Yes. Yes he is.
Of course, the image above is not an actual image of the devil. No one knows what he looks like. Besides, he’s a spiritual being. Then again, maybe you do know what he looks like. He might be a friend, relative, coworker, or anyone who suggests you turn to the dark side, so to speak. If you look in your mirror, the devil might be you.
So what’s all this devil stuff? Should you really be concerned about him? Yes. Yes, you should. Why is that?
The devil existed before God’s creation, and his goal is to destroy everything God made, including people. The devil got this going by visiting Eve in the superlative garden. Check out Genesis 3 for the whole story.
The devil creates havoc by destroying souls. You should note before we go any further that the devil (Satan) does the same thing again and again. He attacks your ego, your fleshly desires, and your eye candy (things we want because they sparkle in our eyes). See this in 1 John 2:15-17.
He tempts everyone with one, or two, or all of these things. Those are his tools, his methodology. Consider Jesus in Matthew 4:1-11, where the devil tempted Jesus with fleshly desires (bread), sparkly things (kingdoms), and ego (when He was directed to throw Himself down from a high place).
Well, how do we know the devil is a real entity? The Bible says he is. From Genesis 3 through Revelation, he has popped up again and again and been the enemy of God and people. The Father knew he was real, as did Jesus. Judas eventually understood that. The apostles knew that, and so did many others.
Paul explains in Ephesians 6:12, “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.”
Rulers are those evil spirits that have the first place in the order of the devils’ minions; therefore, they can command. Authorities are evil spirits under their rulers, controlling evil minions. Evil forces are wicked spirits. Wicked means ungodly people who seek to harm us in some way. As you read the verse, you see his hierarchical structure: the devil, his captains, and the evil hordes that follow.
The spiritual enemies are fierce and destructive. Many people are destroyed by the evil forces (alcoholism, addictions, pornography, greed, murder, fornication, adultery, and the like).
So where did the devil come from? Jude verse 6 has the answer: “And the angels who did not stay within their own position of authority, but left their proper dwelling, he has kept in eternal chains under gloomy darkness until the judgment of the great day - ”.
It is thought by people more intelligent than I that the devil and his angels didn’t like the positions God originally gave them and rebelled against Him. As we read, right now, we also understand that the forces of evil are in check by God’s authority.
So then, is the devil in jail somewhere? Yes, sort of. Look, see,
Rev 20:1 “Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain.
Rev 20:2 And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years,
Rev 20:3 and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he might not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were ended. After that, he must be released for a little while.”
Satan has been bound for a thousand years (keep in mind that God’s thousand years is different from our thousand years. It’s a God thing). However, he still has the authority to act. Here’s 1 Peter 5:8, “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour”.
Yes, he can affect individuals, but he can no longer affect nations. See the phrase “he might not deceive the nations any longer” in verse 3? The nations thing is a huge deal and part of the devil’s grand scheme.
In Jesus’ day, Rome was the center of an ungodly, sinful empire. We don’t have time or space to track all of that down, but reading Revelation 12–14 gives us a picture of it. Back then, the devil used two tools to thwart Jesus, salvation, and the church in his bid to destroy: these were false doctrine (Roman emperor worship and worship of a multiplicity of gods) and military power. Everyone was under mighty Rome, or else. Simply put, Rome was the center of great sin in those days.
However, when Jesus was on the cross, through His resurrection, the devil was thrown into the abyss. He’s chained there. Colossians 2:12-15 has this:
Col 2:12 “having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead.
Col 2:13 And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses,
Col 2:14 by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross.
Col 2:15 He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him.”
Revelation 20:1–3 tells us the devil was cast into the bottomless pit (the abyss). So, the devil is in chains and in the abyss right now. When will he be able to injure people and nations again? I don’t know. It’s up to our Father for such things. I don’t know how long the thousand years are. Regardless of so-called prophets or off-the-mark preachers who endeavor to explain all these things, no one knows how long the thousand years will be. We’re living on God’s time table, right now.
So, rather than saying “rest assured,” it must be “look out!” for the devil is indeed a powerful being looking to devour everyone.
Garland Van Dyke
http:www.matthewsstreetchurchofchrist.com
Matthews St. church of Christ, 1915 Matthews, PO Box 1522, Bay City, TX 77414
Email: garland.churchofchrist@gmail.com
You’re always welcome to attend worship with us on Sundays at 9:30 for Bible Class, Worship at 10:30, and Bible Class on Wednesdays at 7 PM.