Readings for such a time as this(3): - from: Balancing the Christian Life, by Charles C. Ryrie The Wiles Of The Devil ACCORDING TO THE DICTIONARY, a wile is a trick or stratagem, a sly artifice, deceit. The wiles of Satan are a major concern for the Christian who would live a spiritual life. And yet, as in other areas of the spiritual life, this too is a matter which needs balance. There are some believers who see Satan at work in every detail of life; others fail to recognize this activity at all. Some, strange to say, actually or at least practically deny his real existence. Apparently there are those who feel that Satan merely exists in the mind of man; therefore, the fact that we think he exists is the only genuine existence he has. However, the Scriptures teach that Satan was alive before man was ever created; thus he existed before there was a human mind to conceive of or recognize his existence (Ezek. 28:13-15). Furthermore, every reference by our Lord to the evil one is a proof of his real existence (Matt. 13:39; 25:41; Luke 10:18; John 13:31; 16:11), or else one is forced to conclude that Christ did not know what He was talking about. Of course, modern theology explains these references as Christ accommodating Himself to the ignorance of the people of His day; but such accommodation, if it were so, would invalidate His entire message. Satan exists. The Bible and our Lord attest to that fact. But—getting back to the wiles or tricks of Satan—how can Satan be so clever? There are at least three factors that contribute to his mastery of the art of trickery. For one thing, he belongs to an order of creatures that is higher than man (Heb. 2:7). He is an angel, though fallen now, and among the angels he was a cherub (Ezek. 28:14). This would seem to give Satan a constitutional superiority over man. For another thing, Satans experience is far greater than any mans could ever be. By his very longevity Satan has acquired a breadth and depth of experience which he matches against the limited knowledge of man. He has observed other believers in every conceivable situation, thus enabling him to predict with accuracy how we will respond to circumstances. Although Satan is not omniscient, his wide experience and observation of man throughout his entire history on earth give him knowledge which is far superior to anything any man could have. Apparently, too, Satan knows the Bible; therefore, a believer has no particular advantage over him in this area either. From the time of his first sin until his final defeat, Satans plan and purpose have been, are, and always will be to seek to establish a rival rule to Gods kingdom.A third advantage Satan has is his ability to transform himself in a variety of ways. These vary all the way from presenting himself as an angel of light and his ministers as ministers of righteousness (2 Cor. 11:14-15) to showing himself as a dragon with horns and a tail (Rev. 12:3). Although this latter representation is often said not to be in the Bible, it is; and it is there to help us realize the fierceness of Satans nature as he engages in a death struggle with Gods people. To sum up: Satan because of his constitutional superiority, his great knowledge, and his chameleon character is a foe whose wiles are not to be taken lightly by any Christian. Satans Plan From the time of his first sin until his final defeat, Satans plan and purpose have been, are, and always will be to seek to establish a rival rule to Gods kingdom. He is promoting a system of which he is the head and which stands in opposition to God and His rule in the universe. But to carry forward this program, Satan uses a plan which is extremely deceptive because of its subtlety. Instead of promoting a kingdom whose characteristics are exactly opposite to the features of Gods rule, he seeks to counterfeit Gods program in the world. Counterfeiting the will of God has been, presently is, and always will be his plan as long as he has freedom. Of course, counterfeiting has a single purpose, and that is to create something as similar to the original as possible and to do it by means of a shortcut. If you were going to counterfeit one dollar bills, you would be foolish to put Lincolns picture on them, for that would obviously show them up as counterfeit. You would place Washingtons picture on them so as to make them as similar to the genuine article as possible. But you would take some shortcut—perhaps a less accurate and thus imperfect engraving—thus revealing your work as counterfeit to the experts. But in all features of their appearance, the bills would have to appear to be just the same as genuine ones. Satans plan is a counterfeit plan to Gods, and this is the most important fact to know about all of his purposes in the world. If you grasp this, then you will be well on the way to a successful defense against him. If not, it will be all the more easy for him to deceive you. He is a master counterfeiter, and he is trying to promote something that is similar, not dissimilar, to the plan and will of God. Satan, with all of his intelligence and long experience, knows that if he puts something which is clearly evil in the path of a Christian, he is apt to be alert to the fact that this comes from Satan, and, as a consequence, be on guard against it. But if Satan can offer something which though good in itself is not the best, he will be more likely to