GOD’S PROMISE
The God who brings peace will soon defeat Satan and give you power over him.
—Romans 16:20 NCV
The thought of the picnickers doesn’t surprise us. The people weren’t the first or the last to pack a meal and set out for a Sunday afternoon excursion. After all, it was a quiet and sunny July day. A trip to the countryside would be nice. No, it wasn’t the picnic baskets that made this entourage notable. It is where they went to unpack them.
A battlefield. On July 21, 1861, Washingtonians rode horses and buggies to Manassas to witness their Union soldiers bring an end to what they considered to be a short rebellion. Their intent was to sit on blankets, eat their chicken, and cheer from a distance.
One soldier described them as a “throng of sightseers. . . . They came in all manner of ways, some in stylish carriages, others in city hacks, and still others in buggies, on horseback and even on foot. . . . It was Sunday and everybody seemed to have taken a general holiday.”1
A reporter from the London Times observed, “The spectators were all excited, and a lady with an opera glass . . . was quite beside herself [at the sound of] an unusually heavy discharge. . . . ‘That is splendid, Oh my! Is not that first rate?’”2
It wasn’t long before reality rushed in. With the sound of gunfire, the sight of blood, and the screams of wounded soldiers, people soon realized this was no picnic. Fathers grabbed their children, and husbands called for their wives. They jumped into their wagons and onto their horses. Some were “caught in a stampede of retreating Union troops.”3 One spectator, a congressman from New York, was caught by Confederate soldiers and kept prisoner for nearly six months.4
That was the last time onlookers took picnic baskets to a battlefield. Or was it?
Could it be that we make a similar mistake? Could it be that we embrace a similar false assumption? Is it possible we do today what the Washingtonians did then? According to the Bible, we’re in a war that’s a-raging.
Our fight is not against people on earth but against the rulers and authorities and the powers of this world’s darkness, against the spiritual powers of evil in the heavenly world. That is why you need to put on God’s full armor. Then on the day of evil you will be able to stand strong. And when you have finished the whole fight, you will still be standing. So stand strong, with the belt of truth tied around your waist and the protection of right living on your chest. On your feet wear the Good News of peace to help you stand strong. And also use the shield of faith with which you can stop all the burning arrows of the Evil One. (Eph. 6:12–16 NCV)
The Bible names a real and present foe of our faith: the devil. The Greek word for “devil” is diabolos, and it shares a root with the verb diaballein, which means “to split.”5 The devil is a splitter, a divider, a wedge driver. He divided Adam and Eve from God in the garden and would like to separate you from God as well. He wants to take unbelievers to hell and make life hell for believers.
Do such thoughts sound outdated? Do you file discussions of the devil in the manila folder labeled “superstition” or “antiquated religion”? If so, you aren’t alone. According to the research of the Barna Group, “Four out of ten Christians (40%) strongly agreed that Satan ‘is not a living being but is a symbol of evil.’ An additional two out of ten Christians (19%) said they ‘agree somewhat’ with that perspective. A minority of Christians [35%] indicated that they believe Satan is real. . . . The remaining [participants] were not sure what they believe about the existence of Satan.”6
Most Christians, in other words, refuse to believe in the existence of Satan.
Surely the current ridicule and skepticism with which he is viewed must please him deeply. As long as he isn’t taken seriously, he is free to work his evil. After all, if you can’t diagnose the source of your ills, how can you fight them? The devil wants to make your life a mess and to keep his name out of it.
But God doesn’t let him do so.
The Bible traces Satan’s activities to a moment of rebellion that occurred sometime between the creation of the universe and the appearance of the snake in the garden. When God created the world, “God saw all that he had made, and it was very good” (Gen. 1:31). In the beginning everything was good. Every drop of water, every tree, every animal, and, by extension, every angel. Yet sometime between the events described in Genesis 1 and those described in Genesis 3, an angel led a coup against God and was cast from heaven. The prophet Ezekiel described the downfall.
