1 Peter 5:8-9 – Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world.
We must be sober and we must be vigilant, because we have a powerful adversary, the devil. To be sober means to be serious-minded, to take a realistic approach to life, to be intelligent concerning the schemes of Satan. There must also be constant vigilance, a preparedness to meet every attack of the wicked one. Here the adversary is described as a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. The devil has different poses. Sometimes he comes like a snake, seeking to lure people into moral corruption. Sometimes he disguises himself as an angel of light, attempting to deceive people in the spiritual realm. Here, as a roaring lion, he is bent on terrorizing God’s people through persecution. We are not to surrender to his schemes. Rather we must resist him through prayer and through God’s word. We do not have strength in ourselves to oppose him, but as we are firm in our faith, in our dependence on the Lord, we can resist him. Peter reminds us that the same sufferings are experienced by our Christian brotherhood throughout the world. Meaning we are not alone. Something the enemy wants us all to believe.
Challenge:
The picture here is of an army standing against an enemy. You should stand with other believers. I do not think you can resist the Devil by yourself. You not only need the whole armor of God, but you will also need other believers to stand with you. That is the reason that whenever I have need, I let others in my life know about it. I want them to stand with me in prayer. You need to do that as well. Your challenge for this week is to first acknowledge the fact that the enemy wants to destroy your life. Your marriage. Your family. Your friendships. Your career. Everything that is good in your life, the devil wants to mess with. Secondly, stand strong against his schemes by including others to pray with you and resist the temptation to give in to his lies. There is strength in numbers my friend. With the help of a faithful friend and power of a faithful God, you can overcome anything the enemy may try to disrupt in your life. There is no shame in asking for help to get through a tough patch in your life. The truth is, the shame comes when you try to resist the devil in your own strength. This is what he wants you to do. He wants you to remain all by yourself and attempt to fight him one-on-one. Too many have tried and failed. When you have a need in your life, or when you have experienced loss in your life, ask someone to pray with you and for you. Then watch how God begins to give you victory over the wicked one. God bless you.