Not Today, Satan (Ephesians 6:11)
Last week we began the final section of Ephesians. This is a section I want us to slow down and think more about because we are in a spiritual war, and we need to be ready for it. What does that mean? Some of you might say, "I don't feel like I'm in a spiritual war." That might mean a few things. It might mean that you are currently in a rest period. Be grateful and prepare for battle because it's coming. Or it may be that you are already defeated, and you don't know it. The third possibility is that you are in a spiritual war, but you didn't know that's what it was called. In any case, this is one of the most critical sections of scripture to prepare us for the life-long battle.
Ephesians 6:10--18 (ESV) --- 10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. 11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. 12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. 13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. 14 Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. 16 In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; 17 and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, 18 praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints,
Today, we will start looking at the first piece of armor, but before we do, I want to understand why we need this type of armor. This is not your typical armor. Notice that we are not physical resources. It's not about kevlar, steel, and titanium. It's also not about having the most money or power. These are all resources that God has given us to fight. These have no effect against this enemy. This tells us that we aren't facing an enemy like anything we have ever faced on earth. So I want us to start our discussion of the Armor of God by considering the nature of our enemy.
Schemes
Verse 11 tells us that we need to stand against the schemes of the Devil. The word scheme is like the word methodology. The Devil has a scheme or methodology for bringing about our defeat. What are those schemes? We have a hint of his schemes in his name. Did you know that the name Devil means deceiver? Another name the Devil is given is Satan. That means accuser. So in those two words, we have a basic understanding of what his schemes are all about. He wants to deceive us so that he can accuse us. That has been his plan from the very beginning.
Genesis
The schemes of Satan are easily seen by looking throughout the Bible. In Genesis, Satan comes to Eve, and he starts the conversation with, "Did God actually say, 'You shall not eat of any tree in the garden.'" Think about that for a second. Doesn't he want them to feel like they have been cheated? He is planting that seed in them by exaggerating the limitation God has placed on them. He wants them to see that God is not fair, so he starts with this over-exaggeration. Then he goes on to contradict God's word, saying, "You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." Do you see how he uses their fear of missing out and their selfishness against them?
How often do we fall for these same lies? Every time God tells us not to do something, we wonder what it would be like to do it. For example, he tells us to love and respect one another, but instead, we fall for over-exaggeration like, "All men are lazy and all women are controlling" or "Everyone associated with X political party has given into Satan." There are a million other examples like this that go against the simple command to love and respect one another. These over-exaggerations and generalizations are full of lies. We need to be careful not to let these distorted projections of ourselves or those around us affect us.
Job
Another important example is found in the book of Job. Job's story is important because it shows us Satan's attack on a strong and righteous son of God. In the story, God tells Satan about Job and points out that Job is blameless and upright. Satan has no grounds for accusation, but he wants to deceive Job into sinning. So listen to how he responds to Job's reputation.
Job 1:9--11 (ESV) --- 9 Then Satan answered the Lord and said, “Does Job fear God for no reason? 10 Have you not put a hedge around him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. 11 But stretch out your hand and touch all that he has, and he will curse you to your face.”
He asks, "Does Job fear God for nothing?" This is a bizarre concept to Satan. All men who fear God do so for what they can get out of him. So Satan tells God to remove what he has and watch him. He believes that Job worships his possessions with his heart. Worshipping God is just a means to an end. What happens? Job loses everything but his wife and his health. He loses his family and his prosperity, but he remains faithful to God and blesses his name. He won the spiritual battle.
In the second stage of the battle, Satan wants to bring physical suffering to Job.
Job 2:4--5 (ESV) --- 4 Then Satan answered the Lord and said, “Skin for skin! All that a man has he will give for his life. 5 But stretch out your hand and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse you to your face.”
Job is impressive in his lack of concern over his possessions, but surely he loves himself more than he loves God. So Satan asks to cause Job tremendous pain, thinking he will surely curse God. What's interesting about this event is that Job's wife is used to influence him. She has lost everything, and I imagine that she hates to see Job suffer like this. So she encourages him to curse God and die. This is why Satan let his wife survive. He wanted to use her against Job, but Job didn't give in to the temptation. He doesn't bless God, but he doesn't curse him either.
As the story continues, Satan uses other friends to push Job to the pride of which he ultimately repents. But from this story, we learn that Satan knows our tendency to be selfish and self-serving. Do we serve God for what he will give us? Is our service all about what we can get? We also learn that Satan uses trials and other people to drive a wedge between God and us.
