DanielRevelationBibleStudies.com
css3menu.com

Everybody Ought To Know

page l 1 l 2 l 3 l

1 of 3

 

“For Satan must not be allowed to get the better of us; we know his wiles all too well.”
(2 Corinthians 2:11 NEB)

Art Linkletter’s show, “People are Funny,” was a TV success. Of all the creatures on earth, people are the most fascinating. However, there is something curious about Christians. No, not their unshakable faith in an unseen Savior, but their tenacious grasp on the Word of God. Christians insist on the infallibility of the written Word. Challenge its authority or inspiration and they are ready to fight. Seemingly, they would die for it.

Here’s what’s curious. Most Christians deliberately ignore one of the Bible’s most cardinal doctrines - the doctrine of a personal devil. One hears much about the need of a personal Savior, but the same Bible sets forth a personal devil just as clearly and definitely. Don’t you find it curious that the truth of Christ can be widely heralded; yet, the truth of Satan obviously subdued? I find that fact startling, a phenomenon – even supernatural.

Why curious? Listen to the Apostle Paul:

“Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices” (2 Corinthians 2:11 KJV).

Oops!

Did you catch the “we” in that verse? Can he be serious? Was he referring to the Corinthian church? Satan was shaking that bunch of believers like a rag doll. Perhaps it was true of himself or some with him at Ephesus. BUT what a fantastic overstatement that is today! The average Christian does not even know who Satan is, let alone have knowledge of his devices.

What’s worse, they smile at the mention of a living personal devil. One Christian writer has observed:

“Wonderful is it that he can prevail upon Christian people to banish his name as they do and pastors make only now and then an incidental reference to it in the pulpit … while in every room of their households, in every street of our cities, he is incessantly manifesting his hateful presence; perplexing, seducing, embroiling, uprooting, and disorganizing until the whole framework of society is loosened and ready to crumble upon the first shock.”

You don’t hear much about Satan today. The church has been willing to relax its hold on the incident doctrine. Preachers have little to say about him. In some places, there is antagonism toward the idea of such a person. Faith and a supernatural Satan has all but collapsed.

Say to some Christians, “I wanted to come and see you, but the devil hindered me,” meant it, as did the Apostle and watch eyebrows go up. Describe an unsuccessfully treated ailment as ‘ a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan,” sent to buffet you, and then interpret the looks you get. Try telling your Christian employer that a difficulty on the job is due to satanic attack. At once, he’ll have his doubts about you. Pious smiles may appear to accept what you say about the devil’s influence, but behind those smiles, your sanity is questioned.

It’s not easy to live in a materialistic age where talk of a personal devil is unpopular. Who is willing to speak of him seriously, when such words bring sly glances and looks of suspicion? Who will admit involvement with someone regarded as a figure of speech? It’s like believing in Santa Claus. Make more than a joking reference to Satan and people will think you are “a little off.” No, it’s not easy to get serious about Satan today.

Yet, who can read divine prophecy concerning the close of this age and not be obliged to verify every word in the signs about us? Society is throwing off every restraint. The public appetite for sex, violence and a new morality is fed off a large screen in the living room. Politics is a getting game. Alcohol flows like a river. Drugs, teen-age rebellion, riots and ascending crime rates bespeak an energizing spirit backstage. Satan is organizing the thought life and manipulating the passions of men. Signs indicate a worldwide upheaval calculated to burst forth into a volcano of blasphemy!

Christians may soon be confronted with ‘all power and signs and lying wonders.” Even now, tempting influences are closing in fast. God’s people need everything they can get their hands on to live Christ. Few are standing fast in His Name. So many are caught in the “down draft” of this world, there is no recognizable difference between the child of God and the child of the devil. Being alert to the truth of Satan and equipped to resist him is a most urgent matter.

Our children sing in churches across the country, “Everybody ought to know … Who Jesus is.” In view of the swift approach of the evil hour, perhaps we should be teaching them …

“Everybody Ought To Know

  Everybody Ought To Know

  Everybody Ought To Know

  Who Satan Is!

Satan Needs Darknes

When Herbert Philbrick posed as a Communist for the FBI, his identity had to remain secret. He worked under the cover of aliases. He needed a cloak of personal darkness to carry out his mission. The success of his mission depended on it, so did his life. When the truth was revealed years later, the story was captioned, “I Led Three Lives!”