gain the victory over the believer. Satan boldly announced this counterfeit policy when he first sinned. In Isaiah 14:14 it is recorded of him that he declared his opposition to God this way: I will make myself like the Most High. There is a counterfeits-like, not unlike, the Most High. We have already examined how Satan pawned this off on Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden in Genesis 3. He offered Eve the tantalizing prize of being like God, knowing good and evil, by enticing her to take something which was good for food, pleasant to the eyes, and productive of knowledge. It all seemed good, except that eating of that fruit was contrary to the revealed will of God. At the temptation of Christ, Satan tried the same counterfeiting approach. The offer of food was not inherently evil. The suggestion that Christ cast Himself off the pinnacle of the temple without doing Himself harm would have brought Him (had He done it) recognition from the people which was His right to have. To have the kingdoms of the world is His prerogative, and He will rule over them in a future day. Actually the items Satan offered Christ (sustenance, recognition, and power) were not wrong in themselves, nor were they things Christ should not have had. What was wrong was the way Satan was tempting our Lord with these things; for he was trying to obtain these glories without the suffering involved, particularly the suffering of His death on the cross. The ends Satan offered were right and proper for Christ to have; but the means involved a shortcut, by-passing the cross. It was a clever counterfeit, and completely in line with Satans usual method. Satans open opposition to the gospel was in the form of false religion-a tactic which he is still using today in the form of both antichristian religions and so-called Christian cults.As we come to the end of this age, Satan, through his demons, is promoting false doctrine (1 Tim. 4:1) with the purpose of producing in people a form of godliness but without the true power of God (2 Tim. 3:5). Here is another counterfeit—a semblance of godliness, not ungodliness, but that which leaves out the power of God. But doesnt Satan promote evil too? Yes, he does. Ananias and Sapphiras lying hypocrisy was induced by Satan (Acts 5:3), and infidelity is a temptation from Satan (1 Cor. 7:5). And, of course, all of his good counterfeits are evil. The point to remember is that Satan will do anything and everything he can to detract from the will of God. Counterfeiting in the form of substituting something seemingly good for the plan of God is likely his preferred way of doing things, but he cannot always exercise his preference. So he will do anything he can and work against people in any way, at any point, and on any level he can whether that means using evil or good. Satans Devices In carrying out his design to counterfeit the plan of God, Satan has many devices which he uses. Furthermore, he will employ them at any time and in any variety and combination of ways. But to be forewarned is to be forearmed. 1. We have already emphasized that Satan is the master counterfeiter. This is the device of deceit. Another example of this tactic is his sowing of tares among the wheat in this age (Matt. 13:24-30, 36-42). Tares are the plant known as the bearded darnel which in the blade is indistinguishable from wheat. Since tares are unsuitable as human food they must be separated from the wheat, which can be done with greater ease when the grain matures. Sowing tares in a field for purposes of revenge was a crime under the Roman government. In the parable, our Lord likens the tares which Satan sows to children of the devil, while the wheat symbolizes the children of God. In sowing the two together in the field (which is the world), the devil today deceives many. People who are in reality tares may be deceived into thinking they are wheat because they have made a profession of Christianity and exhibit some of the characteristics of believers. This gives them a false sense of security. Undoubtedly, there are many tares sitting in church pews and serving on church boards who do not realize that they are headed for a furnace of fire where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matt. 13:42). I often think that Satan is far more satisfied with unsaved people who are in church on Sunday morning than with those who may be playing golf or sleeping off a hangover, for the pew-sitters are more apt to think that they are all right, whereas those not in church might have some sense or feeling that all is not well. This is one of the ways Satan deceives the world. 2. Sometimes Satan employs open opposition to the work of God in order to thwart its progress. There are several examples of this in the Bible. When Paul was in Corinth writing his first letter back to the Thessalonians he expressed his desire to return to Thessalonica to strengthen the young church; but, said he, Satan thwarted us (1 Thess. 