Satan: Nemesis

Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world.” (1 Peter 5:8-9)

Unlike the movie Star Trek: Nemesis, the devil or Satan: Nemesis is a real and dangerous nemesis, leading the spiritual dark side with Dr Evil, Mini Me and his legions of demons. Satan is Hebrew for the adversary and he will act in subtle yet clever ways to turn us away from God. Recognizing his strategies and drawing on the power of God will enable us to beat the devil at his own game. Since our mind is the battlefield, Satan will try to get us to think in ways that are contrary to God’s Word, then act in ways that contradict God’s will for us. We therefore must read the Bible frequently, meditate on what it says, ask the Holy Spirit to renew our mind so that we’ll have A Beautiful Mind.

Satan wants us to believe more in sensational events than in God Himself. When we look for a quick fix rather than trusting God to act in His time and in His way, we’re vulnerable, because Satan tempts those who are frustrated by God. We need to focus on God rather than what we want and trust that He will always act in love, according to what's best for us. Jesus has done all for us to be saved at the cross, but Satan wants us to work for our salvation, because that puts the focus on the SELF rather than on God’s agape love. We already have the free gift of salvation based on faith, and therefore should share the gospel and serve Him out of love, not fear or pride.

Satan loves to feed our ego to get us to trust in our abilities rather than asking God to inject His power into our lives. We need to be humble, praise God and thank Him daily, ask Him for provision, and trust Him to provide it. Selfishness through pride and a lust for power led to Satan’s fall as one of God’s angels. He’ll convince us that thinking and acting selfishly is best, but it will never bring fulfillment. Rather than ask Mick Jagger for Satisfaction, let the love for God and others be our motivation so we’ll be blessed.

Satan smiles when we get angry, because anger has potential for destruction. Ask the Holy Spirit to help us in Anger Management, and seek to become a peacemaker. Satan wants us to believe that everything is relative, because universal truths point to God, who designed every realm – from the laws of gravity to the the spiritual law of sowing and reaping – with intrinsic truths.

The validity of any belief or organization should be measured not by its sincerity, but by its faithfulness to Biblical truth. The ways God works sometimes don’t make sense to us, because our perspectives are limited by space and time. Satan wants us to trust only in human reason, but standing firm in our faith in God, especially when His ways seem mysterious, will be much more rewarding. When we encounter situational ethics like abortion, Satan will have us twist God’s Word to justify choices that appear to be more appealing than what God says. We need to rely on the Word of God in all situations, and pray for the strength to do so without compromise.
Copyright © 2002 Eddy Ministries.
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