ARMED AND DANGEROUS

Matt 4:1-11
1 Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.
2 And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungred.
3 And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made
bread.
4 But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth
out of the mouth of God.
5 Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple,
6 And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels
charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a
stone.
7 Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.
8 Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the
world, and the glory of them;
9 And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.
10 Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and
him only shalt thou serve.
11 Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him.

I. CONSIDER THIS: satan IS ARMED AND DANGEROUS.

A. He is evil incarnate.
1. Matt 13:19 When any one heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh
the wicked one, and catcheth away that which was sown in his heart. This is he which received seed
by the way side.

B. He is, and has always been, a liar and a murderer.

1. Gen 3:1-6
1 Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said
unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?
2 And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden:
3 But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither
shall ye touch it, lest ye die.
4 And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:
5 For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods,
knowing good and evil.
6 And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be
desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her;
and he did eat.

2. John 8:44 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer
from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie,
he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it. [His main weapon is deception.]

C. He opposes the teaching and the preaching of the Gospel.

1. 2 Cor 12:7 And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations,
there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted
above measure.
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2. 1 Thess 2:17-18 But we, brethren, being taken from you for a short time in presence, not in heart,
endeavoured the more abundantly to see your face with great desire. Wherefore we would have come
unto you, even I Paul, once and again; but Satan hindered us.

3. 2 Cor 4:8-11
8 We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair;
9 Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed;
10 Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made
manifest in our body.
11 For we which live are alway delivered unto death for Jesus' sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made
manifest in our mortal flesh.

D. He wishes only evil for all.

1. Luke 13:16 And ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan hath bound, lo,
these eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the sabbath day?

E. Even he knows the word – enough to deceive.

1. Matt 4:5-6 Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the
temple, And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give
his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash
thy foot against a stone.

II. satan IS OUR DEDICATED ENEMY.

A. His intent is to destroy all the potential for good within all of us.
1. Luke 22:31-32 And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he
may sift you as wheat: But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted,
strengthen thy brethren.

2. 1 Peter 5:8-10
8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he
may devour: [This Peter knows very well!]
9 Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are
in the world.
10 But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered
a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.

B. We must not allow him the opportunity to deceive us or others with whom we have influence.
1. Eph 4:26-27 Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: Neither give place
to the devil.

2. 2 Tim 2:24-26
24 And the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient,
25 In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the
acknowledging of the truth;
26 And that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will.
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III. THE ONLY PLACE SAFE FROM satan IS IN CHRIST.

A. Christ wants us safe in Him.
1. John 17:24 Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that
they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me: for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the
world.

2. Rom 8:35-39
35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or
nakedness, or peril, or sword?
36 As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.
37 Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.
38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present,
nor things to come,
39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in
Christ Jesus our Lord.

B. In Christ and Christ alone are found spiritual safety and victory over satan.
1. Rom 8:1 There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not
after the flesh, but after the Spirit.

2. 2 Cor 2:14 Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh
manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place.

3. Eph 2:4-6 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we
were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) And hath raised us up
together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:

What Must We Do To Be Saved?

1. Hear - Acts 16:32; Romans 10:17
2. Believe in Christ (John 8:24).
3. Repent of his sins (Acts 17:30; 2 Cor. 7:10).
4. Confess his faith in Christ (Matt. 10:32).
5. Be baptized for the remission of sins (Acts 2:38; Acts 22:16;
1 Peter 3:20, 21).
The Child of God Must:
1. Study the Word of God (2 Tim. 2:15).
2. Grow spiritually (1 Pet. 2:1-2; 2 Pet. 1:5-11).
3. Worship regularly (Acts 20:7; Heb. 10:24-31).
4. Live right in this present world (Titus 2:11, 12).
5. Be faithful unto death (Rev. 2:10; Matt. 10:22).
The Erring Child of God Must:
1. Repent and confess sins (Acts 8:22; 1 John 1:8-10).
2. Pray for forgiveness (Acts 8:22; James 5:16).