What Does Satan Want
PK ManagerThis article appeared in;the Christian Post.
We cannot become successful followers of Jesus until we understand that we have an enemy who works tirelessly to turn us back to our sinful nature.
Scripture has quite a bit to say about Satan, yet most Christians are ignorant about him. God has written some adamant warnings about our enemy, and we need to heed them carefully. Many Christians are under constant attack by him but have no idea of the battle theyre in. They think their lack of joy, broken relationships, and failures in life originate with them, when in reality their troubles are because they are following the voice of the enemy of their souls but are completely unaware of it.
Satan is a liar and murderer. This part of him comes from his true nature, which, according to the Bible, consists of arrogance, vanity, envy, and selfish ambition. When we act in such a manner, we align ourselves with Satan as enemies of God. This is why the mark of a child of God is humility and absolute surrender to our Lord.
Paul got to the essence of this idea in Philippians 2:3, where he wrote, Do nothing out of rivalry or conceit, but in humility consider others as more important than yourselves.
What Does Satan Want?
Satan hates God with all of his being. God is perfect and untouchablebut we arent. So Satan goes after Gods children you and me. He gets us to hurt one another and turn our backs on our Father.
The Good News
How Can We Tell When Satan Is at Work?
Where Did Satan Come From
If you start reading the Bible on page one, everything seems to go just about the way youd expect. Youve got God, the Creator and Designer of an amazing world. Youve got the creation itself, which reflects Gods genius in its diversity and grandeur. And at the pinnacle of creation you have mankind. But somewhere around page three or four you read something that seems utterly out of place:
“Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, Did God really say, You must not eat from any tree in the garden?”
What!?
Here in Gods perfect creationa world that God made out of nothing, a world that he designed and controlssomething has gone rogue. One of Gods creatures is now trying to undermine his authority and bring down humankind.
That raises a huge number of questions! Lets take a look at a couple.
An introduction to what the Bible says about the devil, evil spirits and demon possession
Who is the serpent of Genesis 3?
Genesis doesnt explain where the serpent came from or why he was trying to tempt Eve. All we are specifically told is that it was part of Gods creation, but it was craftier than all the other animals. But it is clear from the beginning that we are dealing with more than your garden-variety snake.
And so it should come as no surprise when Johns Revelation makes the connection explicit. In Revelation 12 v 9 we read about the defeat of Satan, and notice how John refers to him:
Mike McKinley
Ancient Hebrew: The Serpent
In the Old Testament’s Book of Genesis, the serpent who tempted Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden is commonly associated with Satan. In the original Hebrew text, though, no such name is given to the creature. It is only later, in the New Testament, that Satan is referred to explicitly as a serpent. Despite this, serpents and snakes remain commonly associated with the devil.;
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Satan Only Defeats You If You Allow Him To
You have power over Satan’s influence on you. Despite all his power and trickery. Despite his ability to mimic and deceive. Remember, Satan can attack. He can wage war against you. He can bring all the forces of darkness against you. But he cant overtake youunless you allow it. Remember what God has told you:
You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. 1 John 4:4
You have rights. You have power. You have authority. God has positioned you in the earth for this exact moment in time. He has equipped you and filled you with his Holy Spirit.
He has charged you with going into battle against an enemy who has one main objective: to keep people from finding Jesus. He cannot defeat you. He cannot stop you. He will not win in your life, unless you allow it.
I charge you today to go forward. Push back the powers of darkness and bring the light of the gospel of Jesus Christ to a world that desperately needs it. Your enemy will fight against you, but the Spirit of God within you is greater than he is. The battle will be tough but you will win, just dont give up. Go in Jesus’ name.
The Devil And Witches
Fear of the Devil is at least partially responsible for the witchcraft hysteria of Europe and New England in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Protestants and Catholics accused many people of practicing witchcraft and making deals with the Devil.
The Puritans living in New Englands early colonies were petrified of the Devil. They believed he gave powers to witches to those faithful to him. This fear gave rise to the infamous Salem Witch Trials in Salem, Massachusetts.
