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Chapter 24The Spirit WorldSatan's Purpose |
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Much was learned in our last chapter about Satan's character, his work, and his position before he fell into sin. In this chapter we will study the prophecy of Isaiah to see what Satan's purpose is now that he has fallen into sin. Satan States His Intentions
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To Take God's Place – The Word of God says, "But you said in your heart, 'I will ascend to heaven.'" Some people believe that prior to the creation of Adam and Eve the earth was under the dominion of angelic beings. Then Satan's rebellion led to a terrible judgment which made the earth a waste place. Genesis 1:1 says, "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." Those who hold this position say, "When God creates something, He does it right." It was a perfect creation from His hand. Genesis 1:2 goes on to say, "And the earth was formless and void." According to students of Hebrew, the verse can also be translated, "the earth became formless and void." When Satan exalted himself, trying to take God's place, judgment fell upon him and resulted in the earth becoming formless and void. Whether this was the actual scenario or not, it makes for interesting study! Wherever Satan was when he lifted up his heart against God, judgment fell. To Rule as Sovereign of Heaven – The second willful statement Satan made was, "I will raise my throne above the stars of God." Revelation 1:20 shows that the term "stars," when used symbolically, refers to angels. There the seven stars represent the seven angels of the seven churches to which Christ is speaking. Thus, Satan's meaning seems to be, "I will exalt my throne above the angels of heaven." To put it another way, he wanted to rule over the angels of heaven. He intended to move God from His position of sovereignty and take it for himself. To Sit in the Angelic Assembly – The third instance of Satan's exercise of his will against God's will is found in the statement, "I will sit on the mount of assembly in the recesses of the north." The mount of assembly is mentioned in Psalm 89. It shows us something about Satan's meaning when he said he wanted to sit on the mount of assembly or mount of the congregation. A congregation or assembly of holy ones, meaning angels, meets in heaven and is described in these words:
The council of the holy ones in heaven is apparently a kind of governing body. Satan's objective was to sit in that assembly and to rule over it, since he had the desire to take God's place. To Be Higher than God – The fourth "I will" which Satan expressed was, "I will ascend above the heights of the clouds." Clouds are associated with the presence of God in many places in Scripture. A thick cloud covered Mount Sinai at the giving of the Law. A pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night stood over the tabernacle during the years of Israel's wanderings in the wilderness. When the Lord Jesus Christ ascended into heaven after His resurrection, He ascended in the clouds. And, He will come back to earth in like manner. Revelation 1:7 says, "Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him." Satan's desire to ascend above the height of the clouds indicates his desire to place himself above the level of God Almighty. Rather than having to bow down before the Lord, Satan wants God to bow down before him. Satan expressed this desire in the temptation of Jesus. Jesus was led by the Spirit of God into the wilderness to be tempted by Satan. In one of those temptations, Jesus was shown the entire wealth, glory, and honor of the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. Satan said to Him, "All these things will I give You, if You fall down and worship me" (Matthew 4:9). If Jesus, who is God in the flesh, had yielded to that temptation, Satan's greatest dream would have come true! God, Himself, would have been worshiping at his feet. Thank God that Jesus did not yield for a moment, but rather was victorious for us all. To Possess Heaven and Earth – Finally, Satan said, "I will make myself like the Most High." There are several names for God in the Scriptures. When Satan chose to exalt himself against God, he wanted to be like "El Elyon," the Most High God. "El Elyon" first appears in Genesis where Abraham met the priest Melchizedek, King of Salem. The record of the meeting between them reads:
As we saw earlier in this book, the name "El Elyon" in this context shows that God possesses both heaven and earth. Satan desires to possess them himself. God allows him limited control over sinful men and over earth because Adam submitted to Satan's temptation in the Garden of Eden. However, Jesus regained control of the earth for mankind because, as a man, He defeated Satan. God still permits Satan to control sinful men today in a limited way. According to Scripture, God has everything under control, though it appears outwardly that Satan is winning. History, however, is moving precisely toward an end which God has fixed and written in Scripture. That being the case, Jesus, not Satan, is Lord of heaven and earth. Satan does have a great influence over mankind, but God still rules over all things to bring about His desired goals. Consequently, even though Satan would like to be possessor of heaven and earth, he is not. As a matter of fact, he is still under the sovereignty of God and must obtain His permission to touch anything that belongs to Him, including God's children. Summary of Satan's PurposeTo clarify Satan's rebellious statements in Isaiah, I have given the probable meaning below. Keep in mind that this is an interpretation, though I believe it correctly represents Satan's intent.
When Satan set his will against God's will, he fell into terrible sin. The wrath of God rests upon him and his end in the lake of fire is fixed. He will be in everlasting torment in the lake created for him and his angels. The Lord Jesus spoke about the place called the lake of fire, commonly known as hell. He said, "Then He will also say to those on His left, 'Depart from Me, accursed ones, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels'" (Matthew 25:41). Please notice that Jesus said that the eternal fire was prepared for the devil and his angels. It was not made primarily for fallen mankind. Make It PersonalOnly Two Ways – Ultimately, there are only two spirit beings to follow. One is the true and living God, who is represented through Jesus Christ. The other one is Satan. Either you choose to follow Jesus for eternal life or to follow Satan for eternal damnation. If you follow Satan, you will eventually go to the place that has been prepared for him – the lake of fire (Revelation 20:10-15). If you follow Jesus, you will go to the place that He has prepared for you. That place is with Him and His Heavenly Father (John 14:1-3, Revelation 21:3). God Offers Us Salvation – It is the way of the Cross, the way of Jesus, the way that includes His blood shed for our sins. He offers salvation to us as a free gift. If we refuse His gift of eternal life – if we do not accept what God has done for us through Jesus Christ – there remains no more sacrifice for sin. The writer to the Hebrews put it this way:
If you have been following in the footsteps of Satan in his rebellion against God, remember that Jesus died for your sins. Today is the day of salvation. Today is the only day you have been promised. Turn now to Jesus and trust Him to save you from the enemy of your soul.
Do you know for sure that you will spend
eternity in Heaven? The Bible speaks clearly about how you can know for
sure if you are Heaven-bound. Return to How Not to Get Burned table of contents. Phone: (813)920-2264 Fax: (813)920-2265 Updated Thursday, 24-Jan-2008 10:36:03 EST by BAP |