The devil is an enemy; he tries to deceive us, he lays snares, he seeks to act upon us by the means of our lusts. He may also indeed raise persecution to arrest us in the path of faith, but in ordinary life he deceives us by the things that suit the flesh.
If we are persecuted, it is our glory. “To you,” says the Apostle, “it is given not only to believe on Him, but also to suffer for His name’s sake.” But this danger from the wiles of Satan is constant; they are continually around us. The important thing is that, living after the new man, and in communion with God, we should be able to discern the deceit of Satan, which is never obedience to the will of God. Very possible the evil may not be apparent.
When Satan suggested to the Lord that He should make bread of the stones and eat, it was not apparent evil. To eat when hungry does not seem a wicked thing; but it would not have been obedience. Satan could do nothing. To eat simply because one is hungry is an animal action, which does not refer to God. We ought to do everything, even eating, in the name of Christ, giving thanks to God. Everything is sanctified to us, if we realize the presence of God.
Satan then cannot hide himself, if in obedience we resist; he flees, conscious that he has met the One who overcame him—Christ in us. The Word of God suffices to make us walk in a path, in which Satan has no power, where he is compelled to leave us, in which also we detect his deceit, and discern that he is the enemy. The Saviour walked thus; He quoted the Word of God, and the devil was silent, and sought to deceive Him by other means; he did not openly show himself, but the perfect obedience of Jesus made his snares powerless. When Satan showed himself to be such, offering Him the glory of the world, Jesus commands him to depart, and he goes.
The Lord’s path is ours. His strength is ours, and if we walk with His obedience, His wisdom will be ours: only He has already overcome the tempter. The difficulty is, so to walk in communion with Him, as to discern the deception. We must also have the whole armor of God.
In short, if the presence of God is realized in the heart, if the Spirit of God rules there, and the sense of dependence is active in the soul, we shall feel that what the enemy presents to us, is not of God, and the will of the new man will not desire it. Satan once detected, the new man resists him, and he has no strength. Jesus has overcome him for us. We learn in James 4:77Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. (James 4:7) that, if we resist him, he will flee; he finds that he has met the Spirit of Christ in us, and he flees. The evil is, that we do not always resist him; we accept his enticements, because the will of God is not everything to us: in many things we still like to please ourselves. If grace is known, obedience and dependence guard us from the wiles of the devil. He has no power against the resistance of faith; he is manifested as Satan, the adversary, as he was when Jesus suffered Himself to be tempted for us, and Satan fled before His resistance. He knows it is the same One whom he meets in us.
A few words as to the armor of God (Eph. 6:10-1810Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. 11Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. 13Wherefore take unto you the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. 14Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; 15And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. 17And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: 18Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints; (Ephesians 6:10‑18)) may be useful. With the exception of the sword, all refers to the state of soul. The effect of the truth to keep the soul in order, its affections regulated, and conscience having its due power according to the will of God; the breast plate of practical righteousness, so that the conscience is good: in the path, the feet must be shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace—that is, the behavior bearing the stamp of that peace which we enjoy in Christ; then, confidence in God, which these things produce, and which prevents the suggestions of the wicked one from reaching us.
We shall not be wounded by the fiery darts of the enemy; doubts and evil thoughts about God will find no entrance into the heart; then the certainty of salvation, which enables us to lift up the head in battle with the enemy. Then we can take the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God, and use it in the conflict; shielded by the armor of God from the enemy’s assaults, we can be active in employing the Word in the service of the Lord, though ever dependent upon His help. This dependence expresses itself in prayers and supplications
(Verse 18).