Armor Up! Ways to Defeat the Devil and Demons
“Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.” (James 4:7 NKJV)
Fighting the devil is serious business.
When we go up against Satan and his demons, we are no match for their wiles and strength. They will do everything in their power to woo us away from serving God, with tactics that include temptations and discouragement. Christian writers know this battlefield only too well.
C. S. Lewis penned a witty but chilling satire called “The Screwtape Letters,” to describe Satan’s schemes. In it, Lewis imagined a senior demon named Screwtape giving advice to his nephew, Wormwood, who has been tasked with tempting a new Christian believer to fall back into sin. My favorite quote from the novel?
“It does not matter how small the sins are provided that their cumulative effect is to edge the man away from the Light and out into the Nothing. Murder is no better than cards if cards can do the trick. Indeed the safest road to Hell is the gradual one—the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden turnings, without milestones, without signposts….”1
Ooooh. I can see Lewis pointing at me with the stem of his pipe, saying, “See? This is what you’re in for when you go to work for Christ.”
Another great allegory on the work of the devil is “The Pilgrim’s Progress,” written by John Bunyan in the late 1600s during imprisonment for preaching the Protestant faith. Bunyan’s key character in the book was Christian, who embarked on a journey from the City of Destruction to the Celestial City [heaven].2
Satan appeared as Apollyon, a dreadful monster with fish scales, a lion’s mouth, and dragon wings. He approached Christian in the Valley of Humiliation and threw fiery darts in the form of threats, false promises, and reminders of Christian’s failures.
Even though Christian was covered with armor, he was wounded and fought back with the two-edged sword of the Spirit—God’s word in Scripture. He countered Apollyon’s taunts and lures by citing Bible verses on the Lord’s precepts. Moreover, Christian continually affirmed that he belonged entirely to his King Jesus—“I have given him my faith, and sworn my allegiance to him; how then can I go back from this…?” With help from heaven, Christian finally succeeded in battle and gave praise to God in gratitude for the victory.
Both Lewis and Bunyan were acutely aware of spiritual and earthly warfare against them for their faith. Today, we pilgrims come under the same brutal attacks. When you pray, join a Christian ministry, take on a specific project for Jesus, or do anything that serves or honors God, watch out—fiery darts will soon fly your direction. You have no choice about whether or not you’ll be persecuted…it’s just a matter of when.
But praise God! We are not alone in battle. Jesus, our Captain, is right beside us as our Rescuer, reminding us that He has already won the victory.
Early in His ministry, right after His baptism, Jesus fasted in the wilderness for 40 days. Satan attacked Jesus at His weakest point physically and then proceeded to tempt Him—with food, fame, and power.
Satan, per his habit, twisted God’s word to accomplish his purposes. But Jesus, filled with the Holy Spirit, countered each temptation effectively by correctly applying God’s promises and commandments.
“Then Jesus said to him, ‘Away with you, Satan! For it is written, “You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve”’” (Matthew 4:10). Satan had no defense for this, and he fled.
What demons do you face? The ones that jab you with messages of temptation or discouragement? What weapons or armor do you use to defend yourself?
I recently attended an online Christian writers’ meeting with a wise editor/mentor, Larry J. Leech II. His topic was on defeating the demons that plague Christian writers—the voices that whisper disheartening messages to derail us from our work. Here are some of the counterattack weapons shared by Leech and others. The ideas are applicable not only to writers but everyone else in the Christian community:
- Pray. Enlist a prayer team, too, and text one of your partners to go into spiritual battle with you.
- Listen to worship music, to focus your heart on praising God.
- Take a moment to break connection with the enemy—go for a walk, read Scripture, make a few putts with a golf club—whatever distraction works.
- Get godly input from a Christian book, message, post, podcast, etc., that offers sound doctrine.
- Rebuke Satan and his demons by speaking against them out loud, declaring in Jesus’ name that they are not welcome on His territory.
- Lastly and most effectively, follow the example of Christ during temptation—grab your Bible and defeat Satan with God’s own words. Write down any lies coming from Satan or his minions, then write down God’s truth and promises in Scripture to rebuff the falsehoods.3
We have this promise: “I will call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised; so shall I be saved from my enemies” (Psalm 18:3). Jesus, the Captain of angel armies, will come to your rescue and blow Satan away with a mere puff of breath. Christ is our strength, shield, refuge, and defender. He loves us too much to leave us alone against our foes.
Friend, when you face spiritual opposition, take your battles to Jesus. Count on Him and His word to defeat every single scheme launched against you.
Father God, I praise You for Your power and love for me. I ask Your forgiveness for the times when I have let Satan’s temptations lure me into sinning against You. But I also claim the blood of Christ, who has redeemed me with His sacrifice and grace. Please go with me into battle against demonic attacks, and rescue me from the false messages. Cover me with Your whole armor—Your truth, righteousness, gospel of peace, faith, and holy word. Let me rely completely on You for the victory. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Nancy C. Williams is a Christian wife/mom with a writing career spanning more than 40 years in business and journalism. Williams is the author of the novel To Love a Falcon and the devotional book A Crocus in the Desert: Devotions, Stories, and Prayers for Women Experiencing Infertility. Her blogs are featured on Crossmap.com and AriseDaily. To follow Nancy’s posts and news, go to her home page at NancyCWilliams.com and subscribe at the bottom.
© Copyright 2025 Nancy C. Williams (text and photography). Unless otherwise noted, Scripture verses are taken from the New King James Version®, Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved. #demonicattack #spiritualwarfare #screwtapeletters #cslewis #pilgrim’sprogress #johnbunyan
1https://gutenberg.ca/ebooks/lewiscs-screwtapeletters/lewiscs-screwtapeletters-00-h.html
2https://www.gutenberg.org/files/131/131-h/131-h.htm
3Read Ephesians 6:10-18 for a full description of how to armor yourself for spiritual warfare.
