"Timothy, my son, I give you this instruction in keeping with the prophecies once made about you, so that by following them you may fight the good fight, holding on to faith and a good conscience." -- 1 Timothy 1:18-19a

"¹²Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses. ¹³In the sight of God, who gives life to everything, and of Christ Jesus, who while testifying before Pontius Pilate made the good confession, I charge you ¹⁴to keep this command without spot or blame until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ" -- 1 Timothy 6:12-14

As Christians, we are heavily involved in the "mother of all battles." We are caught in the fight of the ages and called to fight for the Truth. This fight, this battle, is being fought on many different fronts. We fight an enemy that seeks to destroy us, we fight the world who rejects us, we fight each other over trivial matters, and finally, we fight ourselves. Each of us is involved in the battle in one or all of those aspects. Each of us needs to fight the good fight.

The Bible not only tells us to "fight the good fight of faith," it also gives us a good outline of how to do just that. Finishing our three part series, I would like to take a close look at the last of these fronts that we fight on, look at the Biblical strategy for this fight, and show you the hope of victory we have in Jesus Christ! In this last part, we examine the "roaring lion" out to devour our body. The enemy has not only infiltrated our church from within, they are also attacking us head on. That is ok, though, because we know we will all be victorious through Christ!

Before discussing the tactics Satan uses to seek out and devour us, I think it is important to go over a few things that he is not. It can be just as dangerous to ascribe qualities to the devil that he does not have as it is to ignore the qualities he does have. In other words, it is just as bad to over estimate our enemy then it is to under estimate him. Therefore, let us look at a few things that the devil is not.

First, the devil is not omnipresent. Omnipresence is defined as the ability to be present in every place at the same time. God has the ability to be anywhere and everywhere, but Satan does not. Satan is confined to one location at one time. According the Bible, the devil roams the earth and goes everywhere, but he is not everywhere at the same time:

⁶One day the angels came to present themselves before the LORD , and Satan also came with them. ⁷ The LORD said to Satan, "Where have you come from?" Satan answered the LORD, "From roaming through the earth and going back and forth in it." -- Job 1:6-7

Notice first, God asked, "Where have you come from?" If you are coming "from" somewhere, you are not everywhere at once. Also, notice Satan's reply, "From roaming through the earth and going back and forth in it." Satan came from roaming the earth. He was not everywhere at once. If he were, he would not have gone "back and forth." He would be both back and forth.

Next, the devil is not omnipotent. Omnipotence is defined as having unlimited authority or power. God has unlimited power and authority, but Satan does not. Satan is limited in both his power and his authority. The Bible tells us the limits to both:

¹⁰"Have you not put a hedge around him and his household and everything he has? You have blessed the work of his hands, so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land. ¹¹ But stretch out your hand and strike everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face." ¹² The LORD said to Satan, "Very well, then, everything he has is in your hands, but on the man himself do not lay a finger." -- Job 1:10-12

God had placed a hedge around Job so that Satan could not touch him. After the devil made his case before the Lord, God gave him permission to take it away. Notice that: God had to give the devil permission to harm Job. He was powerless to do so otherwise. Also notice that God limited his power: "on the man himself do not lay a finger." Satan is not all-powerful, and he certainly is not all authoritative.

Finally, the devil does not "make us" do anything. One Christmas morning, my brother snuck out of his room early and opened a present before the rest of us. When asked why, he responded, "The devil made me do it." That was a favorite excuse of his. It is with many people, actually. However, the truth is, the devil cannot make you do anything. He can tempt you, sure, and he will, but he cannot make you do anything. Any time you give into temptation, it just that...you giving into temptation:

¹³When tempted, no one should say, "God is tempting me." For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; ¹⁴but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. ¹⁵Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death. -- James 1:13-15

Any time you are tempted, God will make sure you can overcome that temptation:

¹²So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don't fall! ¹³No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it. -- 1 Corinthians 10:12-13

In addition, every time you are tempted, God will provide a way out. So if you give into temptation, it is because you were enticed enough to follow the "evil desire" which gives birth to sin. That was your choice. The devil did not and cannot make you sin.

The devil does not make people sin. He cannot. He can tempt you, but he cannot make you give into that temptation. Satan is not omnipotent like God is. He is not all-powerful and cannot make you do things. He is also not omnipresent. He goes "back and forth" over the earth, but is not everywhere on the earth at the same time. Many times people ascribe powers and characteristics to Satan that he does not have, and that can be a dangerous thing to do. In facing our enemy, we must be careful not to overestimate him.

In trying not to overestimate the devil, we must be careful not to fall to the other extreme, and underestimate him. Satan is not all-powerful, but he is powerful, and he is very crafty as well. The Bible tells us, "Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made" (Genesis 3:1). Therefore, we must be on our guard, and we must be aware of exactly what it is he is able to do.

