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The Truth About Satan

Standing in the shadows just out of sight is a creature so evil that not even a spark of goodness can be seen in him. This being is consumed with hatred, unable to express even a hint of mercy, a touch of compassion or an ounce of remorse. His entire purpose in life is to bring death, destruction and pain to as much of God’s creation as possible. The particular object of his poisonous venom is human beings, including you. The Truth about Satan is hard to believe.

Although he is among the most powerful beings ever created, he is not omnipresent. He rules through his dark kingdom. From an undisclosed location on earth, he commands his hierarchy, sending his demonic messengers to spew out hatred and death. His insidious plan is spread through masterful lies and deception. Human beings gladly embrace his ideas, thinking it is what they want and will satisfy their greatest desires, not realizing that this malevolent being is stealing their very soul for eternity.

Who is this being? Where does he come from? How does he operate? What is his destiny? How can we shift through the misinformation to discover the truth about Satan?

The Truth About Satan:
His Origin

The Bible does not directly tell us about Satan's origin. Most Bible scholars take two passages spoken to the King of Tyre and the King of Babylon to be allusions to Satan's fall. These passages are found in Ezekiel 28 and Isaiah 14.

“You had everything going for you. You were in Eden, God’s garden. You were dressed in splendor, your robe studded with jewels: Carnelian, peridot, and moonstone, beryl, onyx, and jasper, sapphire, turquoise, and emerald, all in settings of engraved gold. A robe was prepared for you the same day you were created. You were the anointed cherub. I placed you on the mountain of God. You strolled in magnificence among the stones of fire. From the day of your creation you were sheer perfection . . .  and then imperfection—evil!—was detected in you. [Ez. 28: 11-15, The Message]

Satan’s name when he was created was Lucifer, which means ‘Light-bearer.’ On day six of Creation, God declared that everything He made was “very good.” This included Lucifer, likely the angelic choirmaster and only one of three known Archangels.

What happened to the Light-bearer, who was created perfect, standing in the presence of the Holy God and reflecting His glory as he led angelic hosts in worship? How was evil detected in him? What crime did he commit?

Your heart was haughty because of your beauty; You corrupted your wisdom by reason of your splendor… [Ez. 28:17, NASB]

You said to yourself, “I’ll climb to heaven. I’ll set my throne over the stars of God. I’ll run the assembly of angels that meets on sacred Mount Zaphon. I’ll climb to the top of the clouds. I’ll take over as King of the Universe!” [Is. 14:13-14, The Message]

Pride consumed Lucifer until he thought he was more beautiful, more glorious and more powerful than God Himself! Revelation chapter 12 indicates that he convinced a third of the angels to follow him in his treacherous rebellion. God did not dignify him with a personal response but sent Archangel Michael and his angels to defeat him. Then, he was judged and thrown out of heaven.

Where Can We Learn The Truth About Satan?

In Scripture, a person’s name often reflects their character. When he was expelled from heaven, Lucifer the Light-bearer became Satan the Adversary and Apollyon the Destroyer. He is also known as The Serpent and Dragon.

Where can we learn the truth about Satan, this most vile being, and his tactics so that we can protect ourselves?

Some people, including some Christians, look to the teaching of the occult in an attempt to unravel the mystery of Satan. This is a deadly mistake on two accounts.

First, we are drawn to what we focus on. Some Christians have lost their way because they have worked so hard on exposing Satan that they become fascinated and entrapped by him. We need to know some things about this old dragon and how he operates, but we must also guard against an obsession with evil - even in the guise of fighting it.

Second, occult teachings are highly unreliable. They may seem to work, but Satan is a master manipulator. Anything from this source must be highly suspect. Jesus Himself said, “ You are of your father the devil…He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he tells a lie, he speaks from his own nature, because he is a liar and the father of lies. [John 8:44, NASB]. The truth about Satan will never be found here, only lies and misdirection.

The only trustworthy source of information we have about Satan is in the Word of God. It is there we learn about his tactics. Our vivid imagination likes to picture two armies colliding in combat, like a scene from The Lord Of The Rings. Or we like to think we can engage in hand-to-hand fighting to defeat the devil and his minions.

The Truth About Satan:
His Tactics

The Truth is much more deadly. Look at Satan’s words to Eve in the very first temptation: “You certainly will not die! For God knows that on the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will become like God, knowing good and evil.”

First, he attacked God’s character by contradicting Him. He accused God of lying. He implied God was keeping something good from them. Second, he appealed to Eve’s pride, offering her something he could not deliver. He did not offer to make her a devil like himself; he offered to make her into someone he was not and had proven he could never be.

