Satan's Attacks on the Home
Wiersbe's final chapter in his book The Strategy of Satan refers to Satan's attack on the home. He points out that Satan's very first attack "was against the home" (p. 155) and goes on to describe four specific attacks on the home today.
The first attack is on marriage itself. Wiersbe discussed the idea that Satan will try to influence Christians to believe that marriage is sinful; that remaining single is more spiritual than being married. While some people have been called by God to remain single, God's Word makes it very clear that marriage was His idea and His will.
Going beyond the book, I think it is very clear that Satan has attacked marriage in other ways in our current culture. Many couples, even Christian ones, have chosen to live together instead of getting married. They do not see the value of making a public commitment to one another before God, family and friends. We have also seen the recent redefining of marriage to include same-sex unions. Satan is crafty and knows that if he can undermine God's plan for marriage, he can gain a foothold in our hearts and minds in other areas as well.
The second attack has to do with headship in the home. The Bible says that women are to be submissive to their husbands. Wiersbe points out that "headship is not dictatorship. Headship is leadership in love. Christ is the Head of the Church in a living, loving relationship; and so the husband ought to be the head of the wife in a living, loving relationship" (p. 157). Satan attacked in this way in the garden by leading Eve to act independently from her husband. Through this act of disobedience, sin entered the world.
God's design for marriage was that the husband would be the servant-leader in the home and that the wife was to follow his lead. Sin is what has caused some men to over-step this plan by being too controlling or even abusive to their wives. And it is sin that has led some women to struggle with being a servant to their husbands and families. I feel that the modern feminist movement has come about because of this struggle for control. Just as Eve believed the lie that eating the fruit would make her wise, so modern day feminists disregard the principles of Scripture to seek power and control. Unfortunately, this movement is destroying marriages, families as well as respect for human life. We all share the same spiritual blessings in Christ. So actually, following God's Word would create equality among men and women.
The third attack Wiersbe discusses has to do with moral impurity in marriage. A husband and wife "who are considerate of one another, and who fulfill their marriage dues, will not be interested in any other man or woman" (pp. 158-159). Satan will do his best to create situations "for extramarital opportunities".
While we usually think of affairs as being physically with another person; I think this moral impurity can also take place through pornography as well as romance novels. Here again, Satan has taken something that was intended to be a beautiful fruit of the marriage union and made it into something perverted and "dirty". Pornography and romance novels both can lead a person to feel dissatisfied with his/her own marriage relationship and to lust after something more exciting or romantic. This will negatively affect the marriage relationship if not stopped.
The last attack written about in The Strategy of Satan is getting the wife too busy outside the home. Wiersbe writes that "the yielded Christian wife should find joy and fulfillment in her home" (p. 159). Wiersbe goes on to say that "it is not wrong for a wife to work outside the home"; but "that both husband and wife had better be alert to Satan's temptations. When outside the home is more inviting and exciting than inside the home, then you can be sure Satan is at work to wreck that marriage" (p. 160).
This is such a touchy subject. It is not wrong for a wife/mother to work outside the home. I think it is the ideal, but not always something that is feasible in every family. But I also think Satan has used the feminist movement to plant seeds of dissatisfaction. Women were told they didn't have to be slaves in their homes and should be free to go out into the workforce if they desired. Should a woman need to work or decide to do so for personal reasons, I think she needs to be realistic and realize that she can't "have it all". There will always be a conflict between work and family if a woman works full time. The important thing is to maintain that joy and fulfillment in the home regardless of whether one works outside of it. I have come to see that the home should be a welcoming place of refreshment for all who enter. Without an attitude of joy, this will become drudgery and lead to bitterness which can in turn destroy a marriage and a family.
Warren Wiersbe ends the book by reminding the reader that our homes need "the same spiritual defenses as the individual: the inspired Word of God, the imparted grace of God, the indwelling Spirit of God, and the interceding Son of God" (p. 160).
Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith. 1 Peter 5:8-9
The first attack is on marriage itself. Wiersbe discussed the idea that Satan will try to influence Christians to believe that marriage is sinful; that remaining single is more spiritual than being married. While some people have been called by God to remain single, God's Word makes it very clear that marriage was His idea and His will.
Going beyond the book, I think it is very clear that Satan has attacked marriage in other ways in our current culture. Many couples, even Christian ones, have chosen to live together instead of getting married. They do not see the value of making a public commitment to one another before God, family and friends. We have also seen the recent redefining of marriage to include same-sex unions. Satan is crafty and knows that if he can undermine God's plan for marriage, he can gain a foothold in our hearts and minds in other areas as well.
The second attack has to do with headship in the home. The Bible says that women are to be submissive to their husbands. Wiersbe points out that "headship is not dictatorship. Headship is leadership in love. Christ is the Head of the Church in a living, loving relationship; and so the husband ought to be the head of the wife in a living, loving relationship" (p. 157). Satan attacked in this way in the garden by leading Eve to act independently from her husband. Through this act of disobedience, sin entered the world.
God's design for marriage was that the husband would be the servant-leader in the home and that the wife was to follow his lead. Sin is what has caused some men to over-step this plan by being too controlling or even abusive to their wives. And it is sin that has led some women to struggle with being a servant to their husbands and families. I feel that the modern feminist movement has come about because of this struggle for control. Just as Eve believed the lie that eating the fruit would make her wise, so modern day feminists disregard the principles of Scripture to seek power and control. Unfortunately, this movement is destroying marriages, families as well as respect for human life. We all share the same spiritual blessings in Christ. So actually, following God's Word would create equality among men and women.
The third attack Wiersbe discusses has to do with moral impurity in marriage. A husband and wife "who are considerate of one another, and who fulfill their marriage dues, will not be interested in any other man or woman" (pp. 158-159). Satan will do his best to create situations "for extramarital opportunities".
While we usually think of affairs as being physically with another person; I think this moral impurity can also take place through pornography as well as romance novels. Here again, Satan has taken something that was intended to be a beautiful fruit of the marriage union and made it into something perverted and "dirty". Pornography and romance novels both can lead a person to feel dissatisfied with his/her own marriage relationship and to lust after something more exciting or romantic. This will negatively affect the marriage relationship if not stopped.
The last attack written about in The Strategy of Satan is getting the wife too busy outside the home. Wiersbe writes that "the yielded Christian wife should find joy and fulfillment in her home" (p. 159). Wiersbe goes on to say that "it is not wrong for a wife to work outside the home"; but "that both husband and wife had better be alert to Satan's temptations. When outside the home is more inviting and exciting than inside the home, then you can be sure Satan is at work to wreck that marriage" (p. 160).
This is such a touchy subject. It is not wrong for a wife/mother to work outside the home. I think it is the ideal, but not always something that is feasible in every family. But I also think Satan has used the feminist movement to plant seeds of dissatisfaction. Women were told they didn't have to be slaves in their homes and should be free to go out into the workforce if they desired. Should a woman need to work or decide to do so for personal reasons, I think she needs to be realistic and realize that she can't "have it all". There will always be a conflict between work and family if a woman works full time. The important thing is to maintain that joy and fulfillment in the home regardless of whether one works outside of it. I have come to see that the home should be a welcoming place of refreshment for all who enter. Without an attitude of joy, this will become drudgery and lead to bitterness which can in turn destroy a marriage and a family.
Warren Wiersbe ends the book by reminding the reader that our homes need "the same spiritual defenses as the individual: the inspired Word of God, the imparted grace of God, the indwelling Spirit of God, and the interceding Son of God" (p. 160).
Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith. 1 Peter 5:8-9
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