What does it mean to resist the devil? After sharing some stories with a friend of mine and dissecting Gods word…It became apparent to me what it means to resist the devil.
“God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble. Submit yourselves therefore to God . Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.” (James 4:6-8)
Oppose means to place opposite in contrast. So when it says “God opposed the proud”, I believe that God intended not to fuel the fire. He does not feed into the boasting of man on his own throne, He turns the OPPOSITE direction and gives grace to the humble…He turns from the wretched and lays His eyes on the meek. For so long I have been paying to much attention to the devil and not continually seeking the Lord in times of turmoil and unrest. Instead of getting on my knees before the Lord I would spend time telling satan to flee. In short I would be spending to much time in “conversation” with satan. I believe that when it says “to resist the devil” it means to turn your eyes in the OPPOSITE direction where they will be fully engulfed with the light of Christ!
Its like this. I am sure we have all heard (in some form or another) our parents or someone say, “don’t fuel the fire…be the bigger person and walk away.” This statement basically means don’t give attention to someone not worth it, don’t waste your breath fighting with someone stooping to a lower level, stand strong in humility and walk away from a ridiculous situation, and so the same with resisting the devil. He stoops to low levels, levels we should pay no attention to.
I believe that we should not give him the time of day, but remember not to forget that he is real and he will TRY to steal, kill and destroy. In circumstances of unrest and upheaval, I must remember to call on my most hight King because when it all comes down to it He is the one in control, not the devil. Why go to middle management when you can go directly to the CEO!
In 1 Peter 5:6-11 I believe Christ has laid this out for us. “…casting all your anxieties on Him, because He cares for you…” meaning that we must consult God in times of need. I believe that we have true authority in just that…that we can OPPOSE the devil, turn our back to him and praise GOD and ask GOD to deliver us from the current circumstance. “…the God of all grace, who has called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will rescue, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. To Him be the dominion forever and ever. AMEN” God will take care of it all for us, but we must constantly give all attention and glory to Him…don’t waste the time and energy it takes to go through middle management (satan) when you could be fully strengthened by Christ first and foremost!!!!!
I have always hated satan, but now I live in the authority Christ has given me to be a bigger person and turn my back to him and give my undivided attention to my GOD!
