Complete Control, Complete Victory

James 4:7 - "Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you."

A man dreamed he lived in a two-story house when Jesus knocked at his door. "Come in," he said. Jesus asked, "Do you have a place where I can stay?" "I have a spare room upstairs on the second floor," the man replied. Jesus accepted this offer because He won't take control where you don't yield to Him.

Later that night, Satan knocked, and the man let him in. Satan attacked and fought him throughout the night. The man barely managed to force him out by morning. When he saw Jesus, he complained, "You didn't help me!" Jesus responded, "I'm in a spare room on the second floor."

Understanding, the man said, "Jesus, take the whole second floor, and I'll keep the first floor." That night, Satan returned, attacked again, and the man fought all night, barely expelling him by dawn. Again, he complained to Jesus, who replied, "I'm on the second floor."

Finally, the man declared, "Jesus, take over the whole house!" "Certainly," Jesus agreed. When Satan knocked that night, Jesus opened the door. Upon seeing Jesus, Satan bowed his head and said, "I must have the wrong house."

The principle is simple: submit to God, resist the devil, and he will flee. When we submit ourselves completely to God, declaring "Jesus, You are Lord of all," as children of God, we need not fear Satan. We can live victoriously today, but it requires complete surrender, not partial commitment.

Reflection Question: What areas of your life are you still trying to manage yourself instead of giving Jesus complete control?

"Dear Heavenly Father, I don't want to give You just a spare room in my life - I want You to have the whole house. Show me the areas where I'm still trying to maintain control instead of submitting completely to You. Help me to surrender everything so that when the enemy comes, he sees You, not me. I stand in Your strength and in Your victory. In Jesus' Name, amen."

Adapted from "Reigning Through Christ" (Ephesians 1:19-23): https://www.joshfranklin.org/media/qzggtfz/7-reigning-through-christ-eph-1-19-23