Simply True, The Devil

 The devil is real.

Welcome, today. We are talking about the fact that the Truth is simply true. Truth is. We talked about the reality that Truth just is what it is. Some find it. Some reject it. Some want to make Truth relative. Even some of our churches have started to do this with the devil. They say there is no devil. No Satan.

Well? One of the biggest accomplishments that the devil ever accomplished was convincing the world that he doesn't exist. This is a very true statement. Hollywood would have you believe that the devil if he were real, would be a red wrinkled face, horned head, tail waging, pitchfork-wielding, demon straight from hell.

Why? The reason he wants people to think that he is nothing but a made-up nightmare is simple. If there is no devil. Then there is no sin. If there is no hell. Then there is no reason for a God. If there are no consequences for your actions, then there is no reason for a Saviour. No hell, then no heaven. No devil then no God. No sin. Just do as you will.

As we have discussed in the past, he needs to do nothing to coerce you into doing anything. You are already his. All you have to do is NOT accept the Christ that is Jesus. That's it. Live as you will. Do as you will. There is no need to change a thing.

It's like you, having two one hundred dollar bills in your pocket. I take one, and put it in my pocket, and walk away. Which bill are you thinking about? The one in your pocket? Or the one in mine? Chances are, you are really angry that I took one of your bills. You want it back. You want me to stop taking your bills. You are thinking of ways for me to stop taking your bills. The last thing you are thinking about is the one in your pocket. Why? You already have that one. No. You are concerned with the one that got away from you. By me.

Satan is the same way. He doesn't care about you if you already belong to him. He cares about you once you leave. He will do whatever he can, to make sure that you do not take any more from him. So that's when you really have to be careful.

To attempt to keep more people from leaving, to begin with, he tries to convince many that he doesn't even exist. That is also why the false premise of who and what he is. He is not a demon straight from hell. Truth is, if he was to appear in a church today, as he truly is, many would most likely fall at his feet thinking he was Jesus himself. Isaiah 14 tells us a wealth of information that you may not know.

"“How you are fallen from heaven,

O Day Star, son of Dawn!

How you are cut down to the ground,

you who laid the nations low!

You said in your heart,

‘I will ascend to heaven;

above the stars of God

I will set my throne on high;

I will sit on the mount of assembly

in the far reaches of the north;

I will ascend above the heights of the clouds;

I will make myself like the Most High.’" Isaiah 14:12-14

The first thing you need to realize is that he is called Son of the Dawn or son of the morning. He was the fairest of all the Angels. He is beautiful. He is majestic. He would appear to many as Christ himself. Not some red wrinkled face, horned head, tail waging, pitchfork-wielding, demon straight from hell. But a vision of beauty. He hasn't changed. He is what and who he is.

Second, "I will ascend into heaven." Which means what? If you were to say, I will go into that house, that means you are not there. Right? He said in his heart, I will go into heaven and I will put my throne above God's. He wanted to become God. He was cast down. He failed. A third of the Angels followed him. They failed as well. This, by the way, is the whole reason there even is a hell. For him and his followers. It was never intended for us.

Now we see how Satan works. Does he send you nightmares? Does he get in your face and threaten you? Does he yell and scream? Growl? Nope. He suggests. He whispers. We see this after God created mankind. He was jealous of us. He was the first Angel. He and his followers were God's first creation. They were the ones. Now, because of their disobedience, God started over. That is the gap between Genesis one and two. So in Genesis 3, we see him in action for the first time.

"Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.’” But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate." Genesis 3:1-6

Now again, did Satan make her do it? Nope. Did he make Adam take it and eat it with her? Nope. He lied. But he was calm about it. He fed into what he knows she desired. To be like God. He knew that Adam was the same. And to get Adam to sin, he used Eve.

You see, the devil will not force you to do anything. He will make whatever you desire seem obtainable. He will make something seem right. He will whisper in your ear. He will feed your desire. He will not, however, tempt you with something that has nothing to do with you. I do not do drugs. I do not drink daily. I have been known to have an adult beverage from time to time. Do not misunderstand. I'm not against drinking adult beverages. Neither is God by the way. Jesus drank wine. As a matter of fact, the first miracle Jesus did was turn water into wine at a wedding. The Bible even tells us this.

