Author: Disciples Church

Saturday Study

Post author By Disciples Church
Post date January 25, 2020

Saturday Study

Satan (1-25-2020)

Q21. Who is Satan?

Satan opposes God as the chief of all fallen angels by deceiving, tempting, and lying. Satan only has the access and ability that God permits him.

The Hebrew word for Satan basically means “adversary.” 1 Kings 22:21-22 and 2 Chronicles 18:20-21 refer to him as a “a lying spirit”. In the New Testament, the term Satan or Devil means “evil one.”

Satan’s Fall:

Satan was created at the same time all the other angels were created, and because God said that His creation was good, we can infer that Satan had not yet fallen. Originally created as a chief angel at the level of Michael the archangel (Jude 9), he was the first of the angels to rebel and was promptly thrown out of heaven along with the myriads of fallen angels who followed his lead.

Satan now rebelliously leads a band of evil angels (Matthew 25:41; Revelation 12:9). Although he is an angel of darkness, he disguises himself as an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:14). This means he likely doesn’t look like we often portray him; remember he is the master deceiver. We must also remember that Satan is an angel and nothing more. He is a lying, evil spirit.

Please don’t dismiss him, because he is real. Satan is spoken of more often in Scripture than all of the other evil angels combined, and of the twenty-nine references in the Gospels, Jesus speaks of him twenty-five times.

Satan is referred to as “the prince of demons” (Matthew 12:24), the undisputed ruler of a host of evil spirits that inhabits the cosmos as surely as humanity inhabits planet earth.

Satan is “the prince of the power of the air” (Ephesians 2:2), which includes all unregenerate humanity and all fallen angels.

Satan is “the god of this world” (2 Corinthians 4:4), the whole world order that rejects the Creator and substitutes the creature.

Speaking to unregenerate people, Jesus said in John 8:44 (NASB), “You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies.”

John later adds:

1 John 3:8 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.

The Power of Satan:

Satan’s power is equal to Michael’s, the archangel, and no human conceived of man has the supernatural power that belongs to Satan.

Scripture tells us that Satan is powerful in the heavens (1 Kings 22:19-23, 2 Chronicles 18:18-22) and on the earth (Job 1:7, 1 Peter 5:8), he rules the world’s sinful system (John 12:31, 14:30, 16:11; Ephesians 6:12, Revelation 13:2, 4-5, 7), and Satan constantly accuses believers before God (Revelation 12:10).

In Scripture, Satan is given many titles that help us have a better insight into his work. Let’s look at those as a way of seeing the depth of how truly evil Satan is.

The Work of Satan:

Name	Meaning	Citation
Satan	Adversary	Matthew 4:10
Devil	Slanderer	Matthew 4:1, Revelation 20:10
Evil One	Intrinsically Evil	Matthew 5:37, John 17:15, Ephesians 6:16
Great Red Dragon	Destructive Creature	Isaiah 27:1, Revelation 12:3, 7, 9
Serpent of Old	Deceiver in Eden	Revelation 12:9
Abaddon	Destruction	Revelation 9:11
Apollyon	Destroyer	Revelation 9:11
Adversary	Opponent	I Peter 5:8
Beelzebul	Lord of the Fly	Matthew 12:24
Belial	Worthless	2 Corinthians 6:15
God of This World	Controls philosophy of the world	2 Corinthians 4:4
Ruler of This World	Rules world system	John 12:31
Prince of the Power of the Air	Controls unbelievers	Ephesians 2:2
Enemy	Opponent	Matthew 12:28
Tempter	Solicits people to sin	Matthew 4:3
Murderer	Leads people to eternal death	John 8:44
Liar (Father of Lies)	Perverts the truth	John 8:44
Accuser	Opposes believers before God	Zechariah 3:1, Rev 12:10
Lucifer	Day Star	Isaiah 14:12

To focus in on the work of Satan, turn with me to Genesis chapter 3.

