“When I appear, the devil disappears.” This was the statement from a young and passionate minister of God sometime ago. When I thought deeply about that statement, I came to the conclusion that it is either this young man is greater than Jesus or is simply ignorant of spiritual warfare. The devil did not disappear when Jesus appeared. Jesus only knew how to deal with the devil. We need to understand spiritual warfare.
Friend, life is full of battles. The Christian life does not preclude you from battles (1 Timothy 1:18). It actually prepares you for battles and positions you for victory. The God who fights our battles is the same God who trains our hands to war and our fingers to fight (Psalms 144:1). Some people think that the moment they give their lives to Christ, they are free from battles.
On the contrary, the moment you give your life to Christ, you are introduced to battles. You become the enemy of Satan because you are now on the Lord’s side (Revelation 12:9-11). Failure to realise this on time is the reason for confusions and contradictions in the lives of so many people. Some have been wrongly taught that salvation means you won’t have problems or fight any battles. This is not true (John 16:33).
Knowledge is a critical weapon in spiritual warfare (2 Corinthians 2:11). To be ignorant is to be at a disadvantage. This is why the devil will do everything possible to put you in the dark. He would ensure that you don’t discern him or the battle he is bringing your way (Luke 22:31-32). Some people even think that because they are not looking for the devil’s trouble, he would leave them alone. Your salvation and pursuit of purpose are already a threat to Satan.
Sometimes, the person with the least resistance from the devil is the person not going anywhere serious (1 Corinthians 16:9). If you are actually doing something with your life, or the devil perceives you are going somewhere great, he would show up on your road (Zechariah 3:1). Rather than asking what’s wrong with you, you need to ask what’s right with you. You don’t have a problem. You have a purpose. This is why the devil won’t leave you alone.
You need to learn to keep the devil where he belongs. He is under your feet (Ephesians 1:21-23, 2:6). Christ has defeated him on your behalf. This is why we are not fighting for victory. We are actually fighting from victory (Romans 8:37). We are fighting from the position and consciousness of the victory that Christ has earned for us via His cross. We fight to enforce our victory and dominion over Satan and all his works. Rise to victory today! Amen.
‘Demola Awoyele
Lead Pastor,
Destiny Impact Church
Akure, Nigeria