Satan's Tactics - Five Effective Tools Satan Uses to Defeat Mankind

Five Effective Tools Used by Satan

Satan is a cunning adversary and knows just what it takes to destroy our hopes, happiness and our need for God. He uses knowledge that spans time and eternity to use against us while we only have a limited amount of years on this earth to learn about him. Our short life span put up against Satan's amassed knowledge makes us ill equipped against this mighty enemy. But be not afraid, because God's Word from the scriptures, give us [Knowledge, Armament and Weapons] to use against this ardent foe whose plans are to defeat your life.

Satan has a tool belt full of tactics to use against you and I, but five of his most effective tactics are outlined in this text... and just what are those five tactics?

Doubt: Makes you question God's word and his goodness.
Discouragement: Makes you look at your problems rather than God.
Diversion: Makes the wrong things seem attractive so you want them more than the right things.
Defeat: Makes you feel like a failure so you don't even try.
Delay: Makes you put off something so it never gets done. ---- Courtesy of Life Application Bible

[1] Doubt: Makes you question God's word and his goodness. [Also see Doubting God]

One of Satan's tools is Doubt. If he can get us to doubt God he knows that our doubt will drive us away from God. God desires us to trust and believe in His promises and the one trait that pleases God is Faith... faith in His promises and of who He is...

(Heb 11:6) and without faith it is impossible to be well-pleasing unto him; for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that seek after him.

If Satan can get us to doubt God, then our current life and our life hereafter is in peril. Satan wants nothing more than to frustrate God's plan of redemption of Mankind and to destroy His creation, you and I.

(Heb 6:17) Accordingly God also, in His desire to show more convincingly and beyond doubt to those who were to inherit the promise the unchangeableness of His purpose and plan, intervened (mediated) with an oath.

(Heb 6:18) This was so that, by two unchangeable things [His promise and His oath] in which it is impossible for God ever to prove false or deceive us, we who have fled [to Him] for refuge might have mighty indwelling strength and strong encouragement to grasp and hold fast the hope appointed for us and set before [us]

... but as the prior scripture says, God is true to His word and promises, but Satan wants us to doubt and not have faith in God and His plan for our lives.

[2] Discouragement: Makes you look at your problems rather than God

We've all felt this tactic in our life. Discouragement is the playground that Satan loves to frolic in. We are most vulnerable when we are in a state of discouragement. This is the time when we question everything and this is the door that ushers in Satan's plans where he revels in his attacks and accusations against God. "Why did God allow this to happen?", "If God really loved you...", "God doesn't exist, so why pray to him?"...

Discouragement is a stepping stone to despair... and despair is the catalyst to hopelessness. It is in these realms of deep emotions that Satan can influence feelings and actions that can cause us to react in ways that sometimes have no remedy. Suicide is one false remedy that Satan loves to offer the confused, defeated and discouraged and for many he has been successful... But God will not allow despair into our lives if we Trust Him. Again, this is something that Satan doesn't want for us to do, to Trust God...

(2Co 4:7) But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the exceeding greatness of the power may be of God, and not from ourselves;

(2Co 4:8) we are pressed on every side, yet not straitened; perplexed, yet not unto despair;

(2Co 4:9) pursued, yet not forsaken; smitten down, yet not destroyed;with him.

God promises us that if we trust in Jesus, He will help us go through all things and even when we are at our lowest, he will give us a peace that we ourselves cannot understand, but will help us through our tough times.

(Php 4:6) In nothing be anxious; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.

(Php 4:7) And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall guard your hearts and your thoughts in Christ Jesus.

God also promises that He will work the bad things in our life against Satan's plans and even our down times will benefit us since God will make all things work in our favor, good and bad...

(Rom 8:28) And we know that to them that love God all things work together for good, even to them that are called according to his purpose.

(Rom 8:29) For whom he foreknew, he also foreordained to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren:

(Rom 8:30) and whom he foreordained, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified.

[3] Diversion: Makes the wrong things seem attractive so you want them more than the right things

Satan also likes to divert us away from things that are important to God. He is always trying to make us think that what God wants for us is not as rewarding or enjoyable as things that displease God. Satan always bastardizes Gods desires and offers counterfeits over the real thing. Examples are, God desires Man and Woman as the normal idea of what a couple is, while Satan bastardizes this view with Man with Man and Woman with Woman. God wants marriage between a Man and Woman and Satan offers a bastardized version of marriage between the same sex, civil unions.

God wants man to perform honest work for honest wages and Satan offers thievery, and crime as his way of getting what you want. God wants to instill patience in His creation, Satan wants to install impatience in Mankind by wanting everything now. Patience is an asset that is earned over time, while Satan teaches "another way" contrary to God's will..

(Luk 21:19) In your patience ye shall win your souls.