Genesis 3:1(NIV) 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 really say, ‘You must not eat any of the fruit in the garden’?”

1-Satan attempts to distort, or deny, the truth of God’s word.

Genesis 3:2-4 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.”

2-Satan attempts to blur the consequences of sin.

Genesis 3:5 “For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

3- Satan attacks how we trust and view God.

Satan also uses things like:

doubt—questioning God’s word and his goodness.

discouragement—looking at your problems rather than at God.

diversion—the wrong things seem attractive so that you will want them more than right things.

defeat—feeling like a failure so that you don’t even try.

delay—putting off doing something good and God-honoring so that it never gets done.

Satan wants nothing more than to offer up the trap, baiting us with wealth, pleasure, fame, acceptance, and so on. This is why the scriptures are clear to tell us, in 1 Peter 5:8, to “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.

The Limitations of Satan:

Praise God that Satan is not unleashed and out of control. He is under the sovereign authority of God Almighty.

What we must understand is, Satan is not a formidable foe of God’s. God and Satan are not on an even playing field, engaged in the cosmic battle of all battles. You may have seen modern pictures portraying Satan and Jesus arm wrestling. This is nonsense; this is unbiblical.

Colossians 1:16 For by him [Jesus] all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities …

In Job, we read that Satan only did what God allowed him to do to Job.

Satan is not omniscient. Nowhere in Scripture does it give Satan the power to read minds nor to know anything exhaustively. Satan is on a leash with his power. God limits how far Satan can go and what he can do to Job. We should see the sovereignty of God in this, and also see that nothing comes to us without the express permission of God.

God promised the defeat of Satan in Genesis 3:15; and on the cross, Jesus conquered sin and death on behalf of the redeemed people of God. Amen!

While you and I are still at war with ti work of the flesh, and the temptation of sin, and the powers of darkness, we are claimed and secured in the victory of Jesus Christ!

We fear no one but God. We need to remember God is sovereign—Satan is not!

The Judgment of Satan:

One thing Satan has been, and forever will be, good at is being judged and condemned by God.

Satan’s Original Judgment:

Ezekiel 28:15-16 You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created, till unrighteousness was found in you. In the abundance of your trade you were filled with violence in your midst, and you sinned; so I cast you as a profane thing from the mountain of God, and I destroyed you, O guardian cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire.

Satan’s Edenic Judgment:

Genesis 3:14-15 The Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, cursed are you above all livestock and above all beasts of the field; on your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life. I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.”

Satan’s Calvary Judgment:

In John 19:30, Jesus cries out, “It is finished”. (John 12:31, 16:11, 19:30)

This is the final blow to sin and death on behalf of God’s elect. This is a fulfillment of God’s promise to defeat Satan on behalf of His people.

In John’s first letter he says:

1 John 3:8 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.

Satan’s Eternal Judgment:

Revelation 20:9-10 And they marched up over the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city, but fire came down from heaven and consumed them, and 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.

With all of this in view, let us remember who we are in Christ—victorious and secure by God’s power. We are more than conquerors.

Listen to John’s words to the church:

1 John 2:13-14 I am writing to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. I write to you, children, because you know the Father. I write to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I write to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one.

1 John 4:4 Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.

With that said, we are at war and therefore we must stay alert.

Ephesians 6:12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.

We must “be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” 1 Peter 5:8

Maybe the best, and simplest, scripture encouragement comes to us from the letter of James.

James 4:7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

And though this world with devils filled
Should threaten to undo us,
We will not fear, for God hath willed
His truth to triumph through us.
The Prince of Darkness grim,
We tremble not for him.
His rage we can endure,
For, lo, his doom is sure.
One little word shall fell him.

