What About Satan?

Many of the theological mysteries in life are mysteries for a reason, and answers, even partial answers are not possible without a great deal of speculation, such as, “What did God do before Earth?” for example, or “Where did the garden of Eden go?” Or even impossible to comprehend beyond such a basic answer as to be no answer at all like the question, "Where did God come from?" Eternity is easily imagined going into the future, but it will inspire smoke from your brain to imagine it going backwards.

The question we are seeking an answer to today is not one of these, though at first glance it may appear to be so. The Bible actually has a great deal to say on the topic, and though the answers it contains may not satisfy all of our questions, it fully answers the main ones. We must be satisfied with the main trunk of the answers and content with such branches of the question that are given to us. 

We seek an answer to the question, “Who is Satan?” 

Even more importantly, “What is his power and authority in the world we reside in?”

The answers give us valuable information that enables us to know our enemy, not in the sense of studying his theology, but more in the sense of knowing his weapons, methods, and tactics. These two questions are directly related to each other with the second answering to a degree the first question and vice versa. It's easy enough to determine that there is indeed a real being named Satan or Lucifer if you will. A quick read of the Bible will tell us that much, but it takes a little bit of digging to find out just who he is. First, if we hop over to Revelation, we find that Satan is referred to as a Dragon, but also that serpent of old who deceives the whole world.   

Revelation 12:9 NKJV — So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.

Which Serpent of Old deceived the whole world or told the first recorded lie?

The serpent in the Garden of Eden told the first lie and deceived the whole world, and here at the end of the story,  we discover he is one and the same as Satan. This tells us some important things about Satan, namely that he has been around from pretty much the beginning, but it also gives us a vital clue as to his identity. 

Ezekiel 28:12-13 NKJV — “Son of man, take up a lamentation for the king of Tyre, and say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD:

“You were the seal of perfection,

Full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. You were in Eden, the garden of God;

Every precious stone was your covering:

The sardius, topaz, and diamond,

Beryl, onyx, and jasper,

Sapphire, turquoise, and emerald with gold.

The workmanship of your timbrels and pipes

Was prepared for you on the day you were created.

The king of Tyre spoken of here may well describe in metaphor the pride of a human king, but the main object of the prophecy is a being who was in the garden of Eden. There are four beings mentioned in the creation narrative: God, Adam, Eve, and the Serpent. At first glance, perhaps this is a description of Adam or Eve, but if we read the next verse we find that it fits none other than Satan himself.  

Ezekiel 28:14-17 NKJV — “You were the anointed cherub who covers;

I established you;

You were on the holy mountain of God;

You walked back and forth in the midst of fiery stones. You were perfect in your ways from the day you were created,

Till iniquity was found in you. “By the abundance of your trading

You became filled with violence within,

And you sinned;

Therefore I cast you as a profane thing

Out of the mountain of God;

And I destroyed you, O covering cherub,

From the midst of the fiery stones. “Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty;

You corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor;

I cast you to the ground,

I laid you before kings,

That they might gaze at you.

Cherubs are a type of angel described in the Bible, but not the chubby babies that artists would depict them as. The main point we find here is that Satan was an exalted angel, a masterpiece of God's craftsmanship, but because he was favored his heart was filled with pride. I'll go out on a limb here and say that perhaps the catalyst for his revolt and fall was the creation of a creature he was meant to serve; a creature that would one day be exalted far above himself (Hebrews 2:7). When man came on the scene, Satan and the angels who followed him would have stared in the face at the loss of their status and place to a lesser being. Was this the cause of Satan and his other angels' revolt?

We find that Satan is an angel or former angel and that he has been cast from heaven, but what is his status now? 

Where does his authority reside, or shall we say, what is his authority over?

1 John 5:19 NKJV — We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one.

John seems to indicate that the whole world is under the control of Satan or the wicked one, however, we might come to a different conclusion if this was the only place that said such a thing. What we find laid out quite clearly is that Satan is indeed the god of this world and the ruler of this age and that he is the one behind most of the earthly kingdoms of this world. 

