Becoming Prey: Part 1

1Pe 5:8  Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: 

1Pe 5:9  Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world.

Peter issues a warning to the flock of God, painting the devil in the light of a predatory lion. I believe this is not merely useful, but purposeful imagery utilized because of his prior description of the people of God as a flock of sheep. 

There are several reasons for this, and there will be several blogs breaking down the various pieces I see in this scripture. I pray someone to be encouraged and gain knowledge of at least some of the devices Satan uses against the people of God. 

The Natural State of the Flock

It is easy to look at the domesticated sheep herds in the natural world and assume that 1 Peter 5:8 is speaking to a group of poor, defenseless lambs whose natural state is helplessness. Existing as if they are only just waiting on the razor’s edge to be ripped from the flock, torn to pieces, and so utterly destroyed as to never find hope again. In fact, a quick look at Romans 8:34-35 would seem to suggest that indeed, we are simply sheep for the slaughter. 

However, Paul doesn’t merely end at this point but continues in verse 36, “Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.” 

Additionally, 1 John 2:13,14 and 1 John 4:4 utilize the word “Overcome,” or Nikao, which is also used extensively in Revelations, and can mean, in its most basic form, to conquer or suggest being a conqueror. In the book of Revelations, extensive use indicates that at the end, those making it to heaven will be those that conquered or “He that overcometh.” 

Jesus makes the statement, “I have overcome the world,” instructing the disciples that he had the victory, and through him, as the apostles taught, we also have victory. (John 16:33)

For this reason, I do not believe in having a survivalist mentality when it comes to serving God and in the way the flock functions. This fear of destruction sabotages God’s people and their work, keeping them so focused on their potential defeat or failures and fearing the growls in the shadows that they do not thrive as part of the flock and instead falter.

This is not the design of God. 

Though we often come short, it is not his will that we would be subject to the devil’s predation but rather be overcomers. The flock of God is equipped with the Holy Ghost’s power for this reason (among others). It is the power that separates those who profess and those who possess. (Luke 24:49, Acts 1:8) 

That force, privilege, and choice to be free from and live above the darkness in this present world define the children of God. The spirit of fear and bondage that the world seeks to incite into His children is anathema to the Spirit of power that we have received to become the sons of God. (Romans 8: 15, 2 Timothy 1:7)

This bondage and fear is a separating factor that causes sheep to leave the flock, racing through the darkness, running from the unseen towards the unknown. It carries its own type of spiritual adrenaline that spirals out of control as one allows an ever stronger hold by the fear and bondage. Paul tells us that we are given love and a sound mind by God; however, fear removes the self-control we would have and pushes us to the irrational, carnal spin of darkness.  (2 Timothy 1:7)

Seeking Whom

The torment that fear brings is juxtaposed to God’s perfect love that we both exist in and should exist in us, which casts out fear. (1 John 4:16-18) The devil seeks those who have made the decisions that make them ripe to be preyed upon. He seeks those sheep of the flock who have placed themselves where they are receptive to dark whispers of fear, which are not of the love of God but the alluring lies of the devil. Most damaging is when one of the flock allows themselves to be convinced that, in fact, the love of God itself is bondage, thereby generating a warped perception that causes fear of the flock, the shepherd, and sees God’s very nature of holiness as both restrictive and constrictive.

The devil is not capable of destroying the flock as a whole, and as such, he is seeking whom he may devour or swallow up. Peter’s warning begins with a call to vigilance. This places the pressure on ourselves to ensure that we’re staying vigilant and maintaining our status as part of the flock, not setting ourselves up to become prey to the devil.

He is not the ultimate predator. He is painted here as a lesser lion. He is not the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, the ultimate victor to whom every knee shall bow, and every tongue confess. Instead, he is a faux lion who uses various devices to locate his ideal prey, trying to appear desirable and hide his true nature towards those he seeks as prey.

Painted as a predator, he works through fear of his roar and the fear of the unknown in darkness. Not all are prey to him, but those who fit certain qualities of the ideal prey.

So how do we put ourselves in the position to be preyed upon by the devil? I believe there are a few critical scenarios the Bible shows us. 

1. Isolation
2. Drawn Away
3. Hearing Another Shepard

Within those main three scenarios, there is a multitude of issues to deal with, and as such, I will likely be breaking this into 2 or 3 parts. 

Isolation & The Fellowship of the 99

Much is rightly said of the one lost sheep. It is one of the ultimate expressions of love and care, and we are right to thank God for it. However, I believe it is worth discussing why the shepherd felt confident enough to leave the ninety-nine to find the single lost lamb. 

