Prayer: To Stand Against the Wiles of the Devil
Dear God, You are the Omnipotent, Omniscient, Omnipresent, and eternal God, the Creator of all things. All power belongs to You!
Lord Jesus, You are the Eternal Word made flesh (John 1:14), tempted “in all points” as we are “yet without sin” (Heb 4:15) and so You became our Savior by Your death and resurrection. Jesus, You overcame every foe. You are seated at God’s right hand, and every enemy shall be Your footstool.
Jesus, You invite us to overcome as You overcame: “To him who overcomes, I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne” (Rev 3:21). I accept this challenge and follow in Your steps!
For this reason, You sent the Promise of the Father, the Spirit, to dwell within us and to empower us with the “exceeding greatness of power” (Eph 1:19; Luke 24:49) that we might “be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might” (Eph 6:10).
“We do not wrestle with flesh and blood” (Eph 6:12), but, Lord, You have equipped us with “weapons of our warfare” that are “mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and…bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ” (2 Cor 10:4-5).
Your Word tells us to “stand against the wiles of the devil” (Eph 6:11). Thank You, Father, that You have not left us “ignorant of Satan’s schemes” (2 Cor 2:11). All of the devil’s “wiles” and wicked methods have been exposed in Your Word. It is “for this purpose that the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil” (1 John 3:8). O Father, with this “mind of Christ” (1 Cor 2:14), I take my stand against Satan’s schemings!
(1) Temptation.
The devil comes to tempt, for he “sinned from the beginning” (1 John 3:8). But Jesus, You are the “Lamb of God” who takes sin away (John 1:29)! You overcame sin (Heb 4:15), and by Your Blood that cleanses me, I, too, will overcome (1 John 1:7; Rev 12:11)!
(2) Accuse, Condemn.
Satan is the “accuser of our brethren who accused them before our God day and night” (Rev 12:10). Jesus, You never accuse or condemn us. You forgive us and justify us by Your Blood. In You, there is no condemnation (Rom 8:1). You are interceding for us at God’s right hand right now (Heb 7:25)! “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ” (Rom 8:31-35).
(3) Fear, Doubt.
From the beginning, Satan has sown into mankind the evil seeds of doubt and mistrust in God. Satan also uses the fear of death to hold people in bondage. But Jesus, You came to “taste death for every man” (Heb 2:9) so that “through death [You] might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil” (Heb 2:14-15). I praise You, Jesus, for You are the “Resurrection and the Life” (John 11:25)! I proclaim freedom from the bondage of every fear! “Death is swallowed up in victory! O Death, where is your sting? Thanks be to God who gives us the victory” (1 Cor 15:54-57).
(4) Lies, Deception.
Satan is the “father of lies” (John 8:44) and can even transform himself into a deceptive “angel of light” (2 Cor 11:14). But You, Jesus, are the Truth (John 14:6). You sent the Spirit of Truth to lead us into Truth (John 14:17;15:26; 16:13). “Your Word is Truth” (John 17:17), and knowing the Truth sets us free (John 8:31-32) from every lie. “Oh, send out Your light and Your truth! Let them lead me…” (Psa 43:3). God, “in Your light, we see light” (Psa 36:9).
(5) Oppress, Torment.
Upon the Cross, Jesus, You carried ALL our sorrows, oppressions, and sicknesses. “By [Your] stripes we are healed” (Isa 53:3-5; 1 Pet 2:24). You give us “authority…over all the power of the enemy” (Luke 10:19), and in Your mighty Name, we are given “power over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all kinds of sicknesses and all kinds of disease” (Mat 10:1).
(6) Rob, Steal.
The “thief” comes to “steal, and to kill, and to destroy,” but You, Lord Jesus, came to give us Life “more abundantly” (John 10:10). Thank You for equipping us with power to take back every inch the enemy has stolen. I claim the promise You gave to David: “Pursue, for you shall surely overtake them and without fail recover all” (1 Sam 30:8).
(7) Causes to Stumble by Pride.
Satan fell because of pride (Isa 14:12-15; Eze 28:12-17). He wants mankind to do the same! His most deceptive strategy is to tempt people into independence and self-righteousness, luring them into pride – and, worst of all, religious pride (as with the critical and judgmental Pharisees!) But right now, I bow down before You, my Creator. All I am and all I have come from You alone. “It is [You] that made us and not we ourselves” (Psa 100:3). Jesus, Your Word tells us: “Humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God” (1 Pet 5:6-8), and “submit to God” – and You promise that we can “RESIST THE DEVIL AND HE WILL FLEE FROM US” (Jam 4:7).
Oh, I rejoice and triumph in the victory that You have already won for us, dear Jesus!
“We are more than conquerors through Him who loved us” (Rom 8:37).
In Jesus’ Name.
Amen.
