We live in a world at war, and we have a real enemy. We are not called to simply tuck our tails and pray we survive, but we are called to actively fight back against the enemy. 1 Peter 5.8 identifies him as the devil, who prowls like a roaring lion seeking someone to devour. That is the reality, and our orders in light of this reality, resist him.
This is not the only place in the Bible that we are called to go to battle.
"Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you." -James 4.7
"Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. Stand firm therefore, having girded your loins with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God." -Ephesians 6.10-17
Repeatedly, the Bible tells us to fight back against the devil. We are not ignore the enemy, hoping he goes away, but take up arms and actively resist him.
In 1898, the British were working to build a railroad bridge over the River Tsavo in Kenya. John Henry Patterson was the man in charge of the project, but there was a problem, two male lions, the Ghost and the Darkness, were attacking the workers at night, carefully picking their targets, and eating the men. The story is fascinating, and a bit terrifying, and was portrayed in the 1996 movie, The Ghost and the Darkness (this is one of my top three favorite films). In the movie, Patterson is portrayed by Val Kilmer, and when the lions start attacking, he takes actions. He arms himself and sets out to kill the lions in order to protect the men working under him.
Patterson didn't sit back and hope the lions would get tired or bored and leave his work site alone so he could finish his bridge. He armed himself and fought back, and today these two lions can be seen in the Field Museum in Chicago.
When it comes to the devil, he must be intentionally resisted. He is not going to go away without a fight, and so we must take up arms and go to war.
Fight the lion, 1 Peter 5.1-11
TO GOD ALONE BE THE GLORY!
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