Introduction
This is the beginning of a three part series on dealing with the devil. It is not a study of demonology or about the devil per se, although having some knowledge of the devil’s origins is useful. Rather, it is a study of what the Bible says we as Christians should do to deal with him.
2 Corinthians 2:11 11 lest Satan should take advantage of us; for we are not ignorant of his devices.
Unfortunately, there is a lot of ignorance among Christians as to how to deal with the devil. There are two extremes of thought:
The first group hardly acknowledges the workings of Satan at all. To them, everything is part of God’s plan and will. In fact, some go to the extreme that somehow the devil still “works” for God in a sense, that God is just using him to do His dirty work.
People with this belief confine their resisting of the devil to spiritual matters, as in resisting against temptation and sin.
On the opposite end of the spectrum is a group that sees the devil’s work in everything. Anything bad is the devil. Here a demon, there a demon, everywhere a demon, demon. So they give an inordinate amount of attention to the devil and his works, and are constantly binding him in this or that.
I have observed that if you can define the extremes, the truth is usually somewhere in the middle. And it is never the occasion that one group is completely wrong and another completely right; to get to that middle truth you have to pull elements from both.
But I am not talking about just coming up with a compromise between beliefs. We want to go the Bible, the Word of God, and study what it says about the devil and what we should be doing to deal with him. That must be our guiding light.
Devices and Intentions
The word devices comes from a root meaning mind or thought. It means plots, plans, or intentions.
Paul says that we are not ignorant of his intentions. They are summed up in Jn 10:10:
John 10:10 10 The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.
The devil hates God. He is not strong enough to attack God directly (he already lost that battle and was cast out of heaven), so he goes after the things that God loves – His children, the human race.
The devil’s foremost goal is to corrupt the human race, to turn us against God to follow him, even if we do so ignorantly. He wants to deprive God of that which He created us for, which was to be His family.
He almost succeeded in this in the days of Noah, when it was said that man’s wickedness was great in the earth, and the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually (Genesis 6:5). But God turned the tables by destroying the inhabitants of the earth with a flood, and starting over with Noah and his family.
The devil knows he is bound for hell. That is his destiny, and there is nothing he can do to avoid it. To that end, he seeks to pull as many of the human race down with him into his destruction as he can. To do this he must oppose and distract men from the gospel.
2 Corinthians 4:3-4 3 But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing,
4 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.
When we get saved, then the devil’s desire is to kill us. If he does that, he removes our influence from the earth and no longer has to deal with us. But although he would like to kill every Christian, he cannot, for his power has been severely limited. We are protected by God.
If he cannot remove us from the earth, then his intent is to destroy us. The word destroy means to bring to naught, to render powerless and ineffective. To remove our influence. He has been fairly successful in this area; the influence of the church in society has decreased over the past century.
The Con Man
2 Corinthians 2:11 implies that if you are ignorant of his devices, the devil can take advantage of you.
In John 10:10 we saw that one of the devil’s names is the thief, i.e., one who steals. There are different kinds of thieves; there is a robber, who sneaks in when you are not looking and takes your stuff, or more brazenly threatens you with a weapon.
Another type of thief is the con man. The con man uses deceit as his main tools, by posing as someone trustworthy. “Con man” is actually short for “confidence man”; a swindler that gains the confidence of his victims in order to defraud.
The con artist, through deception, gets you to willingly give to him what is yours. Typically they appeal to greed: they are going to let you in on a business deal that will make you a lot of money quick, or offer you goods at incredibly cheap prices.
Most of us have seen examples of the Nigerian Advance Fee Fraud, where someone sends you an email and says they are somebody important in some foreign country, and they have access to large amounts of money but they need your aid to get it out of the country. So if you could please send them X amount of money, they will be able to do some sort of transfer and will in turn reward you with a large sum. Of course, anybody foolish enough to send them money never hears from them again.
Some of the worst of the con men are those that pose as representatives of a charity, appealing to people’s compassion to help others, yet keeping the money for themselves. It is unfortunate that a lot of the money that was given in 2010 to aid the people of Haiti after that devastating earthquake, never got there.
