Principle IV: The Devil
“According to Christian teachers, the essential vice, the utmost evil, is Pride. Unchastity, anger, greed, drunkenness, and all that, are mere flea bites in comparison: it was through Pride that the devil became the devil: Pride leads to every other vice: it is the complete anti-God state of mind.”
– C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity
introduction
This is a record in regard of the devil, Satan, the serpent, the god of this age, the prince of the power of the air, and the angel that has disguised himself in light. The man and his wife were not alone in the garden. In the created order, humanity was paired with ministers of light and flame in the make of the angels. But regarding the devil, what can we say?
“The accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down.”
– Romans 12:10
deceiver
We see another one at work between humanity and God. The serpent; the one who was judged alongside Adam and Eve. Let us bring to light the history of the serpent as it is laid out before us in the scriptures. This principle is key to our understanding as the supplement truth to the Fall whereby the man and his wife were found in their disobedience. The two were not alone when God called them out from their hiding. The serpent was found guilty all the same.
“The woman said, ‘The serpent deceived me, and I ate.’ So the Lord God said to the serpent: 'Because you have done this, You are cursed more than all cattle, And more than every beast of the field; On your belly you shall go, And you shall eat dust All the days of your life.
– Genesis 3:14
The serpent, in his craftiness, ushered humanity, innocent as they were, into disobedience and guilt through the vehicle of deceit saying to her, “You will not surely die” but he said that they would be like God. The Lord looked to the serpent and cursed the beast because of this deceit by which the man inherited death through his disobedience.
“So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.”
– Revelation 12:9
Let us reason with these events for a moment. There are all sorts of uninspired ideas surrounding Satan’s motive. However, it is a fair question to ask. Why deceive the man and his wife into death and in the same history, he would take a stand against us as our accuser before God? Why draw men into their own corruption and condemnation? What motive would drive the angel to war with the work of God and remove their name from His book of life? I think it’s good to further examine the cause of that contention there between the serpent and the people in the garden. After the two were deceived, God said to the serpent and the woman:
“And I will put enmity Between you [the serpent] and the woman, And between your seed and her Seed;”
– Genesis 3:15
Here she is burdened to contend with the serpent, the devil. Her Seed would war with his seed. The saints make it clear:
“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.”
– Ephesians 6:12
Humanity in the established hierarchy, separated from Christ, exist in a plane lower than that of the angels. It is a wonder David expresses in his psalm. Yet, the introduction to the angel there in the Garden is one of tragedy. Humanity is not alone in creation, and yet here we discover that the one given a higher domain has come to the man to murder him, and blot out His name from the inheritance by deception. We discover that no other enemy is more clearly defined for us as the devil and his lot that had fallen from the heavens.
“And the Lord God said to the woman, ‘What is this you have done?’
The woman said, ‘The serpent deceived me, and I ate.’”
– Genesis 3:13
Therefore,
“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.”
– I Peter 5:8
devour the Child
The devil and his angels alike are counted among the fallen, and were found guilty in sin and disobedience because of their pride against God, and their treachery toward the man and his wife.
“For if God did not spare the angels who sinned, but cast them down to hell and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved for judgment;”
– II Peter 2:5
And,
“The angels who did not keep their proper domain, but left their own abode, He has reserved in everlasting chains under darkness for the judgment of the great day;”
– Jude 1:6
Satan, the angel by design, is introduced then as the persecutor to mankind. His angels, by his charge, have removed themselves from their high place in rebellion and are charged as sinful before God. Satan is the pronounced enemy to the woman and her Seed. The motive is the promise given to humanity by this Seed whom he seeks to devour as all things are to be put under His feet. This is his written cause. The devil is the enemy to the Predetermined Glory, Jesus Christ, Who was known and loved before the foundation of the world.
“And the dragon stood before the woman who was ready to give birth, to devour her Child as soon as it was born.”
– Revelation 12:4
The devil understood the “crown” given to the man in the promises of God. His intent then is to devour the firstborn of creation. He seeks to destroy the inheritor known and loved from beforehand. He would work to sabotage the Logos with a lie. He would blind the world in a veil that humanity would no longer see the light of the knowledge of Christ, and the glory of God given to all people by it.
“But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them.”
– II Corinthians 4:4
Our blindness, and lack of knowledge by the fall is more clearly defined. We can gather that among the heavens there was discontent that led many into war, sin, and judgement. Therefore, the fallen were cast out of heaven.
“Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time.”
– Revelation 12:12
The desire of the devil is evident. He means to be exalted above the Christ promised to humanity. He craves to be the center of worship above the Son of Man.
“Again, the devil took Him [Jesus Christ] up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory.
And he said to Him, ‘All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me.’
