His authority as Lord, Jesus’ Sacred Heart sees past the ugliness and the drama. Jesus’ Heart is madly in love with each and every soul and all He wants is to be able to give that soul His love, His healing, and His blessing. A gem that has been dropped in mud does not cease to be precious, however ugly the mud.

The conclusion of my little meditation is that I believe Jesus is challenging me, and all Christians who take an interest in the supernatural, to not be distracted by “stunts” and “performances” on the part of the devil, but to focus on the true mission: — which remains the same no matter how many or how few dramatic and exciting details are involved in the story — that “the goal is the soul”. As the Savior’s hands and feet, we must resist any attempts of the devil to distract us with “oohs and ahs” and pattern our hearts after His, by concerning ourselves with befriending and healing souls instead. No matter the context, we must treasure the human dignity of each soul and regard the particular evangelization scenario the same as any other evangelization scenario. In spite of how angry we may be — and rightly so — at the ugly offenses made against our Lord and others, or the dramatic nature of the story, our concern should be with the person that our Lord desperately loves: the prize, rather than the battle or the glory. Instead of focusing on the devil and giving him glory and attention by doing so, let’s love the people like Jesus does, who cares more about their well-being than about His own reputation or popularity.

I thank God for His grace, and I thank God for my friend. Thank You, Jesus!

“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.”

John 10:10 RSVCE