Scripture Reading: Rev. 3:21

All victories should take the victory of Christ as a pattern: “As I also overcame.”

Three enemies
The Bible tells us that we have three different enemies: (1) the flesh, within us, (2) the world, outside of us, and (3) Satan, above and below us. As far as the church’s ascended position is concerned, Satan is below us.

There were three nations in the Old Testament that typified these three enemies. Amalek typifies the flesh; we should overcome it with our prayer. Egypt typifies the world; it should be buried in the Red Sea. The Canaanites typify the powers of Satan; they should be overcome and removed one by one.

The flesh is against the Spirit (Gal. 5:17). The world is against the Father. If any man loves the world, the love for the Father is not in him (1 John 2:15). Satan is against Christ. Christ came to destroy Satan (1 John 3:8). Therefore, subjection to the Spirit is victory over the flesh, the love for the Father is victory over the world, and faith in Christ is victory over Satan.

The first thing that came in was the flesh. One day, the archangel tried to uplift himself to be like God by means of the “self,” and the “self” entered the world. This was the beginning of sin, the world, and Satan.

At the time God created man, He bestowed on him the highest ability, the ability to reproduce, by which he can pass his life on to his offspring. Originally God expected man to eat the fruit of the tree of life so that he would have God’s life to pass on to his offspring. God forbade him to eat the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. But Satan came and committed spiritual fornication with the first couple in their soul. Satan put his poisonous seed within them so that they passed this on to their offspring. Satan is the father of liars. The seed of Satan is lies. The seed of God is truth. The principle with which Satan beguiled Adam to sin is the same principle as that which caused Satan himself to sin at the beginning.

Satan has his household and kingdom. He gains men to be the members of his household and citizens of his kingdom so that he can be the king over them.

After Satan beguiled man to sin, his work was confined from the universe to just the earth, the world. He was cursed: “Upon thy belly shalt thou go, / and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life” (Gen. 3:14). He could only move on the earth and could only have man, who comes out of the dust, for his food. This was a great defeat for Satan. Man’s fall is a great victory for God.

Satan has his system on the earth. His organization becomes the present world. Satan is the king of this organization, while the whole world lies under his hand.

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