We are Battling against the Devil (Satan aka Lucifer)
aka J Shannon
In this fallen world, we are clearly battling the Devil, his fallen angelic compatriots known as demons and those human beings he has enlisted in his war against God. There are many scriptures which speak to this reality:
For God formed man to be imperishable; in the image of his own nature, he made him (Genesis 1:26-27). But through the envy of the devil, death entered the world, and they who belong to his company experience it, (Wisdom 2:23-24). And he (Christ) said to them: I saw Satan like lightning falling from heaven, (Luke:10:18). And there was a great battle in heaven, Michael and his angels fought with the dragon, and the dragon fought and his angels: And they prevailed not, neither was their place found any more in heaven, (Revelation 12:7-8). And that great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, who seduces the whole world; and he was cast unto the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him, (Revelation 12:9).
Scripture clearly teaches that Satan was exiled from heaven and now controls the material realm; We know that we are of God, and that the whole world lies in the power of the evil one, (1 John 5:19), through deception (lies) and bribery (enticements), always appearing as an “angel of light”; And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light, (2 Corinthians 11:14-15), meaning, something which appears good when it is actually evil. Consider this; And you he made alive, when you were dead through the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit (the Devil) that is now at work in the sons of disobedience, (Ephesians 2:1-2). Since the 1950’s and the invention of television, this passage has become much easier to understand.
Satan’s goal is to capture/steal souls. In his perpetual war against God, he desires that every human being be sentenced to Hell for eternity. Our Lord Jesus Christ was emphatic about this fact/reality; At that time Jesus said to His disciples, ‘do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of Him (Satan) who is able to destroy both soul and body in Hell.’ (Matthew 10:28-29). In saying this, Our Lord was not suggesting that the Devil is capable of annihilating the soul. We know that human souls are indestructible once created by God. Christ was teaching that the Devil can cause a person to lose salvation, that is, to die the second death (Revelation 2:11, 20:6, 20:14, 21:11).
St. Paul preached about the need to resist everything that is evil; take no part in (have nothing to do with) the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose/rebuke them, (Ephesians 5:11) and also said; Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we are not contending against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers, against the world rulers of this present darkness, against the spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places, (Ephesians 6:11-12). St. Peter, the apostle Jesus appointed to head the Church on earth said; Be sober, 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 experience of suffering is required of your brotherhood throughout the world. (1 Peter 5:8-9).
One of the most specific statements Jesus Christ made about the Devil is the following: 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 according to his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies, (John 8:44). This should be understood as meaning that the calling-card so to speak of the Devil is deception/deceit (by their fruits you shall know them, Matthew 7:16, 20). Christians should understand that Satan uses deception to destroy souls. He also employs bribery by using disordered and prideful human nature against us as he did with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, (Genesis 3). Consider the threefold temptation of Christ by the Devil who at the time was not certain whether Jesus of Nazareth was God in the flesh. Satan thought he might be a very virtuous man who could be corrupted and therefore offered (bribery) things to Jesus that were not his (deception) to give,
Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And he fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterward he was hungry. And the tempter (Devil) came and said to him, ‘If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.’ But he answered, ‘It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds 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 give his angels charge of you,’ and ‘On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone. ’Jesus said to him, Again, it is written, ‘You shall not tempt the Lord your God.’
Then the devil took him to a very high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them; and he said to him, ‘All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.’ Then Jesus said to him, ‘Begone, 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 ministered to him. (Matthew 4:1-11).
King Solomon wrote contrasting the nature and works of God versus those of the Devil; Beware then of useless murmuring and keep your tongue from slander; because no secret word is without result, and a lying mouth destroys the soul. Do not invite death by the error of your life, nor bring on destruction by the works of your hands; because God did not make death, and he does not delight in the death of the living. For he created all things that they might exist, and the generative forces of the world are wholesome (by contrast, the Devil only destroys, creating nothing), and there is no destructive poison in them; and the dominion of Hades is not on earth. For righteousness is immortal, (Wisdom 1:11-15).
St. Augustine in his City of God contrasted the nature and characteristics of God with those of the Devil. In that monumental work he taught that each human being must either become a member of the City of God or the City of the Devil. [1] In the larger metaphysical sense, our free will choice is binary. Just as Lucifer was given a choice to obey and serve God, we must decide, whom we will serve (…As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord, Joshua 24:15). It is either God or the Devil. The characteristics which most identify the Devil are deceit, chaos (disorder), strife, injustice and death, while those associated with God are truth, order, peace, justice and life. [2] As we attempt to navigate this increasingly evil world, it is wise to bear this in mind. These God-given and time-tested principles are invaluable in doing so.
End Notes:
[1] Saint Augustine. The City of God, Book 14, chapter 17.
[2] Reverend Denis Fahey. The Kingship of Christ and Organized Naturalism, chapters 2 and 3.
Selected References:
Augustine, Saint. The City of God, circa 426 AD. The original manuscript contained 22 books. The work referenced here is the combined edition (1958) of a three-volume version first published in 1950 by Image Books under a special arrangement with Fathers of the Church, Inc. The 1958 version was reissued in 2014, edited and abridged by Vernon J. Bourke with a forward by Etienne Gilson, printed by Image Books, an imprint of Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House Company, N.Y. ISBN: 9780385029100.
Fahey, Rev. Denis. The Kingship of Christ and Organized Naturalism, first published, June 1943, reprinted by Angelus Press, Kansas City, Missouri, 2010.