Ephesians 6:11-13 Put on the whole armor
of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. 12 For
we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the
authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the
spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. 13 Therefore
take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil
day, and having done all, to stand firm.
The
Scriptures tell us that when God created the world he “saw everything he had made, and behold, it was very good”
(Genesis 1:31). By the time of Genesis chapter 3, we have evidence that the
creation was no longer “very good”! Because, Satan himself came into the Garden
of Eden to tempt Adam and Eve. What happened? Why was this allowed to happen? I
know that I’m not going to be able to give you all the answers but we will look
at Scripture and see what it has to say on the subject of demons.
“Satan”
is the personal name of the angel who rules over the demons. The name is first
used in 1 Chronicles 21:1 identifying an accuser who stood against Israel’s
trust in God. The name is used a number of times in the book of Job. Describing
the adversary who was able to come into God’s presence and make accusations
against God’s people. As we will see later, he is the adversary in Zechariah
3:1-2 accusing the high priest. The New Testament takes the Hebrew name from
the Old Testament. Jesus used the name in his temptations in the wilderness. A
little later Jesus testified that he “saw Satan fall like lightning from
heaven.”
Satan
never shows up in a red suit with a pitchfork and tail. He always comes in
disguise. If he came as he really is it is very likely no one would follow him.
Paul tells us that his opponents disguise themselves as apostles of Christ. And
this is no surprise to Paul because…
Satan
comes in disguise. Let’s look at 2
Corinthians 11:14. And no wonder,
for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.
We
must be very careful not to be taken in by a being that describes himself as an
angel. Demons, pretending to be God’s angels, will lead people astray. We
should be careful not to be deceived. For instance, the Mormons claim that an
angel gave Joseph Smith the basis of their false religion. The revelation of
“golden plates” that contained the book of Mormon, if it happened at all, is in
total opposition to the teachings of Scripture. We are not to listen to any
creature, human or angelic, that presents teaching that is not found in the
Bible. The Bible teaches us that we are not to worship angels or to pray to
them. There are many ways that…
Satan
— in his demons — seeks to destroy God’s people. Let’s look at the warning in 1 Peter 5:8. Be sober-minded; be watchful.
Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to
devour.
Authority
over unclean spirits extends to everyone who ministers in Jesus’ name. In fact,
the ability to resist the devil is characterized by triumph over the power of
the devil. We’ll look at that a little more in a few minutes. Very clearly…
Satan
opposes God’s people. When the temple was reconstructed and sacrifice was
resumed after the return from exile we are shown Satan’s opposition in Zechariah 3:1. Then he showed me Joshua the
high priest standing before the angel of the Lord,
and Satan standing at his right hand to accuse him.
This
Joshua is the grandson of the man who was high priest when Jerusalem fell who
was put to death by Nebuchadnezzar. His father lived through the captivity in
Babylon and Joshua returned with Ezra to establish worship among those who
returned from captivity. Satan is an accuser of God worshipers. With all of his
accusations, we need to remember that…
Satan
is a liar. Let’s look at the words of Jesus found in John 8:44. You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do
your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand
in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of
his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.
Here
we find Jesus being confronted by the Pharisees. They had claimed that God was
their father. Jesus’ reply was a direct attack on their claims. He accuses them
of not only lying like the devil but of having murder in their hearts. By this
point in his ministry, the Pharisees were clearly planning to put him to death.
They only needed an acceptable excuse. In order to get that excuse, they would
not hesitate to lie. Many years later John would write…
1
John 3:8 Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has
been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to
destroy the works of the devil.
The
devil is not responsible for all the evil in the world but he certainly
encourages it. Our human nature following the pattern of our first ancestors,
Adam and Eve, always leads to rebellion against God. The world system that we
live in is in opposition to God! A life of practicing sin is evidence of our
separation from God. We must repent of our sin and turn from Satan’s rule.
Let’s take a minute and consider the fact that…
Satan
has many descriptive names. Ephesians
2:1-2 And you were dead in the trespasses and sins 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
Here we
find one of the descriptive names of our enemy “the prince of the power of the
air”. There are many other descriptive names that help us understand what Satan
is like. Let me share some of them. He is called the “devil” only in the New
Testament. In both old and new Testaments he is called “the serpent”. Jesus
used the term “Beelzebul” to describe his enemy. The word means “Baal the Prince”.
Jesus used the term “ruler of this world” at least two times. Jesus also uses
the term “the evil one” when describing the one that snatches away the good
seed in the parable of the sower.
