There is one main truth that you must remember about our adversary, one thing that you will hear me mention numerous times over the course of this series, one that I would ask you to always keep in mind, you cannot defeat our adversary. If you resist him, he will flee from you, (James 4:7) the armor of God (Eph. 6:11-24) will allow you to stand in the evil day, but you cannot damage him, you cannot bind him, you cannot defeat him. If you try you will fail.
We are speaking here of the most powerful being ever created by God Almighty, and if Michael the arch angel dared not bring a railing accusation against him, (Jude 1;9) what possible hope could a mere mortal man, even well versed in the Word and wearing the whole armor of God have against him. We are not to fear him, but we must respect him. One of the purposes that the man of God is to fulfil in his earthly walk with our Lord is the fight against principalities and powers. (Eph. 6:12) This battle infers an exterior enemy, an enemy that does not reside within any true believer of the Lord Jesus Christ, for no one who has the Holy Spirit of God within them can also have a demon inside of them. Our internal battle is against our own sins, and though Christians can be influenced by demonic forces, they cannot take up residence within us.
We are sealed by the Most-High God, and that seal cannot be broken by any of our adversary’s accomplices, not even by Satan himself. This does not make the battle any less real, for though we have the power of the Living God within us to stand against this enemy of our souls in the spiritual realm, he already has one great advantage over us, he and his forces are not only able to work in the spiritual realm, but also the physical, the realm of the visible world. This physical realm contains many opportunities for him, for he is the prince of this world, (John 14:30) and I believe it would surprise many of us just how much power and influence our Lord has allowed him to yield.
A subject that we will touch on further in this series is that of demonic possession, the ability of demons to enter into and control the actions of men, even animals. Here is where we discover that not all of them throw their hosts into the fire, (Mark 9:22) gives them the abilities to break chains, (Luke 8:29) or force them to live in graveyards. (Mark 5:3) Spiritual darkness in high places means just that, demonic control, whether externally or by internal possession of human beings in high ranking positions in our worlds system of governance and control.
Our adversary has many names, and these also we will search out, not so that we will know the names themselves, but the attributes that caused the names to be given. The significance of these names will show us the powers and abilities that Satan has been granted and limited to by God. They will help us to understand the purposes of his desires, the reasoning behind his actions, the substance behind his beginnings and ultimate demise. Everything has a beginning, only the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are eternal, without beginning or end, and if we are to know everything we can about our adversary, we must locate his beginning. We will glean no references from Milton or Dante, no writer of ancient or current prose will be our guide, no paintings by the masters of old that held incredible talents in their art can depict our adversary in his fullest form, for this we will use the truths of God’s Word only. I will express no personal opinions, my conjectures and theories will be no more than any man of God would want to give who has a desire to lift up the name of Jesus, and so they should be trusted no more than that, the Word of God is the only ultimate truth.
To glorify God is the sole purpose of the life of a man, and part of the fulfilment of that purpose is to hate sin, and so, let us begin our study with the first one who sinned, our adversary.
God created Lucifer without sin, he was the anointed cherub that covered, perfect in his ways, (Ezek. 28:14-15) he was the son of the morning, (Isa. 14:12) he was full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. (Ezek. 28:12) The most powerful, beautiful, wisdom filled creation of God, and as all of creation was, he was made to glorify God and for God’s pleasure. We are not told if he was the first of God’s creation, nor are we told what kind of controlling power he had, if any, either over angels or any other part of creation. We do not know what his specific duties were beyond being the covering cherub, to rest, as it were, over the very throne of God himself.
Herein though we must look at a point of conjecture, for though we know that iniquity was found in him, (Ezek. 28:15) we are not told of the very first thought of Lucifer that began within his mind the initial beginnings of sin. Iniquity yes, pride yes, but in what form of thought. We can be assured of only one thing, I believe that first thought included the word “I,” and in a way that did not include God. It is one thing to think on the sins of a man my friends but ponder if you will the first thought of sin in the very presence of God Himself, what audacity! Our Lord in His infinite wisdom, knowledge and eternal view then allowed these thoughts to continue, to come to fruition, to go on through a timeline that is still occurring even as you read this.
God did not create evil, He created beings capable of free will, of choosing the paths of their own lives, but equipped also with the knowledge of the consequences of their actions. Was Lucifer aware of the fate that awaited him when this first thought entered into his mind, did he try to deny it within himself, perhaps more than once trying to throw it out of his thoughts, knowing full well that it was wrong, that it was his Holy creator that he was to serve. Did the word “serve” become a disgusting notion he began to despise, how long were the fleeting feelings of contempt for the one who made him in his thoughts before he finally acquiesced to them, and iniquity was found in him.
Did our Lord create the lake of fire before or after Lucifer sinned?
Sin began in heaven, sin began in Lucifer, and our Lord watched as it occurred. O, what a merciful God we have. “The end of all flesh is before me,” (Gen. 6:13) and so all that had breath were destroyed, save those in the ark. Who can know the mind of God, who can fully see His plans, in the mind of God only will you find the reason to allow the most perfect being ever created the ability to continue in an existence that would bring so much sorrow to our Lord, even unto the death of His own Son on the cross. Sin began in heaven in the mind of Lucifer, it will end in the lake of fire, but until that time, Gods plans are perfect in their design, as is all that He does.
In a way that we may never truly comprehend, that first thought of Lucifer was known to our Lord long before He created him, and has caused the reason for this letter to you, the series on our adversary, and the battle we are to be enjoined in. If you do not stand in the power of the Lord against our adversary, you will fall, plain and simple. Remember, the war has already been won, but the battle continues, and whether you will admit it to yourself or not, if you are a child of God, you are part of this battle, the amount of your participation our Lord has graciously left up to you.
