How To Defeat The Devil

APRIL 5, 2020 STUDY NOTES JAMES 4:7 BIBLE TEACHER: CLIFTON JONES HOW TO DEFEAT THE DEVIL INTRODUCTION In verses 7-10 we can find ten steps or ten commandments toward Christian maturity James delivers the imperatives that tell us how to live a spiritual life and how to stay spiritual James is talking serious, James is talking straight, each command is like a military command Each one suggests urgency, each one calls for an immediate decision, in other words, “Do it now” Get it settled now, today is the day of decision, now is the time to live for Christ, “Don't wait” I have preached these 10 commandments before under the title of “10 Steps to Revival” As we study them, I pray that revival will take place in my life and your life Revival is more than turning from sin, revival is turning to God in order to turn from sin Revival is living for God daily wherever you are and among whoever you are with THE TEN COMMANDMENTS OF JAMES (James 4:7-10) (1) Submit yourselves to God (2) Resist the devil (3) Draw nigh to God (4) Cleanse your hands, you sinners (5) Purify your hearts, you double minded (6) Be afflicted (7) Mourn (8) Weep (9) Let your laughter be turned to mourning (10) Humble yourselves in the sight of God These commands follow what James stated in, Jas 4:6 But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble. Pride turns away from God, humility comes from turning to God The 10 commandments begin with “Submit yourselves to God,” and end with, Jas 4:10 Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up. They begin with humility and end with humility, between those 2 verses we learn how to submit to God Obedience to the commands come from a right attitude and relationship with God To obey these commands will result in a right attitude and relationship with others Our faith will be strengthened, we will stand strong in the faith, and we will “Defeat the Devil” Jas 4:7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. “Therefore” in verse 7 connects the first six verses with the following verses In the previous verses James spoke of those who had yielded to Satan and his worldly ways What a comparison we now have, the previous verses are a contrast to submission to God The previous verses describe someone who thinks their life is in their own hands, saying, “I got it” The truth is, the devil has “got you,” too often true of too many church goers today The following verses describe someone’s life in the hands of God The first six verses of this chapter teach us that we need a “spiritual renewal,” and we need it today Too many Church members are in love with the world today, loving pleasure more than loving God, 2Ti 3:4 Traitors, heady, high minded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; Too many Christians are living selfish lives seeking to serve sinful lusts It is time for the Church to be different from the world, it is time for the church to hear Jesus, Joh 17:18 As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world. The Apostles did not complete God’s mission to the world, these words apply to the Christian today God sent His Son into the world, Jesus sends all followers of Jesus into the world today We must be able to distinguish between the Church and worldly gatherings of worldly people We must be able to see and identify Christians after they leave church on Sunday Our world must see that we are the “True Church,” the church is God’s people wherever they are So, we must give attention to the words of James--Submit yourselves therefore to God. The author of Hebrews tells us to submit to “the Father,” Heb 12:9 Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live? “The Father of spirits” means that God is our “Spiritual Father” in comparison to our physical father To “submit” to God means “to obey” God, which is the true way of life, obeying God is “living” It is only through God’s will for our life that we learn how to “really live” Living our Heavenly Father’s will, we are really living a true life, an abundant life, and a life fulfilled Submission to God is a voluntary step, it is when you surrender your life to God When you place yourself under God’s authority, when you accept His will as your will “Submission” is when you make up your mind to be obedient to His Word When you are willing to take time to learn His Word and willing to live His Word God does not force you to make that decision, it comes when you see God as He is, “our Father” When you see yourself as God sees you and you see yourself when you were “without Christ,” Eph 2:2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: Then you need to see your life “in Christ,” as you really are before God “in Christ,” 1Pe 2:9 But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light: We need to see our life when the Holy Spirit is in control, the “Fruit of the Spirit” (Galatians 5:22-23) Try to understand what life will be like when God is in control, study the Spirit-filled life Picture the promises of God's Word being fulfilled in your daily life Some know from a past-experience what God's leadership of your life is like At one time in your Christian life you were faithfully following God’s Guidance Many will testify that those were the best days of their life Don't live with yesterday’s blessings from God, submit yourself to God's blessings today Do not put it off any longer, God has the right to be the authority over your life today He is the creator of physical life, He is the redeemer of spiritual life, He is worthy to be “Lord” Sometimes people want God to submit to their personal desires and selfish will Asking God to meet us on our terms and our conditions, we want to establish the guidelines But submission is saying, “I will give myself