"No longer drink only water, but use a little wine for the sake of your stomach and your frequent ailments." 1 Timothy 5:23

So I'm not anti-drinking. Neither is the Bible. It is anti-drunk. So please understand what I'm saying here. For someone like me, the devil is not going to show up at my door with a six-pack and some drugs and say "Hey, let's have a party." Do you do drugs? Are you an alcoholic? If so, he may show up at your door with them. But he will not waste his time at mine.

Are you addicted to Porn? If so, you may be walking in the mall. All of a sudden, you may see a girl wearing a see-through top with no bra. Or just a girl walking through the mall wearing next to nothing in general. Now that image is in your head. You go home, turn on the computer, and there you go.

This is how he works. He does not tempt you with things that will not tempt you. He knows you. He knows what buttons to push. He knows how to whisper in your ear, and what to say. He does not FORCE you to do anything. It is still ultimately YOU, who decides to do it or not. To give in or not. To sin or not.

Can he do whatever he wants to you? Nope. Why? Because he is not God. He needs God's permission. Think about that. Look at Job. in Job 2

"Again there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them to present himself before the Lord." Job 2:1

Think about this for a second. There are set days when "The sons of God," remember this is before Jesus came giving us the opportunity to become sons and daughters of God ourselves, had to present themselves before God. In other words, give an account to God, about what they have been doing. Here comes Satan himself. Walking in to present himself before God.

"And the Lord said to Satan, “From where have you come?” Satan answered the Lord and said, “From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking up and down on it.”" Job 2:2

Again, he is not in hell. He is not in heaven. He is in the world. He is on the earth.

"And the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, who fears God and turns away from evil? He still, holds fast his integrity, although you incited Me against him to destroy him without reason.” Job 2:3

Now God knows he was messing with Job. God understands that Satan hates anyone that loves God. Does He say to Satan, "Stop messing with him? He believes in Me and he is Mine?" Nope. He lets Satan answer the question. Satan says this.

"Then Satan answered the Lord and said, “Skin for skin! All that a man has he will give for his life. But stretch out your hand and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse you to your face.”And the Lord said to Satan, “Behold, he is in your hand; only spare his life.”

So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord and struck Job with loathsome sores from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head.""

Satan said, "Put forth YOUR hand now, and touch his bone and flesh." You see, Satan told God to do it. Why? Because Satan can do nothing without God's permission. God said, "Behold, he is in your hand." The only thing God told Satan he could not do, was to take his life. He did not give Satan authority over Job. He said look, he is already in your hand.

That is a powerful Truth. What does that mean? Job, like us, was in the world. He was, as we are, flesh. Remember, God created the world, and gave all authority over it, to us. Adam gave our authority over the world to Satan, in the Garden of Eden. Since then, Satan has become lord over the earth. So the Spirit of Man can become adopted into the Family of God, which means we live forever. However, while in the flesh, in the world, we are in Satan's hand. We are subject to the things in the world and of the flesh. That is why the fruit of the flesh, or the works of the flesh, and mankind's heart, is evil.

Satan goes out and tempts Job. He inflicts his body with sickness and disease, turns his family and friends against him, and does many other things to Job. But Job endures it all, never losing faith, and is highly rewarded for doing such.

Look at Peter. The same Peter was the only other man in recorded history to walk on water. Yes, he did. When they were in the ship and Jesus came walking to them on the water, Peter walked on the water also, until he allowed doubt to creep in and then needed Jesus to save him. According to Matthew 14: 29 This is the same Peter who said to Jesus that he would die for him. He would go to hell with him. The same Peter who cut off the right ear of Malchus, the High Priest's servant, when they came to take Jesus in the garden to crucify Him. Jesus said THIS to Peter in Luke

“Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.” Luke 22:31-32

Imagine that. One of the most faithful people ever to walk the earth. One with Jesus always. That same Peter, Jesus said, Satan wants you. Peter may have been thinking something like Jesus was going to say, I told him no. Don't worry Pete, I got ya back. But he didn't say that. What did he say? I pray that you are strong enough to withstand whatever it is he throws at you. He said, yup. Actually, He most likely said to Satan, "Behold, he is in your hand."

You see, even Jesus himself, while with us, in the flesh, was tempted by Satan. 

"Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. And the tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.”

Notice the first temptation was that of what most people see as a necessity. Food. Jesus was fasting. You could say He was seeking first the Kingdom of God. Doing God's work. Remember, "Seek first the Kingdom of God and all these things will be added onto you?" So Jesus was hungry, and Satan, KNOWING he could tempt Him to break his fast. To turn rocks into food and eat. But Jesus responded...

