Rays of Hope

A Book of Encouragement

How to Resist the Devil

  "Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you." James 4:7, 8. This text gives perfect instructions, and one who will follow them will always succeed in getting rid of Satan.

  Notice the order of action. First, resist the devil, and he will flee; secondly, draw nigh to God. Some people spend all their time resisting the devil, consequently have no time to draw nigh to God. Satan does not care how much you resist in your own strength; but when you begin to draw nigh to God, then Satan trembles and flees away. He is willing to fight with you for a life time, if he can [49] thereby hinder you from drawing nigh to God. When Satan is resisted steadfastly in the faith and the soul draws nigh to God, there is no longer hope for Satan and the only alternative left him is to flee. As long as you show a weak faith and listen to the suggestions of the enemy, he is well pleased. Sometimes Satan must be ignored. It is not always necessary to get on your knees in order to resist the devil. I have known persons to spend hours, and even days, almost constantly on their knees, and yet come out in the end defeated, not because they did not pray, but because they did not ignore the devil and resist him once for all, then draw nigh to God.

  Some people pray because Satan tells them to do so. He will accuse them of having done wrong and suggest that they had better go and pray a while. They will then go and spend an hour or two, perhaps half a day, on their knees, not praying, but listening to the suggestions of the devil and trying to get rid of him in their own strength. Never go and pray because you are accused. When you go to pray, always pray to the Lord, who is ever willing to hear you and to grant you all your needs. Ask Him in faith and confidence for the needed strength and grace never forgetting to thank Him for what He has done. I have often found that the best way to get rid of Satan is to quit thinking of his suggestions—to utterly ignore him and to interest myself in something beneficial. If you have work to do, set about it, singing some encouraging song as you work, or take a Bible and read a few chapters. Begin to praise the Lord for past benefits and rejoice in expectations of future blessings. The more you thank and praise the Lord, the less you will feel disposed to doubt or give up.

  The only reliable standard of right and wrong is the Bible. Acquaint yourself thoroughly with the practical precepts of the New Testament. You will then be well armed and able to decide whether an impression is from the Lord or of the devil, and when you know it is the devil, you will surely not spend time parleying with him. Some people however, get in such a habit of listening to Satan that you will hear them say, "The devil has been after me for two or three days." The devil has been after [50] you? Then, you really knew that it was the devil, yet you have allowed him to trouble you for two or three days? Do you not know that the New Testament says, "Resist the devil, and he will flee from you"?

  Again, someone will say, "the devil is trying to make me believe I have sinned," or "the devil has been trying to make me believe this or that." Who was talking to you? If you knew it was the devil, why did you not resist him? If you resisted him, why did you not then draw nigh to God? and as God would have drawn near to you, Satan would have fled. But you really spent two or three days listening to what you knew was the suggestion of the devil and spent hours on your knees wrestling in your own strength against what you knew was the suggestion of the evil one. Be ashamed and never do the like again. If Satan tells you a lie, and you know it to be Satan and know it to be a lie, you are to blame if you believe it; and if you disbelieve it, act accordingly. Do not be afraid to let Satan know that you believe him to be a liar. You may tell him in a trembling way, as many times as you please, that he is a liar, that you do not believe him, and that you believe the Lord, but little does he care what you tell him, so long as you continue to worry about what he has told you.

  Now, in conclusion, let me give you a perfect plan to get rid of the devil at any time and under any circumstance. First, as I have said, you must be acquainted with the practical precepts of the New Testament, so that you may detect the difference between the voice of Satan and the voice of God. Then in your action against the devil follow carefully this order of attack: First, resist the devil steadfastly in the faith; secondly, do not linger to see whether he will go or not, but draw nigh to God with all your heart. When Satan sees you start toward the Lord, he will become frightened and flee away. By following this order of attack you will see that you have only a small part to perform in getting rid of the devil and you will find it an easy task; for as Satan departs, God draws nigh. You have but one third of the distance to go; for as you draw nigh to God, He draws nigh to you, and Satan flees at the same rate of speed. So then. when you have drawn [51] nigh to the Lord, you will be twice as far from Satan as the distance you have come; for as you draw nigh to God, He draws nigh to you and Satan flees away. Amen.

Impressions

  Our impressions are from three sources—the divine, the diabolical, and the human; from God, from Satan, and from natural sources. There are two rules given us by which to test our impressions—first and best, the Word of God; second, our own better judgment.

  Some people are more given to impressions than others. Persons of the former class need to be careful lest they should follow some "ignis fatuus" to the quagmires of fanaticism.

  Impressions from the Lord are never attended with discouragements from Him. Though sometimes the way may seem difficult and we may see ahead of us lions that seem to be on the way, yet the assurance that God's grace is sufficient, the promise that no lions shall go up on the holy way, and the confidence that He will make a way for us in trouble—these keep discouragements away. If impressions from the Lord are attended with discouragements, these are not from the Lord. Even with conviction for sin the Lord does not send discouragement, but rather sends with the sorrow for sin hope of deliverance. This, then, is one way to recognize the impressions that come from God.

  The surest and best test, of course, is to consider whether or not the impression is in harmony with the Bible. If it is not, it is unsafe to follow. But we sometimes have impressions in regard to things of which the Scriptures do not speak. In such cases the Lord allows us to use our better judgment. We often receive impressions from the Spirit of God concerning matters on which the Bible is silent, but the difficult point with those who are [52] accused and doubting is to know when the Lord is talking and when Satan is talking.

  It is well for those who are habitual doubters or for those who have long been accused, to pay but little attention to impressions of any kind. For such persons the safest way out is to take the written Word of God and their better judgment, and build upon it until they have become well established. Then they can more easily and more surely obtain the leadings of the Lord through His Spirit.

  Impressions brought about by circumstances or natural causes may sometimes be harmless and sometimes may lead to disaster. Your better judgment and the advice of discreet brethren constitute the surest way to discriminate between right and wrong impressions of this nature. Impressions that come from Satan, we all know, are invariably wrong. The most important question is to be able to detect the impressions of the devil to know when the Lord is speaking and when Satan is tempting. I repeat that the only safe way out from the slough of false impressions for those who have become habitual doubters or have been long accused by Satan is the written Word of God, the advice of spiritual and well informed brethren, and the use of one's own better judgment. [53]