Then Jesus said to him, ‘Away with you, Satan! For it is written, “You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.”' ”
– Matthew 4:10
the first are last
However, with this craving for authority over Satan, he was not among those lowly creatures set apart for glory as sons from before the foundation. In his greatness, he was given less.
“For to which of the angels did He ever say: ‘You are My Son, Today I have begotten You’? And again: ‘I will be to Him a Father, And He shall be to Me a Son'? But when He again brings the firstborn [Jesus Christ] into the world, He says: ‘Let all the angels of God worship Him.’”
– Hebrews 1:5,6
And,
“But to which of the angels has He ever said: ‘Sit at My right hand, Till I make Your enemies Your footstool'? Are they not all ministering spirits sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation?”
– Hebrews 1:13,14
The controversy becomes clear between humanity and the serpent. Where one desires the throne, the other is given it in promise by the firstborn of creation. Angels are servants to this cause as ministering spirits.
“She bore a male Child who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron. And her Child was caught up to God and His throne.”
– Revelation 12:5
And,
“Therefore God also has highly exalted Him [Christ] and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
– Philippians 2:9
It then becomes difficult to imagine oneself with a desire so potent as the devil, clothed in the high position of angelic light there kneeling to the Lord’s Anointed, Jesus Christ, glorified.
poison of pride
However, that is the poison of pride and the corruption of arrogance. Here is the seed of the devil. Here evil is epitomized in that one would seek to contradict the purpose established from before the beginning in the Most High. Where the fallen can claim ignorance of God in one sense, here is outright rejection of God’s purpose. He, and all that are his, stand in pride against the Man, Jesus Christ, exalted. In his pride he would seek to devour the Christ and lead the Lord’s inheritance, the bride-to-be, into death and condemnation.
“These six things the Lord hates,
Yes, seven are an abomination to Him:
A proud look,
A lying tongue,
Hands that shed innocent blood,
A heart that devises wicked plans,
Feet that are swift in running to evil,
A false witness who speaks lies,
And one who sows discord among brethren.”
– Proverbs 6:16
No doubt, this description is fitting.
“He [the devil] was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it.”
– John 8:44
And,
“The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy.”
– John 10:10
This is the devil’s purpose laid out. This pride, which persecutes the weak, that binds his weaker brother to suffering, that refuses to do what is right, that denies all knowledge and authority in Christ, and that will much less regard the authority of God in heaven, is sin before God. Here is the parent to those that look to their own way of right in spite of God. He is father to those who forsake God by denying Christ. The devil, and those who deny Christ, take their plow against God’s field.
“A haughty look, a proud heart,
And the plowing of the wicked are sin.”
– Proverbs 21:4
Therefore,
“Pride goes before destruction,
And a haughty spirit before a fall.”
– Proverbs 16:18
Pride in Satan’s position became his poison and he was filled with violence. In refusing the Lord’s Anointed, the devil, known as “the god of this age”, masquerades as a being of light to mankind, blinding them lest the light of Christ, known and loved in God, would shine upon them.
“For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light.”
– II Corinthians 11:14
Arrogance became his corruption and he was led into violence.
“You were the anointed cherub who covers;
I established you;
You were on the holy mountain of God;
You walked back and forth in the midst of fiery stones.
You were perfect in your ways from the day you were created,
Till iniquity was found in you.
By the abundance of your trading
You became filled with violence within,
And you sinned;
Therefore I cast you as a profane thing
Out of the mountain of God;
And I destroyed you, O covering cherub,
From the midst of the fiery stones.
Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty;
You corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor;
I cast you to the ground,
I laid you before kings,
That they might gaze at you.”
– Ezekiel 28:14-17
He has made himself an enemy to the Lord and His cause. Wanting glory for himself, he was rejected for his pride. The devil would sabotage the work. This is the war waged against the woman and her Seed.
“And the dragon was enraged with the woman, and he went to make war with the rest of her offspring, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.”
– Revelation 12:17
This is the war waged against the man, and within humanity, that is, against the will of God for them. And the will of God is Christ glorified, and in Him the people that God made would be caught up with the Anointed One in the heavens into eternal life. Where God intended glory for humanity in what He made, humanity became bound to Satan’s deception. By deceit they inherited death. The accusations of his accuser become weighted chains, and we are poisoned by the sinful desires laid in the heart by this corruption. Within humanity, the seed of the devil is sown.
“Another parable He put forth to them, saying: ‘The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field; but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way… He answered and said to them: He who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. The field is the world, the good seeds are the sons of the kingdom, but the tares are the sons of the wicked one. The enemy who sowed them is the devil, the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are the angels”
– Matthew 13:24-39
Among the work of God, a seed contrary is sown, and in rooting itself in the hearts of men, they each take after the father of it. Paul writes of the dangers of corruption, deception, and all ploys set by the enemy to lead the saints into death, that is, away from Jesus Christ:
“But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted—you may well put up with it!”
