As we promised above, it is time to explore the follow-up to Paul’s disfellowshipment of a man for a public and open sin, rather than a sin that was being struggled with in private as is more common among believers.  While discussing the repentance of the Corinthian who had incestuously and publicly had a relationship with his stepmother, Paul also makes a comment about Satan’s devices that is worth discussing at least somewhat in 2 Corinthians 2:3-11:  “And I wrote this very thing to you, lest, when I came, I should have sorrow over those from whom I ought to have joy, having confidence in you all that my joy is the joy of you all.  For out of much affliction and anguish of heart I wrote to you, with many tears, not that you should be grieved, but that you might know the love which I have so abundantly for you.  But if anyone has caused grief, he has not grieved me, but all of you to some extent—not to be too severe.  This punishment which was inflicted by the majority is sufficient for such a man, so that, on the contrary, you ought rather to forgive and comfort him, lest perhaps such a one be swallowed up with too much sorrow.  Therefore I urge you to reaffirm your love to him.  For to this end I also wrote, that I might put you to the test, whether you are obedient in all things.  Now whom you forgive anything, I also forgive. For if indeed I have forgiven anything, I have forgiven that one for your sakes in the presence of Christ, lest Satan should take advantage of us; for we are not ignorant of his devices.”

How does Satan take advantage of the unforgiving?  The vast majority of this particular passage from Paul deals with the reversal of the disfellowshipment discussed in 1 Corinthians 5 and above.  He discusses the general tone of grieving that he felt in writing harshly to this congregation and cautions them not to to be severe on a repentant sinner and to forgive those who have repented.  It is easy for people who do not suffer from a particular sin to be harsh and unforgiving for those who do struggle obviously with particular sins, and Paul is very careful to want to avoid the Corinthians suffering from this obviously negative but all too human quality of pride and arrogance towards those who suffer from sins that they cannot relate to personally.  It is hopeful that at least some of the brethren in Corinth got the point because many contemporary believers fail to understand this passage’s context and point.

Let us remember that pride and arrogance were the fundamental flaws in Satan’s character that led him to rebel against God and presumptuously view himself as God’s equal and rival, and those qualities are among the most obvious aspects of those whose example and character mimics Satan.  Among the most obvious devices of Satan is to encourage people to feel proud about not being a particular type of sinner and then to end up being a worse sinner by viewing themselves as righteous (self-righteous hypocrisy is not a good look on anyone) and looking down on their fellows, thus placing themselves in a position of far greater judgment than those who are honest but struggling repentant sinners.  Whether we are proud in our own moral rectitude or proud of some position or honor or quality that supposedly makes us better than others, anything that makes us feel better than our fellows is going to be a negative when it comes to being the sort of believers that we should be.  If we are recognized as God’s children by the love that we have for others, even our enemies, then anything which hinders the feeling and expression of that godly love is to be lamented, and pride is among if not the most effective means of banishing godly love from our hearts.

That does not exhaust Satan’s devices, and many people look to the end of this passage as a proof text that believers should be aware of and able to counter Satan’s devices.  There can be no doubting that Satan has been very successful in motivating people, even those who hate him and his ways, to act according to his plans and tactics.  That said, Satan has a rather small but reliable set of approaches that tend to remain in use because they work so well.  Being knowledgeable about Satan’s devices is not quite as complicated a task as we might imagine.  It requires a great deal of obedience to God as well as humility and self-knowledge when it comes to recognizing our own history, our own background, our own flaws, and our own vulnerabilities.  So long as we remain humble and sincere and refuse to think more highly about ourselves than we ought to do, we have a good chance of thwarting Satan’s designs.  It is only to be lamented that self-knowledge is such a rare quality among contemporaries and all too often ourselves, because it leads us to think of ourselves as righteous warriors for justice when in fact we are hypocritical and often unrepentant sinners.