How to Overcome Attacks from the Enemy
Satan is constantly looking to attack you to devour you.
“Your enemy prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.”
(1 Peter 5:8)
Oftentimes, when we hear these kinds of things, I think our minds go to something like Poltergeist or The Exorcist.
We picture demons that are dark, mysterious, and super scary. We envision them attacking in some visible way like we see in horror movies.
But I want to suggest to you that the primary way Satan tries to attack you is with lies and deception.
FATHER OF LIES
In John 8, Jesus is having a confrontation with some of the religious leaders of that day, and He said…
44 You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.
(John 8:44)
See, Jesus addresses Satan as the Father of lies and tells us that there is no truth in him.
He says that he was a murderer from the beginning. Jesus is most likely referring to Genesis 3 when Satan robbed Adam and Eve and all of the human race of spiritual life and brought death to us all.
So let’s look at that and see what Satan was up to in the very beginning.
THE ENEMY IN THE GARDEN
Here is what we are told in Genesis 3:1…
Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made.
(Genesis 3:1a)
Notice the word “crafty” here. It means “cunning or wily” which of course means to “have or show skill in achieving one’s ends by deceit.”
Even at the very beginning of time, what we see is that our enemy is a liar and a deceiver. It’s who he is and the primary way that he attacks us.
Look at how he does this with Eve…
He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?”
(Genesis 3:1b)
What we see here is that Satan starts by twisting God’s Word.
This isn’t what God had told Adam and Eve in the garden. Look at Genesis 2:15-16…
15 The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. 16 And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden;
(Genesis 2:15-16)
See there? God says you are free to eat from “any” tree in the garden, but Satan twists it and asks, “Did God say you must NOT eat from any tree in the garden?”
Now, to be clear, God did say “except for one,” but that is a big difference between saying “you can’t eat from ANY tree” and “you can eat from any tree except one.” But this is how the enemy works.
Next, God explains why they were not to eat from that one tree.
17 but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.”
(Genesis 3:17)
The Tree of Life was representative of God being their Source. He was their God, their Maker, their Designer, and He gave them Life through the Holy Spirit. They were to “eat” of this Tree of Life.
If they choose not to draw upon Him as their Source, then they were going to die spiritually and be cut off from His abundant life that He gives. And Satan knew this and wanted to rob them of this life, so he twists God’s words and put ideas in Eve’s mind to deceive her.
Look how this played out back in Genesis 3:2-4
2 The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, 3 but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’ ” 4 “You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman.
(Genesis 3:2-4)
Jesus said in John 8 that Satan was a murderer and liar from the beginning, and we see that right here. “You will not certainly die,” he says, knowing the truth.
After lying to Eve, he continues to try and deceive her.
5 “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
(Genesis 3:5)
In other words, Satan is saying, “God is holding out on you. If you eat from this, you’ll have more life than you have right now. As a matter of fact, you’ll be your own god!”
As we see here, the enemy is cunning, wily, and skilled in achieving one’s end through deception. This is how he attacks. It’s not some Poltergeist or Excorcist type event. It’s subtle lies and deception.
As we see next, Eve fell for the lies and deception.
6 When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.
(Genesis 3:6)
Satan convinced her that this thought or idea he placed in her head was true. Eve BELIEVED that God was holding out on her and that she would gain more than what she already had in her union with God.
When the verse says that “she saw that the fruit was good for food,” that means that she had the desire to taste something new and exotic. Eve believed this was going to fulfill her in a way that the other food God was providing was not.
When it says that she noticed it was pleasing to the eye, she was sensing the pleasure of having something beautiful, and even though there was beauty all around, this was going to please her more than all the other beautiful things God was already providing her.
And then she discerned that the tree was “desirable for gaining wisdom.” In other words, this would give her mastery over her own destiny. She would have the ability to boast in her achievements or position because she would be “like God.”
Satan convinced her that she would make a better god over her own life than the actual God who created her and was providing for her and filled her with Life.
Satan is the Father of lies. He is a deceiver, and he schemes, lies, and deceives to devour our lives (1 Peter 5:8).
He was doing it all the way back in the garden at the beginning, and he is still doing it today.
HOW THE ENEMY ATTACKS TODAY
There are many ways that Satan continues to attack us today. He lies to and deceives unbelievers and believers, and he also builds a whole system of lies and deception in this world.
UNBELIEVERS
In 2 Corinthians 4:4, the apostle Paul says this…
4 The god of this age (Satan) has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
(2 Corinthians 4:4)
Satan, as the father of lies and the deceiver, lies to unbelievers and deceives them into believing that they can’t trust God or that there is no God or devil in the first place.
In the movie “The Usual Suspects,” Kevin Spacey says, “The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist!”