The Satan story is similar. One day he will be revealed as he is, but right now his success depends on personal darkness – absolute obscurity – and he’s getting it.  By means of supernatural resources, he has been able to throw a cover of ignorance over the body of Christ. The way he rules mankind, practically unnoticed, is a fascinating mystery.

If Satan’s success depends on secrecy and darkness, then turning on the light to expose him can hurt his operation. Just as publicity would have ruined Herbert Philbrick as an undercover agent, so can exposure cancel much of Satan’s power. The first thing Christians need to know about Satan is Who He Is.

The Fund of Knowledge

When I discovered Satan alive and tasted the thrill of having him flee, I knew it was to be shared with God’s people. Before writing this study, I checked to see what was already available on the subject. There is no point in reproducing truths already in print. I began reading every book and article I could find. There is a useful store of knowledge scattered throughout books published in the last 75 years.

In more than 60 volumes, I found a body of agreed truth. Enough to satisfy me that the Holy Spirit already has a Fund of Knowledge on deposit for the church. There is a consensus among writers like Chafer, Unger, Lewis, Koch, Morgan, Jennings and the Catholic Church (amazingly on target), which provides a springboard from which to launch an exposition. I will list some facts below, which if we can accept them, will give us a basis for moving on to things not a part of any writings.

(1) Satan, A Created Being

Most expositors agree that the passages of Isaiah 14 and Ezekiel 28 look beyond the Kings of Tyre and Babylon and are detailed descriptions of the person of Satan. Ormiston and Jennings open these verses in lovely detail.

  1. Satan was created by the Lord Jesus (Colossians 1:16). Heaven’s skill and love went into making him after the divine image. He was vested with every grace and anointment as the guardian of God’s glory. Probably the Savior and Satan were close, personal friends in those days. In heaven, Satan was the delight of the Lord and at home in the presence of God. He wore righteousness comfortably. He was holiness personified.
  1. Satan seems to have been given the task of producing a race of citizens for heaven. He was to lead them in open praise and adoration of the Most High. He was absolutely perfect in every way, with his glory second only to that of God. He was the best God could create. None was wiser, more beautiful, or more important. And like His Creator, he was Free.
  1. It is not certain Where Satan was producing the race of citizens; whether in heaven itself or on the earth. The chaos of Genesis 1:2 may indicate a ruin of the earth occurred prior to the (re)creation account of Genesis 1:3. Some hold that Satan’s kingdom was there. Others hold that he merely destroyed the universes in rage after his revolt was thwarted. I believe Satan and his evil forces were expelled from heaven after the war in heaven between Michael/Jesus and His forces and Lucifer/Satan and His forces because God could no longer tolerate his rebellion. In any event, it is clear he wanted this world when creation was completed and given to Adam.

(2) Satan’s Sin

  1. Made like his Creator, completely free to exercise his will, Satan could do or not do the will of God as he saw fit. He had the power to revolt if he wanted to. He was not expected to covet his Maker’s throne, for he seemingly held every honor but that. Ezekiel indicates he lived to praise God. But alas, the day came when “Iniquity Was Found” in him. The reason for that remains locked with God, for the time. If sin can be defined as rebellion against the known will of God, sin began that day.
  1. Satan’s rebellion was occasioned by self-deception. He was enamored with his own beauty, impressed with his wisdom, and exalted by the importance of his job. Though a created being, he deluded himself into thinking he could be “like the Most High.” The blinding power of self-affection is manifested when the created being thinks to replace his creator.

Satan’s Freewill decision to exalt himself against God was his sin. Pride was the energizing factor. Lucifer/Satan, second in command to God Himself, had great forces under him. Already accustomed to his leadership, it wasn’t too hard to involve many in the rebellion. They are the “principalities and powers” referred by Paul, for they retain their rank and dignity, as does Satan. Those who participated are called, “fallen angels” or demons.” Those who refused are called the “angels of God.”

[TOP]




Copyright © Daniel Revelation Bible Studies. All Rights Reserved...............................................................Gabriel Web Designs..
 


The Christian Counter