03500
THE FALL OF THE DEVIL/NAMES OF THE DEVIL
When did Satan fall? Basically there are three main positions set forth.
We will look at these different thoughts.
1. The Gap View: This position believes that between Gen. 1:1 and 1:2
there was a period of time when Satan fell. The first verse speaks of God's
creation, and verse two is what is left after Satan's rebellion. The people
holding this position feel that Satan was placed in charge of the earth
and he destroyed it as part of his rebellion.
2. The Days of Creation View: (Post creation) This view sees Genesis
1:1 as the introductory statement and then 1:2 is the beginning of the
creation. Chapter one and chapter two are parallel texts describing the
creation. Then chapter three develops the idea of the fall. The Devil fell
sometime between Gen. 2 and Gen. 3.
This is based on Job. 38:7. The creation seems to follow the creation
of the angels in vs. 1-7. Those saying that the devil fell post creation
use verse 6-7 to show that all The sons of God were present at the creation,
thus the fall had not yet occurred. They build their thought on the fact
that the Sons of God mentioned are ALL of the angelic host. They fail to
understand that the fall may have occurred and that the Sons of God mentioned
do not include the fallen host. The fallen angels would not necessarily
be called the sons of God after the fall, thus proving nothing more than
the angels were created before the creation of heaven and earth disproving
their own theory.
This fall was in the spiritual world not in the physical realm, thus
the creation need not be in existence. Indeed, there is little if any evidence
to show that it was.
3. The Pre-creation View: This view holds that Satan fell before creation
was set into motion. Job. 38:4-7 indicates the angels were in existence
before creation. They are spirit beings and as such do not need the material
world to operate in. There is no reason that this could not be the time
of Satan's rebellion.
SATAN'S FINAL DOWNFALL
1. His sentence was prophesied in the garden: Gen. 3:14,15, "And the
Lord god said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed
above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt
thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life. And I will put
enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; he
shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel."
2. His sentence was mentioned by Christ: "Now is the judgment of this
world; now shall the prince of this world be cast out." Jo. 12:31. Christ
was speaking of the cross.
The indication is that the Devil is cast out of some place. This would
be fitting to the book of Job and the Devil having access to the throne
of God. It would seem that this text is stating that the Devil after the
cross did not have access to the throne area. (some suggest that this merely
states that the Devil won't gain the position of replacing the Lord. [Dickason])
3. His sentence was mentioned in the context of the ascension: ". .
.the prince of this world is judged." (Jn 16:11) The judgment seems to
be a done deal for the Devil. Christ was talking of the ministry of the
Holy Spirit and part of that ministry was based on the fact that the Devil
is judged.
4. His sentence was mentioned in relation to the work of the cross:
"And, having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a show of them
openly, triumphing over them in it." Col. 2:15
5. His sentence was mentioned by the writer of Hebrews: He declares
that the Devil is destroyed. "Forasmuch, then, as the children are partakers
of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same, that
through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is,
the devil," Heb. 2:14
6. His sentence was mentioned in The Revelation: John tells
us that the Devil will be cast down to the earth in Rev. 12:7-12. The
indications of this are one of three.
a. The Devil will yet future be cast from the throne area to the earth
area.
b. The Devil will yet future be restricted to the earth ONLY as opposed
to the principalities and powers of the air.
c. The Devil was cast out from the throne area, at the time of the cross.
Without giving a day or two over to the Revelation text it seems that
the content of this text would best fit the end times. Since the Gospels
and Colossians seem to indicate that the Devil has been thrown out of the
throne area then this text would best fit a restriction of the Devil to
the earth for a season. (The mention of those that overcame with the blood
of the Lamb demands that the statement be at the very least, post cross.)
7. His sentence was mentioned as having a final fulfillment: The Devil's
final end is recorded for us in Rev. 20:10, "And the devil that deceived
them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and
the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night forever and
ever." This is a very good verse to prove that the lake of fire is eternal,
for the beast and false prophet were there for the one thousand years and
they are still there. If they didn't burn up in 1000 years then it must
be for eternity. (Rev. 19:20 shows that the beast and false prophet were
cast into the lake prior to the kingdom Rev. 20:1-3; Rev. 20:10 shows that
they are still there.)
His sentence will be controlled by Christ. Rev. 1:18 shows the Lord
as the one with the power to carry all of this out. "I am he that liveth,
and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen, and have the
keys of hades and of death."
There is a period between the Rev. 12 text and his final end in the
lake of fire. In Rev. 20:1-3 it tells us that there is a thousand years
in the end time during which the Devil will be bound and unable to work.
This is during the Millennial kingdom.
After the one thousand years is up the Devil will be released for "a
little season." 20:7 shows his release.
So let us recap what we have seen. The Devil fell at some point before
the creation of the heavens and the earth (Job 38:1-7). His fall left him
to wander the earth, the atmosphere and the heavens. He had access to the
throne of God to make accusation against the saints in the Old Testament
economy (Job 1 and 2). At the cross, there was a judgment that was set.
