SB#3
5 July 1998


Understanding and resisting Satan's tactics



A. Preliminaries
Consider Satan's past. What aspects of his original nature does he bring into his current job description? How are those aspects different?


B. General strategies
Review what you know of his general strategies that we have studied:

  1. Liar and deceiver [Gen 3, John 8:44; Rev 20:8-10]
  2. Accuser [Rev 12:10-12]


How do we deal with these kinds of threats? Discuss in terms of real-life modern-day situations in our lives. Then do the same for the following:

  1. Angel of light [2 Cor 11:14-15]
  2. Roaring lion [1 Peter 5:8-9]


C. Christ vs. Satan: Luke 4:1-13
Discuss the methods Satan used to tempt Jesus. Why did Satan tempt him in those ways (v3, 6, 9)? How was Jesus able to withstand these temptations? How did Jesus respond each time? Discuss similar temptations or attacks in your own life, and how you can overcome them, based on this passage.

S: If you're the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread.
J: It is written: 'Man does not live by bread alone'. [Deut 8.3]

S: I will give you all their authority and splendor, for it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to. So if you worship me, it will all be yours.
J: It is written: 'Worship the Lord your God and serve him only'. [Deut 6.13]

S: If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here. For it is written, 'He will command his angels concerning you to guard you carefully; they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.' [Ps 91.11,12]
J: It says: 'Do not put the Lord your God to the test'. [Deut 6.16]

We can identify various aspects of these temptations; they involved breaking devotions, taking the expedient shortcut, forsaking dependence on God, abuse of power and authority, misplaced worship, the ends justify the means, Satan's usurpation of power, self-exaltation, putting one's way above God's ways, and such. And there are lessons here for us on these aspects of sin. But I think Satan's ultimate strategy was to prevent Christ from dying on the cross—to assert and exert his mesianic power and authority right there, and skip the cross. That alone would have been a partial victory for Satan, because all our souls would be lost to him.

Some theologians debate whether Jesus could have sinned. I don't think so. First, because of God's sovereignty. Second, though Jesus willingly gave up his divine ability and authority to become incarnate (cf. Phil. 2), he did not give up his divine nature and essence. He was still fully God, and couldn't have possibly sinned. And thank God, because that made it possible for him to die for us and save us!


D. Specific strategies
Discuss how Satan (directly and thru other people) uses the tactics below, identify some modern-day real-life examples in your/our lives, and how to defeat the various kinds of attacks.

accusation & guilt Job 1, 2 [excerpts]; Zecheriah 3; Rev. 12:10-12;
Rom. 8:1, 33, 38
anger & other footholds
temptation
Eph. 4:25-27
James 4:1-10; Mt 6:13(1)
antichrist
legalism
false teaching, falsehood
lies & deception
1 John 2:18-23, 4:1-3
Col 2:16-23
1 Timothy 4:1 Mt 24:24; Rev 20:8-10
idolatry
spiritual blindness
Deut. 32:15-18; 1Cor 10:20; Rev 9:20
2 Cor 2:4:3-4; Mt 13:1-23(2)
occult(3)
familial sin & bondage
possession
dehumanization(4)
personal bondage or oppression
Rev 21:8
Exodus 20:5
Mark 5:1-13, etc.
discouragement, etc. James 1:2-18

Consider James 1, which explains why Christians undergo trails; the trials that come upon us happen because God allows them to. How does Satan try to take advantage of these situations? Compare God's workings and Satan's workings in our trials. How do we escape Satan's attacks under trial?


E. Satan's doom
See Rev. 20:7-10. He's not just dead; he's deader than dead. How does understanding that he's a defeated foe help us?


F. Conclusion: prayer


Apply lessons learned from these Bible studies in extended group prayer, and pray scripture verses aloud as part of your prayer, applying them to yourselves.




1. In temptation, we do battle with the tempter (Satan) at least to some degree, and/or with our flesh. Either way, our general strategy according to these verses is similar.

Foothold suggests an image of rock-climbing, when a rock climber depends on holes and gaps in the rock to place his/her feet to climb a mountain. Likewise, Satana relies on "gaps" like sin problems and spiritual weakness to make inraods against us.

2. Parable of the sower: crows = demons that snatch the truth away from people.

3. Many occult practices are forbidden and condemned in Scripture; e.g., see Is. 3:1-3, Ez. 13:18, Acts 19:19, Rev. 9:20-21, Rev 21:8, etc.

4. As in the Gerasene demoniac and other scriptural accounts of demonically possessed or oppressed individuals, demons try to dehumanize people in any way possible - by destroying their dignity and the God-image in which people are created. The same holds true for cases demonic influences in all kinds and degrees of severity, as reported by Christian counselors and pastors. In whatever way demons influence, oppress, or even possess individuals, they seek to dehumanize them in some way, and in the case of Christians, to interfere with the Christian's relationship with God. And while demons can't posses a Christian, they can still influence and even oppress a Christian.