the prowling lion

Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world.

1 Peter 5:8-9

I’ve had a major misunderstanding about the application of this passage. Just today I placed these two verses in their broader context and realized I’ve been thinking about verse eight all wrong. I’ve always thought that the devil prowling like a lion seeking to devour believers was a warning to fight temptation. But that is not at all why the devil is on the hunt. It isn’t about making an individual believer sin. He has a much bigger appetite. 

Satan wants to take out more than just one believer with a temptation to sin. His intention: he wants to take out large swaths of churches by targeting leaders and congregations with persecution, false doctrine, anxiety, and wrong responses to suffering. The immediate context of the passage is that of local church elders and the entire congregation. The “your” in “your adversary” is plural. The reminder in verse 9 is the near universal experience of the church. The world system that is Satan’s prowling territory is totally his domain. And He is after Christ’s church that has invaded His territory!

Hence the call to clear-headed resistance to the devil’s schemes is made to the church. We must post a watch on doctrine, practice, and worldly philosophies… the charge of the elders to lead the congregation! These tactics of the prowling devil will erode us if we let our guard down. It’s why elders are needed to guard and protect from lies and feed the church the truth of scripture. And great teaching and leadership help all believers to resist the devil’s prowling attempts to attack faith, helping us all to stand firm together. We will suffer the devil’s hate until Jesus returns. But we must keep the prowling lion at bay… constantly on the watch… consistently firm in the truth!

Lord Jesus,

Keep us sober-minded. Keep us watchful. Keep us firm in faith. Keep us aware that though we suffer in this world, we can keep Satan from destroying us by our constant watchfulness and faith in You.

Amen