There seems to have been a limiting of his activities to the atmosphere
and earth proper (Principalities and powers of the air). In the book of
Revelation there is a further limitation which will keep him on the surface
of the earth. He will be limited completely for the Millennial kingdom,
but then he will have freedom for a brief time to assemble his followers
for one last rebellion in which all will find their physical destruction
and their eternal end. He will be cast into the Lake of Fire for eternity.
THE NAMES OF SATAN
Do you know what your name means? I looked up Stanley once many years
ago and found that it meant a "stone lay". In today's idea lei means a
string of flowers that the pretty Hawaiian girl gives you when you disembark
in Hawaii.
Now, imagine a string of stones hung around your neck. How uncomfortable
can you get? I told a class once that they could probably relate to the
meaning of my name, and the way I piled on the homework.
In the old English a lay was a valley or plain. A plain made of stone.
This is all very irrelevant to our study of Satan, except to draw attention
to the fact that his names have meaning, other than just names. Names don't
mean much any more unless it is Kennedy or Getty or Onasis. In the Biblical
times the names had great meaning.
We want to spend some time on the names of Lucifer and see if they don't
have some meaning to us in our walk with the Lord.
1. He is called the Devil: He is called the Devil and is described as
our adversary in I Pet. 5:8, "Be sober, be vigilant, because your adversary,
the devil, like a roaring lion walketh about, seeking whom he may devour;"
We oft think of the devil in red, with horns and a long pointed tail. I
believe he is much more hideous than that. I don't think anyone would care
to look at him.
Some picture him as hairy with goat's legs, ears, and horns. This comes
from the fact that the Hebrew word translated devil in other literature
means hairy or shaggy, and is translated goat or satyr in Isa. 13:21; 34:14.
There are four terms translated Devil in the New Testament. We will
only look at one of them, but a study of these four terms might be profitable.
The term used in I Peter is "diabolos" which means slanderer, traducer,
malignant accuser. Now you know where the slanderous Christian gets his
or her ammunition.
The term adversary is quite needful of our understanding. He is our
enemy. We ought not mess around with his troops and his methods, or we
may get ourselves into trouble.
So if he is our enemy we should think of the idea of enemy. How many
Americans during WWII would have gone to Germany and put on a German uniform
and hollered Hey I'm an American? You say, "Not many." So why do so many
Christians go into the world and take on the dress, activities, and philosophies
of the enemy and call themselves Christians? So why do so many go into
the business world and operate under the worlds practices and methods and
call themselves Christian? Dangerous, in my way of thinking.
2. He is called Satan: Satan means adversary or opposer. II Cor. 12:7
mentions, Paul's thorn in the flesh or "messenger of Satan". I Thess. 2:18
mentions, "Wherefore, we should have come unto you, even I, Paul, once
and again; but Satan hindered us."
The hindrance of Satan can take on many forms. It may be a physical
problem that slows us down or hinders our thinking. It can be financial
problems that hinder us from doing those things that we would like to do
for the Lord.
We need to remember that there is nothing that the Devil hinders that
God hasn't allowed (Job 1, 2). We need to work through and around those
hindrances to gain the glory for the Lord. When I first studied the Devil
for a series of sermons, I found that there were great hindrances that
were not present before nor present after the series was finished. I found
myself in a multitude of problems, not impossible problems, not large problems,
not bad problems, but just many, many time-consuming problems that took
time away from the proper study of the subject. Ultimately all was completed
and the Lord blessed the study both to my own life and understanding, but
also to my students.
3. He is called the Accuser of the Brethren: Rev. 12:10 states, "And
I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength,
and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ; for the accuser
of our brethren is cast down, who accused them before our God day and night."
In the Old Testament economy the Devil accused the brethren of wrongs that
they had committed (Job 1, 2). In the days when we had baby sitters we
always told the children that we would ask for a report when we arrived
home. When we arrived the sitter would report and the children knew that
misbehavior would gain a spanking. They were usually - I repeat usually,
found without accusation. The Lord must have enjoyed those saints that
gave the Accuser little ammunition to use in his accusations.
4. He is called Enemy: In the explanation of the parable of the tares,
Christ called the Devil the enemy. Matt. 13:39 tells us, "The enemy that
sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the age; and the reapers
are the angels." This shows the Devil as the enemy of God and His program.
Since believers are God's children and are an integrated part of His program,
it is safe to say that the Devil counts us as enemies as well.
5. He can be an angel of light: II Cor. 11:14, "And no marvel; for Satan
himself is transformed into an angel of light." The context of this passage
is false teaching. It is wise to look very carefully at all teaching that
you receive and compare it to the Scriptures. You should get yourself into
the habit of questioning all commentaries and books - even if they are
written by fundamental people. You will find some false teaching if you
look. Don't allow the Devil to gain a foothold in your life through false
teaching even if it comes from an innocent source.