(Rom 8:25) But if we hope for that which we see not, then do we with patience wait for it.

(Rom 15:4) For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that through patience and through comfort of the scriptures we might have hope.

(1Ti 6:11) But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness.

(Heb 6:12) that ye be not sluggish, but imitators of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises.

(Jas 1:3) Knowing that the proving of your faith worketh patience.
(Jas 1:4) And let patience have its perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, lacking in nothing.

[4] Defeat: Makes you feel like a failure so you don't even try.

Another emotion most have felt is defeat. Through defeat, Satan limits and robs us of a future inheritance. Defeat has a cousin called disappointment. We've all been disappointed at some time in our lives. If Satan plays his cards right, he can overcome our future successes when he uses defeat to frustrate and stop our moves forward towards a goal we've set. All Satan wants is that we give up if we are met with defeat and Satan wants to place us in a state of despondency.

Through defeat, Satan can again bring question and doubt towards God. As mentioned in the section above, Discouragement, Satan has a powerful tool when used with defeat.

(2Co 4:8) we are pressed on every side, yet not straitened; perplexed, yet not unto despair;
(2Co 4:9) pursued, yet not forsaken; smitten down, yet not destroyed;
(2Co 4:10) always bearing about in the body the dying of Jesus, that the life also of Jesus may be manifested in our body.
(2Co 4:11) For we who live are always delivered unto death for Jesus' sake, that the life also of Jesus may be manifested in our mortal flesh.
(2Co 4:12) So then death worketh in us, but life in you.

2Co 4:8-12 --- [Life Application Study Bible Commentary]

Paul reminds us that though we may think we are at the end of our rope, we are never at the end of our hope. Our perishable bodies are subject to sin and suffering, but God never abandons us. Because Christ has won the victory over death, we have eternal life. All our risks, humiliations, and trials are opportunities for Christ to demonstrate his power and presence in and through us. We must ask ourselves, "Could I handle the suffering and opposition that Paul did?" When opposition, slander, or disappointment threaten to rob you of the victory, remember that no one can destroy what God has accomplished through you.

Take heart, if you fail at something do not accept the lie of defeat into your life. Even though this scripture was aimed at the Israelites, it still pertains to how God will work with you now...

(Deu 4:30) When thou art in tribulation, and all these things are come upon thee, in the latter days thou shalt return to Jehovah thy God, and hearken unto his voice:

(Deu 4:31) for Jehovah thy God is a merciful God; he will not fail thee, neither destroy thee, nor forget the covenant of thy fathers which he sware unto them.

... and just as David was telling his son Solomon in the passages below, we can also know that if God has started a work in you, He will give you the tools and time needed to complete your goal if you trust in God. Allow the work of patience given by God to help move you towards your goal, even if you are "Temporarily" defeated...

(1Ch 28:20) And David said to Solomon his son, Be strong and of good courage, and do it: fear not, nor be dismayed; for Jehovah God, even my God, is with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee, until all the work for the service of the house of Jehovah be finished.

[5] Delay: Makes you put off something so it never gets done.

Procrastination, I'm sure most of us have done this. We simpy put off something we know needs to be done by saying we'll do it at a later time. In a lot of cases, the task is never completed or is done in haste.

What does the Webster Dictionary have to say about the definition of the word delay:

1 - to put off to a future time; postpone
2 - to make late; slow up; detain

As you can see, this is a very powerful tool for Satan to use against you and I. So how does Satan use delay to his benefit. One way and his most favorite is to delay the acceptance of Jesus as our Lord and Saviour. He always comes to those who are contemplating accepting Christ and temps them to delay their decision. i.e. "Wait till you clean up your act", "You're not ready to make a drastic change in your life", "What will your friends think of you" ... and other delaying tactics that will cause you to slip closer to eternity without Christ.

With delay, Satan knows that time is in his favor and a lot of those contemplating a decision for Christ will die before their acceptance, solidifying their doom after this life is finished.

With delay, comes laziness which can in some instances cause feelings of defeat and discouragement.

All these tactics work in accord with each other, by doubting God, discouragement creates a doorway into your life, through which Satan uses diversion to keep our eyes off the things of God and delays decisions that are advantageous to your life. When this happens, Satan can defeat your life.

One last note... Satan's main objective is the defeat of our life and trust in God for our salvation through His son Jesus. As I've mentioned before, Satan cannot defeat God so has unleashed his hatred for God onto Mankind. If he can't destroy God, Satan will destroy God's creation, you and I.

If you haven't accepted Jesus as your Lord and Saviour, please do not fall prey to Satan's Tactics outlined here. Turn your life over to Christ and by accepting Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you defeat Satan's lies and plans for your life. For a simple Sinners Prayer, please --> Click Here <--.