Resist the Devil
James 4:7 “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”
We know, according to James, that every good and perfect thing comes from the Father of Lights, and Jesus clearly said in John 10:10 that it is the thief who steals, kills, and destroys. Jesus said of a woman who was sick that Satan had caused her to be bowed over for eighteen years. We must learn to resist what the devil is doing. Our scripture today says that when you submit to God and resist the devil, he will flee from you.
What do we resist? We must resist all the works of the devil. Jesus clearly helped us out in this because the Word of God clearly says that Jesus destroyed the works of the devil in 1 John 3:8. Even when the temptation to sin comes, according to James 1:13, God is not the one tempting us to sin. It’s the devil.
When we resist anything, we get the idea of pushing back against it. It is like keeping someone outside who is trying to break through a door. We resist their attempt to break in by keeping them out. Ephesians 6:11 tells us to stand against the works of the devil. Resisting is the goal, but before you can successfully resist, you must do something else. You must submit yourself to God.
To submit is to come under. Submission to God is something that must be done before we can successfully resist the devil. You cannot resist until you have submitted (James 4:7).
There are three areas that I want to concentrate on that, if you will submit to God in them, you will successfully resist the devil. The three areas are: submit to God’s Word, His voice, and the elders He has placed over you.
You submit to the Word of God by being a doer of the Word (James 1:22). Until you do the Word, you are not submitted to the Word.
The next way to submit to God is to obey when He speaks to you. John 10:4-5 tells us, “We are His sheep, and we know His voice, and the voice of a stranger we will not follow.” You know when God is leading you. Do not ignore Him or pretend you don’t know His voice. You know His voice! Obey it!
Lastly, God has put elders over each and every one of us. Notice, I said God has put them over us. Find out who God has put over you and then submit yourself to them. The elders do not make you submit. That would be out of order. I don’t try to make anyone submit to me. Submission must be done by the person submitting. It is an act of their will, especially when they don’t agree with something. Are you submitted to the elders God has put over you?
When you are submitted in all three of these areas, now you can resist!
Another element needed to successfully resist is the grace of God. This is not unmerited favor. This is the power of God to stand against the wiles of the devil. This is standing grace, and it is available to every born-again believer. You and I must learn to receive this grace so we can successfully stand against the works of the enemy.
James 4:6 and 10 tell us to humble ourselves under God’s mighty hand so we can receive this standing grace. It also tells us the same thing in 1 Peter 5:5-6, that humility is the key to receiving this grace. The Lord even told Paul in 2 Corinthians 12:9 that this standing grace was sufficient against what the enemy was doing. In other words, the grace of God is enough to get rid of every attack of the devil.