Passage: Ephesians 6:10-13

The Big Idea

The devil is real, he hates you, and he prowls like a roaring lion. We’re already in a war, and our real enemy isn’t our spouse or the people who annoy us; it’s spiritual. So God gives us His whole armor so we can stand. But here’s what the enemy doesn’t want you to know: at the cross, Jesus disarmed him. He’s a lion without teeth. Our job isn’t to win the war; it’s to stand in the victory Jesus already won.

The Devil Is Real

Peter tells us to stay sober-minded and alert, because our adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour (1 Peter 5:8).

The devil is real, and he hates you.

I once heard someone say they didn’t believe in the devil, and I thought, “That’s strange. Then who’s causing all these problems in the world and in my life?”

A Barna survey some years ago found that a majority of self-identified American Christians agreed that Satan “is not a living being but is a symbol of evil.” Only about a third clearly rejected that idea.

The problem is that Jesus said he’s real. Some people today say, “Maybe Jesus was wrong about Adam and Eve, and Noah and the flood.” But Jesus speaks the truth because He is the truth. He spoke of Satan, of Adam and Eve, and of Noah and the flood as real (Matthew 19:4-5; 24:37-39). He talked to Satan (Matthew 4). He spoke about hell, the devil’s future home, often and soberly.

Jesus said the devil was a murderer from the beginning, with no truth in him; when he lies, he speaks his native language, because he is a liar and the father of lies (John 8:44).

To say Jesus was wrong about these things is a serious charge against the One who is the Truth.

A Roaring Lion

In 1898, the British began building a railway bridge over the Tsavo River in Kenya, led by Lt. Col. John Henry Patterson. For nine months, two maneless male lions stalked the work camp, dragging workers from their tents at night. Crews built fires and thorn fences, but the lions leaped over or crawled through. Hundreds of workers fled, halting construction. Patterson tried trap after trap and ambush after ambush. Finally, in December 1898, he shot the first lion, and the second three weeks later. The first measured over nine feet from nose to tail, and it took eight men to carry it. The bridge was finished in early 1899. Estimates of the number killed vary widely, from dozens to Patterson’s claim of more than a hundred. (Hollywood told the story in The Ghost and the Darkness.)

Imagine how different that story would’ve been if the workers had armor: thick plate steel with chain mail underneath, like shark divers wear. And a sword. Maybe named the “Simba Splitter”!

Satan is attacking. We’re in a war, and we need equipment. So let’s go to our Commanding Officer and see what He’s provided.

The Whole Armor (Ephesians 6:10-11)

Paul says to be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might, and to put on the whole armor of God so we can stand against the devil’s schemes (Ephesians 6:10-11).

As we saw last time, we need resources outside ourselves: His power and might. We need to put something on to cover our weakness.

“Put on the whole armor of God.” Don’t think you’ve got some part of your life under control. You don’t. You’re as fallen as everyone else. You have no spiritual strength without Jesus. And His armor is a complete set; nothing is missing.

Satan can’t figure out how to beat it, so he tries to convince us not to put it on.

God is so good to provide such specific, total protection.

“That you may be able to stand.” You can’t stand without it. How many have we seen fall, dragged from the tent right next to ours? This is life and death. Satan doesn’t want you hurt; he wants you spiritually dead. If we ignore the armor and try to live in our own power, fight the devil with our own gear, or pretend he doesn’t exist, we’ll be devoured.

“The wiles of the devil.” He’s cunning: crafty, deceitful, full of tricks. Like Wile E. Coyote, he always has a new plan, and an unlimited account at the Acme store of spiritual attacks.

The Real Enemy (Ephesians 6:12)

Paul says our wrestling match isn’t against flesh and blood, but against rulers, authorities, the cosmic powers of this present darkness, and spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places (Ephesians 6:12).

We aren’t about to enter spiritual warfare. We’re already in the foxholes, and flaming arrows are whizzing past. And not many people win a fight they don’t know they’re in.

Do you think your spouse is just a jerk for no reason? That your enemy hates you because you’re ugly? That people tempt you because you’re so cool? No, no, no, my friends. It’s spiritual!

Our marriages are under attack.
The enemy can stir your flesh to feel hurt and disrespected.
He can put thoughts in your mind, stir selfish desires, and place temptations in front of you.
He can stir people to treat you badly, even to hate you.

We have to realize our friends and family aren’t the enemy! We have to know we’re at war, and who the real enemy is.

Paul says that though we live in the flesh, we don’t wage war according to the flesh. Our weapons aren’t worldly; they’re mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every proud thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing every thought captive to obey Christ (2 Corinthians 10:3-5).

We’ll look at those weapons in the coming studies. Right now, let’s focus on the battle’s context. It’s a battle for souls, for people to know God and obey Christ. And a whole army stands against that mission. Satan is its king, and it’s well organized:

Principalities: authorities over regions. Think of the angel in Daniel 10 delayed by “the prince of the kingdom of Persia.” Yet Romans 8:38 says principalities can’t separate us from God’s love, so their power is limited.
Powers: forces that gain a hold over areas of life. Addictions like alcohol, drugs or pornography are common footholds in a weak, unequipped life.
Rulers of darkness and spiritual hosts of wickedness: all the rest. I picture the armies of orcs marching to battle in The Lord of the Rings: orderly, hateful, gross and smelly.