It is my personal assertion that the shepherd understood the way the predatory instinct works. Predators that prey on groups do not attack the entire flock; they seek to capture one and drag it away to devour. Often that means attempting to pick off its prey from the outer edge of the flock. The separation of a sheep puts it in immediate peril. 

The predator is never far from the flock, and if the sheep is sick, confused, or simply a bit lost and wandering, it draws the predator’s attention, making itself a target. The shepherd knows that the predatory focus will fasten upon the singular sheep because it has made itself much easier prey and assuredly drawn the predator’s attention who is looking for the right opportunity.

Ecclesiastes 4: 9-12 tells us that two are better than one, as their reward for labor is good, they can help one another up if they fall and keep each other warm in the cold. Verse 12 goes on to say, “And if one prevail against him, two shall withstand him; and a threefold cord is not quickly broken.”

In a healthy church, there is much safety and strength to be found in fellowship. This comes from the love, prayer, and encouragement we give one another if we follow the word as we ought. When we are committed to and active within the body of Christ, we are surrounded by testimonies of what God has done, and it inspires our own faith that we are not dealing with our struggles alone. 

When we allow the devil to begin to make us feel alone and isolated, we start to drift from the flock towards the shadows where he hides. 

There are absolutely times when we must pull away from life to consecrate. Still, we must remain vigilant, for when we are alone, the devil is most likely to approach us as he did Jesus in the wilderness, or in a different sense, as the man possessed by Legion. Jesus chose to be alone seeking consecration, while the man possessed was separated by what the workers of the devil had accomplished in his life. This is why we must resist the devil in faith, that he cannot use chaos, pain, and disappointment to cause us to give him power over us, which then causes us to separate from the supportive body of Christ.

Our natural inclination is to run from pain – if we allow our problems to drive us, the natural path will be to secretly or not so secretly to blame God, the church, or a variation of that and want to run away. Whether that pain comes from shame, anger, bitterness, or fear, if we are not taking everything to God in prayer, we fail to run to the fellowship of the flock. We can oppose ourselves becoming distant and drift until it’s easy for the predator to drive us into the place of a trap. (2 Timothy 2:26) 

Battle of the Mind

We pretend that we are aware and rational in our own thinking. We act like everything we do is of our own volition, without influence, yet, the reality is that often our decisions come from our unstable heart, our emotional center, which at worst has inherently evil imaginations, and at best, is volatile. In fact, lēḇ in the Hebrew and dianoia in Greek are used to describe how the mind/heart drive decisions and understanding. (Jeremiah 17:9, Genesis 8:21, Hebrews 3:12, and many many more)

How many times have you caught the eye of two or more people talking about you and felt like they were talking about you? No, you KNEW it. How many times have situations occurred that you just knew were against you or somehow revolving around you? Yet, the reality was, you were the one projecting and manufacturing because of insecurities, shame, or maybe conviction. There are echos of Proverbs 28:1 which tells us that the wicked flee when no man pursueth here in, that if we rely on our emotions or heart, we’ll end up putting ourselves in place to run from God into the waiting arms of him who is walking around seeking those who he may devour. 

This is why our continual seeking of the things of God is imperative. If our carnality is restored, we begin to see, understand, and feel through society’s lenses, those surrounding us, instead of with faith and spiritual understanding. This causes us to push back against the things of God and seek to align our desires and imaginations of the flesh with God, despite our understanding that no man can serve two masters and that that the devil has nothing to do with God. (Matt 6:24, John 14:30)

Eze 36:26 A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. “

Part of becoming a new creature, being born again through water and Spirit is not just remission of sins and infilling of the Holy Ghost, but this carnal heart is replaced with one that is able to receive spiritual things. If our heart, like our tongue, is not put in submission, we inevitably allow our emotions to control us, which anyone or any situation can affect and, at times, control.

This is the danger of living emotionally or walking by sight instead of by faith. Because our emotions are so easily manipulated, the devil can drive us to the point of the ambush, for which he knows we are unprepared for.

Jas_1:14 But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed.

The devil seeks to sow the things in our hearts that cause isolation (whether real or perceived) from the flock. He wants us to miss church and prayer. Ignore our Bible. Choose other items over the flock, wondering more about what is “out there” versus what God has for us. He uses pain, dark whispers, and lies to make us feel alone, separated, and worthless.

Hold fast to the Word of God, your Pastor, and your church family, and you can find the strength to not get be tricked into feeling or allowing the devil to actually isolate you.

Thanks for reading, and stay tuned for Part 2!