On my walk to catch the train to work a few years ago, I saw a woman with a ferocious-looking dog heading towards me. I grew up around pet dogs, so I’m usually not afraid of furry friends, but this one looked menacing. As the dog got closer, he barked at me. I tried to laugh it off. But then he lunged at me, so I screamed. Thankfully, the dog couldn’t harm me because he couldn’t reach me. His owner held on tightly to his leash.
That scary encounter reminded me that as believers in Jesus, Satan is also ‘on a leash’ but waiting to attack if we give him the opportunity. In 1 Peter, the apostle Peter warns us, “Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour” (5:8). He growls and snarls and lunges at us to try to scare and intimidate us and to paralyse us with fear, but we can stand firm in our faith and “resist him” (v. 9).
When you feel the enemy taunting or tempting you, remember this: he’s no match for Jesus. We can cry out to Him and He’ll help us. He “will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast” (v. 10).
When we’re under spiritual attack, we can choose faith over fear because Jesus is always with us.
By Nancy Gavilanes
REFLECT & PRAY
How do you react when you feel the enemy taunting or tempting you? How can you focus on Christ during spiritual battles?
Dear Jesus, thank You for always being there for me even during the toughest trials.
There’s a stark difference between how believers in Jesus are to relate to God and how we’re to respond to the devil. To confuse the two is unwise and dangerous. Humility—to trustingly bring oneself low in non-anxious dependence—is always in order before God Almighty (1 Peter 5:6-7). On the other hand, we’re to be “alert and of sober mind” and must “resist” the devil (vv. 8-9 ), for he’s a prowling spiritual predator—the adversary of those who believe in Jesus. James’ words echo those of Peter: “ ‘God opposes the proud but shows favour to the humble.’ Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you” (James 4:6-8). Revelation 12:9 speaks of the devil as “that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray.” In Christ, however, by faith we can resist the devil and stand strong.
Arthur Jackson
Our mission is to make the life-changing wisdom of the Bible understandable and accessible to all.