– I Corinthians 11
Those that come to deter the saints are called by the same spirit of deception. They are sons of their spiritual father preaching a different gospel, and a different Christ. For when a man appeared to turn people away from the gospel the apostles preached in Christ, Paul said:
“‘O full of all deceit and all fraud, you son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, will you not cease perverting the straight ways of the Lord?’”
– Acts 13:10
And when the religious leaders stood in defiance against Christ and plotted to trap Him, because they refused Him, Christ told them:
“You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do.”
– John 8:44
And even Peter was reprimanded for outright refusing the necessary cost in the life of Christ for misplaced sentiment. The Scriptures say:
“From that time Jesus began to show to His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day.
Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, ‘Far be it from You, Lord; this shall not happen to You!’
But He turned and said to Peter, ‘Get behind Me, Satan! You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men.’”
- Matthew 16:21-23
Let the purpose of God stand, and let His will be done. Satan is poised to corrupt the hope there in Christ for humanity established in the promise of God from before the foundation of the world. It is the spirit that opposes Christ.
“Who is a liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist who denies the Father and the Son.”
– I John 2:22
The devil has purposed himself to corrupt them all by deceit. And Satan labors to disqualify the man by any means as he wars against the testimony of Christ that his own seed would manifest and by death through sin, he would disqualify us.
“In this the children of God and the children of the devil are manifest: Whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is he who does not love his brother. For this is the message that you heard from the beginning, that we should love one another, not as Cain who was of the wicked one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his works were evil and his brother’s righteous.”
– 1 John 3:10
How interesting it is to see the apostle equate the manifest seed as evident in the love one has for his own brother. It is compared to the history of Cain and Able. It is in these two brothers that the crime committed first by the devil was found replicate in Cain who hated his little brother. The seed was manifest as violence followed the embittered hate and resentment. Able understood the sacrifice, and Cain, refusing to do what was right, rose up against his own brother. History repeated itself and the same murder attempted in the garden was committed and the manifestation of the seed of Satan is exposed. Even when God reasoned with Cain saying:
“Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen? If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin lies at the door. And its desire is for you, but you should rule over it.”
– Genesis 4:6
But Able was murdered by his brother, saying to the Lord, “Am I my brother’s keeper?” However, the Lord saw the crime committed and Cain was judged appropriately.
“When you till the ground, it shall no longer yield its strength to you. A fugitive and a vagabond you shall be on the earth.”
– Genesis 4:12
The judgement remains consistent, and we circle back around to the prospect of the wicked who seek their own way and deny God. The labor of the unrighteous bears no fruit nor reward. The ground would forsake Cain’s labor, and he will yield no reward because his works were evil. Where Adam was charged to be fruitful, and branch off, Cain is cursed from Adam’s commission. Cain is cut off and remembered as a son of the devil, a fruitless vine, forsaking God by hating his brother. He outright refused the sacrifice. This is the devil’s seed.
“He who says he Is in the light, and hates his brother, is in darkness until now. He who loves his brother abides in the light, and there is no cause for stumbling in him. But he who hates his brother walks in darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.”
– I John 2:9-11
And even Christ said:
“But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. And whoever says to his brother, ‘Raca!’ shall be in danger of the council. But whoever says, ‘You fool!’ shall be in danger of hell fire. Therefore if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.”
– Matthew 5:22-24
The apostles clarify,
“Whoever hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.”
– I John 3:15
Even to live hateful, embittered, and thinking yourself as better, even against your brother, does not exempt you from the subtlety of becoming a murderer at heart - no different than the devil.
“If someone says, ‘I love God,' and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?”
– I John 4:20
And the work of the unrighteous is made explicit in that the ground became cursed to the one who despised his brother. He became fruitless, having no reward. The devil who deceived the world was cursed to eat dust all the days of his life. Paul pleads with the Church regarding all squabbles between believers saying:
“Now therefore, it is already an utter failure for you that you go to law against one another. Why do you not rather accept wrong? Why do you not rather let yourselves be cheated? No, you yourselves do wrong and cheat, and you do these things to your brethren!”
- I Corinthians 6:7,8
But Paul reminds the Church to be wise and loving to each other, and especially in the sight of unbelievers, saying:
“Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if the world will be judged by you, are you unworthy to judge the smallest matters? Do you not know that we shall judge angels? How much more, things that pertain to this life?”
- I Corinthians 6:2,3
Why risk becoming like the serpent? It is a fine line for the saints to tread.
The one without love bears no fruit. It is a course paved according to the prince of the air, Satan. To those who depart from God it is said by the prophet,
“For he shall be like a shrub in the desert,
And shall not see when good comes,
But shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness,
In a salt land which is not inhabited.”
– Jeremiah 17:6
And,
“The tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore by their fruits you will know them.”
