The Roaring Lion
Scripture gives this description of our enemy and it gives you a vivid mental picture of this big lion charging forth with a terrifying roar, that strikes fear into the heart of his prey....
Let’s read it together.... 1 Peter 5:8, Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.
Satan has many faces but only one set of fingerprints, and everywhere he leaves them, it is evil. The bible gives us some very sobering and descriptive information about this enemy of our souls.
He’s the universe’s public enemy number one, the chief opponent of God and his people, and the leader of uncounted demonic forces. Jesus says he’s been a murderer from the beginning, and he’s engaged in an all-out war against the forces of good in the universe.
Paul tells the Ephesian church to put on the full armor of God, so that they can stand firm against his schemes. James tells Christians that if they resist the devil, he will flee from them. Peter tells believers to beware: he is always on the prowl.
The name “Satan” means “adversary.” or “opponent.” Behind everything that wants to stop, hinder, distract or destroy you, is the real adversary or opponent, satan....That’s why we call it adversity....
Satan always gravitates to power, because he can cause the greatest damage and destruction to God’s kingdom by securing people with power and influence as his instruments. He can hold sway over cultures, nations and regions, by using leaders of local, state, national, and global influence. He’s proof that there’s strength in numbers. He starts while leaders to be, are children, teens and young adults, and he uses the scientific, educational, sports, political, media, financial, business and family units as his base for training and equipping!
Satan wants to come across as fun, cute, the fulfilling of your fantasy, a way to get what you want, a way to use people to your own ends, he can manipulate the odds in your favor, he promises power, influence, money, and fame.... But I’ve often wondered, “why aren’t all fortune tellers rich”? If they can really tell the future, why don’t they all win the lottery?
Satan has many faces and they can change at any time. Today he may smile at you but the following day he may destroy you. Today Satan may give you something good, but tomorrow he demands it back from you and more besides. He comforts with alcohol, drugs and pleasure today, and tomorrow, he controls your life. Folks feel like they’re casting off restraints and really experiencing freedom, until he destroys them later and they found themselves bound and hopeless.
He is called the thief, a liar and the father of lies, the deceiver, the destroyer, Prince of darkness, the evil one, a murderer, a fallen angel, and he is also known as fear, doubt, unbelief, rebellion, hatred, criticism, prejudice, division, rejection, retribution, pride, addiction, violence, abuse, lawlessness, greed, resentment, perversion, jealousy, lust, slavery, intimidation, shame, condemnation, and on, and on.....
Instead of a roaring lion, he will show up as hurt feelings, injustices done against you, poor self esteem which he can take advantage of, he will come as a false lover, a betrayal, he will destroy your trust, he will exploit your loneliness, your fears, your anger and your suspicions. And all of it is a way of controlling your life and pulling you further and further from freedom, peace, love, encouragement and most of all, eternal life through Christ.
Satan will use the loss of a loved one to gain entrance into a grieving heart, by sending familiar spirits to make them think they are seeing or hearing from their loved one beyond the grave and many have been deceived. Familiar spirits are satan’sdemons who have become familiar with that person, and can appear like them, sound like them, and know personal things about them that no one else would know.
But in Luke 16:26 Jesus said that there is a great void fixed between the living and the dead which none can cross over...
Satan’s goal is to keep us from Christ, from hearing His words, from receiving His love and grace, from experiencing the real freedom He brings — because Satan knows only Christ can deliver us from hell and make us overcomers, who will thwart his plans, be victorious over all his devices and rule with Christ over the earth when we get back from heaven. Acts 4:12 says that In spite of all the things that people will turn to....“Salvation is found in no one else, but Jesus Christ, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved”
Jesus turned to His disciple Peter one day and said, “Get thee behind me Satan”.... Because Peter, without realizing it had stepped over into the adversarial position to what Jesus was saying and doing. He was a distraction to the powerful message Jesus was trying to get them to understand....without realizing it, he had allowed himself to be used as Satan’s tool instead of the Lord’s instrument....Jesus is serious as snake bite about this stuff!
So it’s important that we understand that Satan doesn’t always appear as this overwhelming terrible event or situation, to oppose us. He is a master of disguise. Even though he has been cast out of heaven, he isn’t stupid, even though his pride gets him in some stupid places. He’s been working his destructive works for 1000’s of years..
Ezekiel 28:12–14 “You were the seal of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. You were in Eden, the garden of God, you were anointed as a guardian cherub, for so I ordained you. You were on the holy mount of God; you walked among the glowing ones” . He fools many by transforming himself into an angel of light and good works, and acts of kindness as a substitute for salvation through Jesus Christ... We must know and recognize his strategies....
