Article - The Wiles of the Devil

The Wiles of the Devil

“Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 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.” Ephesians 6:11, 12, KJV.

Did you know that we are engaged in warfare in this world? All of us are in a daily spiritual battle against the devil and his emissaries. Jesus assures us that if we are his sheep then we do not have to fear our eternal security. “And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand (John 10:28).” We should take strength from this and the many other promises of eternal life contained in the Bible. However, we must never forget that the devil is a wily enemy determined to wage war on the children of God until the end of time. The Apostle Peter likens him to a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour (1 Peter 4:8). When the Bible speaks of the ‘wiles’ of the devil it means that he is not simply lying in wait to harm God’s people, but rather he is actively hunting them down! How does Satan attempt to harm God’s children, and what can we do to protect ourselves?

The devil is undeniably searching for our children to devour them. He is waging
a full frontal assault on the hearts and minds of our young people. It begins in the womb where many babies are snatched from what should be the safest place in the world for them - in the name of choice. These little ones never see the light of day. The attack does not end there. From an early age our children are taught that they are accidents; here in this world because of the process of evolution. Then, they are assaulted with a philosophy that right and wrong are relative. It is up to the individual to determine morality and there is no real authority in the society. This coupled with the bombardment of sex, violence and mocking of sin by the media causes many casualties amongst our youth in the spiritual battle.

The fight does not end with young people. Satan has set a snare for you, to, and is doing his best to drive you into it. He consumes so much of our time with the pursuit of wealth and material things. Many of us work above and beyond what is needed to provide food and clothing for our families. Many homes have become ‘two income’ families as we pursue bigger homes, nicer cars and more stuff. With mothers away from the home because of careers and father gone most of the time, children have been institutionalized for much of their lives. This leads to the problems mentioned in the previous paragraph and opens the door for the devil to obliterate a family. If our time is not taken up with wealth, then it is easily filled with the distractions of the world. It is amazing to observe how many people are distracted by their Ipods, cell phones, and computers. It is rare to see people engaged in meaningful interactions with others, much less spending quality time with God. I believe that Satan has been successful in casting these and many other stumbling-blocks before God’s people.

What is the solution to this problem? Paul instructs us in Ephesians 6:11 to put on the whole armor of God that we may be able to withstand the devil’s wiles. What is this armor? He lists it in the following verses. We are to have our loins covered with the truth (God’s truth) and the breastplate of righteousness (V. 14). Our feet are to be shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace (V. 15) and we are to defend ourselves with the shield of faith (V.16). Our head is to be covered with the helmet of salvation and our weapon is the sword of the spirit, the word of God (V.17). God’s armor is different than the solutions of the world. If we are truly to withstand the devil’s attacks we must abandon the false ideologies that abandon our youth and consume our time to the point that we neglect all things spiritual. Jesus said, “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust
thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever (1 John 2:15-17).”

Michael Green, Jr. is pastor of Palm Chapel Primitive Baptist Church (www.palmchapel.org) in Crestview, FL. Palm Chapel meets every Sunday at 10:30am and Wednesday at 6:00pm. Pastor Green can be contacted at (850) 689-3383 or by email at pastor@palmchapel.org. Pastor Green warmly invites you to come and worship at Palm Chapel Primitive Baptist Church.