The Unseen – The Truth About Satan

Have you ever been lied to? I know that’s a stupid question, because the obvious answer for all of us is a resounding “YES”! Another stupid question is, have you ever told a lie? Did you say, no? Then you just did.

The truth is, we are all accustomed to lies. As much as we hate being lied to, we justify our own lies when it is convenient to us. We like to categorize lies, like a “little white lie” or there are really bad lies. Sometimes we say, “as long as nobody gets hurt…” But the simple truth is, a lie is a lie. And humanity has been lying to each other since the Fall recorded in Genesis chapter 3.

After God created the world, the garden of Eden and Adam and Eve, we encounter the serpent. Here, Satan, takes over a serpent and speaks with Eve. He uses God’s very words, but he twists them and casts doubt on them. He uses lies to speak to Eve’s heart and creates desires for the forbidden. “How could it be so bad if it looks so good?”

How could Satan turn an innocent person, who never sinned, into a sinner? He crafted a very subtle and alluring lie. He’s pretty good at lying. Jesus called Satan the “Father of Lies” (John 8:44). Since the beginning, every time someone tells a lie, they are following the path that Satan blazed, and it is a path that leads to destruction.

Halloween is a time where evil and darkness are celebrated and made light of, making devils and ghosts seem fun. Here Satan is using one of his old tactics to get people to minimize him and his powers. When he is thought of as a cartoonish character, or a fictional graphic novel villain, then people don’t take him seriously. Some even deny his existence, which he loves.

If he can get people to believe his lies about himself, then he succeeds. And though there are a lot of disturbing images of Satan and demonic activity in Halloween displays and activities, the far more dangerous tactics are the subtle ones where Satan and his minions appear to be something good. The Bible says that Satan appears as “an angel of light” (2 Corinthians 11:13-15).

Like when Satan convinced Eve that the forbidden fruit was something for her good and that she was missing out on self-improvement by not eating it. Satan likes his lies to sound like truth. We need to be critically minded and watchful as we go through this world, knowing that our enemy is trying to trip us up (1 Peter 5:8).

Example of Christ

In Matthew 4, we see that Jesus, having fasted for 40 days in the wilderness, encounters Satan himself in a series of temptations. We learn that Satan is real, he is a tempter, a liar and he attacks when we are most vulnerable.

1 John 2:16 summarizes all categories of temptations in three kinds: lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes and the pride of life. I define each of these as appetites, materialism, and pride. Notice how the three temptations of Christ appealed to these areas.

First Satan tried to use Jesus’ hunger against Him and get Jesus to turn a stone into bread. “Jesus, you the man! You can make a feast out this here stone and eat until you are full, forget this fasting thing man!” He tried to allure Him into using His power for selfish reasons and fulfill an appetite in the wrong way and at the wrong time.

Jesus battled this temptations with the Word of God, quoting Deuteronomy 8:3, “man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.” Or as Samuel said to Saul, “it is better to obey then to sacrifice” (1 Samuel 15:22). Trusting God at His Word and His timing for our life will help us overcome the lust of the flesh temptations. These temptations come in various forms according to our appetites and desires: lust, hunger, body image, meaning, etc. Know the Word of God to battle Satan’s lies.

Secondly, Satan tried to get Jesus to throw himself off the temple mount so that God will send angels to catch Him. This would have demonstrated openly to all of Jerusalem that Jesus was the Son of God and His fame would spread quickly. He was speaking to the pride of life, the temptation that promotes self.

Jesus again uses Deuteronomy to battle against this temptation (Deut 6:16). Essentially saying, don’t try to force God’s hand, don’t twist God’s Word and obligate Him to do something He didn’t say He would do. This is why it is important to know the context of what God’s Word says so we don’t manipulate it and try to manipulate God.

Thirdly, Satan tells Jesus he will give Him the kingdoms of the World if he would bow down to him. Here we see the lust of the eyes, the desire to have what you don’t have. It’s like saying, if I could just have that outfit I’d be really cool. Or, if I get the newest smartphone I’ll have a lot of friends. It’s the temptation that gets you to look at what you don’t have and causes you to be willing to do something you shouldn’t in order to get it.

Jesus once again turns to the Word of God, Deuteronomy 6:13, declaring His loyalty to worship the one true God only. Essential saying, God alone is my satisfaction.

When we see that our enemy is real, that he is a liar and that he uses subtle tactics, we can begin to fight him. Jesus, our supreme example, showed us the way in overcoming temptations. The key is to know the Word of God, to trust God more than the lies and to stand firm during temptations.