Spiritual Warfare - analyzing the enemy

Posted by Brance on September 7th, 2005 filed in Spiritual Warfare

Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty.

Thomas Jefferson said that about 200 years ago and it couldn’t hold truer today. Letting our guard down is the worst mistake we could make. Sept 11, 2001 is now referred to as 9/11 and everyone knows what that means. We let our guard down and our enemy attacked us. No one was expecting that attack and that’s why it was successful. As Christians we can be lured into the trap of paying attention only to those things we can see, hear, touch, smell, and taste. We become oblivious to our real enemy and he attacks us when our guard is down. We struggle with the world, with sin, with our own flesh, and often overlook our truest enemy, satan. We also tend to try and fight the battle with the wrong weapons.

Eph. 6:12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

We must understand who we are fighting if we are to wage an effective war. We need to understand our enemy’s strategy and objective so that we can recognize his attacks and not be caught off guard. Unfortunately, the world and even us Christians often portray satan and demons in un-intimidating ways. While we should not fear satan, we must not be caught in this deception and thus underestimate him.

We made a list on the board of ways that the world makes light of and laughs off the reality of satan. Here are the ones I remember.

• little red man with pitch fork, horns, and a tail
• “the devil made me do it”
• halloween
• movies and tv shows
• music that laughs at the reality of hell or the devil

You get the idea. We decided that people do these things because they don’t want to think about the implications of satan being real. They don’t want to be scared of him so they laugh at him instead. I have noticed in the last few years that in addition to this there are those in the world who are fascinated with hell and the devil, and even make heros of demonic characters. Look at the movie Hell Boy for example. The main character is a demon or something (I never saw it, just the trailers) who becomes a hero to be admired.

Do you think Satan enjoys this kind of portrayal? You bet he does. The more people who think he doesn’t exist, or who don’t take him seriously, the easier his job is.

So we split into three groups and looked up these verses.

Ezek. 28.12 “Son of man, take up a lament concerning the king of Tyre and say to him: ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: “‘You were the model of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. 13 You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone adorned you: ruby, topaz and emerald, chrysolite, onyx and jasper, sapphire, turquoise and beryl. Your settings and mountings were made of gold; on the day you were created they were prepared. 14 You were anointed as a guardian cherub, for so I ordained you. You were on the holy mount of God; you walked among the fiery stones. 15 You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created till wickedness was found in you. 16 Through your widespread trade you were filled with violence, and you sinned. So I drove you in disgrace from the mount of God, and I expelled you, O guardian cherub, from among the fiery stones. 17 Your heart became proud on account of your beauty, and you corrupted your wisdom because of your splendor. So I threw you to the earth; I made a spectacle of you before kings. 18 By your many sins and dishonest trade you have desecrated your sanctuaries. So I made a fire come out from you, and it consumed you, and I reduced you to ashes on the ground in the sight of all who were watching. 19 All the nations who knew you are appalled at you; you have come to a horrible end and will be no more.’”

This passage is somewhat prophetic in nature, but note particularly verses 12 and 15. Satan was created perfect. He was the model of perfection. He was full of wisdom.

Is. 14.12 How you have fallen from heaven, O morning star, son of the dawn! You have been cast down to the earth, you who once laid low the nations! 13 You said in your heart, “I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of the sacred mountain. 14 I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.” 15 But you are brought down to the grave, to the depths of the pit.

Notice here that his heart was went wrong. The Scripture tells us to love the Lord with all our heart. Satan did not. He loved himself. He wanted to rule over God’s creation.

From these two passages we learned that:

• Satan is wise
• Satan is not easily recognized because he is beautiful
• Satan desired to be God
• Satan was condemned to hell
• Satan sinned
• Satan live on earth now
• Satan was created perfect
• Satan’s sin was pride

2Th. 2.3 Don’t let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction. 4 He will oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sets himself up in God’s temple, proclaiming himself to be God.

This may look familiar to those of you who are reading the Left Behind series right now. This is speaking of the anti-christ possessed of Satan and trying to establish himself on the throne in God’s temple. But look at the beginning of verse 4. It says he will oppose everything that is called God or is worshiped. That means he will oppose us since we worship God. He has sworn himself to be our enemy. We need to be on guard against his attacks.

I’ve challenged you to memorize one verse each week with me. Here is our verse for this week.

Eph. 6:12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.