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As believers in Christ Jesus and children of God, we need to learn to be victorious in Christ over Satan—Eph. 6:12; 1 Pet. 5:8-9; 1 John 5:18:
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We should not be ignorant of Satan’s schemes—2 Cor. 2:11:
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The Greek word translated “schemes” means “plans, plots, designs, wiles, intentions, purposes.”
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The evil one, Satan, is behind the scenes in everything and works in everything, even in the church life.
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We need to put on the whole armor of God so that we may be able to stand against the stratagems of the devil—Eph. 6:11:
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The devil has not only evil intentions but also deceptive stratagems to work out his intentions; these stratagems are his evil plots.
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Putting on the whole armor of God enables us to stand against the stratagems of the devil—v. 11.
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One of Satan’s stratagems against the saints of the Most High is to wear them out (Dan. 7:21, 25); when we see that Satan is wearing us out, we will have the power to withstand and oppose his wearing-out tactics.
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We need to be watchful against our adversary, the devil, who “as a roaring lion, walks about, seeking someone to devour”—1 Pet. 5:8:
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To be watchful is to be vigilant as in warfare, as with soldiers on the frontier.
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The word watch in 1 Peter 5:8 implies fighting; we are involved in a warfare, and we need to be vigilant.
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If we are vigilant, we will withstand our adversary, being firm in our faith—v. 9:
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To withstand is not to resist nor to struggle against but to stand firmly, like a rock, on the ground of our faith before the roaring devil.
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Your faith in 1 Peter 5:9 refers to the believers’ subjective faith, their faith in God’s protecting power and loving concern.
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The best way for us to be victorious over Satan is to live in the mingled spirit—1 Cor. 6:17; 1 John 5:18:
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There is only one place that Satan cannot invade—our spirit—2 Tim. 4:22.
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Whether or not we are under Satan’s authority is not determined by the things we do; rather, it is determined by whether we are in the spirit or in the flesh—Gal. 5:16-17.
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As long as we remain in the mingled spirit, we will be kept, and Satan will have no way with us—1 Cor. 6:17; 1 John 5:4-5, 18-21.
Morning Nourishment
Eph. 6:12 For our wrestling is not against blood and flesh but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the world-rulers of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenlies.1 John 5:18 …He who has been begotten of God keeps himself, and the evil one does not touch him.
2 Tim. 4:22 The Lord be with your spirit. Grace be with you.
The devil uses not only crafty ways in his work but also stratagems. His stratagems are always varied. We need the whole armor of God to stand against them. He can use all kinds of persons, things, and matters as his stratagems to trap us. He can also devise stratagems to deceive us and distract us from our true status before God, our true obtainments from God, our true service to God, our true love for God, and our true enjoyment of God. All his stratagems involve some element of truth being mixed with false and evil things; therefore, it is difficult to discern and recognize his stratagems. We need to be watchful and to pray, asking God to expose the devil’s stratagems so that we would not be ignorant of his stratagems. (CWWL, 1932-1949, vol. 4, “Crucial Truths in the Holy Scriptures, Volume 6,” p. 483)
Today’s Reading
In order to stand against the devil, we must put on the whole armor of God. An individual Christian cannot wear the whole armor of God; it must be worn by the church. We must fight the devil’s authority of darkness with all the saints. The warfare in Ephesians 6 is a warfare between the church and the devil’s authority of darkness; therefore, the armor in Ephesians 6 must be worn by the church. If we live in the church, the Body of Christ, and put on the whole armor of God with all the saints in order to stand against the devil, we will overcome him and bring in the kingdom of God. (CWWL, 1932-1949, vol. 4, “Crucial Truths in the Holy Scriptures, Volume 6,” p. 487)We should forget about old religion. Having morning watch is worthless and praying is useless if we are not in the spirit. It is possible that our prayers have been in cooperation with Satan, that our morning watch has been infiltrated by Satan, and that even our service as an elder has been for Satan. This is not to say that we have brought idols into the church or have brought the brothers into sin. On the contrary, we may be very pious and diligent in leading the saints to have morning watch, to endeavor in this practice, and to endeavor in reading the Word. However, we may not realize that Satan has infiltrated all these things. There is only one place that Satan cannot invade—our spirit.
May the Lord be merciful to every one of us and grant us the heavenly vision. Do not think that merely being zealous and serving God is sufficient. Saul of Tarsus was also zealous and also served God, yet he was under the authority of Satan. His service to God, his zeal, and his keeping of the law were all under Satan’s authority. Can we say that our zeal, our having morning watch, and our endeavoring in doing many things are not under Satan’s authority? Whether or not we are under Satan’s authority is not determined by the things we do. Rather, it is determined by whether we are in the spirit or in the flesh. Do we have morning watch in our natural being or in our spirit? If we have morning watch in our natural being, then even though we may rise at 5:30 A.M., our morning watch can be utilized by Satan. However, if we have morning watch in the spirit, there will be a different flavor.
We need to turn to our spirit. Being holy, victorious, or freed from sin is not what matters. The only thing that matters is that we live in the spirit where the Lord dwells. (CWWL, 1975-1976, vol. 1, “Living in the Spirit,” pp. 473-474)
Further Reading: Life-study of 1 Peter, msg. 33; CWWL, 1975-1976, vol. 1, “Living in the Spirit,” ch. 2; Truth Lessons—Level Four, vol. 3, lsn. 43; CWWN, vol. 38, ch. 52