2 Corinthians 4:4 NKJV — whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them.

John 12:31 NKJV — “Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out.

Satan's authority lies over the earth and his kingdom is this world. He has deceived everyone who is not of God, and they all lie in his control, or as his slaves. The battle going on in the world is for the others, those who have chosen neither Satan nor God and lie in the chains of darkness. 

Colossians 1:13 NKJV — He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love,

With that in mind, it would be a good idea for us to know what our enemy is capable of and what tactics and strategies he might employ. Since Satan is the god of this world and it all lies in his power, we might imagine his sphere of authority to be very large indeed. What sway does Satan hold over us, or any other person for that matter?

Hebrews 2:14 NKJV Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil,

We've already seen some of the answers to this question in the scriptures above. He is the god of this world, he can blind people to God, he can deceive them, and as we will soon find out, he can destroy and devour men, AKA, the power of death. Our question relates more to the power he has over the followers of God, and the answer to that question is pretty easy. He has the power to harm us God allows him for the purpose of our growth, but he also has whatever power over us we give to him. I’ll explain more in a bit, but for now, let's look at what the Bible has to say about what he is capable of. 

An important factor to remember is that we would be very foolish to underestimate his power and what he is capable of. When he and one of God's most powerful angels fought together over the body of Moses, God's angel was not able to directly confront him. In the story of Daniel, we find, almost as an aside, a revelation about spiritual warfare. A message was being sent to Daniel, but apparently, he resided in spiritual enemy territory and the messenger angel had to fight his way in. One of Satan's chief demons withstood the messenger for quite a while until Michael, one of the most powerful angels, came to his aid. The angel then had to fight his way back out as he returned to God. Something to remember is that this was not even Satan they were fighting against, yet facing this demon one-on-one was out of the question. Without even meaning to, we are given valuable information about the way warfare works in the spiritual realm, and it is a whole lot scarier than we imagined. 

It’s not just Satan we have to contend with for he has many demonic forces under his command. He is the ruler of this world and many of the evils that exist in this physical realm are sourced from him and his power. Magic, legitimate magic, is by the power of Satan. 

2 Timothy 2:26 NKJV — and that they may come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him to do his will.

Matthew 13:19 NKJV — “When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is he who received seed by the wayside.

Satan can snare people and make them into his slaves, and he can also steal the Word of God from new believers. In addition, he can distract new believers with all manner of other things, as the parable elaborates, and the Word never even has a chance to take root.

1 Peter 5:8 NKJV — Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.

Satan is looking for people to devour, and he is waging active warfare against God's people. He is our adversary and our greatest enemy. He has great things to offer us and he can give us the desire of our hearts if we will only bow down and worship him. He tempted Jesus, and he can certainly tempt us too.

Matthew 13:25 NKJV — “but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way.

Satan spreads his deception among the brethren, and the easiest way he does this is through infiltration. His own people and his own lies make it into the Churches and lead them astray, maybe not by much at first, but eventually by greater and greater lengths. We see some element of all these things in the story of Job. There, Satan had his power limited by God in what he was able to do to Job, but often he does not limit that power. Believers are killed by agents of Satan all around the world, and we are told to hold fast, stand strong, and be ready to give our lives for God if that is what it comes down to.

The story of Job is a fascinating one, and it reveals that there are appointed days the angels appear before God not even Satan can ignore, which should be comforting to us as the children of God. It also shows him as the accuser of the brethren, one of the names he is known by in the New Testament. However, it is vital to note that while Satan does accuse Job, he also directly attacks Job, and not just with other forces, he directly attacks Job's body. Satan has the power and authority to kill the brethren, and he tempts us every chance he gets (1 Peter 4:12). A true victory for Satan is when he can get us to turn our backs on God, and that is his goal with everything he throws at us. 

