Ephesians 6:10-18 NIV
10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.
11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.
12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.
13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.
14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place,
15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.
16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.
17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.
Satan could not keep Jesus from going to the cross, even after tempting him in the wilderness and then through Simon Peter.
Now, he tries his best to keep people from finding Jesus at the cross, as their personal savior.
However, for those who have accepted Jesus as Lord, the fight only gets harder.
We believers have a target on our backs, as Satan will try his best to cause us to turn away from, or reject God.
If Satan can cause believers to act or speak in non-Christian ways, he diminishes the work of the body of believers and causes those in our circle of the world who see or hear to believe that we are not what we claim. Hypocrites if you will.
The good news is that God provides armor for His children, with which we are always able to repel and defeat Satan.
How Does Satan Work Against Us?
Satan works on us through our minds. He is wily and his schemes are devious.
He made Eve think about what God had told them and then to question it. He caused Eve to doubt what God had said.
As discussed in Part 1, Satan works through others, even those who are close to us. He can become as the “angel of light.”
Then, he begins to work on us through our mind.
Thoughts that fester and brew become words or deeds. This is great with our good thoughts; not good with negative or ungodly thoughts.
Satan loves to make God’s children think negative thoughts.
- I'm discouraged and I don't know why
- I'm filled with doubts
- I feel sorry for myself
- Someone snubbed me
- Someone disrespected me
- Someone is talking about me- I just know it
- Someone is doing better than me
- Someone hurt my feelings
- Someone, someone, someone...
Satan likes to instill in our minds, feelings of self-pity, discouragement and doubt. Does this sound familiar to what Eve felt in the garden?
Because of the schemes and tricks of Satan, we must always be on guard, as Christ was. Also, just as Christ did, we should have no part of it.
Everyday, we should pray for God’s help through His Spirit, to keep our minds pure, therefore making our thoughts and deeds pure and in accordance with Christ’s teachings.
We truly are in spiritual warfare daily. Remember, we have the target on our backs. Satan does not have to battle the unbeliever, so he works overtime against the children of God.
Pray Each Day To Keep Satan From Controlling Our Thoughts
Besides making sure we have the complete armor that God provides, the following prayer or one similar is a good way to start each day.
Father, let me never harbor in my mind anger, resentment, bitterness, jealousy, grievance or grudge against any person. IF any of these ever enter my mind, help me with the power of the Holy Spirit, to cast it out immediately and get Satan behind me.
Also, Father let me never harbor in my mind hurt feelings, self-pity, discouragement or doubt. IF any of these ever enter my mind, help me with the power of the Holy Spirit to cast it out immediately and get Satan behind me.
Guess what? It works!
We ARE the decision makers on what occupies our thoughts. Not Satan.
Paul gives us clear instructions;
Philippians 4:8 NIV
8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.
Unfortunately, unbeknownst to many, we DO control what we think.
It is when we DON’T that Satan begins to get a foothold.
As Christ told Satan through Peter, let us tell Satan daily to “get thee behind me” and "armor up" for protection and victory.
God will never fail to help us.
RVH