Satan’s goal is to entice believers to sin, give up, hide their faith and ultimately turn away from God. Perry Stone recently discussed “Weapons to Defeat 4 Satanic Strategies” and how to live as an overcomer.
Stone says, “The New Testament provides a strategy for living as an over-comer, and a strategy that consists of 27 books that deal with life on earth and what to expect in the future.” According to Stone, the enemy attacks a believer in the following four zones in an attempt to distract and destroy your relationship with Christ.
1. The Temptation Zone
Satan uses temptation to cause disobedience in hopes that the believer falls into sin. As a believer you can rest assured that with every temptation there will be a way of escape. First Corinthians 10:13 says, “No temptation has taken you except what is common to man. God is faithful, and He will not permit you to be tempted above what you can endure, but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that you may be able to bear it.” Satan tempts you to destroy your faith, while God tests you to develop your faith.
2. The Failure Zone
Stone says, “Satan attacks this zone to get you to fail in your faith, to give up and quit so that your faith fails.” Hebrews 11:6 says, “Without faith it is impossible to please God.” If the enemy can destroy your faith, he knows that God will not be pleased and the believer will be misled. In Luke 22:32, Jesus demonstrated that believers can pray for their faith in order to stand strong against the schemes of the enemy, “I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail.” Satan is vicious and wants to see you fail, God is victorious and wants to build your faith.
3. The Hindering Zone
According to Stone, “The hindering spirit is designed to cut into the will of God, to cut into your journey, to cut into your purpose, to cut into your plans.” Satan wants to hinder you from becoming an effective servant of Christ. “Principalities are strong demonic spirits, principalities work through personalities. Satan is very limited on what he can do, unless he uses people. A hindering spirit works through people.” Paul instructs us in 2 Corinthians 12:10, “So I take pleasure in weaknesses, in reproaches, in hardships, in persecutions and in distresses for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” When a hindering spirit is attacking ask God to give you the strength to endure, and rest assured He will deliver you.
4. The Accusation Zone
Stone says, “Satan is a slanderer, he is a liar, he is an accuser. When anyone becomes a human ‘Satan,’ a human adversary and aligns themselves in the kingdom of darkness to be the slanderer and accuser they have become a pawn and a tool in the hands of demonic powers.” Satan wants you to focus on your sin, instead of focusing on your Savior. Satan says, “look at your sinfulness” while God tells us “Let us look to Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith”, in Hebrews 12:2. We are taught in Revelations 12 that the accuser will be cast down and overcome by the blood of the Lamb and the words of your testimony.
The enemy deploys 5 weapons as he launches attack on the four zones listed above. Stone says, “Every weapon that Satan has, has a counter weapon in the Bible”. Do not focus on the counterfeits Satan, instead focus on Jesus and experience the victory found in Christ.
- Fear – Overcome with Love.
- Oppression – Overcome with anointing.
- Temptation – Overcome with the Word of God.
- Sickness – Overcome with the name of Jesus.
- Sin – Overcome with the blood of Jesus.
John 10:10 teaches, “The thief does not come, except to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.” Stand firm in your faith and keep your eyes on Christ for he will always provide a way of escape and victory.
Believers must be aware of the enemy’s strategies and the zones where attacks occur. By relying on the power of God, utilizing the counter weapons found in the Bible, and remaining steadfast in faith, believers can overcome temptation, failure, hindrance, and accusation.
In Christ, victory is assured, and the abundant life promised by Jesus is attainable. {eoa}
Chad Dunlap is the Executive Vice President of Business Development for Charisma Media.