In the very best scams, the victim never knows they have been defrauded. They never report it because they are ignorant that anything is wrong.
How is the devil like a con man?
He always hides his true identity. He works through people you trust. He appeals to something good in you, and he knows his audience. For the world, it is the desire to be rational, to be your own master and free to do what you want as long as it doesn’t hurt others.
2022 update: I originally wrote this in 2010. Ten years later, the statement above does not seem to be true any more. Rationality and truth is no longer given a priority. Feelings have been elevated above fact. Truth is just “my truth”.
The devil appeals to people’s sense of justice. We even have the term, “Social justice warrior”. The problem is that most of the time the “solutions” people propose for the solving of social ills actually lead into more and more bondage. That is the operation of the con man.
The truly liberal (or maybe libertarian is a better word) mindset that people should be allowed to do their own thing has been abandoned. Now, it is, “you conform to our system of thought or we will cancel you”.
For Christians, he appeals to our desire to please God.
The devil is very patient. He alters public opinion over time, working with each succeeding generation.
Take for example, the issue of homosexuality.
- First he got across the idea that sex outside of marriage between consenting adults was good, acceptable, and natural. This was accomplished through the sexual revolution in the 60’s. Nowadays it’s such a common thought that even Christians hardly blink when sexual relations outside of marriage is hinted at or portrayed on movies and TV.
- Secondly, he got people to equate sex with love. One of the homosexuals’ favorite slogans is, “How can love be bad?” There are different kinds of love. There is storge, love between family members, phileo, brotherly love, agape, self sacrificing love, and eros, sexual love. Love is a good thing, but there have always been restrictions on eros. If you say it should have no restrictions, then why not allow sex between a brother and sister? Or between a father and daughter or mother and son? Or between an adult and a child?
- Thirdly, he got people to associate the struggle for homosexual rights with other just causes by rejecting the idea that homosexuality has any moral implications. Now those who oppose homosexuality on moral grounds – mainly Christians and other religious groups – are viewed as intolerant and associated with racism and bigotry. And that was his main agenda all along – to discredit Christianity and make the world think that they are the moral ones and we the immoral ones.
Update 2022: The battle for homosexual rights has been won, it has now become mainstream.
Way back in 2008 California had Proposition 108, where we voted on whether to legalize homosexual marriage (it didn’t pass, back then). One of the arguments in favor of allowing gay marriage was, “how can it possibly hurt you?”. But I knew, back then, that those pushing gay rights would never stop just at that. They would continue to push the envelope, and try to force their values on everyone else. And that is exactly what has happened in the years since then. I’m sure you’ve heard the stories of Christian bakers and florists that were sued and forced out of business because they would not do custom work for a gay wedding. It went past homosexuals, and now it is pushing transgender “rights”. They are even trying to soften opinion on pedophilia by renaming pedophiles as “minor attracted” persons.
The LGBT movement has become extremely powerful, way beyond their numbers, because they have been able to equate their rights on the same level as racism. They do not accept a “live and let live” attitude. It is not good enough just not to oppose them, if you do not actively promote their worldview, they will cancel you.
Do I hate gays, trans, etc? Absolutely not. I worked for 17 years in San Francisco, and had gay colleagues, worked for gay bosses with no problem. I treat everyone with respect.
What I do take great exception to is forcing their worldview on our children. If you as a biological male want to dress and act like a woman as an adult, that is your choice. But when you teach small children they can chose their gender, and put them on hormone blockers, that is wrong, plain and simple.
Isaiah 5:20 20 Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; Who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; Who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!
You see this happening even in our language and idioms. If someone sees a car and says, “Man, that’s one bad set of wheels”, they are actually saying it is good and they like it! Or, “he’s one sick guitar player” doesn’t mean he’s throwing up on the stage, but that he’s really good!
Origins
In learning how to deal with the devil, it is a good idea to know something about where he came from and how he got here.
The devil was originally Lucifer, one of the three chief angels (along with Michael and Gabriel), and God’s right-hand “man”. What we know about the devil’s origins are found in two scripture passages:
Isaiah 14:12-17 12 “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!
13 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;
14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High.’
