Stand up to the Bully – October 4, 2021

Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
James 4:7

Stand up to the Bully

Brandon dreaded going to school. Jake was at school, and Jake was a bully. Jake sought Brandon out, intimidated him, insulted him, and pushed him around. Everything Jake did made Brandon feel weak and powerless.

One day, Brandon finally had had enough. As Jake was coming after him, Brandon stood up as tall as he could, looked Jake straight in the eyes, and said, “Enough! I’m not going to let you bully me anymore! You can’t have any power over me that I don’t let you have. So, from now on, this bullying stops!”

Jake was stunned. No one had ever stood up to him like that before. He stopped in his tracks, looked around, and saw that his power over Brandon—and everyone else—was gone. So, he ducked his head, turned around, and walked away.

Sometimes, the only way to stop a bully is to stand up to him.

It’s hard to think of a bigger bully than the devil. Like any other bully, the devil loves to use intimidation, insults, and accusations to exercise his power over us. And his power is considerable. In fact, no mere human being has the power to stand up to him on their own.

One person, however, does have the power to stand up to the devil on his own. That person is Jesus. Throughout his life, Jesus resisted and overcame the devil in every confrontation he had with him. Even when it seemed as if the devil was about to defeat Jesus as Jesus was hanging on the cross, Jesus emerged as the victor. By his death and resurrection, Jesus decisively defeated the devil and destroyed his power.

All those who trust in Jesus as their Savior share in Jesus’ victory over the devil. His power to stand up to the devil now is their power as they trust in him. When the devil tries to bully us with his accusations and intimidation, we can, with Jesus’ power, stand up to him and stop him. For, when we with Jesus resist the devil, the devil will flee from us.

Prayer:
Lord Jesus, by your power enable me to resist the devil so that he will flee from me, even as he must always flee from you. Amen.