Today’s New Covenant nugget is from 1 Peter 5:8-10
Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Resist him by being steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world. But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you.
We are under fire… our way of life is under fire, believers are personally under fire... the devil is in all-out attack mode!
Did you know that as believers in Christ we are designed to thrive under fire? We are designed to get stronger and get propelled faster the more we get attacked by the enemy! Fire can propel and fire can destroy... how it is handled determines the outcome!
Let’s look at each verse in this powerful passage…
1 Peter 5:8
Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.
Note that scripture says that the devil walks about LIKE a roaring lion, SEEKING whom he may devour – he is not a lion, he is a sickly cockroach, and he is under our feet! He is not devouring, he is seeking whom he may devour… like the cockroach that he is, he is wanting to fall in your soup and ruin it. In Christ, we are more than conquerors and the devil cannot harm us… he does however have a strategy to get us to inflict harm on ourselves.
THE DEVIL’S STRATEGY...
The power of suggestion
The devil suggests things for us to embrace… he can not harm us, but he does suggest that we harm ourselves by embracing harmful thoughts, attitudes, ideas and emotions. He tempts us, or suggests that we embrace depression, frustration, negativity, fear, restlessness and thoughts of unfulfillment and dissatisfaction. These thoughts and emotions are not from you, they are from the devil… do not embrace them, reject them! You (the new creature in Christ) are happy, peaceful, full of faith, satisfied, thankful and full of joy! You are positive, steadfast, fulfilled and blessed with every blessing! Do not buy the devil’s lie!
1 Peter 5:9
Resist him by being steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world.
THE WAY TO RESIST AND OVERCOME THE DEVIL IS TO BE STEADFAST IN FAITH!
Not to fight him... Jesus already fought and won - being steadfast in faith! Some people get involved in spiritual warfare and talk to the devil for hours on end – do not do that, bypass him and overcome him the way that the Word instructs us… overcome him by being ‘steadfast in faith’… what does it mean to be steadfast in faith?
It means to be…
Steadfast in the Word.
Steadfast in prayer.
Steadfast in worship.
Steadfast in fellowship.
Steadfast in ministry.
As you remain steadfast and immovable in your walk of faith, every suggestion and temptation of the devil will come to nothing – instead of embracing his darkness, you will be embracing light and life and power.
1 Peter 5:10
But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you.
Verse ten is where the THRIVING comes in – in the midst of the devil’s fiery darts being shot at you, you overcome him by being steadfast in your walk of faith… THEN, by GRACE, you supernaturally become more like Jesus (perfected), you become more stable and more established, you become stronger and you become settled in your inner man… now a perfect, stable, strong, settled person is what I call a thriving person! The more fiery darts the enemy shoots at you, the more you thrive!
PRAYER
“Father, I resist the devil and overcome him by remaining steadfast in faith!
By Your grace I will remain steadfast in Your Word, in prayer, in worship, in fellowship and in ministry!
I thrive under fire! I excel in times of struggle, in Jesus Name!
Your grace gives me the ability to overcome and to thrive.
By Your grace I become perfect, established, strengthened, and settled under fire, in Jesus Name!”
Blessings on you, Nick
