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Monday: John and Jane are on a retreat with the church
The supper dishes had been cleared and the group had gathered in the main room of the cabin. John and Jane Christian had come with a group from their church for the week and the setting could not have been better — a fire going, the Smoky Mountains just outside the windows, and an evening with nothing competing for their attention. Alexander Caldwell, whose company owned the cabin, had joined them for the week to lead the evening devotions. He opened his Bible and got right to it. “This week we are going to look at Satan — where he came from, why he does what he does, and what Scripture tells us we can do about it. And everything we cover connects directly to God’s unstoppable plan to bring you into His family.”
What Scripture Says:
Ezekiel 28:12–14 — “Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty…Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God.” Alexander looked around the room. “Before Satan ever showed up in your life, he had a history — and God wants you to know it.” Ezekiel’s language here goes far beyond the king of Tyre he is addressing. This is Lucifer. He was the complete pattern of perfection — the most beautiful, most gifted, most highly positioned created being who ever existed. Music was built into his being. He stood directly before the throne of God as the anointed covering cherub. Your enemy was not some minor fallen creature. He was the highest of everything God made.
Isaiah 14:12 — “How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning.” After reading that verse, Alexander said to the group “His name means shining one — and that is exactly what he was. Radiant, glorious, standing closer to God than any other created being. God purposed before creation to bring you into His family and share His life with you. And the most powerful being He ever made declared war on that plan. That is who is attacking your marriage, your home, your mind, your daily life. Your enemy has been fighting against God’s purpose for you since before the world began.”
Where do you see your enemy working hardest against God’s purpose in your life right now? You can trust that God is greater than your enemy and call on Him for help.
Tuesday: The group discusses the Five “I Will’s” of Satan
The day had been full — a morning hike through the mountains, lunch on the deck, and a cookout by the cabin. After supper everyone was ready for devotions so Alexander got started. “Last night we looked at who Lucifer was before his fall. Tonight I want to show you what happened in his heart. Isaiah 14 records five declarations that rose up in Lucifer before he was cast out of heaven. In theological circles they are called the Five I Wills of Lucifer and each one builds on the last.” Someone in the group asked what the five were. Alexander smiled. “Let’s go through them one by one because each one tells you something about the enemy you are facing every single day.”
What Scripture Says:
Isaiah 14:13–14 — “For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.” Alexander read the verse slowly and then looked up. “Five declarations. He wanted to ascend to the very throne room of God — the highest place in all creation; to rule over every angel with his own authority; to have God’s glory. And the root of all five was the final one — I will be like the Most High. He wanted to be like God. This was a rebellion driven by pride.
He paused then said “Your enemy has never stopped operating from those same five declarations. He tempts you with the same pride that destroyed him. The desire to place your own will above God’s. To trust your own judgment over His Word. To pursue what you want over what God desires. When he whispers that God is holding something back from you — those are the five I wills he uses to destroy you and your family.”
Genesis 3:5 — “For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods.” Alexander turned to Genesis and read it to the group. “Step into the garden and hear what he says to Eve — you will be like God. The last of his five I wills was I will be like the Most High and he Eve with it. He exported his own rebellion into the heart of the people God had created to share His life with. He knew exactly what pride does because it destroyed him. And he is still using it against your marriage, your home, your relationships and your walk with God every single day.”
Where do you hear the echo of the five I wills in the temptations you face most often?
Wednesday: The Retreat Learns More of Why Satan Hates Us
The day had brought a slower pace to the retreat. Most of the group had spent time in Pigeon Forge and ended up at the Comedy Barn. By the time they gathered in the main room after supper a few people were still laughing and retelling the jokes they heard. Alexander waited for the room to settle. “I am glad you all had a good evening because tonight we are going to talk about something very personal. Last night we walked through the five I wills and saw the pride that drove Lucifer’s rebellion. Tonight I want to answer the question — why does Satan hate us.” John Christian leaned forward. “I think it is because we belong to God.” Alexander nodded. “That is exactly right and Genesis tells us why that makes you a target.”
What Scripture Says:
Genesis 1:26–27 — “And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness…So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.” Alexander read it to the group. “Satan hates God. That is obvious. And God created you to image Him — His character, His love, His holiness, His truth. That makes you everything Satan despises. He comes after you because of whose image you bear.”
