Suffering is the greatest tool in the life of the believer. It’s how the quality of our faith is tested and proven. It’s how we learn to rely on God’s strength instead of our own. It’s how the Lord displays His sufficiency and provision to the watching world. God has great purposes in our suffering… God is not unaware of or unmoved by our suffering—on the contrary, He’s working through it to sanctify us and grow us in the likeness of His Son.
MacArthur, J. (2021). Life Under the Sun
And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. Matthew 6:7 (ESV)
“… instead of seeking to impress or play probability games with the divine ear, we can pray simple, childlike, and even concise prayers to our Father… knowing that we have his ear through Jesus Christ. We ask him for the needs we already know he knows about. He is a Father, bidding his sons and daughters come close to tell him all the requests of their hearts.”
Greg Morse, How not to pray
God could simply exert raw power and snuff Satan out. That would glorify God’s power. But it would not display so clearly the superior worth of Jesus over Satan. That will be displayed as Christ defeats Satan by His death and then by winning allegiance from the saints because of His superior truth and beauty above the ugliness and lies of Satan.
Piper, J. (2004) Life as a Vapor, 67-68
Semper Reformanda 