21 February 1 Peter 5

Resist the Devil

1 Peter 5:8-9(NLT) Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your family of believers all over the world is going through the same kind of suffering you are.

In 1 Peter 5:8, Satan is described as a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. In 1 Peter 5:9, we are commanded to resist him, firm in our faith. It’s interesting to note that, just like James, Peter states that humble submission to God is a prerequisite for resisting the devil. 1 Peter 5:6(NLT) So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor.

Our first and greatest defence against the schemes of the devil, is to live in the right relationship with God.

“Submission to God is itself an act of resistance to the devil…As people align their lives with God, the result becomes a growing resistance to the temptations of the devil, and he loses any foothold and must flee.” -Blomberg, Craig and Mariam J. Karnell, James in the Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament, Zondervan: 2008.

‘Submit to God’ means to put yourself under God’s authority.

James 4:7-8(NLT) So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world.

Humble yourself before God. The person who lives in sin, does not view sin as a big deal. And it is through the sins we tolerate, that Satan gains a foothold into our lives. Therefore, James urges us to take sin seriously. By humbling ourselves before God, we are making God our priority, seeking His face, and will for our lives. The stronger our relationship with God, the less opportunity for Satan to obtain an opening in our lives.

Use the Word of God. Jesus was able to use God’s Word and Satan has no option by to flee. The most effective you will ever be when you resist the enemy, is when you use the Word against him. With every temptation Satan tried to entangle Jesus in, Jesus stood firm with It is written. He used the Word of God to defend against the lies of Satan, and we can do the same.

I conclude with: “When Satan knocks, I just send Christ to the door.”