Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. —1 Peter 5:8

It goes something like this: “You deserve what’s happening. If you lived right maybe your life wouldn’t be such a mess. You can’t ask God to help you because you’re the one who got yourself here in the first place. Don’t you know a man reaps what he sows?” Have you ever heard this conversation in your mind before? I know I have, too many times to count.

When it comes to spiritual warfare, we can’t play the ignorance card. We have to understand we are in a battle. The good news is Jesus already went to Hell and back to guarantee victory, but the devil is still a liar trying to deceive and rob us of our trust and faith in what Jesus did.

Peter writes in his first letter to us to be sober and vigilant. He gives us a vivid picture when he describes the devil as a hungry lion roaming around looking for prey. The word adversary is the Greek work antidikos. This word is used in New Testament times for a lawyer who argues in the court of law.*

I’ve come to understand that the devil will never outright lie to us. He usually will pick something we are guilty of. When he accuses us of the sin, we agree and instead of telling him to get lost we make an agreement with the grievance. Then he waits! And at the time when we are most vulnerable he will remind us of our sin and the fact that we agreed we are guilty. At that moment the spiritual wind is knocked out of us and we are left feeling guilty, ashamed and useless. We are embarrassed and our tendency is to run. If we run, we leave the safety of our father and we become a target for the enemy.

* Renner, Rick. Sparkling Gems (Page 652) Published 2003. Print.

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