The Competition Is Not Fierce; It’s Not Even Competition

“This is what the Lord says — Israel’s King and Redeemer, the Lord Almighty: I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is no God. Who then is like me?” (Isa. 44:6-7a, NIV).

Here God proclaims His absolute supremacy. He is altogether Other. There is none like Him. In other words, He has no rival. The devil does not present “fierce competition” to Him. His enemies flee from His presence, as opposed to posing even the tiniest threat to Him. In fact, Psalm 2 tells us that, seated on His throne high and exalted above all else, He laughs at the machinations of those that oppose Him.

In The Great Divorce, C.S. Lewis explained it this way. If someone were to wrap into a ball every bit of evil from all of human history… and throw it into heaven… and it were to bump into even the smallest bird there… it wouldn’t have enough weight to disturb the little creature even in the slightest. That’s how immense God’s manifest power is compared to all of the devil’s best efforts.

Evil is not the opposite of good. To be the opposite would be to imply that it’s equally powerful in the opposing direction. It’s not even close. Darkness can only exist in those pockets of the universe where the Light of the World has not yet been invited in. Once the Light dawns, evil has no fighting chance.

It’s vitally important for us as believers not to overestimate our enemies’ abilities. Let’s think about that in a specific way:

1. The devil is far from omniscient. He cannot read your thoughts. He does not know your future. He is clueless most of the time about what God is up to. God keeps His secret counsels just that: secret. The enemy is on the outside, desperately trying to catch a glimpse of what the Lord of Angel Armies is planning and executing right now and always. He knows he is on the outside. He knows he has already lost. His activities are marked by extreme anxiety and abject fear.
2. The devil is far from omnipresent. He can only be in one place at a time. In fact, you’ve probably never encountered him. The temptations sent your way have been through some of his lesser servants. They are also limited to being in one place at a time. And since they are not able to multiply their number, as the population of the earth continues to increase, they are frantically trying to cover more “work responsibility” with less “staff.” Their efforts are spread thinner and thinner. What a stressful existence it must be to be a demon!
3. The devil is far from omnipotent. He has been decaying since the day he disconnected himself from the only Source of Life. He is extremely limited in what he is able to do. If he were allowed to do what he wished, you and I and the entire planet would have been wiped out by now. He’s not allowed. He was only able to have Pilate hand Jesus over to be crucified because it was “granted to him” by the Father. He is on a leash. Daddy God does not want you to be afraid of him. At all. Your life is covered and protected in the blood of the Lamb.

We are on the victorious side! Every single day of your life, even on your very worst day, you win. You overwhelmingly win. Yes, fight the good fight of faith today. Fight it from the position of victory that is yours! On the cross, Jesus already accomplished crushing triumph for you. Your enemies are under His feet… and since you are seated with Him in heavenly places, they are all under yours too!

“But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us” (Rom. 8:37, NASB).

*************************************************

How do we live courageously free of fear when it comes to our enemy; and yet on guard, vigilant, and alert to his schemes?