The Enemy Knows

By: Jenifer Metzger

Therefore, submit to God. Resist the
devil, and he will flee from you.  Draw near
to God, and He will draw near to you.
Cleanse your hands, sinners, and
purify your hearts, you double-minded.
James‬ ‭4‬:‭7‬-‭8‬ CSB

I have never tasted alcohol of any kind. Not hard liquor, not beer, not wine, nothing. I don't say that as a boast, I say it because it has never had any appeal to me in the slightest. I've never wanted it, thought about it, had a desire to just try it, nothing. Because I have no experience or taste for it, the enemy doesn't try to tempt me with it. He knows it is a worthless effort. Instead, he puts his focus elsewhere, he tries to tempt me toward sin where I struggle.

The enemy knows what gets to us. He knows exactly how to make us fall. He knows what we struggle with. He knows our temptations. He’s not going to come at you with something that is not an issue for you. He’s going to come at you with something he knows you struggle with.

If he knows lust is an issue for you, he’ll put that attractive person in your view to make you lust and sin. You'll see that neighbor or co-worker and feel temptation. Or you'll scroll through social media and see posts of guys that cause you to feel temptation. If he knows anger is an issue for you, he’s going to make sure that traffic is backed up and people cut you off. Or he'll cause that one fellow mom in the school pick up line to say just the right thing to set you off. If he knows laziness is where you struggle, he'll make sure your tired and don't want to get up and get going. Or he'll make sure all the right Reels and TikToks come up to keep you glued to your phone.

He knows how to get you. He studies you closely. He knows all the right things that will have you battling within and all the right things that will cause you to stumble. BUT, we CAN resist him.

When the enemy tries to get us, we have power against him. We can say no and fight back. And when we do, all of heaven rejoices and the enemy walks away. But make no mistake, he will be back so we have to consciously submit to God and resist the devil. It’s a daily, hourly even, choice we have to make.

Here are five ways to resist the devil:

Recognize where you struggle. What is that sin you battle with? You can't fight back if you don't recognize it.

Pray. Ask God for help. God doesn't want you to live in this sin. He wants to help you. But you need to give it over to God and ask Him for help.

Open the Word. Open the Bible and begin to find Scriptures that deal with the sin you are struggling with. All sin falls into one of three categories: lust of flesh, lust of eyes, and pride of life. Jesus was tempted by the enemy in these ways too and He always fought back with the Word. You may not find Scripture about TikTok or mean girls in the mom group, but you can find Scripture about not being lazy (Proverbs 6:9-11) and on kindness (Ephesians 4:32). So open the Word, write out Scriptures to keep close by, and even memorize those Scriptures.

Seek counsel. Talk to your spouse, a trusted friend, mentor, or even your pastor. Share your struggles and ask for wise counsel and prayer. We don't have to fight our battles alone.

Remember, the enemy will come for you. That is a given. But you are called to submit to God and resist the enemy. It is possible.

Discussion:
1. Think of that sin you struggle with. Think back to times you submitted to it. Can you see where the enemy was working?
2. Now think of ways you can fight the enemy. Scriptures you can memorize. Places you need to avoid. Hard conversations you may need to have with your spouse or trusted friend.