The Puritans strict lifestyle, their fear of outsiders and their terror of so-called Devils magic led them to accuse at least 200 people of witchcraft between 1692 and 1693twenty of the accused were executed.
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Fallen And Imprisoned Angels
Scripture and modern experience both point to demonic activity within our world, yet not all demons are free to roam. Peter makes passing reference to imprisoned angels in the context of warning false teachers, God did not spare the angels who sinned, but cast them down to hell and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved for judgment . In his brief epistle, Jude refers to angels who did not keep their proper domain, but left their own abode for whom God has reserved in everlasting chains under darkness for the judgment of the great day . The key to understanding imprisoned angels is the phrase who did not keep their proper domain.
Origins of the Nephilim
At this point, its not news when I say that angels are distinctly different from humans. They were created on a different day and for different purposes. Angels have certain characteristics, one of which is that they are invariably masculine. They have clearly defined roles, which weve studied. Weve learned that angels are permitted to materialize selectively and strategically if it suits Gods purposes. However, Scripture indicates a portion of Satans fallen angels failed to keep their proper domain by materializing and interacting with humans in ways angels were never meant to do. Genesis 6:1-2, 4 provides a glimpse of this interaction:
sons of GodJob 38:4-7, emphasis added
Gods Judgment of Nephilim and Their Unholy Heritage
Where Does The Bible Talk About The Devil And Satan
Scripture has a multitude of passages and verses about the devil. Well highlight a select few from the Old and New Testament.;
1 Peter 5:8 – Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.
Satan, the name for the devil, actively tries to destroy us. He prowls. He stalks. If given the opportunity, he would take every single one of us down, no questions.;
2 Corinthians 11:14 – And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.
The devil disguises himself. He wants to appear as a good thing, a half-truth, something to appease our temptations. That way, we trust him, and make ourselves vulnerable to him.
Isaiah 14:12-15 – How you are fallen from heaven, O Day Star, son of Dawn! How you are cut down to the ground, you who laid the nations low! You said in your heart, I will ascend to heaven; above the stars of God I will set my throne on high; I will sit on the mount of assembly in the far reaches of the north; I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High. But you are brought down to Sheol, to the far reaches of the pit.
This Isaiah passage discusses Satans fall from heaven. Satan used to be an angel in heaven, but pride consumed him. He wanted the worship the Lord received, and convinced one-third of the angels to follow him and be cast out of heaven.;
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Jay Berwanger Picked No 1 In First Nfl Draft
The idea that the Devil governs hell may have come from the poem by Dante Alighieri, The Divine Comedy, published in the early fourteenth century. In it, God created hell when he threw the Devil and his demons out of Heaven with such power that they created an enormous hole in the center of the earth.
Satan Lies And Is The Father Of Lies
When he lies, he speaks according to his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies . The first time Satan appears in the Bible in Genesis 3, the first words on his lips are suspicious of the truth . And the second words on his lips were a subtle falsehood . John says that Satan has nothing to do with the truth, because there is no truth in him . We are dealing with the essence of falsehood and deception.
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Satans Work In The World Today
8 Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.
2 in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience
19 We know that we are from God, and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one.
26 and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.
18 because we wanted to come to youI, Paul, again and againbut Satan hindered us.
5 For this reason, when I could bear it no longer, I sent to learn about your faith, for fear that somehow the tempter had tempted you and our labor would be in vain.
20 among whom are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan that they may learn not to blaspheme.
15 For some have already strayed after Satan.
4 In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
7 So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited.
3 Then Satan entered into Judas called Iscariot, who was of the number of the twelve.
Satan As The Ruler Of This World
So Satan was cast out of heaven, and now Gods absolute goodness, wisdom, and love must never be brought into question again. It must be proved that Gods will is the only good and perfect way. So Satan received dominion over this world, and his purpose is to set himself as the god of this earth. The world is not under the direct control of God, but of Satan, who received practically a free hand to do as he pleases. Jesus calls Satan,;the ruler of this world.;John 12:31. The Apostle Paul calls him;the god of this age.;2 Corinthians 4:4. This is Gods plan to provide full proof of the deceitfulness of sin. It must be proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that Satans way will only lead to death and destruction.
