Resist the devil and he will flee from you

When we are going through difficult or uncomfortable times we tend to make prayers of rebuke against satan and his demons and sometimes we even see that none of this serves us and we sink deeper into affliction and problems. I believe that the Bible is our manual par excellence and from this manual we have a lot to learn every day.

James said in his letter:

7 Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

8 Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

9 Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom.

10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.

James 4: 7-10

Are you fighting against the evil one? For all of us who are Christians fight against the evil one, the Bible itself tells us that we have no war against flesh and blood, but against principalities and hosts of evil and this makes our struggle even stronger, since we are faced with a world physical and spiritual, which is much more difficult.

But what should we do to fight this spiritual battle? We just have to do what every Christian is supposed to do: “submit to God”, and the way we submit to God is keeping His word and in this way we resist satan and he have to flee from us.

Are you extremely pressured by satan? Be quiet, this is something that we have to go through, because he walks like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour, but regardless of his tricks we must remember what James himself says later: “Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom.” This promise must give us enough hope.

It only remains for us to humble ourselves every day before God and when that day arrives He will exalt us.

Many times the mistake we make in moments of anguish is believing that everything is resolved simply by rebuking the enemy, yet the Scriptures show us that the true strength of the believer does not lie in shouting, but in obedience. Submitting to God is not a passive act; it is a constant and daily practice of surrendering our will, recognizing our limitations, and trusting that the Lord has absolute control over every circumstance we experience. When we walk in that submission, our spiritual vision becomes clearer and we begin to understand that the greatest battlefield is not around us but within us.

James reminds us that drawing near to God is the only path to genuine resistance. When we cultivate prayer, meditation on the Word, and a life of holiness, we establish a firm ground where the enemy has no legal space to operate. Many believers weaken because they want victory without consecration, resistance without obedience, and triumph without humility. However, the Bible teaches us that resisting the devil is the consequence of first submitting to God, not the other way around.

It is also important to recognize that spiritual warfare is not a sign that God has abandoned us. On the contrary, trials mold our character and strengthen our dependence on Him. Every believer throughout history has faced battles, and each of them has found refuge in the same truth: God exalts the humble. When we allow brokenness to lead us to repentance, when we mourn over our sins and seek God with sincerity, then our hearts are purified and we become stronger in faith.

Affliction should never be seen as the end of the road, but as a process through which God shapes our lives. The enemy pressures us, yes, but he cannot destroy what God sustains. The call to change our laughter to mourning is not a call to live in sadness, but an invitation to take seriously the spiritual state of our soul, to recognize that without God we are nothing, and that dependence on Him is our greatest strength.

Therefore, let us continue walking with humility, submitting every area of our life to the Lord, resisting temptation, and drawing near to His presence. In due time, God Himself will lift us up, strengthen us, and give us the victory that He has promised to those who persevere faithfully. Our spiritual battles are temporary, but the reward of obedience is eternal.