According to a cartoon in the Atlanta Journal Constitution, God and the devil are discussing who gets to welcome Michael Jackson to the afterlife. The cartoon shows Satan holding a newspaper with a headline announcing Jackson’s death. He looks up and poses a question to God, who is leaning over a cloud to listen, “Shall we flip a coin?” the devil asks.
In Dante’s Inferno, the poet describes Satan as living in the deepest recesses of hell. He is there as a three mouthed beast, chewing on Judas, the betrayer of Jesus Christ, along with Brutus and Cassius, the traitors who assassinated Julius Caesar.
Burt Ross, who recently lost $5 million to Bernie Madoff, said the following: “May Satan grow a fourth mouth where Bernard L. Madoff deserves to spend the rest of eternity.”
When discussing Satan, I don’t want you to be like the two boys walking back home from church. They had just heard the pastor preach a strong message on the devil when the one boy said, “What do you think about all this Satan stuff?” The other boy replied, “You know how Santa Clause turned out. It’s probably just your dad.”
If you believe the Bible to be true, then you accept Satan. Through the pages of the Bible, he is described as the Dragon, The Ruler of this Age, the adversary, the accuser, Beelzebub, or the Devil. These titles give Satan a poignant expression to his evil character. Simply put, when we think of evil, we see the work of Satan himself. Indeed, he is the embodiment of evil itself and Satan is the supernatural enemy of God.
Today we are nearing the end of a journey through Peter’s first letter. In doing so, we are going to give a close look at Satan who Peter describes as a roaring lion ready to devour. Peter’s words are not intended to be a classroom lecture prepared to entertain us with amusing details of Satan. Instead, Peter tells us that we will always be at war. Retreat is impossible. Arm yourselves. A crucial way to arm yourself is to recognize some tendencies that crop up when people often think of the devil.
There are two equal and opposite errors into which our race can fall about the devils. One is to disbelieve in their existence. Nineteen of the twenty-seven books of the New Testament refer to Satan with another four more speaking of demons. The other is to believe, and to feel an excessive and unhealthy interest in them.
I believe in Satan. I believe in Satan because I believe in Jesus. If Satan is our mythological holdover from a pre-scientific age, then the life-long struggle of our Lord Jesus was mere shadow-boxing. Take Satan and his forces out of the Gospels, and Jesus is left like a fool punching the air.
“Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for ‘God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.’ Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world. And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. To him be the dominion forever and ever. Amen” (1 Peter 5:5b-11)
TODAY’S BIG IDEA: Stand Alert Against the Schemes of Satan.
The jaws of a satanic lion are crushing Christians in order to destroy them. Peter warns us to be alert. Peter warns us to be sober.
1. Who is Satan?
1.1. Satan Lies
“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 has nothing to do with 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” (John 8:44).
1.2 Satan Blinds
“In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God” (2 Corinthians 4:4). Satan not only speaks what is false, he hides what is true.
1.3 Satan Deceives
Major William Martin, a British citizen, was buried near the southern coast of Spain. Martin never knew the great contribution he made to the Allied success in the Second World War, especially in Sicily, because he died of pneumonia in the foggy dampness of England before he ever saw the battle front. The Allies had invaded North Africa. The next logical step was Sicily. Knowing the Germans calculated this, the Allies determined to outfox them. One dark night, an Allied submarine came to the surface just off the coast of Spain and put Martin’s body out to sea in a rubber raft with an oar. In his pocket were secret documents indicating the Allied forces would strike next in Greece. Major Martin’s body washed ashore, and Axis intelligence operatives soon found him, thinking he had crashed at sea. They passed the secret documents through Axis hands all the way to Hitler’s headquarters. While Allied forces moved toward Sicily, thousands and thousands of German troops moved on to Greece – where the battle wasn’t.
“For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. 14 And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. So it is no surprise if his servants, also, disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. Their end will correspond to their deeds” (2 Corinthians 11:13-15)
Director Mel Gibson explained he used a veiled female figure to portray evil in the Passion of the Christ. Evil “takes on the form of beauty,” Gibson said. Satan has servants who profess enough truth to join the church and from inside teach what Paul calls in 1 Timothy 4:1 “doctrines of demons.” Jesus says they will be like wolves in sheep’s clothing (Matt. 7:15). Acts 20:30 says they will not spare the flock, but will draw people away to destruction.
1.4 Satan Tempts
“But I am afraid that as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts will be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ” (2 Corinthians 11:3). This is what Satan did to Judas in the last hours of his life. “And these are the ones along the path, where the word is sown: when they hear, Satan immediately comes and takes away the word that is sown in them” (Mark 4:15).
1.5 Satan Accuses
“And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God” (Revelation 12:10).
2. Why is Satan Allowed to Exist?
This is a legitimate question. Satan causes so much hurt. He destroys people of their faith. He causes some sickness and disease. He tempts people to sin. He even blinds the minds of unbelievers. One day God will stop Satan from doing all of this. Yet, many people want to know, why doesn’t God stop Satan now? Or 1,000 years ago? Why does God continue tolerate Satan?
Is Jesus stronger than the Devil? Yes, He is ten million times stronger than the devil. When huge pain comes into your life — like divorce, or the loss of a precious family member, or the dream of wholeness shattered — it is good to have a few things settled with God ahead of time. The reason for this is not because it makes grieving easy, but because it gives focus and boundaries for the pain.