Stand (Ephesians 6:13)

So Paul says to take up the whole armor of God, so we can hold our ground in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand (Ephesians 6:13).

We aren’t on a mission to attack the devil. We’re on a mission to live for God and love people in His name. But we’ll be attacked while we go about our business. That’s an evil day. We’ll be punched and pushed. They’ll try to move us off course. But we’ll be able to stand firm.

David Guzik puts it well: we love an energetic church that advances God’s kingdom so vigorously it shakes hell, but we don’t let principalities and powers set our agenda. We do the Lord’s work and stand against every hint of spiritual opposition.

Why doesn’t Jesus just destroy Satan and his armies right now? Spurgeon said, “Victory needs conflict as its preface.” And: “As soon as you are washed in Christ’s blood and clothed in His righteousness, you must begin to hew your way through a lane of enemies, right up to the eternal throne. Every foot of the way will be disputed; not an inch will Satan yield to you.”

I Am Not Left-Handed

In The Princess Bride, Inigo Montoya duels the Man in Black on the cliffs. He admits his opponent is better, and then he smiles. Why? Because he knows something the other man doesn’t: “I am not left-handed!” He’s been holding back his real strength.

So why are we smiling? Because we know something the enemy doesn’t want anyone to know.

Jesus has tipped the scales. He’s played the ultimate trick on our enemy! Paul says that at the cross Jesus disarmed the rulers and authorities, made a public spectacle of them, and triumphed over them (Colossians 2:15).

That means Jesus took away the devil’s power. Jesus kicked the teeth out of the lion.

Satan may be a roaring lion, but he’s a toothless one. No bite! All he can do is roar, slobber and gum. He just doesn’t want anyone to know! He’s trying to gum you to death.

So not only do you have God’s perfect armor, you’re fighting an enemy with no teeth, no real ability to harm you when you’re in Christ.

Our victory is rooted in what Jesus did, not what we do. It isn’t that we do nothing, but our “doing” is receiving and applying what Jesus already did.

Where the Lion Has Teeth

Satan only has teeth when we’re guilty of sin. And Jesus removed the guilt of sin by His death on the cross.

When we trust Jesus’ death as our substitute, we’re completely freed from guilt. His blood cleanses us from all sin. So what can Satan say to condemn you now?

He says, “You’re a sinner!” We say, “Yes! But look at the cross. My sin has been paid for!”
He says, “You’re guilty!” We point to the cross again.
He says, “You can’t change! You’ll keep on sinning!” We look at the resurrection and see that same new life changing us from the inside. Sin isn’t our boss anymore. It doesn’t control us. At the cross Jesus broke the power of sin and the devil.

So all Satan can do is trick us into taking our eyes off the cross and forgetting what Jesus purchased for us. Through trials, success or distraction, he keeps trying. I wonder if he’s amazed it still works sometimes. He’s so thoroughly beaten, yet people still let him win.

In some Eastern Orthodox traditions, the day after Easter is a day for jokes and laughter, celebrating the cosmic joke God played on Satan. Satan thought he had won. He was smug, sure he’d had the last word. Then God raised Jesus from the dead, and life and salvation became the last word!

Team, we’re being attacked and accused. This enemy does not like you. Some people think Satan doesn’t exist; others think he’s more powerful than he is. The Bible teaches us to know what he does, and to stand.

Satan hates you, but we don’t fear him. We stand.
We don’t slouch or fall. We stand.
We aren’t half-hearted or self-reliant. We stand on what Jesus did.
We don’t doubt His Word. We stand on it.
We don’t drift away. We stand in place with Jesus.
We never retreat. We stand firm.

The victory has already been won! Just stand in it!

Fighting with your spouse? Respond in love now. Forgive now. Recognize the real enemy. It isn’t your spouse!
Struggling with sin or temptation? It has no power over you. It has no chains. It’s a fake, a facade.

Just say, “I trust Jesus! I believe in what He did on the cross. I’m forgiven, and His power has been given to me to be free from this sin!” It’s the one-step program.

Just don’t take your eyes off Jesus. Like Peter walking on the water, you’ll only sink when you look away (Matthew 14:29-31).

For Discussion

What do you imagine the devil looks like? What movie villain best represents him?
Have you ever been in a real fight?
Can you recognize times in your life when you were under spiritual attack?
The devil’s main weapons are lies. How does the fall in Genesis 3 show this? How does Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness (Luke 4) show it?
Read 2 Corinthians 11:13-14. How does Satan disguise himself as an angel of light? Why would he want to? Why did he come in disguise to Eve but not to Jesus?
According to Colossians 2:15, how did Jesus disarm the enemy? What can an enemy with no weapons actually do? Does this change how you view spiritual warfare?
If Satan wants to keep you from truth, what practical things can you do to keep that from happening?
Do you ever try to fight for a victory that has already been won?

Grace Takeaway

The devil is real, crafty and roaring, but at the cross Jesus pulled his teeth. Your enemy isn’t your spouse or your neighbor; it’s a defeated foe who can only win by getting your eyes off the cross. Put on God’s whole armor, recognize the real battle, and stand firm in the victory Jesus already won. You know something the enemy doesn’t want known: we are not left-handed.

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