The devil has already lost. Christ defeated him at Mt. Calvary and by rising from the dead. That is why Christians have always believed in and confessed the "Harrowing of Hell". Christ destroyed the power of the devil, Christ has vanquished hell. Defeating death, and has brought life and salvation to the world.
The devil is already defeated. And in this truth we know that the devil's doom is certain.
The devil is already doomed. Which is why the Scriptures tell us simply "Resist the devil, and he must flee". The devil has lost his power, his kingdom has been brought to ruin. Christ has conquered already, and the devil has only a "short time" we read in the Revelation.
So the devil rages, but as Luther wrote in his famous hymn, "His rage we can endure, for lo his doom is sure, one little word can fell him." The "little word" Luther writes in the hymn literally is that the smallest, tiniest word can shake the devil. Luther writes later that merely calling him "liar" sends him running away with his tail between his legs.
The devil has lost. So no matter how strong or powerful he tries to make himself look, no matter how much he rages, no matter how big he tries to puff himself up to appear--he's already defeated. The devil is a liar, and the devil has already lost. Christ has won, and we so when the devil comes with his lies we can simply call him a liar to his face, and he is deflated like a bag of hot hair punctured by a tiny pin prick of truth.
Men who damn themselves make their bed with the devil in judgment, but the devil doesn't "win" anything. The devil doesn't ever win. The devil is always a loser.
If you see an army already defeated on the battlefield, and running away or already dead and bleeding out, that army doesn't suddenly gain any victory if you join in losing with them. You merely choose to lose.
That is what makes damnation sobering and sad, nobody has to be damned. Nobody has to go to hell. God certainly doesn't want it. God wants everyone to be saved. Christ came to save everyone.
We may speak of the devil convincing people to abandon or reject Christ, but once again, that's because the devil is a liar and a loser. The devil has already lost, and it's just a matter of time until he gets buried beneath eternity into near-nothingness. So he rages, he rages and he lies, because he's a lying loser. So, like Luther, chase him away with just a fart. The devil is nothing but a soft bag of gas anyway, flick him away like the worthless fly he is. Trust in Christ who gives you the victory.
-CryptoLutheran