“the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever” (Revelation 20:10)
“For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him” (Colossians 1:16)
“And there was a woman who had had a disabling spirit for eighteen years. She was bent over and could not fully straighten herself. When Jesus saw her, he called her over and said to her, ‘Woman, you are freed from your disability.’ And he laid his hands on her, and immediately she was made straight, and she glorified God. … And ought not this woman, a daughter of Abraham whom Satan bound for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath day” (Luke 13:11-13, 16)?
This lady was bent over backwards with pain. And Satan was doing it. You may disagree with God and how He runs the universe. If you are deliberate in your rejection of God’s superior wisdom and you want to continually argue with God… You will reject the Bible and you will perish in Hell. Yet, I choose to trust his management of Satan though at times, it is a mystery to me. The glory of God and Christ shines more brightly when we are seen to be adore, worship and find tremendous pleasure in Christ in spite of Satan’s torments.
Jesus Christ has already defeated Satan on the cross. The cross was Jesus’ fatal blow to Satan. Satan wobbles to the floor of the ring waiting the ten count. According to God, this plan is superior than if we had Satan’s torments removed and liked Jesus because of it.
3. So Are God and Satan Playing a Game?
“Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world” (1 Peter 5:8-9)
The roaring of the lion is Satan’s power to cause suffering. It is Satan’s avenue to destroy our faith. Remember that Peter writes to a people who are suffering because of their faith. The hardest thing about suffering is that it can overwhelm your faith with fear and pain. It can destroy your faith as you doubt whether God even cares. Or that He has any power to help, or that He even exists. That’s exactly what Satan wants to happen, and that’s why Peter says the lion is roaring.
Four Things You Should Never To Do:
1. Never despair that this evil world is out of God’s control.
2. Never give in to the sense that because of random evil life is absurd and meaningless.
3. Never yield to the thought that God sins, or is ever unjust or unrighteous in the way he governs the universe.
4. Never doubt that God is totally for you in Christ
Resist this lion of despair and doubt because Christians everywhere are in this fight of suffering. The roaring jaws of the lion are the sufferings of the saints, designed by Satan for their devouring. “Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and for ten days you will have tribulation. Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life” (Revelation 2:10).
In other words Satan will throw some in prison so that some die there. But if they are faithful unto death, they will live forever — or as Peter says here in verse ten, they will be “perfected, confirmed, strengthened and established.” Which means that successfully resisting the devil does not mean that he can’t kill you. It only means he can’t do you any ultimate harm. He can only kill you. And he can’t do that without God’s permission.
Didn’t I say in the past sermons that the suffering of Christians is the judgment of God? “Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name. For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God” (1 Peter 4:16-17)? So the suffering of Christians is God’s purifying judgment. But now I am saying that suffering is Satan’s attack.
Which is Suffering? Is it the Judgment of God or the Jaws of the lion? The answer is: it’s both. It was both in the life of Job (cf. Job 1:12, 21; 2:7, 10), and it was both in the life of Paul. Paul says his “thorn in the flesh” was given to him to keep him humble (implied, by God). But he calls it a “messenger of Satan” (2 Corinthians 12:7). If God is sovereign over all things, including Satan, which He is, then God has a different design than Satan does. When Christians suffer, the devil’s design is destructive pain. But God’s design — in the very same suffering — is constructive purification and holiness and power. The devil aims to devour while God aims to empower and purify and prepare for glory.
Again, you ask, “Is this just a Game?” A few minutes ago, I asked, “Is Jesus stronger than the devil?” And I answered my question by saying that Jesus is at least ten million times stronger than the devil. As Revelation 2:10 points out, God tests us as the devil attempts to destroy us. There are a thousand things that God is doing every time something painful happens to you. Most of these you do not know or understand. Job, Joseph, and Esther did not know what God was doing in their losses. But there is always one thing you can know God is doing when pain comes into your life. This is something you can settle with God ahead of time. He is always testing you. If the test leads to your death, as it did for some of the Christians in Smyrna, Jesus wants you to know something ahead of time.
“You will receive the crown of life.” That means he will raise you from the dead and will crown you with the kind of everlasting joy in His presence that will make up for your loses ten-thousand-fold. Passing the test means loving God to the very end. Loss and pain are coming into your life, but Jesus is infinitely stronger than the devil. So even if the devil is causing it, as he did in Smyrna, Jesus is letting it happen. One of those reasons is always testing, namely, the testing of our faith and our love for him.
Conclusion:
Notice the apparent contradiction in the following verses: “Then Satan entered into Judas called Iscariot, who was of the number of the twelve. He went away and conferred with the chief priests and officers how he might betray him to them. And they were glad, and agreed to give him money. So he consented and sought an opportunity to betray him to them in the absence of a crowd.” (Luke 22:3-6).
In order that Jesus might be crucified, Jesus preplanned that Satan would enter Judas in order for Judas to betray Jesus. We know of Jesus’ preplanning because the OT predicts Judas’ betrayal. Nevertheless, Jesus came to destroy something. “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” (1 John 3:8). In order for Jesus to destroy the works of the devil, which is sin, Jesus used the devil’s work against him in his own destruction. The night Jesus was arrested, satanic power was in full force (Luke 22:31). And Jesus spoke into that situation one of His most controlling (sovereign) words: He said to those who came to arrest him in the dark, “Have you come out as against a robber, with swords and clubs? When I was with you day after day in the temple, you did not lay hands on me. But this is your hour, and the power of darkness” (Luke 22:52-53).
The jaws of the lion close on me tonight no sooner and no later than my Father planned. “No one takes [my life] from me, but I lay it down of my own accord” (John 10:18). Satan, you have one hour. What you do, do quickly. God’s glory in the salvation of His people is that He has Satan commit Suicide.