With
all this emphasis on Satan beginning in the Garden of Eden and coming through
the book of Revelation into the very end time, we must not be overwhelmed by
his power. The first two chapters of Job clearly teach us that…
Satan
and his demons have limited power. Let’s look at 2 Peter 2:4 For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast
them into hell and committed them to chains of gloomy darkness to be kept until
the judgment. And Jude 6 And the angels who did not stay
within their own position of authority, but left their proper dwelling, he has
kept in eternal chains under gloomy darkness until the judgment of the great
day.
I quote
“The emphasis is on the fact that they are removed from the glory of God’s
presence and their activity is restricted (metaphorically, they are in “eternal
chains”), but the text does not imply either that the influence of demons has
been removed from the world or that some demons are kept in a place of
punishment apart from the world while others are able to influence it. Rather,
both 2 Peter and Jude tell us that some angels rebelled against God and became
hostile opponents to his Word. Their sin seems to have been pride, a refusal to
accept their assigned place, for they “did not keep their own position but left
their proper dwelling” (Jude 6).” Wayne
Grudem, Systematic Theology, pp 412-413
Satan
and his demons are kept restricted to God’s will. They can do nothing without
permission. This does not mean we should not fear them. Instead, it means that
we should be careful in dealing with them. He that is in us is greater than he
that is in the world. But if we take off on our own in combat with the devil we
will be defeated most of the time. Satan and his demons have had the
opportunity to observe us all our lives and draw conclusions from that. They
cannot read our minds, only God can, but they can predict our actions from our
past performance.
When
Jesus went up on the mountain with Peter, James and John the other disciples
were confronted with a demonized boy and failed to deliver him. When Jesus came
down off the mountain he said that this kind only comes out by prayer.
Obviously, a prayerful relationship to God is necessary before we can defeat
the devil.
We are
also reminded of the seven sons of Sceva in the book of Acts. They attempted to
cast out a demon in the name of Jesus who Paul preached and they were
thoroughly defeated. Exorcism is not magic! It is the work of the Holy Spirit.
Satan
is very powerful, however…
He can
be opposed. Let’s look at James 4:7-8. Submit
yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Draw
near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and
purify your hearts, you double-minded.
Often
Christians will quote the sentence “Resist the devil, and he will flee from
you.” While neglecting “Submit yourselves therefore to God” that clearly comes
first. If we try to resist the devil without first being submissive to God we
will be clearly and soundly defeated. The devil only laughs at those who try to
resist him in their own strength. Only God can defeat him. Jesus gave the power
over evil spirits — demons — to his disciples. Luke recorded this gift for us
in chapter 10 of his gospel. He gave his disciples explicit directions. They
were to pray earnestly for laborers in the harvest. They were to make no
provisions for themselves. They were to heal the sick and proclaim the kingdom
of God. When they returned they rejoiced that demons had been subject to them
in his name. Jesus immediately said that he gave them authority over the demons
and all the power of the enemy but they
were not to rejoice in that. They were to rejoice that their names are written
in heaven!
It is
so easy to get caught up in spiritual warfare.
Satan, even in defeat, will snatch a victory out of loss if he can get
us wrapped up in our authority. We will be just like those disciples who were
at the foot of the mountain unable to cast out a demon that Jesus quickly
disposed of. We should rejoice that we are God’s children and be careful to
always give him credit for any victory we receive. You see…
Christian
believers already live in victory! Look with me at 1 Corinthians 15:56-57. The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin
is the law. 57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory
through our Lord Jesus Christ.
We
should rejoice that God gives us the victory. But that victory is not in our
abilities. That victory is through our Lord Jesus Christ. The only ability we
may have is avail-ability. If we are available to God he will use us as he
chooses. Sadly enough we often are disappointed that God chose what we did not.
Now
let’s look at the end of Romans chapter 8.
Romans 8:37-39 No, in all these things we
are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am
sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor
things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor
anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God
in Christ Jesus our Lord.
We are
more than conquerors. We are not more than conquerors in our strength! Our
victory is in the Lord Jesus who loved us enough to die for us. Nothing can
overwhelm us or separate us from the love of God. Rest in him and he will take
you where he wants you to go to do what he wants you to do and you will
discover that gives victory over Satan and his demons.
There
are two wrong ways to deal with the reality of the devil and his demons. First,
there is the tendency to deny his existence. “The other is to believe, and to
feel an excessive and unhealthy interest in them. They themselves are equally
pleased by both errors and hail a materialist or a magician with the same
delight.” C. S. Lewis, Screwtape Letters. We
must recognize that our enemy exists without, at the same time, giving him too
much control in our lives. The greatest victory over the devil is our surrender
to Jesus as Lord and Savior. We are born in sin and heirs of death and hell.
But God loves us enough to send Jesus to defeat our enemy. We must confess with
our mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in our hearts that God raised him from
the dead.
All scriptures quotes are from: The
Holy Bible: English standard version. 2001. Wheaton, Ill, Standard Bible
Society.
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