Satan/Lucifer is a fallen angel who rebelled against God. (Isaiah 14:12-15, Ezekiel 28:12-17 NKJV). His final destination is the lake of fire, where he will be tormented day and night forever. (Revelation 20:10 NKJV).
Satan is called the Father of lies (John 8:44), the Serpent of old (Revelation 12:9), Beelzebub (Luke 11:15), the wicked one (Matthew 13:19), the Accuser of Our Brethren (Revelation 12:10), the god of this age (2 Corinthians 4:4), and the prince of the power of the air (Ephesians 2:2). Satan is consistently portrayed as an enemy of mankind, as evil, a liar and deceiver, who seeks to be in the position of God. (Genesis 3:15, Isaiah 14:14, John 8:31, 2 Thessalonians 2:4, 1 Peter 5:8). Through lies and deceit, the devil fights to undermine our confidence in God and His Word (Genesis 3:1-4, Matthew 4:1-11).
How can we overcome such an adversary?
Revelation 12:11 says, “And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.” (NKJV). It is Christ who has defeated the devil for us. Jesus resisted His lies (Matthew 4:1-11), Jesus defeated sin and death (Matthew 26:28, 28:6), and Jesus sits at the right hand of God (Luke 22:69). To defeat the devil, we must trust in Christ, His work, His promises, and His ways.
Every day, we must remember we do not overcome the devil in our own strength, or by our own wisdom, but by Christ, His strength, and His wisdom. We do have a part to play, God has given us weapons to fight these spiritual battles and tools to grow stronger in Him, and we are instructed to “Resist him, (The Devil) steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world.” (1 Peter 5:9 NKJV), David Guzik a great bible commentator said, “The secret of spiritual warfare is simple, steadfast resistance. As we are steadfast in the faith, we resist the devil’s lies and threats and intimidation.”1 We must use the tools, weapons, and wisdom God has given us, but ultimately our victory is not our own, but Christ working in us.
- David Guzik, 1 Peter, David Guzik’s Commentaries on the Bible (Santa Barbara, CA: David Guzik, 2013), 1 Pe 5:8–9.