Most of the world is not aware of the fact that they are;under the sway of the wicked one.;1 John 5:19. He uses their inherent pride to occupy them with themselves and their greatness, and this has affected every aspect of humanity. His goal is for mankind to be so sure of their human abilities that it precludes all need for God. Satan’s nature hasn’t changed. He still wants to be greater than God and his aim is to bring everything and everyone under his sway. He still whispers his lies into every ear, sowing pride and doubt, just as he did while he was in heaven.
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The Master Of Disguise
Satan is a master of disguise and that there are false apostles, deceitful workmen, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ but even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. ;So it is no surprise if his servants, also, disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. Their end will correspond to their deeds. so not everyone that stands behind a pulpit is a minister of God.; They might appear as an angel of light but their message is one of darkness for they never preach about the blood of the Lamb, the need for repentance, living in holiness, sanctification, fleeing sexual immorality, confession of sin, and other such essentials of the faith.; The angel of light ministers preach another gospel that God wants you to be happy, prosperous, and healthy but that is rarely the case for the Christian because Jesus said that we must enter through the narrow gate.;For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.;But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it so the mega churches that have the masses or the many, may be headed down the wrong path; the path that leads to destruction.
What Are Demons And Where Did They Come From
Demons are fallen angels who were cast out of heaven for helping Satan rebel against God.
To understand what demons are, we must look to the ultimate evil spirit himself, Satan. Revelation tells us that Satan was once an angel in heaven, perhaps even a cherub;. Because Satan was a heavenly being, we know that Satanas well as his angelic followerswere created good but, by their own free will, chose to reject God and become evil.
While we have no definitive answer as to whether Satan rebelled against God because of his own pride;or some other reason, we do know that a war erupted in heaven in which the archangel Michael and his angels fought against Satan and his angels . Satan and the other fallen angels were defeated and, as punishment for their rebellion, were cast out of heaven . Satan became the prince of demons and he and the other fallen angels were hurled to the earth and ultimately condemned to hell .
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Was Satan A Musician In Heaven
Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone was thy covering, the sardius, topaz, and the diamond, the beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire, the emerald, and the carbuncle, and gold: the workmanship of thy tabrets and of thy pipes was prepared in thee in the day that thou wast created.
Satan Is The God Of This World
Satan, who is the god of this world, has blinded the minds of those who dont believe. They are unable to see the glorious light of the Good News. They dont understand this message about the glory of Christ, who is the exact likeness of God. 2 Corinthians 4:4
Satanic influence is everywhere. You couple that with the sinful condition of mans heartand its no wonder our world is in the state its in. Think of all the people who are blinded by their unbelief. People who are prisoners to their sin, yet convinced they are really ‘free.’ Unfortunately, many have taken the lies that have been pushed into the world by Satanwho is the father of liesand have believed them to be true.
There is an architect behind all of this: Satan. He wants to keep people blinded, confused, and trapped in their sinful condition. And as the god of this world, he has the influence to do it.
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Satan Is Gods Opponent Not Gods Opposite
Sometimes people mistakenly believe that Satan is Gods evil equal. This is simply not true.
Satan is not omnipresent, he cant be present everywhere at the same time. When you are tempted, or attacked by Satan it may not be Satan himself, it is most likely one of his fallen angels or demons. Along with that, he is not omnipotent. While he does have power, and is truly powerful, he is not all-powerful. There are limits to his power and ability.
You should also note that he is not omniscient. He may know a lot, but he does not know everything. He is not equivalent with God. As God would say it,;
Remember the former things, those of long ago; I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me. Isaiah 46:9-10