Know Your Enemy
Notes
Transcript
Intro; Last week we looked at Satan being the source of evil. He opposes everything that is moral and righteous in the Lord and he acts with wicked intent to accuse and obstruct the believer in our faith.
Satan is a spiritual enemy and is not easy to detect because he is not visible to the human eye, it’s sometimes a challenge to detect him.
Warren Wiersbe, the author of The Strategy of Satan, makes an important statement to the believer that we need to heed;
The truths in these pages will do you no good unless they are put into practice. Satan enjoys seeing Christians get a head knowledge of victory without a heart experience, because this lulls believers into a false security and Satan finds them easy prey. It is not the reading of truth or even the enjoyment of it that brings the blessings of God. It is the doing of truth that makes the difference. Therefore, determine with the Spirit’s help to put the truth of God’s Word into practice that you can “Know Your Enemy”.
The best way to know your enemy is through reconnaissance.
Reconnaissance- a military operation focused on gathering information about an enemy or potential enemy's location, activities, and capabilities. It involves exploring an area to gain intelligence about the terrain, enemy forces, and other relevant factors.
This morning we’re going to get to “Know Our Enemy” a little better.
Text; 2 Tim. 2:4, 2 Tim. 2:15
4 No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier.
15 Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
Prayer
1. Spiritual Warfare;
1. Spiritual Warfare;
All christians need to understand that when they come to faith in Christ, their life changed. That change was more than just moving from darkness into Light. It is the enlisting in the army of God for spiritual battle we did not recognize when we were lost.
First there is the individual warfare between the Spirit of God that indwells the believer and our flesh [old carnal nature].
18 For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find.
16 I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.
17 For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish.
Second, we are at war with the spiritual forces of darkness that are under the control of Satan. And Satan uses the flesh against us as part of his battle plan to destroy our faith in Christ.
11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
16 above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one.
Satan wants the believer to remain entangled in the affairs of this life. Spending all our time worrying about elections, food and clothing, houses and cars, what people think about us, material things and stature in the community.
33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.
The best way for the christian soldier to win the battle against the enemy is to do some reconnaissance on Satan!
2. Reconnaissance on Satan;
2. Reconnaissance on Satan;
To do research on Satan we have to look into God’s Word. The Bible is the only source we have to locate the enemy and prepare a strategy to defend our faith. We need to know the character of Satan to understand the tactics he will use against us. His character is revealed in his names.
Adversary/enemy
8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.
Abaddon/Apollyon = Destroyer
11 And they had as king over them the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in Hebrew is Abaddon, but in Greek he has the name Apollyon.
Devil; accuser of the brethren
10 Then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, “Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down.
Dragon, Serpent of Old; craftiness and deception
9 So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.
1 Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?”
Beelzebub; lord of flies/ ruler of demons
24 Now when the Pharisees heard it they said, “This fellow does not cast out demons except by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons.”
Belial; low, worthless, scum
15 And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever?
Father of lies/ murderer
44 You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it.
Prince of the air, the world [this age] and demons
2 in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience,
31 Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out.
24 Now when the Pharisees heard it they said, “This fellow does not cast out demons except by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons.”
4 whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them.
Tempter; entice
5 For this reason, when I could no longer endure it, I sent to know your faith, lest by some means the tempter had tempted you, and our labor might be in vain.
Tormentor; cause agony and pain
7 So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord, and struck Job with painful boils from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head.
7 And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure.
Thief
10 The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.
These names reveal the tactics and ways in which he attacks the christian. But we also have to be aware that these attacks are not always easily detected, because of the way Satan disguises himself.
Lucifer/ day star; bright and shining one
12 “How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How you are cut down to the ground, You who weakened the nations!
Angel of light
13 For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into apostles of Christ.
14 And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light.
15 Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works.
The greater our reconnaissance is on Satan, the better equipped we will be to defend our faith in the Lord.
3. Satan’s Personality;
3. Satan’s Personality;
Intelligent- a person or being with the ability to acquire and apply knowledge
12 “Son of man, take up a lamentation for the king of Tyre, and say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “You were the seal of perfection, Full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.
13 You were in Eden, the garden of God; Every precious stone was your covering: The sardius, topaz, and diamond, Beryl, onyx, and jasper, Sapphire, turquoise, and emerald with gold. The workmanship of your timbrels and pipes Was prepared for you on the day you were created.
14 “You were the anointed cherub who covers; I established you; You were on the holy mountain of God; You walked back and forth in the midst of fiery stones.
15 You were perfect in your ways from the day you were created, Till iniquity was found in you.
11 lest Satan should take advantage of us; for we are not ignorant of his devices.
He has an amazing grasp of the Word of God. Satan quoted scripture to Jesus trying to entice Him to tempt God by jumping off the temple.
11 For He shall give His angels charge over you, To keep you in all your ways.
12 In their hands they shall bear you up, Lest you dash your foot against a stone.
Satan has a battle plan; to keep the lost lost through the ineffective witness believers and causing division in the church.
20 But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay, some for honor and some for dishonor.
21 Therefore if anyone cleanses himself from the latter, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified and useful for the Master, prepared for every good work.
22 Flee also youthful lusts; but pursue righteousness, faith, love, peace with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.
23 But avoid foolish and ignorant disputes, knowing that they generate strife.
24 And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all, able to teach, patient,
25 in humility correcting those who are in opposition, if God perhaps will grant them repentance, so that they may know the truth,
26 and that they may come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him to do his will.
Close;
I hope we all know a little more about our enemy this morning after doing some reconnaissance on him. I hope that we all will be better prepared to recognize his strategies of warfare. But above all, I hope that we will be good soldiers of Christ and not be foolish enough to enter a battle against our enemy without the guidance and protection of our Lord!
9 Yet Michael the archangel, in contending with the devil, when he disputed about the body of Moses, dared not bring against him a reviling accusation, but said, “The Lord rebuke you!”
Remember, Satan is the source of evil, but God is our strength!