His primary strategy has stayed the same. He and his minions are tirelessly working to attack God’s character. He lies about the good and righteousness of God. He implants thoughts like, “If God is good, how could he let this happen? If God loves you, why doesn’t he stop the pain? If God is all-powerful and all-loving, why is the world the way it is today? On and on, he goes, blaming his actions and the consequences of human sin on God. Even Christians are tempted to believe his subtle lies.

One of the main prongs of Satan’s attack is to bring division into the Kingdom of God. He is well aware of the words of Jesus in Mark 3:24: “And if a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.” [NASB]

He believes that if he can bring division into the Kingdom of God, it will fall. So, he works on the minds of believers. He brings whispers of doubt. He plants seeds of bitterness. He strokes self-righteousness and flames the hunger for power. He sneers at forgiveness.

Paul told the Christians at Corinth that “we are not ignorant of his schemes.” [2 Cor. 2:11, NASB] Yet many Christians are ignorant of the fact that choosing to harbour bitterness, anger, unforgiveness, and similar things is falling into a trap which will consume their lives and hinder the Kingdom of God. It has been rightly observed that ninety percent of spiritual warfare is between a person’s ears.

Paul also acknowledged that Satan can manipulate circumstances, people, and objects to harass people doing God’s work. “For we wanted to come to you—I, Paul, more than once—and Satan hindered us.” [1 Thess. 2:18, NASB]

The Truth About Satan:
His End

What will happen to this powerful being in the end? In Milton’s famous Paradise Lost, Satan is represented as saying that it is better to rule in Hell than to serve in Heaven. While that proud statement reflects Satan's character, it does not picture his eternal destiny.

The Book of Revelation draws back the curtain and lets us see the doom of this powerful but totally wicked being.

And the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are also; and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever. [Rev. 2-:10, NASB]

The Devil does not rule in Hell. For all his evil, Satan ends up in the deepest level of punishment, consciously suffering endlessly without relief. This will be his existence forever - no end, no escape - no reprieve. Not only will Satan be there, but also all his demonic cohorts and every human being who has not come to Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour. One thought will be uppermost in all their minds, “I deserve this.” We all deserve the unending torments of Hell. Only God's grace, mercy and love for us sent His Son to the Cross to pay the price for our sins so that we would never have to go there.

The Truth About Satan:
How To Defend Against Him

The non-Christian has no defence. As Christians, how do we defend against Satan’s attacks?

Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. So resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by your brothers and sisters who are in the world. [1 Pet. 5:8-9, NASB]

First, know who you are in Christ. By the Blood of Christ, you are sealed and protected. The devil is powerful, but he is impotent to hurt you. His primary tool against you is to get you to doubt your position in Christ. Do not let anything move you from your faith in Christ and the confidence of what He has done for you.

Second, notice how Jesus and the apostles handled Satan and his demons. When Satan personally attacked Jesus, He only answered with the Word of God. Satan has been around for about 6,000 years. You will not win a debate.

Jesus and the apostles were well aware of the demonic realm, but they never sought demons. When people who were demon-possessed were brought to them, they delivered them. When demons interrupted Kingdom work, they were dwelt with. They did not go looking for them. There are no demon hunters in the Kingdom of God. Satan and his allies love attention; it is not wise to give it to them.

Third, always focus your attention on Jesus. Satan and his demons may torment us with evil thoughts and desires; they may bring physical persecution or suffering, or they may manipulate painful circumstances. Through it all, God is still in control. Satan and his followers are not to be treated lightly, but ultimately, they are just tools in the hand of God and can do no more than He allows.

Then the Lord said to Satan, “Behold, all that he has is in your power; only do not reach out and put your hand on him.” So Satan departed from the presence of the Lord. [Job 1:12, NASB]

Satan’s greatest desire in tormenting us with trials of various kinds is to get us to be disloyal and doubt the goodness of God. We need the same response as Job had.

Then Job got up, tore his robe, and shaved his head; then he fell to the ground and worshiped…Despite all this, Job did not sin, nor did he blame God…Despite all this, Job did not sin with his lips. [Job 1:20, 22, 2:9, NASB]

It is alright to sorrow and grieve when bad things happen, but we must maintain a pure and loyal heart. Our lips must express thankfulness to the God of our salvation - not for the pain we are going through, but certainly for Who He Is and the good He has done in our lives. Nothing should interrupt our worship and adoration of God. If we do this, we will grow closer to God, Satan will be powerless in our lives, we will move through the suffering quicker, and we will emerge better people and be better equipped to help others.

For more information about Glenn Davis, see our About Glenn page or visit Glenn Davis Books.

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