The Devil, Our Adversary
The devil is a formidable adversary. We must be aware. We must be impressed with his power.
The devil is subtle. His work is done mostly covertly. He tempts and lures through means that are disguised with all kinds of attractive wrappings. He is seldom ever obvious and bears little resemblance to the mountebank who almost coerces his audience into buying the product. He gently prods the subject toward self-justifying actions enticing him toward sin. His feline movements are calculated and quietly dangerous (IPet. 5:8); his appetite ravenous. His powers of disguise are subtle and pervading (2Cor. 11:14), and he is a non-tiring foe.
The devil works by telling lies (Jn. 8:44). Even in the paradise garden he told Eve a lie. “Thou shalt not surely die,” he said. Today his methods have not changed; he still tells lies, mostly the ones folks want to hear.
For instance, he tells society that human opinions can dictate morality. Oh, he doesn’t say it that way; he dresses it up some. He says, “Everybody is doing it.” When he gets folks to agree to that philosophy, he opens the door to all manner of evil, based on the fact that whatever the majority does is moral. Immodest apparel, pornography, filthy language, social drinking and literally dozens of other sins are tolerated based on this fact. Divorce no longer wears any social stigma. It has become all too common. Sexual suggestiveness is commonplace in all forms of entertainment. Free sex among unmarrieds and infidelity among marrieds is epidemic. It is even approved by the masses.
The devil has an appealing presentation for all his temptations. With Madison Avenue tactics, he shows his wares and advertises his products. His displays are immaculate designs which place the object of his ploys at center stage, making him the star of the show. He dresses the stage before ever calling out the star. When he does call him, there is already established a sense of belonging; it is as if this is the way it should be; the glitter of the stage, the thrill of playing the part, and at the end, the most exhilarating of all human experiences, the approving applause of the audience. By the time the first show is concluded the star is so hooked that he will return again and again to play the part, oblivious to the lack of substance in what he is doing.
And how appealing it is to have someone say, “There’s still time, don’t hurry.” Satan very effectively and surreptitiously steals away our sense of urgency. “There is ample time to change after you have played around awhile,” he will say. “Sow your wild oats,” he will say. Gradually he will erode away our zeal, retard our energy and cause us to be indifferent to the things that matter.
The devil’s strategy is simple, but effective. Many times, he does not set out to tempt to do evil, he merely seeks to cause us to do no good at all. Religion does not rest only in negative holiness, but in doing right things as well. “Relax,” he says, “You’ve done nothing wrong.” With such an assurance he enervates our determination to serve and causes us to stumble over our own self-righteousness.
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