Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. (1 Peter 5:8)
“Americans don’t take Satan seriously. His evil and dark dealings with the culture and lives of people is subtle here. But in Brazil, his work is out in the open. We know he is real.”
These are the words of a friend of mine who was born and raised in Sao Paulo, Brazil. She expressed concern for how “cavalier” we are about evil in the United States.
The Bible has much to say about Satan and how he affects our lives, and he certainly does need to be taken seriously. Here are seven teachings about Satan from the Bible.
7 Facts about Satan from the Bible
Learn what the Bible actually says about Satan, or "the devil," and what Christians should know about the enemy of mankind.
"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)
1. Satan is real.
Ezekiel 28:11-19 is a dual prophecy describing both the king of Tyre and Satan himself.
- He was the model of perfection, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty.
- He was in Eden, the garden of God, with clothing adorned with every precious stone, all beautifully crafted specifically for him and set in the finest gold.
- He was ordained and anointed by God as the mighty heavenly angelic guardian.
- He had access to the mountain of God.
- He was blameless in everything he did from the day he was created until the day that unrighteousness was found in him.
- His heart was proud because of his beauty, and he corrupted his wisdom for the sake of his splendor.
“Son of man, take up a lament concerning the king of Tyre and say to him: ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: “ ‘You were the seal of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone adorned you: carnelian, chrysolite and emerald, topaz, onyx and jasper, lapis lazuli, turquoise and beryl. Your settings and mountings were made of gold; on the day you were created they were prepared. 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. You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created till wickedness was found in you. 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, guardian cherub, from among the fiery stones. 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. 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. All the nations who knew you are appalled at you; you have come to a horrible end and will be no more.’ ” (Ezekiel 28:12-19 NIV)
2. Satan is a fallen angel.
Lucifer
There are five “I will” statements in the passage below, revealing Satan’s pride, arrogance, and desire to sit on a throne higher than God. Lucifer’s sin got him thrown out of heaven.
“How you are fallen from heaven, O star of the morning [Lucifer], son of the dawn! You have been cut down to earth, You who have weakened the nations! But you said in your heart, I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God. And I will sit on the mount of assembly in the recesses of the north. I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself above the Most High.” (Isaiah 14:12-14, NASB)
Anointed Cherub
“You were the anointed cherub [the highest order of angel] who covers, and I placed you there. You were on the holy mountain of God; You walked in the midst of the stones of fire.” (Ezekiel 28:14, NASB)
3. Satan is the tempter.
“Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted there by the devil.” (Matthew 4:1, NLT)
“And the tempter came and said to Him, “If you are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.” (Matthew 4:3)
“Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” (1 Peter 5:8)
4. Satan has some power.
“But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, ‘This man casts out demons only by Beelzebul the ruler of the demons.’” (Matthew 12:24, NASB)
“And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience.” (Ephesians 2:1-2, NASB)
“Satan, who is the god of this world, has blinded the minds of those who don’t believe. They are unable to see the glorious light of the Good News. They don’t understand this message about the glory of Christ, who is the exact likeness of God.” (2 Corinthians 4:4, NLT)
In his Christianity.com article, J. Warner Wallace reminds that although Satan has power, he is still subject to God’s ultimate power.
“Even with all his power and energy, Satan is still subordinate to God,” Wallace said. “God alone is ‘Most High.’ While Satan is clearly the center of all evil in the Universe and controls much of what goes on here on earth, he has no power over those who have given [themselves] to God and have trusted in God’s Son. [They] are protected from this source of evil by the true God [they] worship (Psalm 121:5-9).”
5. Satan is the evil one – the enemy.
Whether or not we're fully aware of it, Satan is our enemy. He opposes God and all of God’s people. He is behind every evil scheme on this planet—idolatry, cults, false religions. Still desperate to be worshipped, he wants to destroy God’s Kingdom, and he knows his time is limited.
“When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart.” (Matthew 13:19, NASB)
6. Satan is a thief.
“The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.” (John 10:10, NLT)
7. Satan is a serpent and a dragon who will be defeated.
“The serpent was the shrewdest of all the wild animals the Lord had made.” (Genesis 3:1, NLT)
“This great dragon—the ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, the one deceiving the whole world—was thrown down to the earth with all his angels.” Revelation 12:9, NLT)
“He seized the dragon –that serpent, who is the devil, Satan—and bound him in chains for a thousand years.” (Revelation 20:2, NLT)
“And the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are also; and they will be forever tormented day and night forever and ever.” (Revelation 20:10, NASB)
Allyson Holland is a freelance writer and lifestyle blogger (allysonholland/blog.com). She writes for Publishous.com, Koinonia.com, and Crosswalk.com, and has been a guest author for Bible.org. She and John have been married for 31 years and have five grown children. John and Ally serve together as leaders in the marriage ministry Re-Engage at Watermark Community Church, Dallas, Texas. Ally served as a director of ministry to women for several years as well as serving as a board member for Thrive Ministry (thriveministry.org). She suffers from RSD/CRPS. She is passionate about the redemptive work God can do in the lives of those who suffer with physical and emotional pain. You can connect with Ally on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest.
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