Ezekiel 28 : 12 … ’This is what the Sovereign Lord says: "’You were the model of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. 13 You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone adorned you: ruby, topaz and emerald, chrysolite, onyx and jasper, sapphire, turquoise and beryl. Your settings and mountings were made of gold; on the day you were created they were prepared. 14 You were anointed as a guardian cherub, for so I ordained you. You were on the holy mount of God; you walked among the fiery stones. 15 You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created till wickedness was found in you. 16 Through your widespread trade you were filled with violence, and you sinned. So I drove you in disgrace from the mount of God, and I expelled you, O guardian cherub, from among the fiery stones. 17 Your heart became proud on account of your beauty, and you corrupted your wisdom because of your splendor. So I threw you to the earth; I made a spectacle of you before kings. 18 By your many sins and dishonest trade you have desecrated your sanctuaries. So I made a fire come out from you, and it consumed you, and I reduced you to ashes on the ground in the sight of all who were watching. 19 All the nations who knew you are appalled at you; you have come to a horrible end and will be no more.’" In Genesis 3:15 when God pronounced the fate of Satan he said that it would be the seed of woman who would deliver that punishment. And that promise was fulfilled when Jesus Christ was born in Bethlehem, ……. And 33 years later when Christ was crucified Satan danced and laughed and proclaimed to the world that he had won. But three days later there was no dancing in Hell as Jesus came out of the tomb proclaiming his dominion over death and hell and Satan. As Christians we have several names for him, Lucifer, the Devil,the Evil one , but probably the most common is Satan. The Bible calls him the “Prince of this World” the “Prince of Demons” and the “Prince of the Power of the Air”. Sometimes we call him the Devil which literally means the slanderer or false accuser.But who or what is Satan? Through the years Christians have tended to lean toward extremes on the subject, - either we ignore Satan and hope that he isn’t who the Bible says he is or we focus on giving him credit for every misfortune, illness or trouble that enters our lives. Too often if people even acknowledge the existence of Satan he is thought to be some comical figure in long red underwear with a pitchfork and horns. Somewhere along the line Satan came up with a strategy that allowed himself to be minimized so that Christians would not take him seriously. But hear me now - Satan is as real as I am and he is the author of destruction and evil. Satan is alive and well and earth is his playground. He can be seen in witchcraft, satanism, the occult and astrology. These are all his works in an effort to distract people from the truth that can only be found in Jesus Christ. You only have to watch the evening news to realize that we are surrounded by evil and yet we’ve become immune to it. Jesus himself had a few well chosen words to say about Satan. He called him the “enemy” in Matthew 13:39, the “Evil One” in Matthew 13:38, the “Prince of this world” in John 12:3, a “Liar” in John 8:44 and a “Murderer” in the same verse. In Luke 10:18 Jesus said he saw Satan fall from Heaven , in Matthew 12:26 we are told that Satan has a kingdom, and in Matthew 13:38 we are told that Satan IS the one who sows evil weeds in with the good wheat. Obivously this is not the type of person who you would want as a next door neighbor or to date your daughter. Satan is a roaring lion seeking who he may devour, he can produce false miraclesand show himself as an Angel of light and the list goes on and on.
So why is he here? In order to discover the purpose of Satan we need to go back to the beginning . In the books of Isaiah and Ezekiel we discover that before God created the world and mankind that there was a different realm, a spiritual realm, one of Angels. And of all the angels God’s favorite was one called Lucifer which meant “Light Bearer” and we are told that he was the most beautiful of all created beings. And it was this Angel, Lucifer who led a rebellion in heaven against God, and he was cast out of heaven along with 1/3 of the angels who had joined him in his rebellion. At that point he was no longer referred to as Lucifer instead… he was called Satan which means “To be adverse or to hate.” In Zechariah CH 3 (:1-2) the title adversary is given. We find it to mean, destroyer, one who causes demise, one who devours and demolishes. His purpose is to dissolve and diminish the faith of God’s children to decapitate their trust and to cause their hope to die. Satan’s job description is to cause chaos and confusion. So when hardship interrupts your life, understand, that Satan will attack those who love the Lord, simply because he already owns those who refuse to acknowledge God. Why go after what you already own?