First and foremost, the devil is a devourer of all that is good. He preys upon God's people, deceiving and tricking them into sin. He lies to us and misuses scripture to accomplish this:

⁶"If you are the Son of God," he said, "throw yourself down. For it is written:
   " 'He will command his angels concerning you,
      and they will lift you up in their hands,
   so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.'
⁷Jesus answered him, "It is also written: 'Do not put the Lord your God to the test.' -- Matthew 4:6-7

See how Satan tempted Jesus with Scripture? The devil knows the Bible better than many believers, and will often try to tempt or mislead us the same way. In order to fight back, we must use the sword of the Spirit, that is, the Word. Just like Jesus, we must know the scriptures, and use them when Satan comes at us misusing and misapplying God's Word to lead us astray. Not only does he misuse scripture, the devil also appears as an angel of light in order to lead us away from the light:

¹³For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, masquerading as apostles of Christ. ¹⁴And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. ¹⁵It is not surprising, then, if his servants masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve. -- 2 Corinthians 11:13-15

⁸Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. ⁹Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings. -- 1 Peter 5:8-9

Satan disguises himself as an angel of light, but beneath that facade he is a roaring lion. However we have it within us to resist him and stand firm. Being filled with the Spirit of God, we have the power to overcome the devil:

You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. -- 1 John 4:1

Satan is known as the "Prince of this world" (John 12:31, 14:30, 16:11), and will ensure that we have trouble here. However, Jesus has already overcome this world:

I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world. -- John 16:33

Because of Jesus and through Jesus, we have the power to resist the devil:

Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. -- James 4:7

The devil will not only come at us directly, but also indirectly. He is our accuser. Satan accuses us before God and before men. He is a fault finder, always trying to show us and the world that we are not "good enough" for God:

Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the LORD, and Satan standing at his right side to accuse him. -- Zechariah 3:1

⁹ "Does Job fear God for nothing?" Satan replied. ¹⁰ "Have you not put a hedge around him and his household and everything he has? You have blessed the work of his hands, so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land. ¹¹ But stretch out your hand and strike everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face." Job 1:9-11

There was an e-mail I received not too long ago that told a story of a man who had died and found himself outside a courtroom. The doors opened and he was instructed to go in and have a seat by the defense table. The corner door flew open and there appeared the judge in full flowing robes. He commanded an awesome presence as he moved across the room. As he took his seat behind the bench he said, "Let us begin."

The prosecutor rose and said, "My name is Satan and I am here to show you why this man belongs in Hell." He proceeded to tell of lies the man told, things that he stole and times in the past when he cheated others. Satan told of other horrible perversions that were once in this man's life and the more he spoke the further down in his seat the man sank. He was so embarrassed that he couldn't look at anyone, even his own lawyer, as the Devil told of sins that even he had completely forgotten about. Satan finished with a fury and said, "This man belongs in Hell, he is guilty of all that I have charged and there is not a person who can prove otherwise. Justice will finally be served this day."

When it was his turn, the man's lawyer first asked if he might approach the bench. The judge allowed this over the strong objection of Satan and beckoned him to come forward. As he got up and started walking the man was able to see Him now in his full splendor and majesty. He realized why He seemed so familiar, this was Jesus representing him, his Lord and Savior. Jesus stopped at the bench and softly said to the judge, "Hi Dad" and then He turned to address the court. "Satan was correct in saying that this man had sinned, I won't deny any of these allegations. And yes the wages of sins is death and this man deserves to be punished."

Jesus took a deep breath and turned to His Father with out-stretched arms and proclaimed, "However, I died on the cross so that this person might have eternal life and he has accepted Me as his Savior, so He is mine. His name is written in the Book of Life and no one can snatch him from Me. Satan still does not understand yet, this man is not to be given justice but rather mercy." As Jesus sat down, He quietly paused, looked at his Father and replied, "There is nothing else that needs to be done, I've done it all."

Jesus has done it all.

That small sentence is the key to this whole series. Jesus Christ did it all. He was killed by the Jews, God's people, and then buried and sealed inside a tomb. The story does not end there, though. If it had, then Satan would have been triumphant--and I am sure he thought he was, that is until Jesus rose! That's right, three days after being crucified, Jesus Christ rose from the grave! When Jesus rose, he crushed the head of the serpent. He defeated death. He overcame sin:

⁵⁵"Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?" ⁵⁶The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. ⁵⁷But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. -- 1 Corinthians 15:55-57

Jesus overcame death, defeated sin, and crushed the devil! Now, man is no longer separated from God by sin. Now, man has the opportunity to enter into a relationship with God through Jesus Christ! Now man has the power and ability to overcome the world and resist the devil! We will be victorious, because Jesus already has! It does not matter what the enemy throws at us. We will prevail. We will persevere. We will, overcome. Through Christ we will have victory over Satan, victory over the world, victory and over our flesh. What's more, the day is approaching when Satan will be defeated for good and, with Christ, we will have our final victory over all! "Amen. Come, Lord Jesus." (Revelation 22:20)