Do Christians have the authority to rebuke the devil
“Do Christians have the authority to rebuke the devil?”There are some Christians who believe they not only have the authority to rebuke the devil, but they believe they must be about the business of rebuking him continually. There is no biblical basis for such a belief. It must be remembered that Satan, unlike God, is not omnipresent. He can only be in one place at a time, and the likelihood of his personally harassing individual Christians is minuscule. Of course, he has legions of demons who do his bidding, and they are everywhere seeking to destroy believers’ testimonies. It should be noted here that the Christian cannot be possessed by a demon, in the same way, people in the Bible are described as being possessed. As Christians, we need to be aware of the reality of the presence of evil. As we struggle to stand firm in our faith, we must realise that the enemies we are up against are not merely human ideas, but real forces that come from the powers of darkness. The Bible says
Ephesians 6:12
For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.,Clearly, God has allowed Satan significant amounts of power and influence over the earth, at least for the time being, and always within God’s sovereign control. The Bible tells us that he prowls around like a lion in search of prey
1 Peter 5:8
Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.
Satan is the power at work in the hearts of those who refuse to obey God
Ephesians 2:2
You used to live in sin, just like the rest of the world, obeying the devil—the commander of the powers in the unseen world.[a] He is the spirit at work in the hearts of those who refuse to obey God.
Anyone who is not under the control of the sovereign God is under the control of the devil
Acts 26:18
to open their eyes, so they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God. Then they will receive forgiveness for their sins and be given a place among God’s people, who are set apart by faith in me.’
2 Corinthians 4:4
Satan, who is the god of this world, has blinded the minds of those who don’t believe. They are unable to see the glorious light of the Good News. They don’t understand this message about the glory of Christ, who is the exact likeness of God.
Born-again Christians are no longer enslaved to Satan or to sin
Romans 6:6-7
We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin. For when we died with Christ we were set free from the power of sin.
but this does not mean we are immune to the temptations that he puts before us.The Bible does not give Christians the authority to rebuke the Devil, but to resist him.
James 4:7
So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
It is the Lord who rebukes Satan.
Zechariah 3:2
And the Lord said to Satan, “I, the Lord, reject your accusations, Satan. Yes, the Lord, who has chosen Jerusalem, rebukes you. This man is like a burning stick that has been snatched from the fire.”
Even Michael the archangel did not dare to accuse Satan
Jude 1:9
But even Michael, one of the mightiest of the angels, (Greek Michael, the archangel) did not dare accuse the devil of blasphemy, but simply said, “The Lord rebuke you!” (This took place when Michael was arguing with the devil about Moses’ body.)
In response to Satan’s attacks, a Christian should hide under the covering of Christ.
Instead of focusing on defeating the devil, we should focus on following Christ
Hebrews 12:2
We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honour beside God’s throne.
And we trust that He will defeat the forces of evil.It is not necessary for a Christian to rebuke Satan because God has given us His full armour to stand against evil
Ephesians 6:10-18A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on all of God’s armour so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places. Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armour so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle, you will still be standing firm. Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armour of God’s righteousness. For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared.(Or For shoes, put on the readiness to preach the Good News of peace with God.) In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil. Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere.
The most effective weapons we have against the devil are Our faith, Wisdom, and Knowledge about God and His Word.
Even Christ, when tempted by Satan, did not rebuke him but answered him with Scripture
Matthew 4:1-11The Temptation of JesusThen Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted there by the devil. For forty days and forty nights he fasted and became very hungry. During that time the devil (Greek the tempter) came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become loaves of bread.” But Jesus told him, “No! The Scriptures say, ‘People do not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ (Deut 8:3 )” Then the devil took him to the holy city, Jerusalem, to the highest point of the Temple, and said, “If you are the Son of God, jump off! For the Scriptures say,‘He will order his angels to protect you. And they will hold you up with their hands so you won’t even hurt your foot on a stone.’(Ps 91:11-12 )” Jesus responded, “The Scriptures also say, ‘You must not test the Lord your God.( Deut 6:16 )” Next, the devil took him to the peak of a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. “I will give it all to you,” he said, “if you will kneel down and worship me.” “Get out of here, Satan,” Jesus told him. “For the Scriptures say, ‘You must worship the Lord your God and serve only him.’(Deut 6:13)” Then the devil went away, and angels came and took care of Jesus.
To gain victory in spiritual matters, we must maintain a clear conscience and have control over our thoughts.
2 Corinthians 10:3-5
We are human, but we don’t wage war as humans do. We use God’s mighty weapons, not worldly weapons, to knock down the strongholds of human reasoning and to destroy false arguments. We destroy every proud obstacle that keeps people from knowing God. We capture their rebellious thoughts and teach them to obey Christ
Resisting the Devil
“8 Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. 9 Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your family of believers all over the world is going through the same kind of suffering you are..”
The devil is far more powerful and intelligent (as well as subtle and seductive in his malignant purposes) than any combination of human enemies we could ever face, and we would be utterly unable to defeat him with our own human resources. Yet God’s Word makes it plain that we are neither to yield to him nor flee from him. Instead, the admonition is:
James 4:7
So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
But how can we resist such a mighty foe? As in our text, we must constantly maintain sobriety and vigilance against his enticements, and be careful to remain “steadfast in the faith.” Otherwise, the pseudo-intellectualism and social peer pressure to which we are subjected daily could quickly persuade us to compromise the faith or even to depart from the faith.
We are commanded not to yield and not to compromise. Instead, we must
Ephesians 6:11, 16-17
11Put on all of God’s armour so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil……………16 In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil.[c] 17 Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.This mighty sword with which we can make Satan flee from us is literally “the saying of God”—that is, an appropriate individual word from the complete Word of God. This was the instrument with which the Lord Jesus Himself resisted the devil, by warding off each temptation with an incisive thrust of Scripture.
The result then will be—as it will be now with us also—was that the devil left Him
Luke 4:13
When the devil had finished tempting Jesus, he left him until the next opportunity came.