8. Satan

It is an interesting fact pressed home by a fair amount of experience that most Christians think that views upon Satan are matters for individual opinion. As a rule the idea that such a being exists is scouted very definitely. For the rest it really does not matter what your views are because the being, if he does exist, has no connection with Christians who are living very decent lives and go to church regularly more, but usually less. So skilfully does Satan hide himself that it would be impossible to secure a serious conference among religious leaders today to discuss from the Word of God how Satan might be deceiving us today. Such is our parlous condition when the existence of Satan is really a primary issue for the Church. Let me put this very simple position to any Christian or other person who may be able to exercise sufficient patience to have reached this chapter. Is it not a fact beyond dispute that if there is no such being as Satan then the Bible is hopelessly discredited? Our Lord, for example, is clearly declared to have met Satan in the wilderness. If there is no such being, then the record of the temptation is mythical. On the other hand if Satan exists as the Bible declares then modern Christianity is hopelessly condemned, because his devices and wiles are not being pointed out by the pulpit, and indeed by many clergy and ministers his existence is ridiculed. There can be no shadow of doubt that on the issue of Satan either the Bible or modern Christendom is certainly condemned. I believe the Word of God implicitly on this issue, and there is no doubt in my mind that the Lord’s people have great need to be armed against this terrible adversary, for terrible he is! In Scripture he is described as being the head of the demon world. 1 There is a personal devil, always referred to whenever the singular number is used in Scripture, and demons, which should be the word used instead of the plural “devils”. This supernatural host is ever pressing down upon the human race. The prince of the power of the air is described by Paul as being the spirit that is working in the children of disobedience. 2 He is also called the god of this world, and he seeks to blind the minds of the unbelieving. He is clearly set forth as being utterly and absolutely opposed 3 to all the work of redemption and particularly to our Lord Jesus Christ.

It may be that in drawing attention to Ezekiel 28 I shall not at once carry the conviction that is needed. At the same time if verse 11 and those following are carefully studied there can be no doubt that the king of Tyre is here a symbol of Satan. He is described as being in the garden of God, perfect in his ways from the day that he was created until iniquity was found in him. He is called the anointed cherub, and God declares: “I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God, thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire.” Certainly this is no ordinary king. It is a description of Satan before he rebelled against God, before iniquity was found in his heart. He is seen to have been given lordship and dominion by god, anointed to rule but he has rebelled. In his rebellion against God he brought into chaos not only angels who rebelled with him but the world over which God had given him dominion. Genesis 1 is not therefore an account of the original creation of the world, but of its re-creation after chaos brought upon it by Satan. Hence the Spirit moved upon the waters to restore that part of the universe cursed by the revolt of Satan, and His activity forms the record of the opening chapter of Genesis. When Adam was given the authority to name the animals 4 it was clear that it was God’s intention that he should succeed to the authority Satan had surrendered by his rebellion, and this will explain why Satan was so desperately anxious to seduce the new instrument God brought into being. When Adam and his wife fell God declared that the seed of the woman should bruise the serpent’s head, 5 and ever since there has been this deep enmity of the powers of darkness against the seed of the woman, first against mankind in general, then against The Seed, even the Lord Jesus, and no less against the Seed of the church. It may be asked why the Old Testament is so occupied with the history of one nation, but here is the answer: it was the nation out of which the world’s Redeemer was to spring and as such was especially the object of the hatred of Satan and his hosts. We can understand, similarly, the slaughter of the innocents by Herod. 6 It was the inspiration of Satan for the destruction of the woman’s Seed that should bruise his head. It was by the inspiration of Satan that they put Him on the cross, for their hands were “wicked hands.” No doubt the powers of darkness believed that Calvary was the end of the Divine purpose, but God raised Him from the dead. 7 Our Lord went down into hades 8 and triumphed over the powers that were there on the Cross. He spoiled principalities and powers, making them an open show. Then having shewn Himself to the disciples, He ascended through the air, the sphere of Satan’s activities, into the Throne of God in triumph and absolute victory. 9 Now He cannot be touched by Satan but His Seed, who have received His life by the Holy Spirit, are the present object of all the pressure of Satan. He it is who contests the testimony of redemption, he it is who makes the prayer life of the believer so difficult. Hence Paul speaks of the true church, declaring: “We wrestle not against flesh and blood but against principalities, against wicked spirits in the heavenlies.” 10 All the conflicts of men are deemed to be in the realm of flesh and blood, but the church indwelt by the Holy Spirit is the one society on earth that can wrestle with spiritual weapons, and particularly prayer, against this terrible enemy.

