The War WithinSample

How Does The Enemy Attack?

Every day we have been answering important questions about the warfare we are engaged in as believers. I trust so far your soul has been enlightened. We know the devil doesn’t make himself known or appear fearful, but instead, he entices us with twisted truth. This knowledge will help us easily identify how he attacks. 

The Apostle Paul shares the options we have when we are born again; he says, “Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires, but those who live by the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires.” Romans 8:5 (NIV). 

The word flesh is significant to understand in this verse. Often in the past when I heard the word flesh, immediately, my mind would drift to sexual sins only. But, there is a whole lot more to the meaning of the word flesh. While there are positive connotations to the word in scripture, it is not used positively here. According to HELPS Word-studies online, it states, 

4561 (sarks) is generally negative, referring to making decisions (actions) according to self – i.e., done apart from faith (independent from God's inworking). Thus what is "of the flesh (carnal)" is by definition displeasing to the Lord – even things that seem "respectable!" In short, flesh generally relates to unaided human effort, i.e. decisions (actions) that originate from self or are empowered by self. This is carnal ("of the flesh") and proceeds out of the untouched (unchanged) part of us – i.e., what is not transformed by God. 

When we make decisions without God’s help by not reading God’s word, by not praying and seeking the help of the Holy Spirit, we are walking in the flesh. The enemy rejoices when we take matters in our own hands and decide what’s best for us, apart from God’s word.

John tells us the enemy operates through the world system, “For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh [craving for sensual gratification] and the lust of the eyes [greedy longings of the mind] and the pride of life [assurance in one’s own resources or in the stability of earthly things]—these do not come from the Father but are from the world [itself].” 1 John 2:16 (AMPC)

The enemy attacks us through:

1. The lust of the flesh (craving for sensual gratification)

2. The lust of the eyes (greedy longings of the mind)

3. The pride of life (assurance in one’s resources or stability in earthly things)

4. Accusation/Condemnation (reminding us of our past and present failures)

You will notice every one of his tactics is connected to our mind. The enemy uses our senses to feed our mind thoughts contrary to God’s truth. He uses feeling/emotions, images, and visions, imagination, and lies. While we cannot stop him from setting traps and obstacles, we can defeat him by leaning on the Holy Spirit for help. 

How does the enemy attack us? The answer is he uses the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, the pride of life, and accusation/condemnation.

"We must recognize how the evil one is working in this world and take a firm stance against him. It means we take careful thought concerning what we put in our minds - what we listen to, what we watch, and how we use our time." - Chip Ingram