Leviathan Part 9: A Warning! Know Who You Are Dealing With

 

Job 41:7 Can you fill his skin with harpoons, Or his head with fishing spears? 8 Lay your hand on him; Remember the battle-Never do it again! 9 Indeed, any hope of overcoming him is false; Shall one not be overwhelmed at the sight of him? 10 No one is so fierce that he would dare stir him up. Who then is able to stand against Me?

God continues to question Job concerning omnipotence. After all, it’s one of the calling cards of a sovereign God! Here, He has a warning for Job and one that we would do well to heed.

 

He said, “Do you want to tangle with Leviathan? Go ahead lay your hand on him, then remember the battle and never do it again!” Only those who operate in the power of Jesus should venture forth against this enemy, because only Jesus, only God can “dare to stir him up.”

The sons of Sceva learned this the hard way as we read in the Book of Acts: Ac

19:11 Now God worked unusual miracles by the hands of Paul,  12 so that even handkerchiefs or aprons were brought from his body to the sick, and the diseases left them and the evil spirits went out of them. 13 Then some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists took it upon themselves to call the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, "We exorcise you by the Jesus whom Paul preaches." 14 Also there were seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, who did so. 15 And the evil spirit answered and said, "Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?" 16 Then the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, overpowered them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded.

 

Even the devil recognizes a hypocrite when he sees one, and in such instances is not under any compulsion to obey the budding exorcist.

Now, I don’t want to give the devil more glory than is due. Always remember that as a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, “You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.” (1 Jn 4:4)

 But also remember that you are not battling mere flesh and blood! Eph 6:12,13 reminds us: “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. 13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.”

 

Suit up with the God-provided armor before you enter the fray, and if there be any rebuking of the devil, let it be done by the Lord!

Jude 1:9 says, “Yet Michael the archangel, in contending with the devil, when he disputed about the body of Moses, dared not bring against him a reviling accusation, but said, "The Lord rebuke you!"

 

It’s not “I rebuke you,” it’s always, “The Lord rebuke you!”