to God,” He will be first in my life Pride will prevent it from happening, selfishness will stop it from happening Worldliness will weaken the desire to submit, nothing should stop our submission to God Not sickness or sadness, not poverty or problems, now is the time to make this decision Jesus gave us a promise concerning submission, Mat 6:33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. The context of that verse is “do not worry,” the answer to worry is submission to God’s will Submission to God is a daily choice, God’s will for our life must be a daily experience Resist the devil, Christians must take a firm stand against the Devil we must stand up to the Devil We agree that we must do that, but the question is, “How can you resist the devil?” James just gave us the first step, “Submit yourselves therefore to God” James instructs us in the correct order, first you determine to stand with God, to walk with God Then and only then can you stand against the devil Only with the power of God can we defeat the Devil, don't try to reverse the order Don't think that you are going to overcome the devil and make changes in your life by yourself Don’t think that you can first defeat the Devil and then come to God You don't improve your life and then come to God, you come to God for a life changing experience You come to God in order to stand against the devil, too often it appears that Christians reverse the order They live like they have submitted to the devil and are standing against God Christians, we are not to stand against God's will, Christians, we are not to stand against each other But together, let “us” stand against the Devil, it is time for the church to stand against the Devil James is saying that we must make a definite decision, determine “now” to take your stand against Satan “Now” is the time to fight against the devil, prepare “now” to defeat the devil You must know who God is before you will willingly submit to Him You must also know who the devil is before you will stand against him You must see the Devil as he really is, you must understand what he desires to do with your life In Revelation 20:2 he is identified by four titles, Rev 20:2 And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, First, he is the “Dragon,” a title that is found only in Revelation In Revelation the “dragon” is presented as the chief enemy of God and His people He is called “dragon,” (12:4) “great dragon,” (12:9) and “great red dragon” (12:3) From the “Serpent” in Genesis, he becomes the “Monster” of Revelation The “Dragon” is a Sea Monster, a destructive beast, a cruel creature The emphasis is upon his fierce nature in conflict, he is ferocious in his attacks against believers He is seeking to destroy Christ and His followers, he is seeking to destroy the True Church His most destructive work will be in the last days just before the return of Jesus Christ, 2Ti 3:13 But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived. When Christ returns, Satan will be bound for 1,000 years, which is the Millennial Reign of Christ He will then be released for a brief period of time, Rev 20:3 And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season. Then the deceiving dragon will deceive, no more, Rev 20:10 And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever. The lake of fire is the final state of Satan, his demons, and all-of his followers The second title of Satan found in Revelation 20:2 is “that Old Serpent” That title takes us back to the Garden of Eden, Gen 3:1 Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? He is none other than the old snake from the Garden of Eden, a creeping evil character He will still entice and trick you, he is a crafty character, he will corrupt your mind Paul knew who he was and what he would do, 2Co 11:3 But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. Unless you resist the devil, he will do the same thing to you that he did to Eve He has been around a long time doing the same thing, deceiving people He is well known, well experienced, and his activities will increase before Christ returns The third title of Revelation 20:2 is, “the Devil,” his most common title Satan is called “devil” 38 times in the NT, it means, “slanderer,” accuser, deceiver A false accuser, one who falsely accuses and divides people without any reason A slanderer, he originally accused or slandered God, he is the one who tempted Jesus, Mat 4:1 Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil. He will make false and blasphemous suggestions to us, he has many evil and crafty ways, Eph 6:11 Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. Don’t give him a chance to work in your life, Eph 4:27 Neither give place to the devil. The fourth title given to him is “Satan,” he is called “Satan” 36 times in the N.T. In the N.T. “Satan” is a personal name which means “adversary” hater, accuser We are not to be ignorant of Satan and what he wants to do, 2Co 2:11 Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices. You can know what Satan is thinking, you can know his mind set, his mind is set on deceiving you We may not know all that Satan is going to do, but we know that he is going to do something The name “Satan” is found the first time in, 1Ch 21:1 And Satan stood up against Israel, and provoked David to number Israel. Really the first mention of Satan is in the book of Job (because of the early writing of Job) The title “Satan” is found 14 times between Job 1:6 and Job 2:7, read it, it is very interesting It is also very informative, giving us the truth of Satan’s present work, Job 1:7 And the LORD said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? Then Satan answered the LORD, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it. (Job 