Spiritual warfare is one of those topics in the Christian faith that is either completely ignored in many churches, or conversely takes up far too much space, giving the devil attention he does not deserve at all. But there is an important middle ground: we need to know what he is up to, otherwise we are ill-equipped. Andreas Slot-Henriksen teaches here about how the devil works in our lives in concrete terms, and how we as believers can stand against him by knowing our identity in Jesus and staying close to God. This is not theory for theory’s sake, but a practical guide to what spiritual warfare actually entails in everyday life.
The starting point is the well-known passage in Ephesians chapter 6, concerning the full armour of God, which equips us to stand against the devil’s wiles. But rather than delving into the individual parts of the armour, the focus of the teaching is elsewhere: namely, understanding how the enemy thinks and what his strategy is. To illustrate this, the Brothers Grimm’s fairy tale ‘The Wolf and the Seven Little Goats’ is used—a story that demonstrates with astonishing precision how Satan operates.
In the tale, the wolf tries time and again to break into the kids’ home by disguising himself, changing his voice and manipulating other people into helping him, even when they know full well it is wrong. The miller in the story is a symbol of those who help the devil out of fear, even though they sense that something is amiss. And the point is clear: Satan does not give up at the first attempt. He comes again and again, finds new ways and is willing to use his surroundings to achieve his goal. The mother, on the other hand, when she finds her children swallowed by the wolf, acts without fear. She cuts the wolf open, rescues the children and fills its stomach with stones. This is a picture of a believer who knows their authority and acts upon it.
The image of the wolf is actually found in several places in the Bible. Jesus warns of false prophets who come in sheep’s clothing, but inside are ravenous wolves. And when He sends out the 72 disciples, He says: “I am sending you out like lambs among wolves.” This is no coincidence. Just as a wolf in the wild rarely hunts alone, but isolates its prey from the flock, Satan’s primary tactic is also to isolate. He isolates by planting lies: “You are the only one who thinks that way. No one would accept you if they knew you. You have no place in that community.” These thoughts are not random; they are strategically planted seeds designed to draw the believer away from God and from the Christian community.
Once isolation has been achieved, the next step is the attack on the throat: the enemy holds you fast so that you can neither cry out for help nor breathe freely. You feel suffocated. This is not a metaphor; it is the real spiritual experience that many know, namely that you are stuck, do not really know which way is up or down, and are slowly losing your bearings. That is why it is crucial to know the voice of Jesus. For as the Good Shepherd says in John chapter 10: “The sheep hear His voice, and He calls His own sheep by name.” They will never follow a stranger, for they do not know the stranger’s voice. Knowing Jesus’ voice is not something one acquires by going to church once a week or reading the Bible occasionally, but by putting Him at the centre, obeying Him and going where He sends one.
One of Satan’s most powerful tools is accusation. In Revelation chapter 12, the devil is described as “the accuser of our brothers, who accuses them before God day and night.” He delves into the past, dredges up old sins and whispers: “Do you really think God loves you? Think about what you have done.” But the believer has a defence lawyer, Jesus Christ the Righteous One, who, according to 1 John chapter 2, is our advocate—indeed, in the original Greek, one who comes to our aid, a legal defender. This means that the devil’s accusations meet with Jesus’ defence, and that battle has already been won. However, it is not enough simply to know this. It is about believing it and living it out.
Peter is a good example of how the devil’s accusations can strike hard. He denied Jesus three times, and it is not difficult to imagine the thoughts Satan planted in his mind afterwards: “You will never be forgiven. Who did you think you were?” But Jesus prayed for Peter that his faith might not fail, and He brought him back into the fold by asking him three times: “Do you love me?” Three times Peter answered yes, and three times Jesus confirmed His calling. It is not a sign of weakness to fall, but a testimony to God’s grace that He calls us back.
The spiritual battle is not about attacking the devil, but about resisting him. The Epistle of James says: “Submit yourselves to God, and resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” And that is precisely the structure: first God at the centre, then the rejection of the enemy. Not in our own strength, but from a position as God’s beloved child. Romans chapter 8 provides the strongest foundation for this position when it states that neither death, life, angels, principalities, things present, things to come, powers, things above, things below, nor any other created being can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. If one truly believes this, the accuser is silenced.
A practical point is the struggle against using God’s Word merely as intellectual knowledge rather than as something one lives by. There is a story of a man who could quote the Bible from cover to cover, yet could not use a single verse in prayer, because it was all in his head and not in his heart. It is the same difference as knowing Jesus’ teachings and knowing Jesus. The fruits of the Spirit, God’s promises, His promises of wisdom without reproach, His love—all these are not merely information, but living forces that transform when they are taken in and lived out. And it is there, in the heart, that the spiritual battle is won or lost.
The teaching concludes with an encouragement: the closer one stays to God and lives in His promises, the rarer and weaker the accusations from the enemy will be felt. There will still be situations, such as standing face to face with the wolf, but when one is practised in using God’s Word as a slingshot, one is not shaken. It sounds simple, and essentially it is, but the greatest obstacle is the old thought patterns and habits that still linger within us. When these are broken down and replaced by God’s truth, life is transformed.
Quote from the teaching:
“Nothing can separate me from God’s love, and when we take ownership of that, the devil is cast out. His accusations are completely defeated, because Jesus is our defence lawyer day and night.”
Relevant keywords: spiritual warfare – the devil’s tactics – the armour of God – accusations and the accusation – identity in Christ – fear and faith – isolation and lies – Satan as a wolf – the Good Shepherd – the voice of Jesus – James’s letter on standing firm – Romans 8 – Peter and forgiveness – spiritual warfare – the battle of faith – prayer and resistance – thought patterns – the Holy Spirit as power
