GENESIS 1:27-28
27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.
28 And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.
When God created the humankind in the beginning of creation, He created them in both the male and female form and named them the humankind. Now, God spoke the blessing over them and those blessings were not optional, they were compulsory. He commanded them to be fruitful, to multiply, to replenish the earth, to have dominion and to subdue it. The blessings that God pronounced over them was very important to their destiny, it was a series of prophetic blessings and commandments.
The last two words of the blessings however revealed something that was very remarkable to their destiny. God told them to subdue the earth and have dominion over the swimming fish, the flying birds and every living thing that moves upon the earth. Now, if you take a look at those two words (“dominion” and “subdue”) in the original text of the Hebrew language in which it was said, you will be amazed how it suggests that there was an enemy that would want to take the earth from them who must be subdued or conquered. The word translated as “subdue” in the original text also means to conquer or bring into subjection by force. God blessed the humankind with the ability to conquer the earth and bring the earth and the devil into subjection. If there would be no enemy, then there wouldn’t be anyone to be conquered or forcefully bring into subjection, isn’t it?
The Hebrew word that was rendered as “have dominion” in that passage also suggest the same thing; it means to tread down, or subjugate. It also means to prevail against, reign over or take control of. So, the humankind was to do all that on the earth. God saw that the enemy was coming in his tricks in attempts to take the earth from the humankind and He blessed the humankind with the ability to defeat him and subdue or keep him underfoot forever.
The devil was obviously one of the “living thing” that were moving upon the earth when God command the humankind to have dominion over every living thing that moves upon the earth. “And have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, AND OVER EVERY LIVING THING THAT MOVETH UPON THE EARTH” (Gen 1:28). God expected them to keep the devil under!
God placed Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, putting them in charge of all things. However, the devil had fallen from heaven and since the heaven belong to God, He cast him out to the earth bellow. God knew that Adam and Eve had the full authority to send the devil out in case he shows up in the garden because they are the determinants of who they allow in their garden or domain. The Bible says that God made the heavens and the earth but the heaven of the heavens belongs to the Lord and concerning the earth, it says that God has given it to the children of men:
“Ye are blessed of the LORD which made heaven and earth. The heaven, even the heavens, are the LORD’S: BUT THE EARTH HATH HE GIVEN TO THE CHILDREN OF MEN” (Psalm 115:15-16).
God put the humankind in charge! He turned the earth over to them. He trusted them with total authority over it. When God puts someone in charge of something, He’s not like a human who messes with other’s affairs; He lets them perform the duty without His interference because He knows they are capable. He wouldn’t withdraw the authority He has given because the gifts and callings of God are without repentance (Rom. 11:29).
Now Satan came around in the Garden of Eden and since he was a spirit and would need a physical body to operate on the earth, he entered into the serpent. Satan in the serpent picked up a conversation with the woman. He started the way he knew would catch her attention. He asked if God had asked them not to eat of every three in the garden. The woman picked interest in the conversation and she began chatting with the devil. She endured in that conversation until she was deceived. You see, at any point in time she could have stopped that conversation. She could have said what God said and shut out the devil. She could have command the devil to leave her garden and he would have obeyed her because the garden wasn’t given to the devil but to Mr. Adam and Mrs. Eve.
The woman engaged in an unprofitable conversation with the devil and gave him so much opening into her mind by so doing until she fell. Through that treason in Eden, the humankind fell and Satan took over the lordship of the earth from them. But thank God that Christ has come to seek and to save that which we lost (Luke 19:10).
The Bible warns us not to give place to the devil at all:
” Neither give place to the devil” (Eph. 4:27).
The devil also comes to us today, tempting to see if we would allow him but we should never allow the devil in our spiritual and physical domain. As the old saying goes, you cannot stop the bird from flying but you can stop it from pitching its nest over your head. We cannot stop the devil from operating on earth before his time expires but we can stop him from operating within our own territory. You can stand for your family and tell the devil to leave in the name of Jesus.
You see, God didn’t interrupt the conversation between Eve and the serpent, He didn’t answer the devil in the defense of Eve; He already blessed them with the ability to subdue him so it was needless for Him to get in the deal. In the same way today, several believers are busy asking God to bind the devil or do something about the devil for them but He will not. God has given us believers the authority to tread upon serpents and scorpions and nothing shall by any means hurt us. “And He (Jesus) said unto them, I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven. Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you” (Luke 10:18-19). We are the ones that should rise up and take authority over the devil, not God. God prophesied in Genesis 3:15 that Jesus Christ, the Seed of the woman shall bruise the head of the serpent and Jesus did it. The prophecy is now fulfilled! That which Adam failed to do, Jesus did successfully! You and I can now command the devil to leave our garden in the name of Jesus Christ! It is time to rise up and tell the devil to leave our garden. Your own garden could be your marriage, it could be your home, and it could be your work or ministry. It could even be your mind that the devil is trying to mess with. It could be your body that sickness is trying to mess with, it could be your child that the devil is trying to mess with, and it could be anything of yours. Stand up in the name of Jesus and command the devil to leave. The devil has messed with you long enough, it high time you tell him off. Tell him off your finances! You probably have hired him through ignorance but it is not too late to fire him now. Don’t be like Eve who condoned the devil and yielded to him but be like Jesus who rebuked the devil and gave him no place.
Stop talking what the devil is doing!
Several Christians today go about telling people of the hard times they’ve been having with the devil. Don’t let the devil make you his public relation officer (P.R.O) who broadcasts his works about but talk of the wondrous works of Jesus Christ and shut down the devil. God is watching you and waiting for you to take charge of your garden and subdue it. Whatever you celebrate or talk so much about will multiply, so maintain the confession of your faith in God’s Word throughout all circumstances. Talk the Word of God into manifestation and not what the devil is doing.
Your garden is your garden and you alone own the right to whom or what stays in there. Give no place to the devil! Satan is defeated!!!