– Matthew 7:19
And even the devil is not spared. As was said concerning his coming judgement:
“The devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.”
– Revelation 20:10
Therefore, we are charged; resist the devil because God resists the proud! Seek the Lord and live.
“But He gives more grace. Therefore He says:
‘God resists the proud,
But gives grace to the humble.’
Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Lament and mourn and weep! Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.”
– James 4:6-10
But what became of Edom, and where is the legacy of Esau, Jacob’s brother? History notes that when a new enemy invaded Israel, Esau watched from the mountains. When enemies took captive the people of God, Edom joined in as captors against Jacob. But God looked down and declared by his prophet Obadiah to Edom:
“For violence against your brother Jacob,
Shame shall cover you,
And you shall be cut off forever.
In the day that you stood on the other side—
In the day that strangers carried captive his forces,
When foreigners entered his gates
And cast lots for Jerusalem—
Even you were as one of them.
But you should not have gazed on the day of your brother
In the day of his captivity;
Nor should you have rejoiced over the children of Judah
In the day of their destruction;
Nor should you have spoken proudly
In the day of distress.
You should not have entered the gate of My people
In the day of their calamity.
Indeed, you should not have gazed on their affliction
In the day of their calamity,
Nor laid hands on their substance
In the day of their calamity.
You should not have stood at the crossroads
To cut off those among them who escaped;
Nor should you have delivered up those among them who remained
In the day of distress.
For the day of the Lord upon all the nations is near;
As you have done, it shall be done to you;
Your reprisal shall return upon your own head.”
– Obadiah 1:15
Listen to the heart of God! He brings into view the things he despises saying, “You should not have gazed on the day of your brother. In the day of his captivity”, “You should not have rejoiced in the day of their destruction”, and “You should not have gazed on their affliction”. It is comparable to what God told Cain in his guilt:
“And He said, ‘What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood cries out to Me from the ground.’”
- Genesis 4:10
For Esau was likewise laid to waste for his arrogance and betrayal against his brother. But the sobering end is this: “As you have done, it shall be done to you”. As was said,
“They have dug a pit before me;
Into the midst of it they themselves have fallen.”
– Psalm 57:6
The seed manifest is of its father and they share the same reward. Like the devil was cast from the mountain of God, it was likewise said to Esau:
“’The pride of your heart has deceived you,
You who dwell in the clefts of the rock,
Whose habitation is high;
You who say in your heart, ‘'Who will bring me down to the ground?’
Though you ascend as high as the eagle,
And though you set your nest among the stars,
From there I will bring you down,’ says the Lord.”
– Obadiah 1:3-4
Pride is the way of evil. It is not ignorance of God obscured in our lack of knowledge, but it is outright rejection of Christ. This pride is deceiving to us because it leads us nowhere, and only death remains.
“The fear of the Lord is to hate evil;
Pride and arrogance and the evil way
And the perverse mouth I hate.”
– Proverbs 8:13
The fall of man then fits within this frame. It helps us understand the context leading to the fall by the consumption of the fruit, as well as the overall effect this separation had in men and angels. It helps us understand the nature of sin by lack of understanding, and the corruption of arrogance in forsaking God, by denying Christ. The apostle admonishes the saints saying:
“In which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others.”
– Ephesians 2:2
Only wrath remain for those who forsake Him, and for those that proceed in unrighteousness. We remain subject to the accusations of the devil, bound as a prisoner to death, and condemned as we forsake God. But when we confess and believe in the Lordship of Christ, we are raised up with Him. So long as we remain stiff necked and stubborn, we remain subject to the accusations. But hope remains for those that seek Him.
“For thus says the Lord God: 'Indeed I Myself will search for My sheep and seek them out. As a shepherd seeks out his flock on the day he is among his scattered sheep, so will I seek out My sheep and deliver them from all the places where they were scattered on a cloudy and dark day.’”
– Ezekiel 34:11
Where is the promise for posterity found? Who is the man who knows His voice and trembles? If the condition of all humanity is fallen; if no one understands the labor of God in mankind; if the Lord has even still given Himself as our reward, and if He alone works to gather what was lost, where then has He hidden his Seed?
“After these things the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision, saying, 'Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward.’”
– Genesis 15:1
For God spoke prophetically to the serpent by the Seed of the woman:
“He shall bruise your head,
And you shall bruise His heel.”
– Genesis 3:15
“What Satan put into the heads of our remote ancestors was the idea that they could ‘be like gods’ - could set up their own as if they had created themselves - be their own masters - invent some sort of happiness for themselves outside God, apart from God. And out of that hopeless attempt has come nearly all that we call human history - money, poverty, ambition, war, prostitution, classes, empires, slavery - the long terrible story of man trying to find something other than God which will make him happy.”
- C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity
