Something about the devil we rarely hear but need to know …

I’ve often said that Christians have an enemy as devoted to our destruction as God is to our salvation.

We often hear very scary descriptions about Satan, and rightfully so, as he is an enemy looking for lives to destroy:

“Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour,” 1 Peter 1:8.

But there’s an important truth about our enemy that we hear little about. It’s the ever-practical James who tells us this:

“So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you,” James 4:7.

A lot of professing Christians have an image of Satan as being an unbeatable foe; the good news is, that’s not true! James tells us if we resist him, he will flee! It might be a scary experience to have to face such a foe, but our resistance to Satan is similar to the intimidating idea of facing down a mountain lion, something Craig Childs has first-hand knowledge of …

Did you know that in the United States, mountain lions are the number one predator of human beings? So says author and naturalist, Craig Childs. On one occasion, he was doing research on the lions in Arizona’s Blue Range Wilderness. As he approached a water hole from downwind, he spotted a mountain lion drinking water, but the lion did not know he was there. When it finished drinking, it walked slowly away into a cluster of junipers.

After a few minutes, Childs walked to the water hole to identify tracks in the mud and record notes. Just before he bent down to look closer, he scanned the perimeter, and there among the shadows of the junipers, 30 feet away, he saw a pair of eyes. He expected the lion to run away, but it walked into the sunlight toward him. Childs pulled his knife and stared into the eyes of the lion. He knew what he had to do. More importantly, he also knew what he must not do. He writes:

“Mountain lions are known to take down animals six, seven, and eight times their size. Their method: attack from behind, clamp onto the spine at the base of the prey’s skull, and snap the spine. The top few vertebrae are the target, housing respiratory and motor skills that cease instantly when the cord is cut … Mountain lions have stalked people for miles. One woman survived an attack and escaped by foot on a road. The lion shortcut the road several miles farther and killed her from behind …”

About the incident in Arizona’s Blue Ranger Wilderness, Childs says, “I hold firm to my ground and do not even intimate that I will back off. If I run, it is certain. I will have a mountain lion all over me. If I give it my back, I will only briefly feel its weight on me against the ground. The canine teeth will open my vertebrae without breaking a single bone…

“The mountain lion begins to move to my left, and I turn, keeping my face on it, my knife at my right side. It paces to my right, trying to get around on my other side, to get behind me. I turn right, staring at it … My stare is about the only defense I have.” The amazing thing is Childs actually maintained that defense as the mountain lion continued to try to provoke him to run, turning left, then right, back and forth again and again, until it came to just ten feet away. Finally, the standoff ended. The lion turned and walked away – defeated by a man who knew what never to do in its presence.

What do you do in the presence of temptation from Satan? Resist, and he will flee!

You can find the courage to resist by knowing that you do not stand against temptation alone, but with the power of the presence of Jesus Christ in your life! Pastor Bill Butsko describes this power to resist the enemy like this:

Martin Luther was often very graphic in his description of the activities of the Devil. Asked one time how he overcame the Devil, he replied, “Well, when he comes knocking upon the door of my heart, and asks ‘Who lives here?’ the dear Lord Jesus goes to the door and says, ‘Martin Luther used to live here but he has moved out. Now I live here.’ The devil seeing the nail-prints in the hands, and the pierced side, takes flight immediately.” It is surely good for every life and for every one to have Jesus as a permanent resident.

Knowing that His children will have to face attacks from the enemy, God has supplied us with a spiritual suit of armor perfect for making a stand (resisting) against the enemy:

“A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places. Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm. Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness. For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared. In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil. Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere,” Ephesians 6:10-18.

So it’s true that you have a fierce enemy who will never quit in his efforts to tempt you into sin. But with Christ in you, and the full “armor of God,” you have everything you need to resist the devil. If you do, he will flee!

Scotty