Know your adversary. But know your Advocate as well.
In seeking to reclaim territory for the Rightful Heir, we will encounter the Enemy at every turn. Called Satan, the Dragon, the Devil, Lucifer, the Serpent, and the Accuser among other names, he is relentless in his opposition to all that glorifies the Lord, honors His Word, blesses God’s people, or rescues lost souls. But when we are tempted to think too highly of the devil and his power, here is some infernal info to keep in mind:
1. The devil is not equal and opposite to God:
People sometimes get the idea that there are two teams, so to speak, with God at the head of the one and the devil leading the other. But the devil is a mere creature—albeit a powerful creature—who is dependent every moment of his existence on God. He is not omnipresent, nor is he omniscient, but must go “to and fro in the earth, and…[walk] up and down in it” (Job 1:7) to assess world affairs.
2. The devil is limited in what he can do to God’s people:
We are sometimes asked why a good God would create the devil. Of course he was not a devil when created; his devilish ways began with his civil war against God. But we must still ask why God allows the devil to carry on. Make no mistake, the devil is limited in what he is able to do, as seen by his seeking permission to afflict Job (see Job 1:12; 2:6). It is clear he has access to ask such permission, as we also observe in the case of Peter: “Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat’” (Lk. 22:31). Amazingly, in Peter’s case, as in Job’s, he received that permission. But our Lord sustained Peter’s faith through it all by His mighty intercessions.
3. The devil ends up doing what is best for God’s people:
Though Job knew the fierceness of the devil’s attacks, the arch-fiend is not mentioned in the book after chapter 2. It is “the end of the Lord” (Jas. 5:11) we see at the conclusion of the story when, as predicted, Job comes forth “as gold” (Job 23:10). The same is promised for Israel’s remnant (Zech. 13:9). Peter takes the idea further when he writes about you, dear suffering saint: “That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ” (1 Pet. 1:7). The devil still wants to inflict suffering on the Lord through His people. But the Lord overrules the results so the saints are purified, beautified, and glorified through it (see Lk. 22:31).
4. God’s people will triumph through Christ in the end:
We should respect the Fiend’s power, as Michael did (Jude 9) since it originates with God. But the believer who knows that “greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world” (1 Jn. 4:4) will not be demoralized by his threats. Nor will we allow him to shrink our vision or minimize our objectives. And when the Liar whispers why we shouldn’t be so confident, we remind ourselves of the day when the Lord will crush him under our feet (Rom. 16:20). I love the sweet defiance in Luther’s hymn: “One little word shall fell him.” Amen! “And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone…and shall be tormented day and night forever” (Rev. 20:10).