This is what the Sovereign LORD says:
“You were the seal of perfection,
full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.
You were in Eden,
the garden of God;
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.
You were blameless in your ways
from the day you were created
till wickedness was found in you.” (Ezek. 28:12–15)
To whom God was speaking? This being
• was in Eden,
• was anointed as a guardian angel,
• dwelt on God’s holy mountain, and
• was blameless from the day he was made until the day wickedness appeared.
Who could this be but Satan? This prophecy is nothing less than a description of the fall of the devil.
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, guardian cherub,
from among the fiery stones.
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. (vv. 16–17)
Lucifer’s heart became proud. He was not content to worship; he had to be worshipped (Isa. 14:12–15). He was not content to bow before God’s throne; he had to sit upon it. No wonder pride is a sin God hates (Prov. 6:16–17; 8:13). No wonder Paul urged Timothy not to be too quick to promote a new convert “or he may become conceited and fall under the same judgment as the devil” (1 Tim. 3:6).
Satan succumbed to pride, and as a result he was cast out of heaven. Jesus referred to that eviction, saying, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven” (Luke 10:18). When lightning falls, the descent is brief and electric. When Satan fell, his descent was the same.
But though he is cast out of heaven, he is not out of our lives. “Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8). He comes “only to steal and kill and destroy” (John 10:10). You’re enjoying happiness? Satan wants to steal it. You’ve discovered joy? He’ll try to kill it. Love your spouse? Satan would love to destroy your marriage. He is the enemy of your God-given destiny and longs to be the destroyer of your soul.
Don’t dismiss him.
Agree with the witness of Scripture. From the Bible’s first to final pages, we are confronted with an arrogant, anti-God force of great cunning and power. He is the devil, the serpent, the strong one, the lion, the wicked one, the accuser, the god of this age, the murderer, the prince of this world, the prince of the power of the air, Beelzebub, and Belial. He oversees a conglomeration of spiritual forces: principalities, powers, dominions, thrones, princes, lords, gods, angels, unclean and wicked spirits.
Satan appears in the garden at the beginning. He is cast into the fire in the end. He tempted David, bewildered Saul, and waged an attack on Job. He is in the Gospels, the book of Acts, the writings of Paul, Peter, John, James, and Jude. Serious students of Scripture must be serious about Satan.
Jesus was. He squared off against Satan in the wilderness (Matt. 4:1–11). He pegged Satan as the one who snatches the good news from the hearts of the hearers (Mark 4:15; Matt. 13:19). Prior to the crucifixion Jesus proclaimed, “Now shall the ruler of this world be cast out” (John 12:31 RSV). Jesus saw Satan not as a mythological image, not an invention of allegory. He saw the devil as a superhuman narcissist. When Jesus taught us to pray, he did not say, “Deliver us from nebulous negative emotions.” He said, “Deliver us from the evil one” (Matt. 6:13).
We play into the devil’s hand when we pretend he does not exist. The devil is a real devil.
But, and this is huge, the devil is a defeated devil. Were Satan to read the Bible (something he won’t do), he would be utterly discouraged. Reference after reference makes this clear: the devil’s days are numbered.
“Having disarmed the powers and authorities, [Jesus] made a public spectacle of [the forces of evil], triumphing over them by the cross” (Col. 2:15). Jesus stripped Satan of certain victory. He and his minions are being held on a short leash until the final judgment. On that day, the great Day, Jesus will cast Satan into a lake of fire from which the devil will never return (2 Peter 2:4; Jude v. 6). Evil will have its day and appear to have the sway, but God will have his say and ultimately win the day.
