Know Your Enemy

Satan is a spiritual being. He is not a concept, a force, or an evil presence; he is a being

and is the god of this world and is very powerful. Satan is not simply the personification
of evil in the heart; he is a created, angelic being of the highest rank. He is the angel of
the bottomless pit, and the leader of the host of darkness. The devil has a will and
emotions, can strategize, has a plan and knows ways of implementing those plans. He is
fierce, deceitful, and proud. He is cowardly and wicked. The devil can transform himself
into an angel of light, as can his ministers of darkness. His target is the Church, and he is
the great archenemy of God. He is also the adversary of the saints of God. If he is to be
rebuked, may the Lord rebuke him. He is our accuser and he desires to tempt us to sin.
He wants to sift us and lead us astray. He also desperately seeks to steal worship from
God.

His job is clear; it is to kill, steal, and destroy. He roams around looking for someone to
devour. The author of all that is false, he uses his servants, the demonic host, to
implement his desires and he is the leader of all demons. He is a liar, a thief, and a
murderer and he prompts man to follow his ways. He is not to be taunted or challenged.
He is not to be threatened or teased. He has tremendous power and can do great harm.
Satan is the devil; he is the chief of all fallen spirits. He is not omnipresent, nor is he
omnipotent, and therein lies the need for his demonic hosts. There is only one devil, but
many demons. His eternal home is the lake of fire. Satan is not to be taunted, teased, or
challenged. Precepts gained through the study of Gods Word warn against doing such a
thing. Jesus, as He was confronted by the devil, chose only the words from scripture, as
He stated, It is written.

But when the archangel Michael contended with the devil and disputed about the
body of Moses, he did not dare to bring a condemnation of slander against him, but
said, The Lord rebuke you (Jude 9)!

He has many names: Abaddon, Apollyon, Beelzebub, Belial, devil, serpent, Great Red
Dragon, Angel of the bottomless pit, just to name a few, and he has a structured
hierarchy. Satan is a great strategist. He is charismatic. When he fell from heaven, he did
not fall alone. He has an organized army to fight. He also has a kingdom; it is the
kingdom of darkness. It is important to understand the hierarchy of Satans rule when
going into head-to-head combat, which is what the Ministry of Deliverance actually
involves. Ministers of deliverance are going head-on with a powerful foe that is capable
of much destruction, and even death. Although extremely powerful, he is limited in what
he can do. Individuals who are novices in such a ministry will sometimes make
dangerous statements or challenges that open themselves up to tremendous heartache or
unwanted spiritual battles. It is important that one understand the devil does not play
games. He is not in this battle for entertainment, nor should we be!

Like a roaring Lion your adversary the devil prowls around, looking for someone to
devour (I Pe 5:8).

Satan rebelled against God before the fall of Adam and Eve. He has been sinning from
the beginning and those who continue in sin belong to him. While he has the whole world
of unbelievers under his control, he cannot lay hold of a believer to harm him, provided
that the believer is free from gross sin. He can, however, take advantage of opportunities
given to him when darkness is allowed to operate. Satan has power to affect the physical
and spiritual realm. The world is under his control, and believers are aliens of this world
who must fight against him and his demonic forces.

For our struggle is not against enemies of flesh and blood, but against the rulers,
against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness, against
the spiritual forces of evil in heavenly place ( Eph 6:12).

Believers fight principalities, rulers, and authorities, cosmic powers and spiritual forces
of evil in high places, all of which are under the rule and domain of Satan. Spiritual
forces in high places are entities of the demonic realm. They differ in power and
authority. They have characteristics that are exclusive to them. They are used to
propagate the plans and schemes of the devil in this world system of which he is the god
and ruler. We are to stand against his wiles, which encompass every sin, immoral
practice, false religion or theology that has risen against the truth of Gods Word.

2010

Robin Bertram Ministries

www.robinbertram.tv
robin@robinbertram.org