In Revelation 12 we are told “there was war in heaven.” Christian leaders who so confidently talk about a warless earth need to explain, and not explain away, this reference to war in heaven! That war is a war of supernatural beings. It is between Michael and the devil. In Daniel 10 the one who comes to help Daniel in answer to his prayer tells how he has been frustrated by a supernatural being, but he overcame because Michael helped him. Again, in Daniel 12, at the time of the Great Tribulation Michael shall stand up for his people. In Jude we are told that Michael contended with the devil about the body of Moses. This angel Michael is evidently an important being. He is head of that host of angels who, as the writer to the Hebrews tells us, have been sent forth to minister to those who are about to become the heirs of salvation. 11 Angelic forces are preparing the way of the Lord and will doubtless precede our Lord from the glory; they are preparing His way. In their contest with Satan on the day of the Lord’s coming they will overcome and he will be cast down to the earth. The heavens will rejoice to have been forever delivered from this awful being who has persisted in the most bitter antagonism against the Lord and against His anointed and they will cry: “Now is come salvation for the accuser is cast down.” 12 The accuser of the brethren! This being, about whom so many people laugh contemptuously, is a liar 13 before God concerning every believer, but let us be thankful that in the Throne of the Father we have an Advocate, Jesus Christ the Righteous 14 and He is the propitiation for our sins, so that when Satan declares and broadcasts our sins in heaven, Jesus covers them with the value and the power of the precious blood. The heavens will thus rejoice, but it will mean woe to the earth, because the devil is cast down from the air and he knows that his time is short. Evidently Satan can see something of the future. Probably he remembers the declaration of God in Eden and knows it cannot fail. If so he is seeking by every means in his power to blind the unsaved to the meaning of eternity, and also to chill and dull the heart of the believer when he knows all the time that the issues of eternity are foremost for every human being. In very truth he is an arch deceiver and thousands are being deluded by him.

When he is thus cast down it would seem that he will seek incarnation in the same way as the Word who was made flesh, not by means of birth necessarily, but by entering some man who will be willing to receive him. Once only are we told of Satan himself entering into a human being. He entered into Judas for the work of betrayal 15. We believe he will enter and possess in person the Man of Sin who is called the son of perdition. His object will be as it has ever been that hell, which has been prepared for the devil and his angels, shall have as many human beings in it as by his wiles he can delude to destruction with him. When, however, our Lord comes to Olivet and judges the nations, He will proceed to bind Satan. How that will be done we cannot tell, but it means very clearly that Satan 16 will no longer be free to do as he will. Being bound he will be cast into the abyss and there he will remain for a thousand years. At the end of the thousand years he will be loosed for a season, an action on God’s part which is perplexing considering his nature, but no doubt whatever evil will be in that liberty God will turn to good. It may be that it is God’s last chance for Satan. Has he learned anything by the imprisonment in the abyss for a thousand years? Has it taught him that God is sovereign and that the kingdoms of the world belong not to Satan but to Jesus and to His Seed of the redeemed church? I like to think that it means it is an opportunity of mercy for Satan. If it is then speedily it reveals that Satan has by no means changed, for he goes out once more to deceive the nations and to gather them together for war. 17 It may be too that he is permitted freedom so that the people who have lived during the time of his binding in the abyss may be tested out. The carnal heart of man is speedily lifted up in pride. With Satan bound temptation will not be in that era what it is now, and men may be inclined to think themselves wiser, stronger and better than is consistent with the facts.[#]_ There may be pride vaunted against God, there may be a growing feeling in the human heart that too much is laid at the feet of that Greater than Solomon Who reigns in Jerusalem. However it may be, Satan, when he is loosed goes forth to deceive the nations to bring them once again into the spirit and enterprise of war. Once again the hatred of the nations is directed against Jerusalem and against the Mighty Prince, the reigning Lord Jesus, Who rules the earth from its throne. God will not then have need to exercise restraint with regard to Satan as He is doing now. Today the church must be completed out of the world by the calling of the Holy Spirit through the preaching of the Word but then, in the millennial era, that purpose will have been accomplished. Hence fire descends from heaven and devours those armies that come against Jerusalem. The devil is cast into the lake of fire where he shall be tormented day and night for ever. 18