2:18). This hindrance apparently refers to the security, or bond, which Jason had to guarantee and which involved an agreement that Paul would not return to that city again and become a public nuisance (Acts 17:9). Paul saw this action on the part of the rulers of Thessalonica as an action of Satan. Sometime later, the risen Lord warned the church at Smyrna: The devil is about to cast some of you into prison, that you may be tested (Rev. 2:10). Here was open opposition instigated by Satan using unbelievers to seize some of the believers and imprison them. At the same time the church at Pergamum was said to dwell where Satans throne is (Rev. 2:13). This could refer either to the worship of the Roman emperor, or to the worship of Zeus at his magnificent altar on the Acropolis, or to the worship of the Greek gods in the temple. Or, of course, Satans throne could be a reference to all three forms of pagan worship. The point is that in this instance Satans open opposition to the gospel was in the form of false religion—a tactic which he is still using today in the form of both antichristian religions and so-called Christian cults. The form of the ritual may be very beautiful, the standards may even be moral, but if the saving death of Jesus Christ is left out, it is a false, satanic system. 3. In promoting his ends, whether deceptive or openly, Satan often employs a systematic theology to appeal to the intellectual pride of man. The church at Thyatria was warned about accepting the deep teachings of Satan (Rev. 2:24). Apparently a false prophetess in that church (whose actual name may or may not have been Jezebel) was promoting immorality and idolatry (v. 20) by incorporating these sins within a doctrinal system which in the last days will be characterized by doctrines of demons (1 Tim. 4:1), which oddly enough, will include teaching asceticism as a means of trying to please God and gain His favor. Abstention, rather than indulgence, will be part of the satanic systematic theology of the last days. It has sometimes been said that more likely one will find Satan at work in a seminary than in a bar. Undoubtedly, he will work wherever he sees opportunities, but perhaps he needs to be less concerned about the bar, where mans own lusts will automatically take over, than about the seminary, where he fights for the minds of men and, if successful, can poison the stream at its source. 4. One of the most frequently used devices of Satan is the applying of pressure on the believer in various ways. It may be pressure that arises from the inability to maintain a good course of action. This was true of some women who had embarked on a life of self-denial which proved to be too severe for them. In their failure they had followed Satan. The pressure of that life of self-denial was too great, and the embarrassment that would have resulted from admitting it too overwhelming; so they yielded to satanic pressure (1 Tim. 5:14-15). People who are in reality tares may be deceived into thinking they are wheat because they have made a profession of christianity and exhibit some of the characteristics of believers.In another instance, Paul warned that Satan could easily turn the proper remorse of a sin-burdened conscience into an occasion of further sin (2 Cor. 2:11). To prevent this the church needed not only to forgive but also to restore the brother who had confessed and turned from his sin. Otherwise Satan might be able to put the man under the pressure of continued self-accusation which would lead him into more sin. Continued introspection can often be the opening wedge for additional satanic pressure on the believer. These two examples show that pressures can come from personally stepping out of the will of God (1 Tim. 5) or from others not doing His will (2 Cor. 2). Often Satan does not have to enter the picture early or even frequently, since we can be led astray of our own lusts or be involved in a circumstance not of our own making. Pride or covetousness will sometimes lead a believer to seek to acquire something which of itself is neither good nor bad. But to gain it may require extra work which may lead to the neglect of the family which in turn will bring pressures that Satan can use to defeat that Christian. Too, the circumstances of twentieth-century life are so increasingly complex as to demand more and more guidance from the Lord so that an individual knows when to say yes and when to say no, so that he avoids exposing himself to pressure which Satan might use as a leverage against him. We may be sure of one thing—he will use every advantage we give him. 5. Others of his devices (some of which we shall look at later in more detail) include discouragement, sidetrack, temptation, stagnation and, of course, any ruse which would keep the believer from normal and proper maturity in the spiritual life. The Believers Defense All too frequently people run to one of two extremes in their thinking about Satan and his attacks on the believer. Some become over-occupied with him and, as a result, see Satan actively and intimately concerned with every problem or situation that goes wrong in their lives. I heard recently of a young Christian athlete who, every time he missed a shot, felt that he was out of the will of God and under attack by Satan. With help like this Satan receives credit for many feats he really has nothing to do with. We need to remember that within our own beings is the capacity to initiate, promote, and commit sin. Mix in the world with the sin nature and there are two enemies which are more than able to overpower the Christian without involving Satan. Over occupation with Satan can also lead to morbid introspection in which not only every action but also every motive is minutely examined in the light of Satans possible connection. On the other