Sa Tan

The coach shouted instructions to the players frantically, hoping to win the mindset of the opponent, the reward? A goal for the winning team. The devil whispering lies into our mind, the reward? Another lost soul, back slide by his deceptions...

The violent rages of a father. The secret binges of a mother. The sudden rebellion of a teenager. Maxed-out credit cards. Internet pornography. Satan does not sit still. Spiritual warfare as much as you can deny, it is real...

Self-imposed pain. The demoniac used rocked. We are more sophisticated; we use drugs, sex, work, violence, & food. Obsession with death & darkness. Even unchained, the wild man loitered among the dead. Evil feels at home there. Communing with the deceased, sacrificing the living, a morbid fascination with death & dying - this is not the work of God...

Endless restlessness. The man on the eastern shore screamed the day & night [Mark 5:5] Isolation. The man is all alone in his suffering. Such is Satan’s plan. "Be well balanced [temperate, sober of mind], be vigilant & cautious at all times; for that enemy of yours, the devil, roams around like a lion roaring [in fierce hunger], seeking someone to seize upon & devour." 1 Peter 5:8 [Amplified Bible] Fellowship will foils his work. & Jesus. Jesus wrecks his work. Christ steps out of the boat with both pistols blasting. "Come out of the man, you unclean spirit!" [Mark 5:8 NASB]. No chitchat, No niceties. No salutations. Demons deserve no tolerance. They throw themselves at the feet & mercy of Christ...

"My name is Legion; for we are many." & he began to implore Him earnestly not to send them out of the country. [Mark 9-10, NASB] Legion is a Roman military term. A roman legion involved six thousand soldiers. To envision that many demons inhabiting this man is frightening but not unrealistic. The demons are not only numerous, they are equipped. A legion is a battalion in arms. Satan & his friends come to fight. Hence, we are urged to 'take the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, & having done everything, to stand firm" [Eph. 6:13]

"We are fighting against forces & authorities & against rulers of darkness & powers in the spiritual world" [Eph 6:12 CEV]. The devil is a strong devil. But and this is the point of passage, in Jesus's presence, the devil is a wimp. Satan is to Jesus what a mosquito is to an atomic bomb. How hell's court cowers in Christ's presence! Demons bow before him, solicit him, & obey him. They can't even lease a pig without His permission. Then how do we explain Satan's influence? Satan can disturb us, but he cannot defeat us. The head of the serpent is crushed by Jesus! Halleluiah! Thank you Jesus...

"God disarmed the evil rulers & authorities. He shamed them publicly by His victory over them on the cross of Christ." [Col. 2:15 NLT] So how does that leave us? Confident. The punch line of the passage is Jesus' power over Satan. One word from Christ, & the demons are swimming with the swine, & the wild man is 'clothed and in his right mind" [Mark 5:15] Just one command! No séance needed. No hocus-pocus. No chants were heard or candles lit. Hell is an anthill against heaven's steamroller. Jesus "commands...evil spirits, & they obey Him" [Mark 1:27 NCV] The snake in the ditch & Lucifer in the pit- both have met their match...

And yet, both stir up dust long after their defeat. For that reason through confident, we are still careful. Satan spooks our work, disrupts our activities, & leaves us thinking twice about where we step. Which we need to do. Alertness is needed. Panic is not. The serpent still wiggles & intimidates, but he has no poison. He is defeated, and he knows it! "He knows his time is short" [Rev. 12:12 CEV]...

"Little children, you are of God [you belong to him] & have [already] defeated & overcome them [the agents of the antichrist], because He who lives in you is greater [mightier] than he who is in the World. [1 John 4:4 Amplified Bible]. Believe it. Trust the work of your Savior. "So be subject to God. Resist the devil [stand firm against him], & he will flee from you. [James 4:7 Amplified Bible] "Draw near to God & He will draw near to you." [James 4:8 NASB]...

Inspired by:

Max Lucado