That is in brief, the revelation of the Scriptures concerning the history, the present activity and the final destiny of Satan. Will the reader care to contemplate carefully and without prejudice the question whether he or she is being deceived by Satan? If you find yourself resenting the suggestion, that is in itself proof of the work of this enemy of your soul. Certainly all have been under his influence and many still are. If Satan would tempt Jesus to fall down and worship him, 19 do you not think it is quite likely that he would also tempt you and that also in the realm of worship? He works upon all that which in our fallen nature is at enmity against God. He is particularly active in the realm of worship and is perpetually inclining people to be satisfied with what they do in worship, for which they ought to take credit. All self-righteousness is the work of demons, all worship that takes the mind off Jesus in His glory is under his influence. Preachers are declared to be ambassadors beseeching men to be reconciled to God 20 and this is the ministry the Holy Spirit blesses. The Spirit of God is grieved when he listens to the preacher declaiming on subjects that are concerned only with time, and never utters a word concerning the salvation of their souls which is the crucial need. But Satan loves preaching that is silent on the Cross, 21 that never troubles people about sin or distresses them with solemn references to death and eternity. It is Satan and his host who obsess the mind in temptation, blinding the mind to all its consequences, yet at the same time if the soul contemplates taking Christ as Saviour immediately fills the mind with dark forebodings as to the consequences. It is Satan who, when sin has been committed, either seeks to mollify the conscience by suggesting that after all it was but a little sin, or else magnifies the distress of the sinner to make him feel there is no hope of mercy or forgiveness.

“Taken captive,” says the Word, “by the devil at his will.” 22 When the Scriptures are studied by the aid of the Holy Spirit there will be unveiled to the believer something of the wiles of this great adversary. He seeks to make and retain captives. Within his captivity a man may take up any social or political work, he can be respectable, religious and concerned for the public good. Not always does Satan bring a man into grievous or outrageous sin, for that is not his supreme purpose. He will do it if he can, but it may be that his purpose will be achieved more successfully otherwise. His one great purpose in the world is to prevent men from being redeemed into the new resurrection life of Jesus in heaven. He knows that when a man accepts Jesus as Saviour the powers of darkness working in the disobedient are cast out and the Holy Spirit comes to dwell in the transformed sinner who is now a believer. That means territory lost and power restricted. It means victory for Jesus. If believers do not take much notice of John’s word in his epistle it is nevertheless true: “Greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world.” Satan does not want to see the Holy Spirit, the Greater One, 23 ruling in the hearts of men, indwelling them and withstanding his rule over them and others. Hence the one thing that Satan is concerned about is that men and women should never be redeemed into life eternal. One man may be best kept away by being plunged so deeply into sin that he loses all hope of God’s mercy, but the majority will be kept away by self-righteousness, by confidence in their good deeds, by respectability, by position in the world, by social considerations. Hence Satan uses all these means to delude and deceive and especially makes the mention of the blood of Jesus 24 to be most offensive to the ear. The preacher who talks of these things is shunned. What is wanted is the preacher who speaks to the people as if they were the cream of society and invites their gracious co-operation for the good of the world. If from their busy lives in all the great business of politics and commerce some time could, entirely at their convenience, be given to the work of the parish or a donation sent, then how greatly indeed the minister will be obliged. And these poor souls go home imagining they have done God service!