hand, this undue concern with Satan can sometimes provide a person with unjustified excuses for his actions. Oh, Satan did it becomes an out for the person to relieve him of responsibility for committing sin. But, of course, Satan does it through the person, who is involved in the responsibility for the action, and not against his will. In contrast to overoccupation with Satan, there is the opposite attitude which underestimates his activity in the believers life. Undoubtedly, Satan is pleased when he can promote such deception, for if the believer does not recognize the source of the problem as being Satan, he cannot attack it in the right way. The trend today to seek to explain everything in terms of natural phenomena has without a doubt provided Satan with a mask under which to work. For instance, personal emotional difficulties, church problems, adverse circumstances are seldom attributed to Satan. Indeed, to do so almost seems foolish, but it may be more foolish not to do so! Somewhere between these two extremes lies a proper balance, but achieving it is not always easy. We need to be alert to all of Satans possible devices, for he is at work attacking, deceiving, counterfeiting, and seeking to defeat the believer at every opportunity. Thank God we are not left defenseless. Provision has been made to meet his attacks. In two places in the New Testament we are told that our Lord Jesus lives in heaven to make intercession for His children (Rom. 8:34; Heb. 7:25). Apparently this work of praying for us has two aspects: curative and preventive. The curative is necessary to sustain fellowship when we sin (1 John 2:1); the preventive helps keep us from sinning, particularly when attacked by Satan. The Lord gave us an insight into this in a petition He made just before His crucifixion when He said to the Father, I do not ask Thee to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one (John 17:15). The word evil as it appears in this verse can be either neuter (evil things) or masculine (evil one—Satan). The latter is the meaning John seems to prefer in his writings (cf. 1 John 2:13-14; 3:12; 5:18-19). Thus Christ is asking the Father to keep believers from Satan. What this means in terms of sparing us from attacks of Satan we cannot know fully this side of heaven, but there we may learn all that the intercessory work of our Lord has meant on our behalf in defeating our adversary. This, of course, is a defense which He does entirely for us; we have no part except to receive its benefits. A second line of defense for the believer is to know that the purposes of God may on occasion include using Satan to teach a particular lesson. In such instances our defense is to learn the lesson God has for us even though He may be using Satan in the process of teaching it. That was, of course, what God did in the case of Job when He permitted Satan to be used to carry out His own purposes in Jobs life. A similar thing happened in Pauls life (2 Cor. 12:7-10) when the Lord sent a messenger of Satan to inflict some kind of thorn in the flesh on him in order to keep him from getting proud over the revelations God had given him. The lesson Paul learned was the sufficiency of Gods grace. Reliance on that was the only way he could defeat Satan and submit to the will of God. Such involvement of the will of God, Satan, and the believer at the same time is often inscrutable; yet it happens. It is always of primary importance in defeating Satan to take the proper attitude in relation to him. Though we have the power of God on our side, it is never wise to assume that victory is automatically guaranteed. To remember that we are engaging a mighty foe, the greatest of all of Gods creatures, is to assume a proper attitude toward Satan. The example of this is recorded in Jude 9 where we are reminded that even as great an angel as Michael the archangel did not dare take on Satan alone but called on the Lord to rebuke him. No Christian, then, should ever feel that he is wise enough or powerful enough to engage Satan apart from complete dependence on the Lord. A definite stand against Satan on the part of the believer is essential for victory. Why say this? Is it not self-evident? Yes, it is, but many Christians will never realize victory over the devil simply because they have never decided to take a stand against him. They are still flirting with the sin or temptation Satan puts in their path. They may even pray earnestly for victory and piously speak of their desire for relief, but in their hearts is still the desire to indulge and yield if only occasionally to some pet sin. Only a definite decision to take decisive stand against the wicked one can ever put them on the road to victory. Our feet should be prepared to do the will and work of God because we have experienced the peace of God which the gospel brings.James wrote of this, using a verb tense that means to take a decisive stand, when he said, Resist the devil, and he will flee from you (4:7). Likewise, the believers armor is given in order that he might take a stand against his adversary (Eph. 6:11, 13-14). Such a stand is vital as a base of operations on which to wage the continual warfare that comes; without it there can be only retreat and defeat. With it there can be victory, though not without continued warfare. 