The Devil Is In The Details

“The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ” – 2 Corinthians 4:4. (NIV)

The devil is real. He has real powers. And he has real intentions and an overall goal. He doesn’t want to merely disrupt your dealings with God, he wants to destroy you. He is incessant, meaning he will stop at nothing to achieve that goal. And he has been at it a long time, starting with Adam and Eve.

The first thing Satan tried to do was to destroy God’s relationship with the first human beings. He subtly asked Eve, “Did God really say you must not eat the fruit from any of the trees in the garden?” (Genesis 3:1). He cleverly avoided mentioning all that God had given to her and Adam—every other plant, tree and kind of fruit in the garden. Instead he succeeded in getting her to concentrate on the fruit of the one tree from which God had forbidden them to eat.

He is sly and subtle. He introduced his first lie, telling her she would not die if she took of the forbidden fruit (Genesis 3:4). He followed with another falsehood, saying she will be like God if she eats the fruit. (Genesis 3:5). She succumbed to his argument and the rest is history.

Nothing has changed since that day. Satan still wants to thwart God’s plan in any way he can. He wants to prevent us from developing a close relationship with God. And as a master manipulator of mankind, he has many methods and tools at his disposal.

In His parable of the farmer scattering seeds, Jesus explains that as soon as some people hear God’s truth, “the devil come and take it away from their hearts and prevent them from believing and being saved.” (Luke 8:12). Satan wants you to struggle through your entire life. The devil wants you to be sick, depressed, down in the dumps, glum, and miserable. The devil wants you to feel like you will never hit the target with your life.

The devil wants to make your life a less-than-gratifying, unhappy, uneventful life.  So, what is the answer? Jesus is the answer. Jesus was born to destroy the works of the devil. John 10:10 tells us, “The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.”

 Discussion Questions:

1. Did this week’s sermon change your perspective on the devil? If so, how?
2. If the devil is the problem, how is Jesus the solution?