6. He is called the Prince of Devils: Mt. 9:34, "But the Pharisees said,
He casteth out demons through the prince of the demons." Mt. 12:24, "But
when the Pharisees heard it, they said, This fellow doth not cast out demons,
but by Beelzebub, the prince of the demons." He is in charge of the demons
and is very much aware of our weaknesses. He will use his workers in any
way that he can to hinder our work for the Lord.
7. He was called the Anointed Cherub: Ezk. 28:11-17 This shows the high
position of his past and is a stark contrast to his present position. All
because of pride!
8. He was called Lucifer: Isa. 14:12-14 tells us of this fact. The term
means "morning star" which is a name given to the Lord Jesus, Himself in
the Revelation.
The term morning stars is applied to the Cheribium in Job 38:7, however
is a general term, in my opinion. The Revelation passages mention "the"
morning star. The term "the" is an article, referring to a specific person.
This along with Satan's name indicate that there are two usages of the
term. One, a name for a specific being, Christ and Satan, and the other
a general term for a class of the angelic host (Rev. 2:28; 22:16). The
term Lucifer is even a nice name if you can get by the stigma of it.
9. He was the Son of the Morning: Isa. 14:12-14
10. He is called the Prince of the power of the air: Eph. 2:1-3 He is
the prince of the air. He operates within that sphere. TALK ABOUT AIR POLLUTION!
11. He is called the Prince of this World: Jo. 12:31, "Now is the judgment
of this world; now shall the prince of this world be cast out." Jo. 14:30,
"Hereafter I will not talk much with you; for the prince of this world
cometh, and hath nothing in me." He is behind the world system and it is
not hard to see evidences of his influence upon that system. Look at the
corruption of our own country and it's people in politics, crime, etc.
In the 1992 presidential elections, it was evident that the American
public was more interested in their pocket book than with moral issues.
They elected a man that favors homosexuality, abortion, and deception because
he promised to fix their money problems. Something is very wrong.
It was encouraging to know that the popular vote was close and that
many of the independent votes would have gone to president Bush had Mr.
Perot not run. America is slipping slowly into a spiritual state which
God will judge.
12. He is called the God of this World: II Cor. 4:4, "In whom the god
of this age hath blinded the minds of them who believe not, lest the light
of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine
unto them." He has not only blinded, but they have bought his line completely
in our society.
13. He is called the Tempter: Mat. 4:3, "And when the tempter came to
him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made
bread." I Thes. 3:5 also mentions the term. Have you experienced him?
14. He is called the Wicked One: I Jo. 5:18, "We know that whosoever
is born of God sinneth not, but he that is begotten of God keepeth himself,
and that wicked one toucheth him not." Some promise! (see also I Jo. 3:12)
15. He is called Beelzebub: Mt. 12:24, "But when the Pharisees heard
it, they said, This fellow doth not cast out demons, but by Beelzebub,
the prince of the demons." The term means Lord of flies or prince of devils.
Can you imagine being called the Lord of flies? What an honor.
16. He is called a Murderer: Jo. 8:44, "...He was a murderer from the
beginning...." He will truly live up to this in a physical sense in the
Tribulation and post Millennial times, when he will lead many to their
deaths. He is busy leading people to their spiritual death today. He has
been in this business, both past, present and will be yet in the future.
17. He is called a Liar: Jo. 8:44, "...for he is a liar...." If you
are a liar, then you know who you serve. He is called the father of the
lie in this same text.
He is called many other names as well. I will just list these for your
future study.
Angel of The Bottomless Pit: Rev. 9:11:
Belial which means good for nothing: II Cor. 6:15:
Crooked Serpent: Isa. 27:1:
Deceiver of the Whole world: Rev. 12:9
Evil one: I Jo. 5:19
Great Dragon: Rev. 12:9
Great Red Dragon: Rev. 12:3
Leviathan: Isa. 27:1
Old Serpent: Rev. 12:9
Piercing Serpent: Isa. 27:1
Ruler of Darkness: Eph. 6:12
A Roaring Lion: I Pet. 5:8
A Serpent: Rev. 12:9
A Wolf: Jo. 10:12
A Thief: Jo. 10:10
There may be some that I missed as well. And lastly we need to realize
that he is a tremendous Fundamentalist of sorts. He believes in Christ
being the perfect Son of God. He believes in Christ's ascension. He believes
in Christ's coming again. He believes many things that we do! He knows
doctrine. And he memorizes Scripture.
Augustine gave him one further name from the Latin, "Simius Dei" (pronounced
dai). Simius = imitator and Dei = of God. Imitator of God. "The ape" as
Augustine called him.
APPLICATION:
1. What's in a name? Lot's if you are talking about Lucifer! There is
nothing for us to fear from him, however if we will only resist him. We
have the power of God to resist with, if we only will.
2. The more that you know the enemy the easier it is to defeat him.
We need to study and know the Devil so that we can counter his attacks
upon us.
I trust that these introductory thoughts to the Devil will spur some
on to even greater study. There is little written on the Devil, his effect
on believers, and his control over the lost. Check your local Bible college
library to see how many books you can find on the Devil. You will probably
find few.