It was Satan who tempted Adam and Eve in the Garden, it was Satan who appeared to Christ in the Wilderness and tempted him to deny God and it is Satan who whispers in our ear, it will be alright, nobody will ever know. Never underestimate the power of Satan. Charles Spurgeon said “The best evidence of God’s presence is the Devil’s growl.” And if we don’t hear the devils growl on occasion it might be because he considers us harmless. Satan has various attack methods. He will attempt to exterminate your faith. He wants to overthrow your confidence in God. He wants you to think negatively about God. He wants you to doubt the power of God. Satan is not interested in what God has done or what he can do. He is not interested in what He has said or has not said. He simply wants us to doubt what God said, and doubt that God has done all that he has done. Satan wants to fill our hearts with questions about God and our minds with suspicion about God So we must recognize him for what he is and understand what he is doing, Satan is just doing his job. And part of his job is found in: 1 Peter 5:8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. This is what happened to Job: Job 1:7 The Lord said to Satan, "Where have you come from?" Satan answered the Lord, "From roaming through the earth and going back and forth in it." 8 Then the Lord said to Satan, "Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil."”9 "Does Job fear God for nothing?" Satan replied. 10 "Have you not put a hedge around him and his household and everything he has? You have blessed the work of his hands, so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land. You see it is easy to be faithful and thankful to God when all is well and all is right. However, if you know this story , Job lost his empire, his offspring, and his well being. His life was filled with grief, yet he knew where his strength lied. His wife told him to curse God and die; his friends gave counseling that was incorrect and inept. But, Job ignored the unsound theology of his spouse and buddies.Job simply goes to God and pleads his case; and Satan was unsuccessful in his attempt to cause this great servant to curse God. Satan will attack us! He understands that many people recognize God as the provider as long as things run smoothly. But what happens when the money runs short?What happens when our finances evaporate, and where we prospered yesterday,we are bankrupt today?Satan will attack our finances to discourage, disheartened, and defeat But , God will allow his faithful to become stronger during the period of poverty and empower them for the next phase of prosperity. But during the period of financial famine, we must remember--Satan is simply doing his job. And he does it well. Satan will attack the family. When he is unsuccessful in obtaining the desired reaction from the believer, he will attack those that are close to us in order to cause distraction. Satan will divide in order to devour. He will confuse you, so he can consume you. But in order to resist , you must recognize Satan for who and what he is. But most of all you must know God!
You see Satan is real, with great intellect. He is subtle and slick. Do not underestimate him or his cause. He desires the destruction of every person who desires to follow Christ. He will use anything and everything to distract, & disappoint. He walks about roaring as a lion seeking to devour. How can Satan devour you? “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world” (1 John 2:15-16). It might look good, taste good, and feel good, but we must resist the desire and lust. And satan says to you; ➣ “Oh come on! It won’t hurt you.”
➣ “Do your own thing.”
➣ “You’re a fool if you don’t get all you can.”
➣ “Its alright to lie, steal, cheat, and kill.”
We must not give in at all. Giving in one step leads to a second step, and before we know it, we have caved in and Satan will devour us. He wants the believer to deny his faith and .... to turn away from Christ. The devil wants to DESTROY your TESTIMONY .
The temptation will always be there to turn you away from Christ and His righteousness , And to turn you away from your faith and for you to return to the world and its ways. So what do we do? First remember , we are not fighting against flesh and blood , but against powers and principalities .
We must resist the devil; “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you” (James 4:7). The word “resist” (antistete) means to withstand the devil; to stand firm against him. ✞ “Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God” (Romans 6:13).✞ “There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it” (1 Cor. 0:13). ✞ “Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand” (Ephes. 6:13). Every Christians’s faith will be tried and tested. It is part of God’s plan for His people to learn how to overcome and trust Him in difficulties and challenging times. This does not mean that we are to be fatalistic and accept every negative thing that comes into our lives.
In our own we don’t stand a chance against Satan, but the great thing is we don’t have to stand in our own power, we stand in the Power of Jesus Christ. We have been called to fight the good fight of faith. As Christians we are not to live “stressed-out” and “burned-out” lives. Part of growing spiritually is learning how to cast our care upon God and let Him carry the load. The secret is to be able to release those things to the Lord and to trust Him totally to take care of us. Satan hates Christians because their lives testify to the reality of Jesus. Satan is a coward and bully who attacks people when they are weak and down. And he roams about roaring in anger and cruelty and ferociousness , seeking someone to attack and devour. He is.... ➣ The accuser of our brethren. Rev. 12:10 ➣ The father of lies. John 8:44 ➣ The murderer of the righteous. John 8:44 ➣ The spirit that worketh in the children of disobedience. Ephes. 2:2 ➣ The tempter. Matthew 4:3; 1 Thes. 3:5 ➣ The unclean spirit and wicked one. Matthew 12:43 ➣ The Prince and Ruler of the darkness of this world. Ephes. 6:12; John 12:31; John 14:30; John 16:11; Ephesians 6:12 warns us of Satan and his job description and Satan has his Policy and Procedure book on how to accomplish the job . There are four ways the devil does it in the church : He uses Selfishness, Favoritism, Narrow-mindedness, and Lack of Fellowship. God’s servants are not to be competitors, but co-workers. Selfishness says do it my way or no way. Favoritism says my way is better than your way. Narrow-mindedness says we’ve never done it that way before . Lack of Fellowship says you go your way and I’ll go my way. The devil loves when believers do not fellowship: he loves it when we distance ourselves from each other. There’s strength in numbers. Alone, the gazelle is an easy target for the stalking lion. The devil wants to isolate believers just like predators separate their prey from the herd in so doing weakening it and easily killing and devouring it. Churchgoers are like coals in a fire. When they cling together, they keep the flame aglow; when they separate, they die out. - Billy Graham
Satan is the enemy of every believer. He is committed to doing all he can to discourage, disarm and devastate. He has come to kill , steal and destroy. He launches a counter attack every time someone gives his or her life to Christ. He will camp at your doorstep and attempt to take everything God has given. He will actively challenge every step of faith you endeavor to take and challenge you in your spiritual growth. He is just doing his job.
