He was a terror to the devil...

  - Dallan Forgaill, Amra Choluimb Chillle (Irish, 6th century)

Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

  - James 4.7

How does one become a terror to the devil?

Among evangelical Christians I suspect that attitudes toward the devil spread out across a spectrum that ranges from fear to indifference. Some believers fear the devil, and they have been helped in that by a good deal of sensationalist Christian writing over the past couple of decades.

Fearing the devil, however, is a mistake. We are commanded to fear God and resist the devil. But it's also a mistake to take the devil lightly. He is very crafty, even though he is under the Lord's complete power and control. We don't want to underestimate what he can do in leading us to turn away from the path of righteousness. So we need to be alert to his wiles.

Dallan described Colum Cille as a "terror to the devil." When Column was around, the devil fled. He had no power to affect Colum nor anyone in his care. Colum was a deeply spiritual man, who took the Scriptures to heart and maintained continuous prayer communion with the Lord. He was a courageous evangelist, a sensitive counselor, a scholar of far-ranging interests, a discipler of men, and a sender of missionaries.

In other words, Colum Cille was truly serious about his faith and about the Kingdom of God. He would do anything, go anywhere, risk everything to do whatever the Lord called him to do in seeking and advancing His reign of righteousness, peace, and joy in the Spirit.

Shoot, he even faced down the Lough Ness monster, according to one account!

The devil fears those who, like Colum, live seriously for Christ.He cannot distract or deter them. They recognize tempation and know how to deal with it. They plunder his holdings at will, whether of souls - their own and others - or situations or culture. The devil has nothing to gain and much to lose by taking on those who take seriously their calling to fear the Lord and resist the devil. They can only humiliate and embarrass him in front of his demonic hosts.

Make yourself a terror to the devil, will you? Don't mess with him or give him any doors of opportunity. Pay careful attention to what's happening around you, and live like a true follower of Jesus Christ at every moment (Eph. 5.15-17). The days are evil, and the evil one is out and about.

But make yourself a terror to him by being clothed with Jesus, filled with His Spirit, devoted to His Word, and in constant contact with your heavenly Father.

He will flee from you for sure.

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T. M. Moore, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.