An important item to note is that Satan cannot make us do anything, and he cannot put thoughts in our heads per se. He can put evil signals out there that we pick up on and we can mistake those as thoughts from our own head, but they are not. Remember a time when you were somewhere by yourself, out in the woods or on a long car ride, and all of a sudden a random thought flashed across the screen of your mind? You had no idea where it came from and you kicked it out as quickly as you could and felt awful for thinking it. Where did that thought come from? 

Was it out of your own mind, or perhaps is it possible that you picked up on a mental broadcast from Satan?

Was it even a thought at all, or was it a broadcast on the mental T.V.?

Ephesians 2:2 NKJV — in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience,

Satan is called the prince of the power of the air, the spirit at work in all evil men, and he can control all things signals. Think of all the things that operate over the airwaves and then add one more thing to that list: our brains. Not only is Satan in charge of the media, he is in charge of broadcasting evil thoughts, and our brains can pick up those nasty signals. We are able to refute and resist these evil transmissions, and change the channel so to speak. We have control of our own minds and thoughts, but these signals are not our thoughts. It's easy to mistake these things that come across our minds for our own thoughts, but there is a distinct difference. One comes from outside, and the other is born out of our own lusts and desires.

James 1:14-16 NKJV — But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death. Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren.

Satan knows our desires, for we've certainly acted on them often enough, and he can put things in our path to trigger those desires. This is known as temptation, and it is the same tactic he used on Jesus. I'm not talking about this when I say that he can broadcast mental pictures. 

Earlier, I said that Satan has whatever power over us that we give to him. It may sound rather complicated, but it is rather easy to understand. We give Satan power over us when we indulge in the things of Satan, and when we stray away from the protection of God. Evil movies, music, books, pictures, and evil activities are things we can partake in that, if they come from Satan, give him power over us until we return to God. Remember, he is the prince of the power of the air, and the media inherently belongs to him. He did not invent music, but he is rather talented at it. 

“The workmanship of your timbrels and pipes

Was prepared for you on the day you were created.”

This is quoted from above, and it describes great talent in the musical fields, and it is still one of the most effective ways Satan gets his message across. That being said, this tidbit of information should not inspire fear in us. Just because we hear a bad song playing somewhere doesn't suddenly mean we are servants of Satan. As long as our minds are God oriented we have nothing to fear from anything. God will protect us. 

1 Corinthians 8:4 NKJV — Therefore concerning the eating of things offered to idols, we know that an idol is nothing in the world, and that there is no other God but one.

Idols are made of wood, metal, and stone and are empty. We have nothing to fear from an idol, but that doesn't mean that those worshiping idols are worshiping nothing. Idols are stand-ins for demons and Satan, and every pagan religion is worship of Satan at its roots, a fact that explains why God abhors Christians mixing pagan practices with their worship of Him. Christmas and Easter, for example. 

Satan is not the only evil spirit out there, but he is their leader. Those who worship idols are servants of these demons and give their fealty to the ruler of this world.

1 Corinthians 10:19-21 NKJV — What am I saying then? That an idol is anything, or what is offered to idols is anything? Rather, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice they sacrifice to demons and not to God, and I do not want you to have fellowship with demons. You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons; you cannot partake of the Lord’s table and of the table of demons.

Psalm 106:36-37 NKJV — They served their idols,

Which became a snare to them. They even sacrificed their sons

And their daughters to demons,

Leviticus 17:7 NKJV — “They shall no more offer their sacrifices to demons, after whom they have played the harlot. This shall be a statute forever for them throughout their generations.” ’

If you think this is just some Old Testament imagery, think again. These evil practices are still alive and well in today's day and age. Don't believe me?

What about abortion? Who do you think those millions of children have been sacrificed to?

Even more abominable than this somewhat muted child sacrifice is the overt demonic rituals that take place with the sacrifice of children for the ever-elusive youthful properties the worshippers of Satan seek. The whole world serves these demonic masters, and their influence is prevalent in every aspect of society. The demons of wealth, illicit sex, and good fortune that were worshiped in the old world have become part of society today, though maybe with different names than Ba'al, Astaroth, and Moloch. 