But be assured that no one can steal your victory in Christ if you do not let them. No one can take your joy in the Lord - if you refuse to relinquish it. No one can eliminate your peace if you refuse to release it. Nothing can hinder you in your spiritual growth if you will not allow it. As believers, we need to remember that the devil is not going to give up his attack, he is going to do his job. Satan desires to keep the believer out of the Word. Simply because the word of God exposes him for what and who he is. It describes his job description and lays out the outline of his job title. God’s word is the truth and Satan deals in deceit. God’s word reveals what Satan attempts to conceal. Satan wants to shake our confidence. He desires to cause us to doubt God. He strives to steal each blessing God gives. He attempts to change our rejoicing and praise into regrets and pity parties. Satan wants us to rationalize away our miracles . But when you understand that he is simply doing his job, his petty prodding will not disturb you. Just remember that he is doing his job. Satan strategically plots to get Christians off course .He wants us to struggle in the storm. But God has already assured us the Storm is passing over. Satan laughs when the faith of a saint is destroyed.He rejoices when the joy of a believer is dashed. Satan succeeds only when we surrender. But when we know God, and not just know about him. When we read the word and not just wait until Sunday morning to hear it now and then; we understand who we belong to and who is our help . When we have that one on one relationship with the boss, those in the company that simply want to cause harm will not be successful. And when troubles come we can say I have seen the lightening flashing, I heard the thunder roll, I have seen sin breakers dashing trying to conquer my soul. But I heard the voice of Jesus, telling me still to fight on. He promised never to leave me nor to forsake me. When we learn to understand that though Satan meant it for our destruction, God means for our elevation.What Satan wants to decrease , God will use to increase. What Satan wants to obliterate God will use to liberate. Where Satan attempts to exhaust God will use to inflate. But as believers, we may become frustrated in life and wonder where God is as life seems to deal one bad hand after another. Though Satan wants us to feel alone, God will never leave us. Sometimes life does not seem fair, but God has already secured our victory. Sometimes the road is rough and the going is tough, and the hills may get hard to climb; but God has already said we will succeed. The sorrow may seem hard to bear, but we are assured that someday there will be no more pain and suffering. The devil wants to destroy us but Jesus, has given us life and life more abundantly! In the 20th chapter of Revelations we are assured satan will be annihilated. 1 And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven, having the key to the Abyss and holding in his hand a great chain. 2 He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil, or Satan, and bound him for a thousand years. 3 He threw him into the Abyss, and locked and sealed it over him, to keep him from deceiving the nations anymore until the thousand years were ended. After that, he must be set free for a short time… 7 When the thousand years are over, Satan will be released from his prison 8 and will go out to deceive the nations in the four corners of the earth--Gog and Magog--to gather them for battle. In number they are like the sand on the seashore. 9 They marched across the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of God’s people, the city he loves. But fire came down from heaven and devoured them. 10 And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever. In our own power we don’t stand a chance against Satan, but the great thing is we don’t have to stand in our own power, we stand in the Power of Jesus Christ. In CONCLUSION:This morning has Satan been working overtime in your life? Has he been able to distract you? Are you discouraged, feeling like you are in the battle alone? Have you become disillusioned and disenchanted? Have your dreams and plans failed ? Is Satan working on you to isolate yourself? Come and let God give you the victory over the devil’s devices. So when Satan comes knocking or jiggles the door simply shout “God , get that for me !” And now may I leave you with a blessing from the great American Philosopher George Carlin who said “May the forces of evil become confused on the way to your house.”