5. A rather simple and concise formula for defeating Satan is given in Revelation 12:11: And they overcame him because of the blood of the Lamb and because of the word of their testimony, and they did not love their life even to death. There are three elements in the formula. The first, the basis of all victory over Satan, is the blood of the Lamb. This is not some mystical or even magical application of nearly literal blood today as the believer claims it or dips into its reservoir. The blood of the Lamb was shed on a hill outside Jerusalem, and that became the clear evidence of death having occurred. The blood is not in heaven; the crucified Christ is, and, as such, He has defeated Satan (Col. 2:15). And His victory makes our victory possible. This is what is meant by overcoming Satan by the blood of the Lamb. The second element in the formula is something we can do to make Christs victory applicable in our lives—be positive and consistent in our testimony for the Lord. It is a fatal mistake to believe that while faith in the death of Christ is required, testimony for Christ is optional. No testimony by both life and mouth means no defeat for Satan. The Lord reminded His disciples: You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do men light a lamp, and put it under the peckmeasure, but on the lampstand; and it gives light to all who are in the house (Matt. 5:14-15). Like the candle under a bushel, a testimony hidden under cowardice, compromise, worldliness, or indifferent neglect will be extinguished. Sometimes (and I hope I am not misunderstood in saying this) a defeated Christian does not need to pray more or read his Bible more—he needs to be out witnessing more. The third feature of this formula for victory is a basic attitude toward life itself—an attitude of self-sacrifice to the point of being perfectly willing to die for Christ. An attitude like this will put ones set of values in life in right perspective more quickly than anything else. Defeating Satan requires a martyr spirit. Whoever wishes to save his life shall lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospels shall save it (Mark 8:35). 6. Finally, victory over Satan requires the constant use of the armor which God has provided for the Christian (Eph. 6:11-18). This includes truth which, like a girdle, holds everything together and gives proper orientation to life. This, of course, is the truth of God, not the wisdom of men, and it needs to be the basis for how we look at everything. Finances and friendships, activities and attitudes, family and fun, science and psychology must all be governed by the truth of God as revealed in the Scriptures. Righteousness is the breastplate to guard the vital organs of life. Is this the imputed righteousness we have by being in Christ? Of course. Is this the imparted righteousness which we live in daily life? Of course. Both are meant, for a righteous life has to be based on a righteous position, and a righteous position that does not manifest itself in godly living is probably not genuine. Our feet should be prepared to do the will and work of God because we have experienced the peace of God which the gospel brings. No stumbling and no slowing down should characterize the believer. Faith is the large shield that gives overall protection. This is not simply faith in the crises of life, but faith to overcome the tempter in the routine of life. We walk by faith and not by sight. Around the head goes the helmet of salvation. How many Christians seem to feel that they need saving only from the neck down! We have already noticed that the dedicated life begins with the renewing of the mind (Rom. 12:2); our thought life needs to experience the effects of salvation. The single offensive weapon is the sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God. This is not simply the written Word, for the particular word used here and translated word means spoken word. The sword of the Spirit then is the spoken proclamation of the written Word. It is not simply a New Testament carried in ones pocket, however good that may be; rather, it is the spoken testimony which we give with our lips. The sword of the Spirit of Ephesians 6:17 is the word of testimony of Revelation 12:11. The final feature of armor is prayer, not just mouthings of petitions, but Spirit-guided prayer. This is the armor provided for our protection, but God will not forcibly dress us in it. We have the responsibility to take it up (v. 13), and it will be a lifetime involvement. To be sure, we can put it all on in a moment, but developing skillful use of it requires a lifetime of practice. We may be sure too that Satan will seek to find the chinks in our armor in his unceasing and relentless fight against us. Let me conclude this chapter on the wiles of the devil by reminding you of parts of three verses which a speaker paraphrased and put together for me many years ago, and which have been a source of real assurance: Christ lives in me (Gal. 2:20); Greater is He who is in you, than he who is in the world (1 John 4:4); I will never leave you, nor will I ever forsake you (Heb. 13:5). Our Lord is our victory. Trust Him and use all the means He has provided to defeat the great enemy of our souls. - via WORDsearch10 #readingsforsuchatimeasthis #christjesus #vineofchristministries #theword #studyscripture #god #biblestudy #bible #jesus #faith
Posted on: Thu, 05 Dec 2013 01:25:03 +0000
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