The apostle Peter understood true, biblical spiritual warfare. Never in his epistles did he instruct Christians to pull down principalities and powers over cities. He did, however, instruct them to resist Satan’s attacks against their personal lives, and he told them exactly how they should resist:
Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls about like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. But resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by your brethren who are in the world (1 Pet. 5:8-9).
Notice first that Peter indicated our position is one of defense, not offense. Satan is the one who is prowling around, not us. He is looking for us; we’re not looking for him. Our job is not to attack but to resist.
Second, notice that Satan, like a lion, is seeking someone to devour. How could he possibly devour Christians? Did Peter mean that Satan could literally eat their flesh like a lion would? Obviously not. The only way Satan could devour a Christian is to deceive him into believing a lie that destroys his faith.
Third, notice Peter tells us to resist the devil through our faith. Our struggle is not a physical battle, and we can’t fight Satan by swinging our fists in the air. He attacks us with lies, and we resist those lies by standing firm in our faith in God’s Word. That, again, is scriptural spiritual warfare.
The Christians to whom Peter was writing were suffering some severe persecution, and thus were being tempted to renounce their faith in Christ. It is often when we are in the midst of adverse circumstances that Satan will attack with his doubts and lies. That is the time to stand firm in your faith. That is the “evil day” of which Paul wrote when you need to “put on the full armor of God, that you may be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil (Eph. 6:11, emphasis added).