—Martin Luther, “A Mighty Fortress is Our God”

By His grace and for His glory,

Pastor Joshua Kirstine

Disciples Church

Scripture

Satan

Post author By Disciples Church
Post date January 24, 2020

Revelation 20:1-10
The Thousand Years
20:1 Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key to the bottomless pit¹ and a great chain. 2 And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, 3 and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he might not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were ended. After that he must be released for a little while.
4 Then I saw thrones, and seated on them were those to whom the authority to judge was committed. Also I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. 5 The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended. This is the first resurrection. 6 Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years.
The Defeat of Satan
7 And when the thousand years are ended, Satan will be released from his prison 8 and will come out to deceive the nations that are at the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them for battle; their number is like the sand of the sea. 9 And they marched up over the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city, but fire came down from heaven² and consumed them, 10 and 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.
Footnotes
[1] 20:1 Greek the abyss; also verse 3

[2] 20:9 Some manuscripts from God, out of heaven, or out of heaven from God
(ESV)

Scripture

Satan

Post author By Disciples Church
Post date January 23, 2020

1 Peter 5:1-13
Shepherd the Flock of God
5:1 So I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed: 2 shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight,¹ not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you;² not for shameful gain, but eagerly; 3 not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock. 4 And when the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory. 5 Likewise, you who are younger, be subject to the elders. Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”
6 Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, 7 casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. 8 Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. 9 Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world. 10 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. 11 To him be the dominion forever and ever. Amen.
Final Greetings
12 By Silvanus, a faithful brother as I regard him, I have written briefly to you, exhorting and declaring that this is the true grace of God. Stand firm in it. 13 She who is at Babylon, who is likewise chosen, sends you greetings, and so does Mark, my son.
Footnotes
[1] 5:2 Some manuscripts omit exercising oversight

[2] 5:2 Some manuscripts omit as God would have you
(ESV)

Scripture

Satan

Post author By Disciples Church
Post date January 22, 2020

Matthew 4:1-17
The Temptation of Jesus
4:1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3 And the tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” 4 But he answered, “It is written,

  “‘Man shall not live by bread alone,
    but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”

5 Then the devil took him to the holy city and set him on the pinnacle of the temple 6 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.’”
7 Jesus said to him, “Again it is written, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’” 8 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. 9 And he said to him, “All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.” 10 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.’”

11 Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and were ministering to him.
Jesus Begins His Ministry
12 Now when he heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew into Galilee. 13 And leaving Nazareth he went and lived in Capernaum by the sea, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali, 14 so that what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:

15   “The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali,
    the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles—
16   the people dwelling in darkness
    have seen a great light,
  and for those dwelling in the region and shadow of death,
    on them a light has dawned.”
17 From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”¹
Footnotes
[1] 4:17 Or the kingdom of heaven has come near
(ESV)

Scripture

Satan

Post author By Disciples Church
Post date January 21, 2020

Job 2:1-13
Satan Attacks Job’s Health
2:1 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. 2 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.” 3 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.” 4 Then Satan answered the LORD and said, “Skin for skin! All that a man has he will give for his life. 5 But stretch out your hand and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse you to your face.” 6 And the LORD said to Satan, “Behold, he is in your hand; only spare his life.”
7 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. 8 And he took a piece of broken pottery with which to scrape himself while he sat in the ashes.
9 Then his wife said to him, “Do you still hold fast your integrity? Curse God and die.” 10 But he said to her, “You speak as one of the foolish women would speak. Shall we receive good from God, and shall we not receive evil?”¹ In all this Job did not sin with his lips.
Job’s Three Friends
11 Now when Job’s three friends heard of all this evil that had come upon him, they came each from his own place, Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite. They made an appointment together to come to show him sympathy and comfort him. 12 And when they saw him from a distance, they did not recognize him. And they raised their voices and wept, and they tore their robes and sprinkled dust on their heads toward heaven. 13 And they sat with him on the ground seven days and seven nights, and no one spoke a word to him, for they saw that his suffering was very great.
Footnotes
[1] 2:10 Or disaster; also verse 11
(ESV)