Key scripture- “Then there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon and his angels.”(Revelation 12:7).

A Protestant denomination is proposing a new liturgy for christenings. The old ceremony asked parents and godparents two questions: “Do you reject the devil and all rebellion against God?” and “Do you repent of the sins that separate us from God and neighbor?” The new liturgy summarizes both in one question: “Do you reject evil, in all its many forms and all its empty promises?”

Removing the words that refer to “the devil” would have bothered C. S. Lewis. The well-known Christian author wrote “The Screwtape Letters” to alert Christians to the reality of Satan. In that book, the demon, Screwtape, encourages his nephew to keep his human subject skeptical of his existence by suggesting that the devil runs around in red tights. “If any faint suspicion of your existence begins to arise in his mind, suggest to him a picture of something in red tights, and persuade him that since he cannot believe in that . . . he therefore cannot believe in you.”

Satan would like nothing better than for us to downplay his existence, but instead of doing that we need to remember these two facts:

1. Satan is our “adversary”. “Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” (1 Peter 5:8). In Revelation, John symbolically describes him as “a large red dragon” whose “tail swept away one-third of the stars in the sky” and who tried to kill Jesus from the moment He was born (Revelation 12:3-4). He is a liar and deceiver and He would like nothing better than to destroy you. When Jesus described him He said, “He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies.” (John 8:44). No creature is more powerful or more full of hate.

2. Satan is NOT stronger than Jesus. Jesus destroyed Satan and his power when Jesus died and rose again. “When He had disarmed the rulers and authorities, He made a public display of them, having triumphed over them through Him.”(Colossians 2:15). The serpent that accuses us before God has been kicked out of heaven. He’s been defeated “by the blood of the Lamb” and will soon be “thrown into the fiery lake of burning sulfur” (Revelation 12:11, 20:10).

As Christians, we should never be intimidated by the devil’s roar (1 Peter 5:8). Instead, we should use his every growl as an excuse to rush into Jesus’ arms.

You are probably wondering, “Can demons hurt me?” The Apostle John assures us in 1 John 5:18 that the answer is NO, because as Christians, we are being held securely by Jesus and the evil one cannot touch us. “We know that God’s children do not make a practice of sinning, for God’s Son holds them securely, and the evil one cannot touch them.” (1 John 5:18). The word touch means to handle, grab, or influence. Satan is real, but he can’t handle, grab or influence you because you are in the arms of Jesus.

In addition to not being able to touch you, if you are in Christ, then you are indwelled by Christ; and because Christ lives in you, an evil spirit never will. We need to remember that just because Jesus has won the battle, it doesn’t mean Satan will stop trying to hurt you. He looks for vulnerabilities – for opportunities to intimidate, divide, and to harm you, but our spirits are off-limits to his malevolence. This is true not only in life but also in death. When Christians die physically, they experience immediate intimacy with Christ, because when we are absent from the body we are present with The Lord. “Therefore, being always of good courage, and knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord— for we walk by faith, not by sight— we are of good courage, I say, and prefer rather to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord.” (2 Corinthians 5:6-8).

It is also important as Christians that we understand what we should and should not do in order to defeat demons.

Luke shows us in Acts 19, what not to do. In Acts 19:13 Luke tells us that many were convinced that a simple phrase was the secret to defeating demons. They’d go around town saying, “In the name of Jesus whom Paul preaches, I command you to come out” (Acts 19:13). One day, seven sons of a Jewish high priest were doing just this when an evil spirit answered them: “Jesus I know, and Paul I know about, but who are you?” Then the man who had the evil spirit jumped on them and overpowered them all. He gave them such a beating that they ran out of the house naked and bleeding.” (Acts 19:15-16)

Their formula of going around town and saying, “In the name of Jesus whom Paul preaches, I command you to come out”, didn’t work at all. Do you know why?
Because knowing someone, who knows someone, who knows Jesus does not grant you immediate access to the authority of Jesus. If you aren’t in Christ – if you yourself aren’t indwelled by the Spirit of Jesus – then demonic bullies are stronger and smarter than you. You can throw Jesus’ Name out there, but it won’t make a bit of a difference if you are not in Christ.

We should not be asking, “What would Jesus do so that I can replicate it?” because power and authority isn’t a formula, it’s a presence, the presence of The Holy Spirit. Instead we should say, “What WILL Jesus do?” You are probably thinking, “So what will Jesus do?” Let me tell you. What Jesus did on earth then, He’ll do on earth now through the power of His indwelling Spirit, The Holy Spirit, who resides in all believers.

As a Christian, you are in Christ and Christ is in you, so in you resides a greater power and strength; and in the presence of that strength, demons become wimps. The way it works is, no matter where you go You are a child of God, filled with His Spirit, and as a result of that, all power and authority keep you safe. So instead of acting like the demons have won we need to start exercing the power and authority that we have through the Holy Spirit and show them that they have no power over us.

You need to understand that if you are a Christian, Satan will keep after you because he’s a bully and you are a threat to him. But you need to also remember that in the presence of Jesus, he’s a wimpy bully with no power and he can’t influence you. Everywhere you go you bring Christ’s power and authority with you. In the presence of a greater strength, the demonic bullies always become wimps; because Jesus is that greater strength and He is living in you.

If you are thinking, “What do I do when I sense evil stirring?” You need to stop and pray immediately, because where there is prayer, the fallen spirits have no power. You can pray like this: “Father, I know you’re here with me, protecting me. I need You. Jesus help me. The evil one is trying to destroy me, but I know that I am safe in Jesus’ arms and no matter what Satan tries to do Jesus will protect me and rescue me from all evil and harm. I am in Christ and Christ is in me, the Holy Spirit lives in me and I exercise all power and authority through Him. In Jesus’ Name I pray, Amen.”

So stand tall today and every day with the confidence that you can face anything because all of the power and authority of Jesus lives in you through The Holy Spirit.

Pray this – Our Precious Heavenly Father, I thank You for the fact that because I am in Christ, I am not on my own. I know the path from oppression to freedom is a road flanked with evil, so I will armor up my weaknesses and I will dress each morning for the battle by putting on the body armor of Christ. “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. Stand firm therefore, having girded your loins with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” (Ephesians 6:10-17). Rescue me from my own vulnerabilities. Loosen all chains by Your authority. Give me the courage to purposefully enter relationships and situations that will require that I lean into deeper dependence upon Your indwelling Spirit, The Holy Spirit. Thank You for the direct access I have to You because of Jesus, such intimacy makes me brave. In the Name of Jesus, Who is the Head over all rule and authority, I pray, Amen.