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HELEN SANDERS
12-15-2021
AS A ROARING LION
In I Peter 5:8 it says, “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.”
We must remember that we have an adversary, and that adversary is the devil. The Greek word for adversary is antidikos. It means an opponent in a lawsuit. You see, we were on trial for our sin. The charges were made by Satan, and we were found guilty as charged. Then Jesus stepped into the witness stand and said he was the substitute to pay for those guilty charges. He took the punishment so we could be set free.
The apostle Peter warns us to be sober and vigilant. Of course, the opposite of sober would be drunk. We aren’t to live a lifestyle that will cause us to be caught off guard by Satan. He is a legalist and looks for opportunities to accuse us before God.
To be vigilant means to be awake, like a soldier guarding his territory. We can’t fall asleep on our “watch” if we want to keep the enemy out. The verse goes on to say that Satan is as a roaring lion. It doesn’t say he is a lion. He deceives people into thinking he has the same power as the “Lion of the Tribe of Judah” which is Jesus.
Everything Satan does is done by fear, deception, and intimidation. If he can get us to focus on him instead of the true Lion, then we will live defeated lives. He is a great counterfeiter. He uses his legal rights when we sin to devour us. Notice it says, “seeking whom he MAY devour.” We have to give him permission to do this. How? By sinning and not repenting of it. When we have sin in our lives, he has permission to devour us. We keep him at a distance by walking in holiness and love. He hates. God loves.
So, the next time that you feel he is attacking you like this “toothless lion” check your heart and if it is right with God then tell him to leave you alone in Jesus’ name. If your heart isn’t right with God, then quickly repent before he devours you.
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