Read. Spiritual Warfare The Enemy. Key Verse:

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1 Spiritual Warfare The Enemy Spiritual Warfare: In this series, we will look at the biblical truths about spiritual warfare. Scripture teaches that spiritual warfare is a fact, and every believer is called to fight. In This Lesson: Read Ezekiel 28:11-19, Isaiah 14:12-20 & Job 1:6-2:9 and discover the enemy that all followers of Jesus must battle against. Equip Think about what you believe about Satan and his demons. Accountability Discuss your thoughts with your group and encourage each other to apply God s Word to your lives. Pray Pray together with your group because everything begins with, ends with and depends on God. Scorecard How are you doing with the mission that Christ has given you? Key Verse: For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. (Ephesians 6:12, ESV) A man reaps what he sows ~Galatians 6:7-8 (NIV)

2 Read We know we are in a spiritual war, and in a war there must be an enemy. Our enemy, as followers of Jesus, is a spiritual being who rebelled against God and has a deep hatred for Man, the creation that God holds dearest. The leader of the enemy forces is known by many names, such as Satan, Devil, Lucifer, Serpent, Beelzebub, Belial, Abaddon and Apollyon. He is also called the ruler of this world and the god of this age, which denote the temporary power he has in our fallen world. We will refer to him by the most used name in the Bible for him, Satan, meaning Read Ezekiel 28:11-19, Isaiah 14:12-20 & Job 1:6-2:9 hater, enemy, or adversary. Satan was full of wisdom and perfect in beauty (Ezekiel 28:12), a chief of the angelic host and an anointed guardian cherub (v. 14), but he chose to sin against God because of pride. He wanted (and still desires) to put himself above all creation and be like God. We know from Ezekiel that Satan was cursed and cast out from the Mountain of God (Heaven), and his ultimate destruction was declared. We also know that, when Satan fell, he took with him one-third of the angelic host, which we refer to as demons and make up the enemy army in this spiritual war (Revelation 12:4, 12:9, & Jude 1:6). What are the tactics of the enemy? John Piper sums it up well, saying, All humans have a supernatural enemy whose aim is to use pain and pleasure to make us blind, stupid, and miserable forever. It is important to understand that it is not a momentary goal that Satan is after. He wants to cause eternal damage. The way he reaches those ends is through tactics that we need to understand in order to counter. It's also important to take into account that the enemy will not be blatant with these tactics. He uses subtlety to bring down our defenses. Thankfully, the Bible gives us insight into his character and tactics. He is a liar (John 8:44) and twists the truth (Gen 3) to reach his own wicked end.

3 Read Satan is the tempter (2 Cor. 11:3), seeking to lead us to sin through the lusts of the flesh, lusts of the eyes, and the pride of life (1 Jn 2:16). Satan can also do signs and wonders, and he can inflict physical and mental sickness and bondage. All of these tactics are an attempt to have us doubt who God is and who we are in Christ. Satan tries to blind the mind of unbelievers so they will never follow, while attempting to draw believers away from their faith (1 Tim. 4:1-3). One of the best depictions of Satan is his temptation of Jesus in the desert in Matthew 4:1-11. Using several tactics, he tempted Christ's flesh due to hunger, tempted his pride to rule all the earth, and even twisted God's Word to get Christ to defy the Father. We know that Satan was unsuccessful in these attempts to get Jesus to sin, but we should expect that he will do the same with us. The final note about the enemy: they are in open and complete rebellion. There is no doubt that they know God and His sovereignty. James 2:19 says You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe and shudder! Satan and his demons have made the eternal choice to battle against God and all those who follow Him. Their aim is to bring destruction to our lives while attempting to steal glory from God.

4 Equip As you read through the Scriptures, perhaps there were some things you didn t understand or needed to study further. Take some time to think and respond to the following questions: 1. What were some of your misconceptions about the enemy? Where did these concepts come from, if not from the Bible? 2. What has changed about your idea of Satan and his demons and how they interact with man?

5 Accountability Before your next D group meeting, think about the questions below. You will discuss these with your group. These questions will help you to examine your life in light of the truth you explored this week. They also give other group members an opportunity to encourage you to be a fully devoted follower of Jesus Christ. 1. Where do you find yourself falling (or leaning) in the extremes of beliefs of the enemy? (Everything is because of the devil vs. devil is a not factor in life) 2. What truth about the enemy impacts your life right now?

6 Pray My prayer request regarding the topic this week is: My prayer request regarding a situation in my life is: My prayer request for others is: (fill this out at D Group)

7 Scorecard What is Jesus mission? It is to make His gospel known to all people through word (sharing the gospel) and deed (demonstrating the gospel). This is the mission that every generation of His followers must take up as well. But, don t confuse becoming missional with becoming a foreign missionary. A missionary may devote his or her life to making the gospel known beyond a border or across an ocean. But, Christ calls all of His followers to make the gospel known through word and deeds wherever they live, work or play, as well as in their surrounding communities. Who am I praying for an opportunity to share the truth of Jesus with right now? Who am I intentionally witnessing to about Jesus right now? Who am I discipling right now?