Israel
For the sake of time, we will consider all of Israel together. Think about all of the sins of Israel. What brought about their sin? Is that not all Satan's working? From the moment Israel was saved from captivity in Egypt, they pursued their way and acted like God was unfair. They were falling for the same traps as Adam and Eve. Even the best among Israel fell to Satan's deceptions. Saul gets chewed up and spit out. Even after all of the blessings God gave David, he fell to the lie that adultery will satisfy more than God's blessings. Solomon, Ahab, and many other kings fell to Satan. Even the best fell short.
God letting Israel struggle against Satan seems uncaring, but did he not help them? He helped them by giving them the law and by offering to help them whenever they needed him. But in the end, Israel could not defeat Satan by their own power. God gave them the law to strengthen them, but knowing the law of God was not enough to overcome the temptations of Satan. It's not enough to know a little bit about God's will for you. They needed something else.
The New Testament
When we come to the New Testament, the curtain is pulled back on Satan. Jesus reveals all of the inner workings of Satan, like exposing the deception of a magician so that we won't fall for his tricks. He tells us that men who are focused on this earth and want to live an easy life are influenced by Satan. He calls Peter Satan in Matthew 16:23 because Peter was discouraging Jesus from suffering for God. He also tells the religious leaders that their father is Satan in John 8:31-46 because they do not want to believe Jesus and submit to him.
John 8:44 (ESV) --- 44 You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.
Here is a description of the way Satan works. It also describes the working of those who follow him. Liars are following the ways of Satan.
The overall message of the New Testament is that Jesus faces Satan and defeats him. First, Jesus conquers Satan in the wilderness of Matthew 4. Satan tempts Jesus three times by offering him food, power, and a comfortable life. But Jesus would rather die than give into Satan's temptations.
Second, we read about Jesus casting out demons and giving his disciples power over the demonic forces of Satan. Overall, the tone of the NT is that Satan is losing power. Jesus is binding him up so that he can't deceive people anymore. The "god of this world" and "prince of the power of the air" might kill Jesus, but he never defeats him. Instead, Jesus uses that to defeat the Devil and provide forgiveness on a greater level than we have ever known before.
Finally, the New Testament tells us that Jesus is the word in human form. In the Old Testament, the giving of the law gave power to Satan because sin increased. In the New Testament, Jesus lives the law to help man understand the difference between what God wanted and what they were doing. Jesus came to show us how to defeat Satan and find a relationship with God.
2 Timothy 2:24--26 (ESV) --- 24 And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, 25 correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, 26 and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.
Ephesians 4:26--27 (ESV) --- 26 Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, 27 and give no opportunity to the devil.
Application
What about today? The story of Israel is our story, but we have Jesus to help us avoid the mistakes they made. God wants us to learn and be aware of our failures. God wants us to be strong in Jesus and the strength of his might. Satan is not given the same power over us that he was given over Israel. Jesus removed that power by dying for us and shining the truth into the darkness. Now we can see through Satan's deceptions and make the right choice.
In thinking about this, I have found C.S. Lewis' writing helpful. He wrote a book called "The Screwtape Letters," which is a fictional writing of a demon named Screwtape. In the book, Screwtape is trying to mentor his nephew, Wormwood, to destroy humans in a spiritual battle. So far in my reading, it seems spot on. Here is a quote about God wanting us to grow spiritually and these demons wanting to destroy us before we can.
"Desiring their freedom, He therefore refuses to carry them, by their mere affections and habits, to any of the goals which He sets before them: He leaves them to 'do it on their own'. And there lies our opportunity. But also, remember, there lies our danger. If once they get through this initial dryness successfully, they become much less dependent on emotion and therefore much harder to tempt."
Lewis, C. S.. The Screwtape Letters (pp. 7-8). HarperOne. Kindle Edition.
In the mind of the demon Screwtape, God has left the new Christian open to corruption in the early days. But in reality, God has given them everything they need, and he is trying to help them grow. You can see in this fictional picture a glimpse of Satan's schemes. He is trying to work hard to destroy faith in God and to create a dependence on our erratic emotions. I love how Lewis brings that out. He also talks about trials of wars and pestilence, which I found especially applicable to today.
Conclusion
Satan is out to deceive and accuse us. He hates the idea of God being glorified and honored through our obedience. If we deny that he exists, he will wreak havoc in our lives and convince us to return to a sinful, dark lifestyle. The belt of truth brings close vague ideas and helps us fight against his deceptive attack against those with skill.