Submit to God and Resist the Devil

To say that my wife doesn’t like snakes is an understatement.

I didn’t know it was physically possible for a human being to perform the cartoon-character movement of jumping three feet in the air, spinning one’s legs so fast that you can’t see them, and hitting the ground only to take off in a cloud of dust and disappear over the horizon. Not until I saw Jen do that once when she saw a snake in the grass at her feet.

It didn’t matter to her that it was a harmless garter snake.

Another time, while we were on a youth retreat, one of our students, Grant, saw a garter snake in the grass and immediately bent down to pick it up (he grew up in the country and was aware it was one of these harmless garter snakes).

I remember seeing that snake bite Grant’s knuckles repeatedly for about 30 seconds. Grant didn’t flinch. He just said, “Oooh, it’s a little nervous! But he’ll calm down.” Those little pin-prick teeth didn’t bother Grant one bit! He knew that he was not in danger. And sure enough, the snake soon calmed down and quietly wrapped itself around Grant’s hand.

Other times, I’ve encountered venomous snakes that pose a real threat. I’ve seen quite a few rattlesnakes (or heard their rattle, which is even scarier!) while hiking in the mountains. Once, as a young scout, a few of us gathered around a snake curled up in the sun. When our Scoutmaster caught up, he announced it was a rattler. We all took a couple of steps back!

Yet another time, when Jen and I were walking the trails around Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe, we found a snake coiled up in the path, blocking our way (Jen suddenly had a very good view from her perch on my shoulders). I curiously observed the snake until a local man informed us it was an Egyptian Cobra! Jen was right to be nervous, and we took another route!

The reality is that we have a very real, personal, evil enemy. The devil is described as a serpent, crafty and deceptive.

James, the Lord’s half-brother, tells us that “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.” (James 4:6b-8a, ESV)

John Chrysostom (345-407 A.D.) wrote, “We must remember that we deal with a crafty enemy. If we were suddenly aware of a serpent nestling in our bed, we would go to great lengths to kill it. But when the devil nestles in our souls, we tell ourselves we are in no danger, and thus we lie at ease. Why? Because we do not see him and his intent with our mortal eyes… Also, know that the devil has no desire for open combat (for he would surely be defeated), but rather, under the appearance of friendship, intends to insinuate the venom of his malice.” (Quoted from Richard Foster and James Bryan Smith, Devotional Classics, p. 312)

Dear Saints, our enemy is not some cartoon character who is harmless. We should not simply ignore his bites and expect him to ‘calm down’ as my student did with the harmless garter snake. His deceptions are harmful and have often taken deep root in our hearts and minds, so we must “go to great lengths” to replace these lies with the truth of God’s word.

The gospel's good news is that when we humble ourselves before the Lord Jesus and submit to Him and His truth, we can resist the devil, and he will flee.

How do you do this? You choose to believe that what God says is far more true than your experiences, your sins, your past, your struggles, or your sorrows and trials.

Then, relying on the Holy Spirit’s power, you walk in obedience to Jesus, who is the Truth. And remember that you are not alone. When you submit to Jesus, He will draw near to help you for it is “God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill His good purpose” (Philippians 2:13 NIV).