ArchivedSpiritual WarfareJames 1:12-18
12 Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial; for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life, which the Lord has promised to those who love Him. 13 Let no one say when he is tempted, "I am being tempted by God"; for God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone. 14 But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust. 15 Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death. 16 Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren. 17 Every good thing bestowed and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation, or shifting shadow. 18 In the exercise of His will He brought us forth by the word of truth, so that we might be, as it were, the first fruits among His creatures.
NAS
Not all our stumbling blocks come from Satan; yes he can tempt us and he can control others however we have control over our own actions. Although I do not deny that in some cases demons can possess an individual to blame demonic forces for all our trials is not Biblical. James 4:1-10
4:1 What is the source of quarrels and conflicts among you? Is not the source your pleasures that wage war in your members? 2 You lust and do not have; so you commit murder. And you are envious and cannot obtain; so you fight and quarrel. You do not have because you do not ask. 3 You ask and do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on your pleasures. 4 You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. 5 Or do you think that the Scripture speaks to no purpose: "He jealously desires the Spirit which He has made to dwell in us"? 6 But He gives a greater grace. Therefore it says, "God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble." 7 Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. 8 Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. 9 Be miserable and mourn and weep; let your laughter be turned into mourning, and your joy to gloom. 10 Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you. NAS
Satan can be resisted just as Jesus did when Satan tempted Him.
BTW burwelm, karma has nothing to do with our destiny or how we live our lives; faith is the determining factor. Karma -from the root kri, "to do"- is the means by which you become the architect of your own destiny. The word karma literally means deed, but implies the entire cycle of cause and its effects. According to the law of karma, every human action -in thought, word, or deed- inevitably leads to results or consequences, good or bad, depending upon the quality of the action.
Karma deals with causality. A specific action leads to a specific result. A positive act will lead to a result of a positive nature, hence, to the experience of positive events, may it be in this life or in future ones. On the other hand, negative acts will unavoidably sooner or later lead to suffering. This happens of itself because the result will unavoidably correspond to the nature of the cause. For example, if you plant a seed, a certain kind of plant will grow from this. From a bean seed, a bean plant will grow; from an apple seed an apple tree will grow and not any other kind. The effects of a deed, word or thought, sometimes are immediate but in some cases many days, months, years or lifes must elapse till the precise moment determined by God comes about. Buddha said: "Our good and evil deeds follow us continually like shadows."
http://www.prodigyweb.net.mx/santhigi/k ... nition.htm
Not every good deed is balanced with an evil deed; and when anyone does good to be noticed by others then the motivation is not really good. Satan is not omnipotent or omnipresent so he cannot balance the good we do with evil.
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