"Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you."
The Messiah spoke these words to His seventy followers whom He had sent out two by two, to preach the gospel, heal the sick, and cast out demons. This same promise (above) applies to Jesus' church ministers today, (and, by extension, to the members of the church who do the work of the ministry).
It is a great blessing to know that "nothing shall by any means hurt [us]." Our souls, our inner (and most real) selves *cannot* be "hurt" in any way by either devils or men. With this perspective, we need not fear man (or Satan) at all. Instead, we can love and (rightly) fear the Lord alone.
[Puritan quote of the day: "Faith, love, trust, joy, and all other spir-
itual graces are the means by which the soul has communion with God." --John Owen, in, "Communion with God"]
