"Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you." (James 4:7)
So, we submit to God and how He has us resisting Satan. Be prayerful, all the time. And we have "senses exercised to discern both good and evil." (in Hebrews 5:14) This comes with growing in Jesus and in sharing with mature Christian examples.
So, we can't be dilly-dallying with toys. God is our sustenance, God's grace is sufficient.
Paul was given a "thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure." (in 2 Corinthians 12:7-15) He says this "thorn" was "a messenger of Satan". So, I understand this "thorn" was a demon who could "buffet" Paul; I would say this means this devil was allowed to spiritually attack Paul.
And professional boxers buffet each other, using different ways of testing and attacking one another, in order to find each other's weak spots.
An invisible attacker could come against Paul, at any time, anywhere. Any time Paul was acting in ego . . . he was in weakness so Satan could get to him. So, how did our Apostle Paul handle this?
Paul says, "Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me." (2 Corinthians 12:8) So, it looks like Paul was not just making Satan flee from him! And Paul was such a man of faith to cast out devils and heal people; so how come he could not just make Satan's "messenger" go away????
It looks to me, like "it" was getting to Paul, but Jesus would not give Paul a miracle of convenience.
Instead, Jesus said, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness." (in 2 Corinthians 12:9) If only Paul would submit to God in His grace . . . all the time > God's grace is almighty with immunity against Satan's evil "spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience." (in Ephesians 2:2) This spirit of selfishness could get through to Paul and mess with him, but only if and while Paul was acting in his ego and his own ability and sufficiency.
So, possibly Paul himself needed some real correction. But then he discovered how he needed to all the time be submitting to God's grace which is almighty to protect us and have us succeeding in whatever God really has us doing.
But in our own egos . . . we can give in to Satan's messing. But in God's love in Jesus, we become blessing how Jesus became "a life-giving spirit" (1 Corinthians 15:45) > in God's grace almighty, not only do we have our own protection, but we are living and loving like Jesus and this is spreading to make others alive also in God's own love and leading, in sharing with God and "with one another" >
"with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love," (Ephesians 4:2)
So, we do this in sharing with God and with one another in God's own love which has almighty power for protecting us from Satanic attacks, but also this almighty power of God's grace of His love makes us unstoppable in doing all which God has us doing with Him.
Therefore, it is not enough to only be able to defend our own selves. We also need to go on the offense, and this in sharing with other Christians. But we know how we can get into problems in relating with other children of God. This is why we need to keep forgiving and relate "with longsuffering" < Ephesians 4:2. Stay ready to forgive and be longsuffering.
"Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice. And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you." (Ephesians 4:31-32)
In prayer prepare and stay ready to share with one another in Jesus; be committed to not make excuses to give up on our brothers and sisters in Jesus. Do not flee from God's people. But Satan is the one who must flee from us!!
However, people do give in to things like unforgiveness and frustration and shame and guilt and blaming and accusing, and then they flee along with these Satanic things which need to flee from us. Resist Satan and make him and his things flee from us; do not flee with him, from one another!! Jesus never gave up on any of His disciples.
But even though ones of us can seem impossible . . . God uses our good example to help each other >
"nor as being lords over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock." (1 Peter 5:3)
prayer with obedience with example
Be kind and gentle and humble.
"And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma." (Ephesians 5:2)
So, expect how God's grace makes us strong in love and sweet-smelling like Jesus is so pleasing to our Father. Yes, Paul says that in God's grace he took "pleasure" in his troubles > 2 Corinthians 12:10. In God's grace, not only are we sweetly pleasing to our Father in "the fragrance of Christ" (2 Corinthians 2:14-15), but we ourselves experience and enjoy Jesus in us. We take "pleasure" in Jesus, while we go through what is "for Christ's sake" (2 Corinthians 12:10-11), like Paul learned to do (see also Philippians 4:10-13); Paul needed to learn, like we all do; Paul needed correction like we all do > Hebrews 12:4-11.
So . . . it has been our own struggling and fighting within ourselves, which has failed > "without Me you can do nothing," Jesus says in John 15:5. Instead we can be snuggling in God's love and how His grace takes care of us