Every football or baseball or basketball team must know the opponents strengths and weaknesses.. They must be prepared for these things in order to set up the proper defense and then win over it! They spend a lot of time studying the enemy as well as building their strengths. On the field and in the locker room, the strategy is continually being developed.
What looks like a hand off, may be a pass, what looks like a pass may be a run, and what looks like a run may be a hand off.... There is constant deception in the game, to throw the opponent off and have them defending the wrong things....Those who are engaged in sports must stay physically and mentally fit. They must be in training on and off the field or they can defeat themselves.
2 Corinthians 11:3 “But I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent’s cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ”.
Praise God, to the Christian, Satan is a defeated foe! That is our position in Christ. 1 John 3:8 tells us that The reason the Son of God came to this earth, was to destroy the works of the devil." James 4:7 encourages us to “Submit to God, resist the devil, and he must flee from us.” Luke 19:13, Before he ascended into heaven, Jesus told believers to “Occupy (advance My kingdom) until I return”.
What Jesus meant by “Occupy” is not just about accumulating this world’s goods, but it is better explained by a kingdom which has been invaded by another kingdom, but the invaded kingdom finds a hero, who leads them in overthrowing the invading army, and takes back what was rightfully theirs, Occupying is about taking it back!
In Matthew 12:29 the Lord Jesus said that unless the strong man is bound, no one can enter his house and plunder (or take back) what he has stolen. So, part of the process of occupying begins bytaking back all that the invader has stolen.
Satan is not really in total charge, as he would like to think he is, of all the demonic host that fell, because he rules a shaky kingdom. He rules by fear, intimidation, deception, threats and intimidation. You see, Satan is the supreme rebel, and his heart is filled with pride and every evil, so, all the demons who have followed him, are rebels like himself and filled with pride, blind pride, and no loyalty except to themselves! Jesus said a kingdom divided against its self cannot stand. Demons will turn on each other in a heart beat, because they are all constantly competing for position over one another, out of greed and lust for power. A satanic kingdom is easily broken up as you bind the leader, it sets them all against one another a weakens their power. Scripture says that... “we are to bind the strong man, and we can spoil his goods” that’s the leader over a strong hold.. which may be pornography, violence, depression, murder, lawlessness, gambling, adultery, hypocrisy, lying, witchcraft, and so on.
When the strong man is bound, the strong hold is set in total disarray, and becomes very vulnerable, as each turns against the other! Ephesians 6:12 “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms”.
You are in one of three places... You are getting ready to enter a battle with the enemy, You are in a battle with the enemy, or You have come through a battle with the enemy. After every encounter with the enemy, he will depart for a season to find a new way to attack, and return again... Jesus said, “Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers them out of them all.
Satan may leave you for a season, but the good news is that Jesus has said “I will never leave you, or forsake you, lo, I am with you always, until the end of the earth.”
You can defeat the devil when he comes against you...
First, Colossians 3:16 “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom...” This means that head knowledge is not enough, but we need application of the word through the wisdom to Implement it strategically, as soon as the enemy begins to launch an attack. We can’t respond in the flesh, the emotions, or the natural mind. How often does the enemy get first strike advantage before we take out our sword. Satan knows our patterns, preferences, and opinions which can be our “go to”, before the word, and he can use our own opinions, preferences and patterns against us....
When Satan tempted Jesus, he didn’t tell satan his opinion, or his preferences, or what he felt emotionally.... He said “It is written”....and it was a word which fit that temptation, not a memorized rhetoric....
Second... Encourage yourself in the Lord... That’s what David did when he was in the battle. If you don’t do it, satan will take advantage of the situation and wear you down...
1 Samuel 30:6 “And David was greatly distressed; for the people spoke of stoning him, .....but David encouraged himself in the Lord his God”.
Daniel 6:23 “Daniel trusted in the Lord his God”. This is what Daniel did, he encouraged himself in the Lord, when they threw him into a den of lions, and he turned it into Daniel’s den, instead of the lion’s den....Daniel occupied that thing!
I remember CM Ward, said once, “if the people in a town I’m in rise up and run me out of town, I’m going to get up in front, and turn it into a parade for the glory of God as we march out of town.” Begin to encouraging yourself in the Lord, and give the devil a heart attack! Turn the lion’s den into your victory march.....
I will declare “These momentary troubles are achieving for me an eternal weight of glory”
“I can do everything God calls me to do, through Christ who gives me strength.”
“ I will be strong and courageous. I will not be discouraged, for the LORD my God is with me wherever I go.”
“His grace is sufficient for me, for his power is revealed even in myweakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly for in my weaknesses, Christ’s power is resting upon me.”
“I was young and now I am old, but I have never seen the righteous forsaken or my children begging bread.”
ARE YOU WITH ME HERE!!! Encourage yourself in the Lord.