"But he answered, “It is written,

“‘Man shall not live by bread alone,

but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”

Then the devil took him to the holy city and set him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written,

“‘He will command his angels concerning you,’

and

“‘On their hands, they will bear you up,

lest you strike your foot against a stone.’”

Now as it is written in Romans 8, remember? Nothing can separate us from the Love of God. That nothing can in fact kill us? Not the Spirit. That nothing ever formed can do our Spirit any harm. Also, know this. Satan knows the Word. He was there when it was written. He can quote the Bible chapter and verse. He knows God and has, and continues to, see Him face to face. Does that make him good? Just a side note to my 'holier than thou" friends out there. But Jesus said this...

"Jesus said to him, “Again it is written, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’”

Then this.

"Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. And he said to him, “All these I will give you if you will fall down and worship me.”

Now this one is important to understand. Again, Satan IS the lord of the earth. He told Jesus, I will give you all this, all you have to do is worship me. The promise of riches. A temptation even back then. But he would not be able to tempt Jesus with this if he was not able to deliver. You see Satan can tempt Jesus with all the kingdoms of the world because they belong to him.

"Then Jesus said to him, “Be gone, Satan! For it is written,

“‘You shall worship the Lord your God

and him only shall you serve.’”

Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and were ministering to him." Matthew 4:1-11

Notice a couple of things here. First, who is it that Satan tempts? Is it those who do not know God? Nope. It is the faithful. He doesn't waste his time tempting those that already belong to him. He doesn't have to. Remember what Jesus said to the holier than thou crowd back in the day? Remember what he said to the "religious folks?" The Priests and Scribes. In John 8 he said this.

"Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and I am here. I came not of my own accord, but he sent me. Why do you not understand what I say? It is because you cannot bear to hear my word. 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 does not stand in 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. But because I tell the truth, you do not believe me. Which one of you convicts me of sin? If I tell the truth, why do you not believe me? Whoever is of God hears the words of God. The reason why you do not hear them is that you are not of God.” John 8:42-47

Remember, hell was never intended for man. We get there by choice. By not accepting the gift that God gave the world through Jesus. In Matthew 25, Jesus said this.

"Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:" Matthew 25:41

All you have to do to join Satan and his angels? Simply do not accept the gift. That's it. You can be as religious as you want to be. You can do whatever you chose to do. But if you do not have the key, you can't go through the door. Therefore, Satan has no need to tempt you with anything.

What is the key? Asking God to forgive you for your sins and accepting His gift. Accept Jesus's sacrifice for you. Allow His blood to be your blood. His death to be your death. His resurrection to be your resurrection. He died so that you do not have to. He died so that you may live. All you have to do is accept it. Ask for it. Say this prayer in your own words.

"Oh heavenly Father, Lord God. I am a sinner. I know this. I know there is nothing I can do to change that. But I know you can. I accept Jesus's sacrifice for me. I believe He rose from the dead. I repent my sins. Please send the Spirit of adoption into my life. Help me to get to know the real you. Save me. Please. In the name of Jesus, Amen!"

Now the other thing you need to realize here is this. It took Jesus three times to resist the devil before Satan left Him. Three times. Are you greater than Jesus? Becoming a child of God does not mean, you can now walk on water. That you will sit on your couch and a bucket of money will drop out of the sky and you will coast through life without another care in the world. No. It means Satan will now tempt you to attempt to keep you from leading anyone else away from him. But I've got good news for you. You are NOW a child of God. Being a child of God, you have the power and the authority to resist the devil and all his temptations.

"But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you." James 4:6-7

Now notice this also. "But he gives more grace." in other words, his grace is not sufficient to overcome your Sins. It is MORE than sufficient. It does not say you get only what you can handle. It says you get MORE grace than anything you need. MORE grace than is needed to cover your Sins. All you have to do is resist the devil and he will flee from you.

Again, the Word does not declare that you, now as a child of God will have a free ride. All will be peachy. That you will no longer be tempted by the devil. No, as a matter of fact, Now is the time you will be. However, you have more than enough grace to overcome it. You have God on your side. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. When you successfully overcome the temptations, you will be "perfect, establish, strengthen, settled"

Until next time, God bless, and Jesus IS Lord!