Satan has blinded so many people in our world from seeing the truth that he is real and that God is real. It’s the ultimate deception that he uses to steal, kill, destroy, and devour people’s lives in this world.
BELIEVERS
In 2 Corinthians 11:3, Paul is writing to Christians, and he says this…
3 I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent’s cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ.
(2 Corinthians 11:3)
Paul is saying that it is possible for Christians to be deceived by Satan through our minds. Spiritual warfare is primarily a battle of the mind. It is a war between truth and lies.
So, what are some of the truths that Satan doesn’t want us to know? What are some of the lies that he whispers to us in order to rob us of experiencing the Life of Christ in us?
A lot of the time, it has to do with religion. Jesus came to fulfill the law and bring us into a loving relationship where He expresses His love and life through us. He didn’t come to put us under the bondage of rules and regulations.
So Satan will often attempt to deceive us into thinking that following rules, being dedicated, trying hard, and checking boxes is where the abundant life is found. Satan knows that the abundant life is found in Jesus, so he lies and tricks us into thinking it’s found in religion.
Satan will do his best to keep you from believing the TRUTH that…
“You are a new creation in Christ.” (2 Cor. 5:17)
“You have complete forgiveness.” (Col. 2:13)
“You’ve got abundant life in Christ.” (John 10:10)
“You are free from the bondage of sin.” (Rom. 6:6)
That he (Satan) has no power of you.” (Col. 2:15)
He doesn’t want you to know that you are loved, accepted, and have a rock-solid identity as God’s son or daughter.
So, he will whisper lies in your head…
“You are guilty.”
“You are dirty.”
“A real Christian wouldn’t have done that.”
“You’ll never be able to stop doing this sin.”
“You better do this or that in order to be somebody.”
“God doesn’t love you.”
“That job loss, that cancer diagnosis, that death of a loved one, that’s your fault. God is punishing you for your behavior and your sin.”
And on and on and on it goes, constantly lying, telling you half-truths, constantly trying to deceive you so that you BELIEVE what he says to you or so that you won’t KNOW what the actual truth is.
But Jesus says that the truth will set you free (John 8:32) and that he is truth (John 14:6).
So, as you look to Him and His word, He will reveal that truth to you, and he will guard your heart and mind against what Satan is making you feel or tempting you to believe.
THE ENEMY’S WORLDLY SYSTEM
In Ephesians 2, Paul says that there are “ways of the world.” (Eph. 2:1).
Jesus refers to Satan as “the ruler of this world.” (John 12:31)
That of course doesn’t mean that everything we see in the world is from Satan or that it’s evil. God is at work in this world. He is actively pushing back the darkness.
However, it does mean that we need to understand that Satan can take even good things in our world and twist them and tempt us to believe that they are the solutions to our problems and that they are what real life is found in over and above anything Jesus could offer us.
For example, a lot of people in the United States, have been convinced by Satan that life is found in The American Dream. We buy into the lie that if we work hard enough, we will be able to overcome the emptiness we have inside through what we achieve. Satan deceives us into thinking that achievement and success will complete us. Only Jesus can do that.
Another example of the enemy at work in this world is politics.
He leads the world to believe that government, rules, and principles can solve all our problems, and when that doesn’t happen, Satan leads us to fight, bicker, and argue that it’s the other side’s fault!
Aside from things like the American Dream and politics, Satan is at work in this world to lie and deceive through all kinds of other things such as gender and sexuality, the covenant of marriage, abortion, racism, etc.
Satan is lying to us and deceiving us in this world to either keep us from coming to Christ or to rob us of the life we already have in Christ if He is our Savior.
So what’s the answer? How do we overcome attacks from the enemy? How do we combat his lies and deception?
THE TRUTH WILL SET YOU FREE
Jesus Himself said that the truth will set you free (John 8:32). When we know the truth and walk by faith in God’s truth then we will experience Life in Christ in us.
First, we must know the truth. If we know God’s truth, then we can spot the lies. We will be able to recognize when the enemy is trying to deceive us. So, dive into your Bible. Read it carefully and prayerfully so that you will know the truth.
Second, we must renew our minds to God’s truth (Romans 12:2). Just because we know the truth, does not mean that Satan will not still try to lie to us and deceive us.
We must counter those lies we hear and see out in the world with truth. We counter the lies Satan whispers to us in our souls with the truth.
And the truth will set us free. You overcome attacks from the enemy with truth. God’s truth.
“Our war against the enemy is not a war of guns and bombs. It’s not against other people at all. It’s a war on lies. And the problem is less that we tell lies and more that we live them; we let false narratives about reality into our bodies, and they wreak havoc in our souls.”
From the book Live No Lies by John Mark Comer
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