2:2) Satan is still going back and forth upon the earth in his battle against the believers Continually setting his traps, 1Ti 3:7 Moreover he must have a good report of them which are without; lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil. Satan has his trap set today, he has more bait today than ever before Satan is public enemy number one and he is determined to devour us, 1Pe 5:8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: Peter also tells us how to resist Satan, 1Pe 5:9 Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world. “Faith” is our shield, Eph 6:16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. You must know who Satan is, you must know what he will do and know what he wants to do to you He wants to separate you from the things God has for you James tells us to “Resist the Devil,” refuse to yield to him In Ephesians 6, Paul says take your stand against the devil, Eph 6:11 Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. The “whole armor of God” must be put on now, today and every day in order to resist the devil, Eph 6:13 Wherefore 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. Don’t hesitate to “take the whole armor of God,” do it now, in order to resist the devil The “evil day” is any day and every day that the devil comes to assault or attack you We must take our stand against the devil every day, Eph 6:14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; God’s Word is “truth,” stand on the Word of God and you can withstand the attacks of Satan Paul’s point is strong in these verses, we must stand, withstand, and stand against the devil Stand against the devil when he comes, stand with the whole armor of God Withstand the devil during his attack in the authority and power of Jesus Christ And you will still be standing when the battle is over, the devil will flee The spiritual battle continually rages, be sure you are standing with God Be sure you are now standing against the devil, stand like Daniel, Dan 1:8 But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king's meat, nor with the wine which he drank: therefore he requested of the prince of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself. Stand like Joseph, Gen 39:9 There is none greater in this house than I; neither hath he kept back anything from me but thee, because thou art his wife: how then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God? James now makes us a promise, a promise that is based upon the truth of God’s Word A promise that is from God, but the promise is conditional and he will flee from you. Satan will not flee unless you resist him, he will not flee from a moment of indecision He will not flee while you are trying to decide whether you want to obey God or not He will not flee if you doubt God or God's Word, he will not flee if you are compromising with sin He will not flee while you are trying to make a deal with God Too many Christians are like children making their requests, just one more minute Just one more time, if you will just let me this time, I promise this will be the last time If you crack the door of your heart open Satan is going to come in Most television programs today are an open door to Satan Most magazines and paperback books today are an open door to Satan If you flirt with the devil, he will feast upon you, if you court Satan he will control you You are living in danger when you deal with demons, yes, they are present today, Eph 6:12 For 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. Victory over the devil is promised but it can only be God's way of defeating the devil Jesus gave us an example, Satan will flee from the truth of God's Word, Mat 4:4 But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. Mat 4:7 Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God. Mat 4:10 Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve. Three times Jesus said, “it is written,” turning to the power of God’s Word, look at what happened, Mat 4:11 Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him. Satan will flee when you are living the Word of God Satan will flee from righteousness, which is the righteousness of Christ within us Satan will flee from faith, when we live the faith, we say we believe Satan will flee from our commitment to Christ, Satan will flee from the holiness of our heart Satan will flee from our will to obey God's will James does not promise that Satan will leave us alone James does not say that the closer we get to God, the farther Satan will be from us Satan will always be there to tempt you, regardless of how close to God you are A sure sign of submission to God will be the attacks of the devil But being close to God is how we are-able to stand against Satan When we are walking with Jesus and living the Word of God, Satan will have to step back Every time Satan steps out of the way, you gain a step closer to God With Satan out of the way it is easier for us to come a step closer to God Coming closer to God is the purpose of our life That is why we pray, read the Bible, faithfully attend church, all to come closer to God Come closer to God, get away from the Devil, and experience what God has for you every day, Eph 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: Satan cannot linger in “heavenly places” because that is where Christ is and we are “in-Christ,” Eph 2:6 And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: CONCLUSION Submission to God is turning it all over to God, placing it all in the hands of God To be governed by His will, desiring to please God in our thoughts, words, and deeds Allowing God’s Word to teach us, allowing the Holy Spirit to lead us Determined that we will follow Jesus regardless of what anyone says or regardless of what happens