Crucibles of Satan
“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about
like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour” (1 Pet. 5:8, NKJV).
Read the above text. What’s the message there for us? Ask yourself,
“How seriously do I take these words?” What things do you do in
your life that show whether you take them seriously?
Have you ever watched a hungry lion? It’s awesome because you
know it can catch and eat just about anything it wants. Peter says that
Satan is prowling around in the same way. When we look around, we
can see the consequences of his desire to kill. Death, suffering, and the
twisting and perverting of morals and values are everywhere. We can-
not escape seeing the work of Satan.
Read 1 Peter 5:8–11. How should Christians react to Satan’s prowling?
What does God promise to do for those who are suffering? 1 Pet. 5:10.
Peter writes these words in the context of responding to Satan’s
attacks on Christian faith. But as we have mentioned, Satan is at work
in many different ways. And although we must be aware of the reality
and the power of our enemy, we must never be discouraged, for we must
always remember that Jesus has beaten Satan; that Satan is a defeated
foe; and that as long as we stay connected with Jesus, as long as we
cling to Him in faith, we can never be defeated either. Because of the
cross, Christ’s victory is our victory.
Think about the other ways that Satan causes pain. How could
reading 1 Peter 5:8–11 help us to deal with the anguish that we
experience because of our fate in living in a sinful world in which
Satan wreaks havoc?
