That the devil is on the attack is not news to the Christian.  We have been forewarned by the Word of God that he would be (1 Peter 5:8).  The good news is we have the power to overcome the attempts of Satan to destroy us.  We have the help of one who is greater than the devil.  John wrote, “for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world” (1 John 4:4).

If we are to defeat the devil, we must do things that he does not want us to do; things that are in our best interest spiritually.  God has given us all the tools we need to stand against Satan and sin and be overcomers (2 Peter 1:3).  We do not have to fall, for God can keep us from stumbling (Jude 1:4).  What are some of the things that we should be doing to resist the devil?  This week let us consider some things that Satan does not want us to do.  Rest assured, whatever the devil does not want us to do, is the very thing that we should be determined to do.

The devil certainly does not want us to assemble with the saints as God has commanded us to do (Hebrews 10:25).  Assembling with other Christians is the primary way we are edified or built up in the faith as God’s children.  Think about what we do when we assemble.

We assemble to worship God.  Jesus once said that we cannot serve two masters (Matthew 6:24).  When we assemble to worship God, our hearts are on heavenly things, and the devil does not like that.  He does not like anything we do when we assemble.  When we lift our voices in praise to God, it is a sweet-smelling savor to our heavenly Father, but it is despised by Satan.  When we pray together, showing our dependence upon our Creator and our adoration to Him, the devil knows that he is being ignored and is closed out of our hearts.

Think about how the devil feels when he sees us partaking of the Lord’s Supper on the first day of the week.  We are remembering the sacrifice of our Savior, the very act that defeated Satan.

Hebrews 2:14 (ESV)
¹⁴  Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil,

The last thing Satan wants to see us doing is celebrating that occasion.

Seeing us lay by in store on the first day of the week must irritate the devil as well.  He knows that our acts of giving help to build up the kingdom of God, and he must hate that.  He also knows that our giving demonstrates the love that we have for God and our commitment to the cause of Christ, neither of which he appreciates at all.

Do you want to upset the devil?  Make sure you assemble with the saints.  In doing so you will be obeying God and doing what the devil despises.

When we assemble to worship God, not only are we doing exactly what Satan does not want us to do at the moment, we are being equipped to overcome him in the long run as well.  The reason God has arranged for us to meet together with other saints is because we are strengthened by it.  It helps us to resist the devil every day,  drawing nearer to God consistently (James 4:6-7).  Let us make a habit of doing what the devil does not want us to do.  It means we are conforming to the will of God, and that is always a good idea.

As you wind down for the night, think about these things.