Our Enemy Satan

A)

Satan is a fallen angel (see Job 1:6; 2 Cor 11:14).

B)

Satan is the leader of all fallen angels (called demons). Jesus identified Satan with Beelzebub, the prince of demons in Luke 11:14–23. Jesus went on to say that Satan has a kingdom, implying that he guides and directs demonic activity.

C)

Satan is the enemy of God and all believers. Everything we are told about Satan in Scripture shows that he has opposed God since the beginning of the world and will continue to do so until the return of Jesus Christ.

A)

There are two passages of Scripture that are understood as describing Satan’s original holy condition and his subsequent fall into sin: Ezekiel 28:11–19 and Isaiah 14:12–19. Both passages are addressed to human kings and speak of God’s future judgment on them and their cities. However, the language of both passages seems to indicate that someone else is also being described, someone who stands behind the two kings and influences their actions. That person is commonly believed to be Satan.

1)

Ezekiel 28:11–29 describes Satan’s original holiness, beauty and perfection. In fact, Satan’s beauty is singled out as the reason for his pride and fall into evil.

2)

Isaiah 14:12–19 describes Satan’s pride and desire to exalt himself above God. (Note that in verse 12, the KJV translated the Hebrew word meaning “star of the morning” as “Lucifer.” This led to Lucifer being used as a name for Satan.)

3)

Scripture indicates that Satan was able to convince one-third of the angels to join in his rebellion (Rev 12:4).

A)

Myth—Satan doesn’t really exist.

1)

The Bible is comprehensive in its teaching about the reality of Satan. “His existence is taught from Genesis to Revelation. Seven Old Testament books teach his existence (Genesis, 1 Chronicles, Job, Psalms, Isaiah, Ezekiel, and Zechariah), and every New Testament writer refers to his reality and activity as a personal being. More importantly, Christ affirmed the fact of Satan’s existence” (cf. Luke 10:18; 11:14–23).^[1]

B)

Myth—Satan lives in Hell.

1)

Popular culture would have us believe that Satan lives in Hell and that he and his demons torture people who go there. Nothing could be further from the truth. Hell is actually a place of fearful torment that God prepared for Satan and the demons (Matt 25:41; Jude 1:6–7). Right now, Satan and his demons roam the earth, eagerly trying to lead people away from God (1 Pet 5:8). They greatly fear hell and do not want to go there before their time (cf. Matt 8:29; James 2:19).

C)

Myth—Satan has a tail, two horns and carries a pitchfork.

1)

Images of Satan as a mischievous little devil serve only to conceal his true purpose of leading people to their eternal destruction. As we have seen, Satan is a spirit and can manifest himself in many ways. In fact, Satan likes to disguise himself as an angel of light (2 Cor 11:14).

D)

Myth—Satan is God’s equal.

1)

Satan is a created being with finite power. God is an uncreated being with infinite power. Thus Satan is no more the equal of God than we are. Satan is stronger and smarter than human beings, but he is no match for God.

A)

Satan’s names are descriptive of his character and opposition to God. Here are some of the many names used in Scripture to refer to Satan:^[2]

1)

Satan. In Hebrew, the word Satan means “adversary.” This emphasizes his role as the opponent of God, of believers, and of all that is right and good (Job 1:6; 1 Chr 21:1; Zech 3:1).

2)

The devil. The name “devil” comes from the Greek word diabolos which means “slanderer, defamer.” This emphasizes his desire to malign both us and God (Matt 4:1; John 8:44; Eph 6:11).

3)

The serpent. When Satan deceived Eve in the garden of Eden, he acted through an animal called a “serpent” (Gen 3:1–6). The apostle Paul told to the Corinthians that Eve’s downfall resulted from the serpent’s craftiness (2 Cor 11:3). The name “serpent” describes his subtlety and beguiling nature.

4)

The tempter. The apostle Paul referred to Satan as “the tempter” (1 Thess 3:5). This name highlights the fact that he is always trying to entice us to sin.

5)

The dragon. John saw Satan as a red dragon with seven heads and ten horns, who with the demons were arrayed against the Lord and His people (Rev 12).

6)

The evil one. In calling Satan “the evil one,” Jesus and John both depicted him as totally corrupt and carrying on an evil work (John 17:15; 1 John 5:18–19).

A)

Satan is very active in the world today. He is constantly opposing God and working in the lives of both sinners and Christians.

1)

His work in the lives of sinners involves:

• Blinding them to the truth (2 Cor 4:4).
• Influencing the way they live (Eph 2:2).
• Keeping them in his domain of darkness (Acts 26:18; Col 1:13).
• Holding them captive and enslaved to his will (2 Tim 2:26; Rom 6:17).
• Provoking them to sin (1 John 3:8–12).
• Causing his demons to oppress and possess some of them (Mark 9:25–26).

2)

His work in the lives of Christians involves:

• Tempting us to sin (Matt 4:1; 1 Cor 7:5).
• Lying to and deceiving us whenever possible (John 8:44; 2 Cor 11:3).
• Placing snares and traps in our way (1 Tim 3:7; 6:9).
• Exploiting us (2 Cor 2:11).
• Persecuting us (Rev 2:10).
• Accusing us before God (Rev 12:10; Job 1).
• Resisting our efforts to serve and obey God (1 Thess 2:18).

B)

Satan is a finite being and cannot be everywhere at once like God can. He is assisted in his evil schemes by his demons, fallen angels who followed him in his rebellion against God (Rev 12:4; Matt 10:1). While Satan does personally tempt certain individuals (e.g. Christ, Job, Peter, Judas, etc.), it is reasonable to believe that we are most often tempted by his demons.

A)

The book of Revelation reveals that one day Satan and his demons will be completely defeated, “thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur,” and “tormented day and night forever and ever” (Rev 20:10).

A)

Although there is no direct statement in Scripture concerning this question, there are several different passages that suggest he can. Consider the following verses:

1)

“From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, ‘Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you.’ But he turned and said to Peter, ‘Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man’” (Mat 16:21–23). This implies that Satan was the influence behind Peter’s thoughts.

2)

“When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is what was sown along the path” (Matt 13:19). How can Satan snatch something away from a person’s heart unless he is able to perceive their thoughts and put doubts in their mind?

3)

“During supper, when the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, to betray him” (John 13:2). This implies that Satan put the thought of betraying Christ into Judas’ mind.

4)

“But Peter said, ‘Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back for yourself part of the proceeds of the land?’” (Acts 5:3). Here we see that Satan filled Ananias’ heart with greed and successfully tempted him to lie.

5)

“We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ” (2 Cor 10:5). Why would we be commanded to take every thought captive if we had complete control of every thought that came into our minds?

B)

Many Christians have testified to the fact that Satan is able to put thoughts into their minds. Consider what Martin Luther once wrote: “The Devil throws hideous thoughts into the soul—hatred of God, blasphemy, and despair. When I awake at night, the Devil tarries not to seek me out. He disputes with me and makes me give birth to all kinds of strange thoughts.”^[3]

C)

Based on the Scriptures above and the personal experience of many people, I believe Satan and his demons can perceive what we are thinking and introduce thoughts into our minds. That’s why it’s important to exercise control over our thought-life.