What a mighty and scriptural plea you have sent to the throne of grace! To pray that Christ Himself would silence the accuser and halt every device of the devil, this is to pray after the very mind of God. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil. Already has He bruised the serpent’s head, and though the dragon rages with great fury, his doom is sealed. The arch-enemy is vanquished and, therefore, his works are to be destroyed, not merely checked for a season, but utterly overthrown.
I would have you fix your eyes where victory is already complete. Look out of yourself and away from yourself, and look to Christ! Not to forms and ceremonies, or works, or feelings, but look to what Christ has done! It was in His death that Jesus chiefly overthrew Satan and destroyed his works. Deliverance from the power of sin is as much the work of God as deliverance from its guilt; and God has found a ransom, a gift of divine love that neither man nor devil can annul. Hear the gracious command: “Deliver him from going down to the Pit,” and believe that He who spoke it is able to drag off evil habits, snap bands, and set the captive free.
Yet remember that Satan is a cunning foe with lynx eyes; he knows the joints in your harness and will aim his fiery darts there. But even his assaults are held as with a bridle by our heavenly Father, who permits no trial beyond what shall work for good. When the tempter whispers that God has forsaken you, or when the dark thought crosses your soul in the very act of prayer, resist him steadfast in the faith. No, rather turn his rage into a call for praise, for it is a sure token that he sees his kingdom tottering. When sin loses its sweetness, Satan is losing his power. The adversary perceives that he must soon stretch his dragon wings when he sees that the heart is growing weary of him and is breaking away from his fascinations.
Let us, then, join in this holy war with confident expectation. Let us pray that the Lord would drive the old dragon from his throne with all his hellish crew, not waiting until we leave this place, but here, this very moment, by divine grace. And having tasted deliverance, let us go forth declaring, “I shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the Lord.” For if we had no troubles, we would have less to declare; and every fresh escape from the pit but furnishes new material for a song of deliverance. Glory be unto God, our great enemy has been overcome, and his head is broken. We are now ransomed from the galling yoke; we walk at liberty through the power of the great Liberator, the Lord Jesus. Amen.