Getting to Know the Enemy

Introduction:

Some of you may be familiar with a book that has been a best seller for many years called The Art of War by a man named Sun Tzu. Believe it or not, this work is studied even by war strategists today, even though it was written over 2,000 years ago.

Sun Tzu wrote,

All warfare is based on deception.

This is a true statement. Recently when we struck at the nuclear facilities of Iran, our military used deception to fool the enemy and make them think we were going to attack from an island in the Pacific called Diego Garcia, when instead we secretly launched our stealth bombers from Missouri and refueled several times going across Europe and down into Iran.

We used deception tactics to rescue our downed F-15 fighter pilots, as the CIA led a misinformation campaign.

In any war, it is also important to know how the enemy operates. According to Sky History,

“Sun Tzu emphasized the importance of understanding an opponent’s mind and turning that against them, exploiting their weaknesses to secure victory.”

https://www.history.co.uk/articles/greatest-military-strategists-from-history

We could go on and on about different military geniuses that knew battle tactics and strategy, but what if we were to apply these principles, not to a physical army that most of us will never face in our lifetime, but instead to a spiritual enemy? What if instead of listening to Sun Tzu, we listened to the Apostle Peter and to God’s Word on the matter?

I think it is safe to say that God is the greatest military strategist that ever has existed. Just take a glance at the Old Testament and you will see how God frustrated the king of Syria so bad that he wanted to have Elijah killed because he first thought that there was a spy among them since the Israelites knew their movements exactly. He then was informed that Elisha told the King of Israel exactly where they would be because of God’s revelations to him. So, naturally the king sought to get rid of the source, only the source was protected by the greater Source, being God himself.

God has given us information on our enemy as well. You may not think about it much, but we are engaged in a spiritual warfare and we must fight.

Whether we fight well or not is dependent on our battle tactics and the information we have on the enemy.

Let’s dive in and see what Peter had to share with us about this from God’s Word.

1 Peter 5:8–11 ESV

8 Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. 9 Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world. 10 And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. 11 To him be the dominion forever and ever. Amen.

Pray

Roman empire was filled with soldiers walking around.

There was a constant call for vigilance so that one misstep did not cost you your life.

Christians were beginning to be persecuted and had to be on guard, even from those in their own households.

1. The Call for Vigilance

1 Peter 5:8 ESV

8 Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.

Two imperatives are given here - that means command words

The two words are virtually synonymous and mean to be on the alert or to be watchful

The Greek word for “sober-minded” is the word for being watchful of yourself, or having self-control and not losing your inhibitions

It is a word that means to have sobriety

This does not just mean to not be drunk, but also includes the idea of not panicking or being overly alarmed

It is a word means to have mental clarity and emotional stability

The Greek word for being watchful, Gregoreo, means to be on guard and looking out for something

That something is the day of the Lord

IT means to be watchful against human opposition to the kingdom, but in the immediate context, it also means to have a watchful eye towards our enemy, the devil

An example of this word occurs when Jesus told Peter to watch and pray that he might not enter into temptation

One of the ways that we are watchful is when we pray

Colossians 4:2 ESV

2 Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.

Illustration

The more dangerous the threat, the more watchful we will be

Thunderstorm vs. Hurricane

Black cat in the woods vs. black panther on the prowl

Application

How can we be watchful?

Prayer

Bible Study

Fellowship with Believers

Practicing the Spiritual Disciplines

2. An Identification of the Enemy

1 Peter 5:8 ESV

8 Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.

Look at the terms used to describe the enemy

Adversary - Gr. Plaintiff

Devil - Gr. Diabolos - means slanderer or false accuser

The devil is first a tempter, and then an informer; first a liar, and then a murderer.

Thomas Watson, The Select Works of the Rev. Thomas Watson, Comprising His Celebrated Body of Divinity, in a Series of Lectures on the Shorter Catechism, and Various Sermons and Treatises (New York: Robert Carter & Brothers, 1855), 571.

Lion

Prowling - he is an opportunist

Roaring - He intimidates

Devouring - He takes no quarter

Conclusion

We need to know who the enemy is and be watchful, but the truth is that the enemy is already defeated.

1 Corinthians 15:57 ESV

57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Again Paul says in 2 Cor 2:14

2 Corinthians 2:14 ESV

14 But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere.

For you and I the promise is further applied

1 John 5:4–5 ESV

4 For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. 5 Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?