Submit

Not a single person alive needs to believe that the power of temptation is too great to overcome. Although temptation can be extremely trying, the power of God is always able to deliver a believer from the power of sin.

James wrote a remarkable promise for every Christian when he said, “Resist the devil and he will flee from you” (James 4:7).

James made a statement of fact. When you resist the devil, the devil will flee from you. Therefore, the devil need not defeat you.

You need not be overcome in the hour of your trial. James said it plainly, “He will flee from you.” But lest we get the impression the Bible is urging us to fight in our own strength, we notice what James said immediately preceding his emphatic statement. “Submit to God.” Then he said, “Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” You can fight against the enemy of souls in your own strength as energetically as you wish, but you will ultimately meet with discouraging failure. He is described in the Bible as a “roaring lion” (1 Peter 5:8). Precious few people have ever defeated a roaring lion single-handedly. Of those who did, far fewer did so more than once. When we submit ourselves to Jesus, His power and presence work miraculously on our behalf. The Christ of the Bible is able to vanquish all spiritual enemies. Success in spiritual warfare depends entirely on submission to Jesus. Spiritual defeat is only ever the result of failure to surrender to Jesus in the moment of temptation. Habitual submission to God is learned over time.

Lessons are often impressed upon us due to missteps and failure.

The more you surrender to Jesus, the more of His presence you welcome into your life, and the more you will surrender at each advance step in your experience. This is the process of spiritual growth. Temptation doesn’t have to end in defeat and discouragement. Satan can be resisted in the strength of Jesus.

James promises that when you submit to God, the devil will flee from you.