My friend Carter Conlon has ministered in New York City for more than two decades. Yet he spent many of his early years on a farm. He recalls a barnyard scene that illustrates the status of Satan. A family of cats lived in the barn. The mama cat would often be spotted in the field with a mouse. She would taunt and tease it until the mouse was exhausted. She would then bring the rodent to the kittens to teach them how to catch and kill it. Carter remembers how the mouse, upon seeing the kittens, would rise up on its hind feet and prepare to fight. The rodent would bare its tiny yellow teeth and flare its little claws. It would then attempt to hiss. Its only hope was to convince the kittens it was something other than what it was: a defeated, wimpy, outnumbered mouse. It had already lost. The kittens didn’t even have to fight to win the victory.7
Jesus has already defeated the rat of heaven as well. Be alert to the devil, but don’t be intimidated by him. Learn to recognize his stench. Since he comes to steal, kill, and destroy (John 10:10), wherever you see heists, death, and destruction, turn to God in prayer. Since his name means “divider,” wherever you see divorce, rejection, and isolation, you know the culprit. Go immediately to Scripture. Stand on the promises of God regarding Satan:
The God who brings peace will soon defeat Satan and give you power over him. (Rom. 16:20 NCV)
God’s Spirit, who is in you, is greater than the devil, who is in the world. (1 John 4:4 NCV)
God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. (1 Cor. 10:13)
Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. (James 4:7)
[The devil] is filled with fury,
because he knows that his time is short. (Rev. 12:12)
Put on God’s full armor . . . with the belt of truth tied around your waist and the protection of right living on your chest. On your feet wear the Good News of peace to help you stand strong. And also use the shield of faith with which you can stop all the burning arrows of the Evil One. (Eph. 6:13–16 NCV)
Soldiers know better than to saunter onto the battlefield wearing nothing but shorts and sandals. They take care to prepare. They take every weapon into the conflict.
So must we! Every conflict is a contest with Satan and his forces. For that reason “though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds” (2 Cor. 10:3–4 NKJV).
What are these weapons? Prayer, worship, and Scripture. When we pray, we engage the power of God against the devil. When we worship, we do what Satan himself did not do: we place God on the throne. When we pick up the sword of Scripture, we do what Jesus did in the wilderness. He responded to Satan by proclaiming truth. And since Satan has a severe allergy to truth, he left Jesus alone.
Satan will not linger long where God is praised and prayers are offered.
Satan may be vicious, but he will not be victorious.
On several occasions I have known the name of the victor before the end of the contest. Being a pastor, I’m often unable to watch the Sunday football games. While I am preaching, the teams are playing. I don’t complain, however, since I can always record the games. So I do.
Yet on many Sundays a well-wishing parishioner will receive a text or e-mail and learn the outcome of the game and feel the burden to share it with me. I’ve considered wearing a sign that reads “Recording the game. Don’t tell me anything!”
I remember one contest in particular. My beloved Dallas Cowboys were playing a must-win game. I’d been careful to set the recorder and was looking forward to an afternoon of first downs and touchdowns. I avoided any mention of the event. I even avoided eye contact with anyone I thought might spill the beans. I made it as far as my car in the parking lot when an enthusiastic fan shouted out to me, “Max, did you hear the news? The Cowboys won!!!”
Grrr.
Gone was the suspense. Gone was the edge-of-the-seat anxiety. Gone was the nail biting and eye ducking. Even though I knew the outcome, I still wanted to watch the game. As I did, I made a delightful discovery. I could watch stress-free! The Cowboys fell behind in the second quarter, but I didn’t worry. I knew the outcome. We fumbled the ball with six minutes to play. I didn’t panic. I knew the winner. We needed a touchdown in the final minute. No problem. The victory was certain.
So is yours. Between now and the final whistle, you will have reason to be anxious. You are going to fumble the ball. The devil will seem to gain the upper hand. Some demon will intercept your dreams and destiny. All that is good will appear to lose. But you do not need to worry. You and I know the final score.
The next time you smell his stinky breath, remind him of the promise he is loath to hear: “The God who brings peace will soon defeat Satan and give you power over him” (Rom. 16:20 NCV).
It’s a battle, so don’t pack a picnic basket.
Yet it is a battle God has won, so don’t give the devil more than a passing glance.