Some of your friends may think this "Satan stuff" is all a big joke. Others may think it's cool to worship the devil.

What about you? Do you believe the devil is for real? Are you clued in that there's a spiritual battle raging all around you?

If you want answers, check out God's Word. The Bible describes the reality of  spiritual warfare in Ephesians 6:12: "For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places."

There is evidence all around us today of this massive spiritual battle. Just look at what is taking place on your campus, in the news, or in the broken families in your neighborhood. The devil is for real, he's our enemy, and he's playing for keeps. He and his troops are viciously attacking the kingdom of God. There will be no cease-fire or temporary truce.

Get a Clue: The Battle Is Real

Even though our struggle is not against flesh and blood, the Enemy still uses people and organizations. Satan has two great allies:  the world system and the flesh. Spiritual warfare involves simultaneous action on all battlefronts.

Satan's first ally is the world in which we live. Scripture tells us that the entire world is under the control of Satan (2 Corinthians 4:4; Ephesians 2:2). In this position of power, Satan uses many things of the world to lure us into a hostile position toward God. He makes sure we are bombarded by materialism, sex, and an entire philosophy of life that is opposite to everything God says. Yet those who follow Jesus are warned not to love the world or anything in the world (1 John 2:15).

The other ally of the Enemy is the sinful nature or "the flesh." Basically the flesh is our fallen humanity. When God created human beings, He made them perfect. But when the man and woman—Adam and Even—chose to disobey God, consequences were passed down from that point on, generation to generation. Those consequences include our desires to do things and provide for our needs apart from God. Self becomes the ruler of us—not God, evidenced by adopting attitudes of craving physical pleasure, craving everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions (1 John 2:16).

"Craving physical pleasure" is the preoccupation with gratifying physical passions and desires. A great example of this today is our society's incredible overemphasis on sex. Have you noticed how advertisers use sex to sell everything from cars to vitamins? Everywhere we turn we're bombarded with sexually explicit messages on TV, in movies, online, and in music.

Of course, the physical passions aren't always sexual. They can also be an out-of-control desire for food, or a self-sufficient attitude that says, "I don't need God to satisfy my cravings."

The "craving for everything we see" is the unchecked desire to accumulate things. We live in a society that's consumed with "bling." Advertisers tell us we deserve to have their product or way of life, or we should get all we can get now because we're not here for a long time—just a good time. How about the new-car commercials or the ads for the hottest fashions? They're guaranteed to make you feel that what you currently own isn't quite good enough. While there's nothing wrong with admiring nice things, it becomes a problem when it goes from appreciation to a must-have mentality.