He continued. “And here is what he is really after. God purposed before creation to bring you into His family and fill the earth with His image through you. Satan knows that plan. He has been fighting it since the garden. Every attack on your marriage, your faith, your children, your peace of mind — it is all aimed at one thing. Keeping you from living as the image bearer God created you to be and pulling you away from the relationship with God He designed you to have.”
1 Peter 5:8 — “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.” Alexander read it to the group. “Peter says your enemy is walking about — deliberate, focused, looking for an opening. A lion locks onto its target and pursues it. Your enemy is actively pursuing you because you reflect the image of the God he hates and because God’s purpose for your life is the very thing he has been trying to stop since the beginning. The word devour means to swallow whole. He wants to take everything God purposed for you.”
Knowing Satan hates God and wants to destroy God’s image bearers means we should determine to bear God’s image in all we do.
Thursday: The Retreat Learns what Satan wants to do to them
Thursday had been one of the best days of the retreat. John and Jane Christian had spent the morning at the Titanic exhibit with some friends from the group and come back full of stories about the artifacts. Then they headed straight to the river for white water rafting and came back soaking wet and laughing. By supper the whole group was back together and the conversation around the table had been lively. Then it was devotion time so Alexander started: “We have talked about who Satan is, where he came from, and why he hates you. Tonight I want to get very practical. Scripture is specific about what he is actually planning against you and your family and God wants you to know it.”
What Scripture Says:
John 8:44 — “He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.” Alexander said. “Jesus calls Satan a murderer and a liar from the very beginning. His plan for you starts with deception and that is how he got to Eve in the garden. He comes with a lie dressed up to look like wisdom, or freedom. Every lie he tells a person has one goal — to pull them away from God and destroy their life.”
John 10:10 — “The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.” “Jesus lays it out plainly,” Alexander said. “Satan comes to steal your life, your joy, your relationship with God and your family. He comes to kill and to destroy. That is his actual agenda for you, for your marriage, for your children. But Jesus says He came so that you could have life and have it fully. The whole Bible storyline is God pursuing that purpose for you while your enemy works every day to take it from you.”
Revelation 12:10 — “For the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.” Alexander paused. “There is one more thing Scripture tells us he does. He accuses you before God day and night. When you sin, when you fail, when you feel far from God — he is working to make sure you stay there. He wants you to feel too guilty to come back, too ashamed to pray, too far gone to believe God still wants you. That is his plan for your relationship with God. And it is why the blood of Jesus is the most important thing you can stand on. It silences every accusation he brings against you.”
What steps do you take daily to guard yourself and your family from Satan’s lies?
Friday: The last night of the retreat
The last full day of the retreat had been spent mostly around the cabin and by late afternoon the whole group had gathered outside around the fire pit making smores and talking. There was that bittersweet feeling in the air that comes at the end of a good week when people are not quite ready to go home. When the fire had settled Alexander opened his Bible. “This week we have looked at who your enemy is, where he came from, what drives him and what he is after. Tonight I want to show you exactly what Scripture says you can do to defend yourself against him.”
What Scripture Says:
James 4:7 — “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” Alexander looked up. “Submit to God first. Then resist. James puts them in that order on purpose. God created you to reflect His image — His character, His love, His holiness in your daily life. When you are submitted to God, you are actually doing the very thing Satan is trying to stop. You are living as the image bearer God created you to be. That is where your power to resist comes from. A life submitted to God and actively reflecting His image is the strongest stand you can take against your enemy.”
Ephesians 6:11 — “Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.” “God has given you everything you need to stand firm,” Alexander said. “Truth, righteousness, faith, salvation, the Word of God and prayer. Paul says put it on every day. God has matched every one of your enemy’s tactics with something He has placed in your hands. The armor works when you wear it.”
2 Corinthians 10:4 — “The weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds.” “The weapons God has given you are mightier than anything your enemy can bring,” Alexander said. “Prayer, the Word of God, & faith. A stronghold is any place your enemy has built a foothold through lies, sin or fear. God says the weapons He has given you are strong enough to pull every one of those down.”
Revelation 12:11 — “And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony.” “This is how believers overcome,” Alexander said. “The blood of Jesus and the word of their testimony. Jesus settled the outcome of this war at the cross.
What is one thing God has shown you this week that you are going to carry home and apply to your life starting now?