“Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your family of believers all over the world is going through the same kind of suffering you are.”
1 Peter 5:8-9 NLT
We pilgrims are aware that the devil is on the prowl, and we are at our most vulnerable when we do something for God that is very visible in our families and communities. New Christians in particular are in the devil’s sights because, if he can, he will cause them so many problems that they give up almost straight away. Jesus taught about this in the parable of the sower, and, unusually, he explained it to His disciples. We read in Matthew 13:19-22, “The seed that fell on the footpath represents those who hear the message about the Kingdom and don’t understand it. Then the evil one comes and snatches away the seed that was planted in their hearts. The seed on the rocky soil represents those who hear the message and immediately receive it with joy. But since they don’t have deep roots, they don’t last long. They fall away as soon as they have problems or are persecuted for believing God’s word. The seed that fell among the thorns represents those who hear God’s word, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the worries of this life and the lure of wealth, so no fruit is produced”. Notice that there are three categories of person who succumbs to the devil’s ploys. There are those whose spiritual eyes are blinded, preventing them from understanding the Good News. There are those who hear and understand it, but lack the perseverance to press through any difficulties that come their way. And there are those who get caught up with living in a certain way and pursue wealth to support their lifestyles. All methods that the devil uses to ensure a believer won’t cause him any difficulties.
The devil is very subtle in the way he tempts people. Look at the way he drew Eve away into sin. We read the story in Genesis 3, but the key opener was “Did God really say …?” The devil will work with our human nature to birth sin in our lives, and there is that desperately sad verse at the end of Judges, “In those days Israel had no king; all the people did whatever seemed right in their own eyes” (Judges 21:25). The same applies today, with people who have no moral compass, who lack God’s presence in their lives, and go on to live a life, debased by the devil and his evil lies. Their own twisted logic is influenced and matured by the devil, who devours them and then uses them for his own wicked ways.
We are not on our own in matters of temptation. Peter wrote that the “family of believers all over the world is going through the same kind of suffering” that they were. To the early believers, a very real temptation was to alleviate the suffering by renouncing their new-found faith. But Peter’s answer was for them to “stand firm” and “be strong in [their] faith”. The Apostle Paul wrote some great practical instructions for the Ephesian church. We read what he said in Ephesians 6. “A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on all of God’s armour so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil” (Ephesians 6:10-11). He explains in a little more detail some information about how the devil devours. “For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 6:12).
Peter used the illustration of the devil prowling around but he has a whole contingent of “mighty powers”, and “evil spirits” all doing his bidding. We pilgrims need to be on our guard and constantly alert to those weak spots where the devil will find us the most vulnerable. We mustn’t forget that around us are other fellow believers who are fighting the same battles. So we pray for them and get them to pray for us. And we ask the Bible Author to show us the resources we need to help us in times of need.
Dear Father God. We pray again for Your help in our lives. We cannot fight the devil on our own and we thank You for the resources You have given us. Amen.
Being a Pilgrim 