We have all been there: we are tempted to do what we should not do. Paul talks about this: “I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.” (Rom. 7: 15, 18-20) We are sinful in nature because of original sin, where Satan deceived Eve to do what God commanded not to do: eat the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Gen. 3).

Even in His anger, the Lord provided a promise of His remedy for our sin, the Lord Jesus Christ. “And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel.” (Gen. 3:15) So while the enemy struck our Christ and He “was crushed for our iniquities”, Satan wasn’t victorious.

Christ died on our behalf being made sin for us (2 Cor. 5:21). He bore our judgment upon Calvary’s cross, and in doing so, bruised His heel. Though wounded, the damage done to Jesus wasn’t final, for He came back from the dead three days later, and thus crushed the serpent’s head indicating Satan’s ultimate defeat. “In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace” (Eph. 1:7)

Even with all the Lord has done for us, we aren’t always grateful. In the wilderness the Israelites whined, complained and rebelled not only against Moses (which they had done numerous times), but against the Lord (Numbers 21:4-9). They whined that they weren’t satisfied with the blessing of food He provided daily. And the Lord was angry and “sent venomous snakes among them; they bit the people and many Israelites died” (v 6). The people realized their sin and asked Moses to pray to the Lord to ask Him to take the snakes away. But the Lord didn’t take them away, instead He provided them with a remedy for the snake bites so that they could live (vv 8-9). “Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up” (John 3:14).

Even in our worst failures and disappointments, God provides. The Lord offers healing for our wounds, relationship for our loneliness, and faithfulness for our faithlessness. He doesn’t remove the sources of our suffering, but God makes the journey with us, providing what we most deeply need, if we only look to Him in faith. “For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in Him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.” (John 6:40)

How is the enemy deceiving you? Are you ungrateful for what the Lord provides? The Holy Spirit will show us the sin in our lives that give the devil a foothold if we ask for the revelation (John 16:8). Those footholds we leave open give Satan the opportunity to deceive us that we are defeated in this life. If you are a child of God, you are not defeated by the wiles of the devil. We have victory in Jesus, who has crushed Satan’s head. “But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body.” (2 Cor. 4:7-10)