by Dr. Charles Lawless 13 Feb 2003

Perhaps you remember the book, written by Frank Peretti and first published in 1986. Set in the fictional town of Ashton, This Present Darkness described a small town’s clashing with demonic forces who sought to take over their community. So popular was this fictional account of spiritual warfare that it remained on the best-seller list for quite some time.

Regrettably, this interest in spiritual warfare has often resulted in one of the extremes that C. S. Lewis recognized in his work, Screwtape Letters: Some have become fascinated with the demonic. Many contemporary writings about warfare give the devil much more attention than he deserves.

At the same time, spiritual warfare in the Bible is not about the devil -- it is first about God. The goal of this brief article is to examine the temptation of Jesus (Matt. 4:1-11) in this light and to challenge church leaders to keep their focus on God. For Jesus, the tempter was as real as the temptations themselves. Nowhere in this text is there an indication that Jesus viewed Satan as only an impersonal force or a mythological explanation for evil. Clearly, He recognized Satan as a literal enemy who was the source of the temptations, and He responded forcefully to him.

Satan is not, however, the focus of the temptation narrative. The focus of the narrative --indeed, of the Bible -- is God. It was the Son of God who fought and won the battle on the mountain of temptation. It was the Word of God that served as the primary weapon of battle. It was the angels of God who ministered to Jesus (Matt. 4:11). In fact, it was the Spirit of God who led Jesus to the place of temptation in the first place (Matt. 4:1).

The Spirit did not tempt Christ (see James 1:13), but He did compel Jesus to go to the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. From the first step that Jesus took toward the wilderness through the final ministry of the angels after the temptations, God was in control. He had divine purposes for leading Jesus to the place where the enemy would tempt Him -- and Jesus intentionally chose to focus on God’s will rather than the devil’s offerings.

To know God and to recognize His sovereignty is to understand that we gain spiritual victory only through Him. God is the warrior who led His people across the Red Sea (Exo. 15:3). David fought the Philistine giant not with a sword and a javelin, but in the name of the Lord whose battle it was (1 Sam. 17:45-47). Jehaziel likewise assured Jehoshaphat of God’s presence in the midst of battle with these words: "Do not fear or be dismayed because of this great multitude, for the battle is not yours but God’s" (2 Chron. 20:15).

Moreover, Paul challenged believers to put on God’s armor, not ours (Eph. 6:11). God is our shield (Gen. 15:1, Psa. 28:7), and it is He who chose to wear the breastplate of righteousness and the helmet of salvation (Isa. 59:17). Indeed, as with Jesus in the temptation narratives, a sovereign God allows spiritual battles to take place in our lives in order to accomplish the greater good of His will (see Job 1-2).

The sovereignty of God in the temptation thus establishes the proper focus of spiritual warfare: God the victor rather than Satan the tempter. As Jessie Penn- Lewis recognized in her classic treatise, War on the Saints, "counterfeiting the divine" is Satan’s first tool for deceiving believers. Hence, our primary task as a spiritual warrior is not to know Satan well -- it is to know God so intimately that Satan’s counterfeit becomes obvious in comparison.

As a church leader, how well do you know God’s voice? How much time do you intentionally set aside to listen to God through Bible study and prayer? The reality of spiritual warfare ought to help us develop a consistent quiet time, for only by knowing God’s voice can we best recognize the voice of the enemy.

And, only by knowing God can we most effectively lead God’s church toward healthy growth. Church growth begins not with a strategy or technique, but with leaders who are completely submitted to God. That battle is His, not ours. Submit to Him, trust Him, and go grow a church that overcomes the enemy.

Dr. Charles E. Lawless is Senior Associate Dean of the Billy Graham School of Missions, Evangelism and Church Growth at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky. He has served as pastor and education minister with three Ohio congregations, and also has served as a lecturer in English at the University of Cincinnati.

Dr. Lawless has contributed articles to denominational periodicals and written curriculum for the Southern Baptist Convention’s Sunday School Board. He is co-author of "Spiritual Warfare: Biblical Truth for Victory" (with John Franklin, Lifeway, 2001) and "Discipled Warriors: Healthy Churches Winning Spiritual Warfare" (Kregel Press, 2002).