As God's people, we have nothing to fear from such things, but these are the foes we wage war against. We are fighting a spiritual war every single day, and it is not one we can afford to ignore. 

Ephesians 6:12 NKJV — For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.

We need the full armor of God every single day, and we need to stay close to our Father in Heaven. We cannot allow our pride to put us at odds with the creator of the universe. That is what happened to Satan, and it can easily happen to us. One of the most powerful angels of God allowed his pride to puff him up to the point where he thought he could overthrow God, and he has been relegated to Earth ever since. 

Isaiah 14:12-15 NKJV — “How you are fallen from heaven,

O Lucifer, son of the morning!

How you are cut down to the ground,

You who weakened the nations! For you have said in your heart:

‘I will ascend into heaven,

I will exalt my throne above the stars of God;

I will also sit on the mount of the congregation

On the farthest sides of the north; I will ascend above the heights of the clouds,

I will be like the Most High.’ Yet you shall be brought down to Sheol,

To the lowest depths of the Pit.

Satan and his demons are relegated to the Earth where they lie in chains of darkness and the whole world lies under their dark sway. As soldiers of God, we shine with a light that pierces through this darkness, and by the power of our Father's holy spirit, we can liberate others from the bonds of Satan's darkness. We free men from wickedness and destroy strongholds of spiritual darkness. More than a nice thought, it's our calling as soldiers of Christ. When God called Paul, formerly a servant of Satan, He delivered him out of the spiritual darkness he had been walking in. To show Paul exactly what had been going on, God made him physically blind for a time so he could recognize the spiritual blindness he had been under. On the day God called Paul, He told him what his mission would be, and it is much the same mission that we have today.

Acts 26:18 NKJV — ‘to open their eyes, in order to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in Me.’

We have been given spiritual weapons to accomplish this mission, and the greatest weapon we have is the Word of God. For further reading, check out this blog post on the armor of God.

2 Corinthians 10:4-6 NKJV — For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, and being ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled.

In warfare, it is vital that we know the tactics and capabilities our enemy has at his disposal if we are ever to have a hope of winning battles, and it is no different for spiritual warfare. The easiest battle to win is one your enemy never knows he's fighting, and Satan has practiced that quite well, even convincing people he doesn't actually exist or is so weak as to be no threat at all.

Now, to know our enemy, we don't need to study the dark arts; that's not what I'm talking about at all. I simply mean that we should know what the Bible, our war manual, has to say about our strongest foe. It tells us a great deal about his tactics, and it is enough for us to know which direction he will come at us from, or one of his minions. We can learn to recognize his hand in the world around us, and when we take a step back from the world scene, his signature is easily recognizable. It's easy to understand world events if you can see the single mind behind it all.

Is there any hope for Satan or his demons?

Honestly, I think they have long reached a place where there is no turning back, not because God is not merciful, but because Satan has been consumed by hate. He simply cannot let go of his pride or lower himself to serve the creatures meant for eternity as the children of God. He has condemned himself and the demons that follow him to utter destruction in the lake of fire. There is a point where return to God is no longer possible, not necessarily because of anything God has to do, but because we are not capable of overcoming ourselves and turning back to God (Ephesians 4:18, Romans 1:21). So, because Satan cannot return and is doomed to destruction, he has determined to take as much of humanity with him as possible. We battle against a foe with nothing to lose, and that is the most dangerous foe of all.

As we move into feast season, election season, and closer to the return of Christ, the spiritual attacks will continue to ramp up, but we have nothing to fear from them because He who is for us is stronger than he who is against us. God has allowed Satan control of the Earth for a time because mankind turned themselves over into his power in a garden so long ago, but because of the blood of Jesus, there is a blade to cut through the chains of darkness and set the captives free. It's time we took up our swords and stepped out to meet the foe in the power of the might of our God!