The first consideration is to be free from the power of Satan oneself. Can one? Only One could say: “The prince of this world cometh and findeth nothing in Me.” 25 But there are some indications of safety which we ought to note and make sure that they characterise our path. Let us be careful to see that our worship and our walk are in correspondence with the Word of God. Our Lord vanquished Satan in the wilderness by the Scriptures. Let us therefore keep close in principle and practice to the Word. Let us no less encourage a constant meditation on Calvary and with it a deep love for our Lord. That will separate us from love for the world. If any man love the world the love of the Father is not in him. 26 Let us as often as we remember to do so, praise Jesus for the blood He shed for us sinners. As we commence that habit so the Spirit of God will increase it upon us both as to occasion and intensity. Let us also be sure that we cultivate a deep love, a spirit of forgiving love towards all men. Those who may oppose and criticise may yet be won by love. In any event we shall see through these individuals as Our Lord did through Peter who, when he deplored the Cross, was answered with that incisive and illuminating word: “Get thee behind Me,” not Peter but Satan”! 27 We shall see that critics within and without religious spheres are unknowingly being blinded in mind and heart, and we shall understand that Satan is using them against the truth of God. Personal feeling will disappear and we shall be led to lay hold upon God for them in deep and ever deepening love and faith for their salvation. Always be sure that whenever you have received an injury, an unkindness, an ungenerous act or estimate that you answer it by a continual prayer of love at the Throne of grace. God will change the situation and the persons in it for love, the love of Christ in our hearts is as omnipotent as the love of God at Calvary. There through death He brought to naught him that had the power of death, that is the devil. 28 Only so can we keep free from the power of Satan.

Then we must seek to free souls from his power. How that may be done has already bee indicated in some measure. We read in the Revelation that they overcame Satan by the blood of the Lamb, by the word of their testimony, and they loved not their lives unto the death. The vital need today is testimony on the lips of those whose hearts are filled with love. It must be testimony about Jesus and His blood 29 and in that testimony we must be reckless about our own interests. Where it comes from our lips in all the love of Calvary God will bless it. Satan will do his utmost to blackmail us and to frighten those to whom we speak. We shall, however, know exactly what to expect, and God will teach us how to pray concerning such issues, but souls will be won, they will be delivered right out of the hand of the enemy right into the life and liberty of Jesus our Beloved Lord. 30 It is a stern struggle, a terrible fight, but we are on the side of the Greater One and one day we shall see the fruit of the conflict when Satan is cast down and Jesus appears in His glory. What a joy when the arch enemy who has pressed upon us so long is for ever under our feet! 31 What life will be like in such circumstances we cannot tell, but to be delivered from his provocation will be no small part of the glory that is to be.

1

Matthew 12:24-27 and Job 1:6, 2:1

2

Ephesians 2:2

3

2 Corinthians 4:4

4

Genesis 2:19

5

Genesis 3:15

6

Matthew 2:16

7

Romans 8:11, 10:9 and Colossians 2:12

8

Ephesians 4:9-10

9

Acts 2:25-32

10

Ephesians 6:12

11

Hebrews 1:13-14

12

Revelation 12:7-10

13

John 8:44

14

1 John 2:1

15

Luke 22:3

16

Revelation 20:1-3

17

Revelation 20:7-8

18

Matthew 12:42

19

Revelation 20:9-10

20

Matthew 4:8-10

21

2 Corinthians 5:18-21

22

Colossians 1:19-20 & 2:14

23

2 Timothy 2:25-26

24

1 John 4:4

25

Hebrews 9:11-12 and 22

26

John 14:30

27

1 John 2:15

28

Mark 8:33

29

Hebrews 2:14

30

Revelation 1:5

31

Romans 8:21 & 37-39

32

Romans 16:19-20