Next, Don’t be a loner... Support one another. Satan wins when he can isolate us, and divide us. We all need support, because someone else may see things in a way you are not seeing. We are created and designed as a body with many parts and scripture says that each part has something to contribute. The eyes and ears need to work with the hands and feet. The brain and the heart need to be in harmony with each other and the rest of the body. So, we are told to pray for one another and lift up one another and we will fulfill the law of Christ. The law of Christ is the law of love and compassion. Realize that the loner spirit is there to destroy you, not protect you....God operates on the buddy system. He sent them out two by two, He said forsake not the assembling of yourself together.
Also, Don’t be a spectator, get in the game...be an activist for Jesus, because you are the one who will benefit the most when you do. Ecclesiastes 9:10 “Whatsoever your hand finds to do, do it with your might..” John 9:4 “I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work”. Do it now, and defeat regret, and you won’t be saying “if only I had done this or that”, later down the road.
1 Corinthians 15:58 “Our labor is never in vain in the lord.”
However, don’t be like the believer who said, “The devil never takes a vacation, or a break, so I won’t either”.... Wait a minute, who ever said that the devil is our example!.... just keep following Jesus.... We can do a lot of the right things for all the wrong reasons.... I had to repent for not drinking alcoholic beverages for the wrong reason. That sounds crazy doesn’t it? I never drank because alcohol destroyed my home, and caused me to be an abandoned child.Alcohol was connected to all the bad that happened to me. But I needed to change my motivation, because my motivation had a lot of the wrong spirit in it. I had to turn my hatred, and anger, into “I don’t drink alcohol because it is not edifying to my calling and my purpose. I don’t drink alcohol because I am the temple of God. I don’t drink, because I have yielded my body as an instrument for God to use, and I will not come under the power of any other... (does that make sense”) I needed to take back control, because that anger, and resentment was controlling meand my life decisions....
I needed to turn all the negative stuff that was part of that, into something edifying and a positive part of my life... A re-bounding Christian, is sincere but still letting their decisions be built on the hurts and wounds and failures of the past. We are redeemed, new creations, delivered and set free by the blood of the lamb.
We must let God remove all the hay, wood and stubble from our foundation.... because satan will use it to weaken us and it will all be burned up in the refiner’s fire anyway....May we burn with such a holy fire, that the clutter of the past won’t stand a chance, but will be consumed by God’s holy fire! *In closing, I want to quote a word from the Lord that came through John Kilpatric, whom God used in the powerful Brownsville revival, that went around the world and set many churches and lives ablaze for God.
”Like a snake sheds its skin, you look behind you and see that you have left behind mourning, sadness and hopelessness. You will hardly believe you stayed in that place so long. You are letting go of it, and it is letting go of you. There is a mighty rumbling. It’s the marching feet of God’s angels to come and bring freedom to the captives. Their swords are drawn. Their banners are flying. Your enemies that have tormented
you are already nervous.
Your enemies even hear the sound of deliverance, too. They are losing their influence, and confusion has already set in as you hear this! They are scattering, they are becoming like loose soil where they once held you like concrete. Your enemies will leave your blessing and you will gather the spoils from the battle... This is a battle the Lord Himself will fight. Your enemies will scatter at the sound of the Lord of Hosts. This will be as a sudden thing. I say again, this will be a sudden thing”.
Let’s stand for prayer.
"Dear Lord, You are the God of deliverance and breakthrough. You are the God who bursts forth to bring the things of Heaven to earth. Release the breaker anointing through Your people, that there may be a breakthrough that will shatter the darkness and bring your light of revelation and illumination. You have given us the victory. Release Your angels of breakthrough and Your ministering and gathering angels and warring angels and give them Divine directions and Divine strategies and guide Your intercessors and spiritual warriors in how to cooperate with the heavenly realm. Let the situation on earth come into alignment with Your Will and Your Kingdom, that it be on earth as it is in Heaven.
Lord, I pray for them to understand and to believe Your Word. May they not be deceived by the voice of the enemy. Open the eyes of their understanding to know the hope of their calling and the resurrection power in all who believe. Lord, show how strong and mighty You are. Father, wake up the slumbering spirits of the people. Lord, download Your Word into their hearts and their minds so that they may have constant access to the Word and so that the Word cannot be stolen from them and that it may bear much fruit in their lives.
Lord, I am going to press into this because I am hungry for all of You. What I have is good, but it is not enough. I want my life to carry a breaker anointing. I want my life to lift people and to inspire people who are suffering so that they can experience breakthroughs in their own lives.. I want to contend at my city gates and bring heaven to earth! Lord, I thank You that what You have done in the past, you will do now, You are the same, yesterday, today and forever.
In Jesus Name I pray, AMEN"
Acts 3:6 Such as I have, I give unto you, rise up....