15 Yet you shall be brought down to Sheol, To the lowest depths of the Pit.
16 “Those who see you will gaze at you, And consider you, saying: ‘Is this the man who made the earth tremble, Who shook kingdoms,
17 Who made the world as a wilderness And destroyed its cities, Who did not open the house of his prisoners?’
Lucifer’s downfall was his pride. He did not just want to be a servant of God; he wanted to have his own kingdom and be served and worshipped himself – he wanted to be like God, but not necessarily overthrow God.
The first passage in Isaiah 14 calls Lucifer by name. In the second passage in Ezekiel 28, he is not named but it becomes obvious who is being talked about.
Ezekiel 28:1-10 is addressed to the prince of Tyre. This is an earthly king. We know he is a man because it says so in vs. 2. But he has been influenced by the devil, because he has taken on the same characteristic of wanting to be a god like Lucifer did.
Ezekiel 28:1-2 1 The word of the Lord came to me again, saying,
2 “Son of man, say to the prince of Tyre, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “Because your heart is lifted up, And you say, ‘I am a god, I sit in the seat of gods, In the midst of the seas,’ Yet you are a man, and not a god, Though you set your heart as the heart of a god
But then in vs. 11 and 12, it starts addressing the king of Tyre, and it becomes obvious that he is not a man.
Ezekiel 28:11-19 11 Moreover the word of the Lord came to me, saying,
12 “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.
13 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.
14 “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.
15 You were perfect in your ways from the day you were created, till iniquity was found in you.
16 “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.
17 “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.
18 “You defiled your sanctuaries by the multitude of your iniquities, by the iniquity of your trading; therefore I brought fire from your midst; it devoured you, and I turned you to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all who saw you.
19 All who knew you among the peoples are astonished at you; you have become a horror, and shall be no more forever.” ‘ “
“You were in Eden…” It’s obvious this is no earthly king, since the only humans in Eden were Adam and Eve. In vs. 14 he is called “the anointed cherub who covers”. A cherub in the Bible is not some little fat baby angel; but the cherubim refers to high ranking angels of great power, which include the three chief angels (note: only Michael is actually given the title “archangel”, although many equate Lucifier and Gabriel as being archangels also). It is definitely talking about Lucifer here.
His beauty and position are described. “The workmanship of your timbrels and pipes was prepared for you on the day you were created” refers to musical instruments. Lucifer was a musician. This is not surprising – look how music has been used as a corrupting influence over the years. There are many who surmise that he was the head worship leader among the angels in heaven.
He was a gorgeous creature to behold. In the days of his glory, it would be very easy for a human being to mistake him for God. And that was his downfall. He began to think of himself more highly than he ought, that he deserved more than a subservient role to God: Vs. 17 “Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty; you corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor…”
Another thing we see is that Lucifer was not created as the devil. He was perfect. But, iniquity was found in him – he invented sin.
Ezekiel 28:15 15 You were perfect in your ways from the day you were created, till iniquity was found in you.
The Fall of Lucifer
There came a time when Lucifer rebelled, when he said “no” to God. In vs. 18 it says that he “defiled his sanctuaries”. And God cast him out of his position and out of heaven.
He was not alone; a number of the angels went with him. These became the demons. Some speculate that it was a third of the angels, perhaps those that Lucifer had authority over as one of the three chief angels.
Revelation 12:1-9 1 Now a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a garland of twelve stars.
2 Then being with child, she cried out in labor and in pain to give birth.
3 And another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great, fiery red dragon having seven heads and ten horns, and seven diadems on his heads.
4 His tail drew a third of the stars of heaven and threw them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was ready to give birth, to devour her Child as soon as it was born.
5 She bore a male Child who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron. And her Child was caught up to God and His throne.
6 Then the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, that they should feed her there one thousand two hundred and sixty days.
7 And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought with the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought,
8 but they did not prevail, nor was a place found for them in heaven any longer.
9 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.
“Star” is a common symbol for angelic beings. In fact, the name “Lucifer” is a Latinized version of a name in Hebrew which literally means “Day Star”. So vs. 4 is taken to mean that the dragon, named as Satan in vs. 8, took a third of “his angels” with him when he was cast out.
