We are already Triumphant in Christ!
Romans 8:28-39
What can Satan and his war on Christ and His followers do to me? He can do to you only what God will allow for His glory. God will not allow anything to happen to you that you cannot handle and that you will not grow from to be better used to further Christ's Kingdom and Glory (Job 1:12; 2:6; Luke 22:31, 32). In other words, Satan cannot do squat, unless it is authorized for/by God. And guess what else? Unless it is for our benefit (Rom. 8:28-39)! However, we are to take Satan's malice and cunning seriously. We need to know that he can inflict both physical and mental harm (Mark 5:1-15; 9:17; 18; Luke 11:14). We are to know his names and strategies so we can combat his attacks (see our article on The Names of Satan). At the same time, we are not to fear him in terror like some Hollywood movie, because he has already been defeated (Matt 12:29)!
The devil gets a hold on us when we fail to comply with the previous precepts of humility, Fruit, and Character! He will attack to discourage and sway us away from God and His ways. Our defense is simple; we are to stand firm in Christ, pray, and allow His work in us to be demonstrated; what we alone would bring to the table would just be fuel for the devil and his ways!
The Good news is this; God gives us all of the armor we need to defend ourselves (2 Cor. 10:4). So, we are to trust Him and use Him and His gifts and tools! We are to have them on, holding them and using them, especially militant prayer! It is our responsibility to have the armor of God on in order to be ready for attack. If we are watchful and prepared, then we are ready for the attack of the devil, his demons, and those fiery darts. We may not all know how to attack with the Sword of the Spirit; that is why we have the rest of the armor. If we are not ready to properly use the Sword Of the Spirit, then we need to do as 2 Timothy 2:15 calls us to: "Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." When we have all of the gear of the armor, then we are to, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints." (Eph 6:18)
When we are in Christ, we already have the greatest assets and powers at hand. We have the Ultimate LOVE! We have the Ultimate, incredible assurance that nothing can separate us from God's love. Thus, if God is for us, then we need not fear anything that Satan or the world brings our way such as trials, troubles, problems, setbacks, highs, lows, the devil, or even death! Just take a look at Romans 8:31-39. These are the verses that we can look to as the theme for our victory over Spiritual Warfare and our walk with Christ, especially when we go through the hard-hitting setbacks that life throws at us! There should be no reason in our lives to keep us from growing in His love and living the triumphant, full, Christian life with passion and conviction, serving for the glory of our Lord no matter what we have been through or will ever go through.
When we are in Christ, God is speaking in our behalf. Thus, we can have trust, confidence, encouragement, and assurance-even from the human perspective. Just look at Paul, who knew suffering and the magnitude of a God who loves and cares. We too can know what it means to live a righteous life and grow, both through and on past Satan's war on us. Why? Because God is for us (Psalm 56:9; 118:6; Isa. 33:21; 50:4-9; Ezek 34:30; 36:9)!
Christ wants you to be triumphant in your Christian life. He seeks to save you and give you what you need so you can grow and have meaning and abundance of life. In contrast, Satan wants you to be miserable and dysfunctional; he seeks to take away anything that can help you to have what he has given up. Why would anyone fall for Satan's methods? However, we can take heart and assurance in Christ that Satan has been defeated; he has lost, and he cannot have you or your church unless you give it to him by seeking him and not HIM. The bottom line is this: Satan can easily manipulate and destroy us. We have no chance or hope against his ancient wisdom and power. However, when we are in Christ, he does not have a chance against us! Satan can easily handle us, but he can't handle HIM!
No power on earth or in the universe can conquer God in us!
Next, "When Satan Attacks," what we can do to Stand up to Spiritual Warfare
Discussion Questions:
- Do you like to be manipulated, to have what you did not earn taken away from you, leaving it to become meaningless and rotten? How is this like dealing with the devil?
- What can Satan and his war on Christ and His followers do to you?
- What do you think is the maximum that Satan and his war on Christ's followers do to you?
- How can too much of a good thing can be very bad?
- Do you fully know that you are protected, that God will not allow anything to happen to you that you cannot handle?
- Do you realize that when you do go through something bad, you can grow from it to be better used to further Christ's Kingdom and Glory?
- How can you be better at taking Satan's malice and cunning seriously?
- How are you now better able to combat his attacks? What do you still need to learn and do?
- What do you need to do to more fully take hold of your dependence on God, seeking His will, and being in prayer?
- How can you encourage others that they can better handle this and to grow from it?
- What does it mean to you to cling to the cross? How will confessing your sins and seeking forgiveness from God and others whom you have offended help you? Now, what are you going to do about it?
- Anything that gets in the way of Christ and your growth in Him can be from Satan, including sports, education, friends, TV, movies, or cars, etc. Can you name some? What can you do about it?
© 1999, 2007 R. J. Krejcir Ph.D., Schaeffer Institute of Church Leadership, www.churchleadership.org