A war in heaven is described, a struggle between Satan and his angels, and Michael and his angelic army. This war actually takes place at the end of time, although many have come to associate it with Lucifer’s original rebellion (such as in John Milton’s epic poem about the fall of Satan and man, Paradise Lost).
Whether there was an actual battle in heaven at Satan’s original rebellion or not, I don’t know. I suspect not, because in the Isaiah 14 and Ezekiel 28 passages, it says that God cast him out of heaven, whereas the battle in Revelations 12 is between angels of both sides. Although Satan would be a close match in power with other angels, he would be no match whatsoever with God.
Greek thought, and the Bible also, has the concept of three “heavens” – there was Heaven where God lives, the cosmos or outer space where suns and planets and galaxies are, and then the atmosphere around the earth, what we might call the sky. For example, Paul in 2 Corinthians 12:2 talks about someone caught up to “the third heaven”.
This was the heaven that Lucifer, now renamed Satan, was cast out of. Many scholars believe that he was restricted to the first heaven – i.e., the atmosphere around the earth. In Eph 2:2 he is called the prince of the power of the air.
There are hints in the Bible that when Lucifer was cast down, he destroyed the earth of that time; and that Genesis actually describes a re-creation of the earth.
Genesis 1:1-2 1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
2 The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.
In the Hebrew, “without form and void” is tohu and bohu.
Isaiah 45:18 18 For thus says the Lord, Who created the heavens, Who is God, Who formed the earth and made it, Who has established it, Who did not create it in vain, Who formed it to be inhabited: “I am the Lord, and there is no other.”
The Hebrew word for “in vain” is tohu again. God created the earth, but He did not create without form. Yet Genesis 1:2 says the earth was without form and void. So what happened? The speculation is that the devil happened. And it is just a theory; there is not enough hard scriptural evidence to establish it as a Biblical fact.
You can be like God
“You can be like gods, tap into an inner power, gain the secret knowledge, become one with the universe, with a higher power – but on your terms.” You can gain power, wisdom, etc. without having to be subject to God – to be your own master.
You can see this philosophy in modern “New Age” movements. There’s nothing new about it – Satan has been using this same temptation for millennia. It has its roots in his own rebellion against God.
We can see this philosophy coming to a head in the story of the Tower of Babel.
Genesis 11:1-9 1 Now the whole earth had one language and one speech.
2 And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar, and they dwelt there.
3 Then they said to one another, “Come, let us make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” They had brick for stone, and they had asphalt for mortar.
4 And they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower whose top is in the heavens; let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be scattered abroad over the face of the whole earth.”
5 But the Lord came down to see the city and the tower which the sons of men had built.
6 And the Lord said, “Indeed the people are one and they all have one language, and this is what they begin to do; now nothing that they propose to do will be withheld from them.
7 Come, let Us go down and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech.”
8 So the Lord scattered them abroad from there over the face of all the earth, and they ceased building the city.
9 Therefore its name is called Babel, because there the Lord confused the language of all the earth; and from there the Lord scattered them abroad over the face of all the earth.
Vs. 4, they wanted to build a city, lest they become scattered abroad over the face of the earth. This was in rebellion against God’s commandment, which was to fill and subdue the earth.
Secondly, they wanted to build a tower whose top reached into the heavens. They were not naïve enough to think that they could build a structure that would physically reach into the heavens – they would be better off just climbing the nearest mountain. No, the structure they built was a ziggeraut – a platform for making astronomical observations. By this time astrology – the study of celestial bodies and their supposed influence over our destinies – had been invented and was being firmly entrenched. It was the root of all anti-God religions.
They recognized the power in their unity – and so did God. His own assessment of them was, “… now nothing will be withheld from them that they propose to do.” The human race in unity against God was a very dangerous thing – for us. So to slow things down, He confused their languages. Someone said to his coworker, “pass me a brick”, and the other guy hears “kalojë me një tullë”. “Say what?” Which of course comes out like “segja hvað?”
Mass confusion (that is the meaning of the word babel). The people would naturally separate into groups where they understood each other, and went their separate ways. Which is exactly what God wanted.
To be continued in Part Two
