{"id":18269,"date":"2019-08-04T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2019-08-04T05:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sugar-land-bible-church.local\/sermon\/angelology-006-satanology-02\/"},"modified":"2019-08-04T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2019-08-04T05:00:00","slug":"angelology-006-satanology-02","status":"publish","type":"sermon","link":"https:\/\/slbc.org\/es\/sermon\/angelology-006-satanology-02\/","title":{"rendered":"Angelology 006 (Satanology 02)"},"content":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"featured_media":0,"template":"","book":[71],"series_event":[499],"sermon_service_type":[473],"speaker":[6],"class_list":["post-18269","sermon","type-sermon","status-publish","hentry","book-ezekiel","series_event-angelology","sermon_service_type-sunday-school","speaker-dr-andy-woods","no-post-thumbnail"],"acf":{"sermon_title":"Angelology 006 (Satanology 02)","sermon_date":"20190804","sermon_month":"8","sermon_year":"2019","sermon_notes":6946,"sermon_slides":6947,"sermon_mp3":6951,"sermon_id":"83191425171531","series_or_event":499,"service_type":[473],"speaker":6,"books_of_the_bible":71,"chapter_and_verse":"28:12-17","sermon_transcript":"Dr. Andy Woods\n\nAngelology Part 6 (Satanology Part 2)\n\nEzekiel<\/a> 28:12-17 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a08-4-2019\n\nFather, we\u2019re grateful for this morning and grateful for another opportunity given us to gather as people and worship You, practice the ordinance of the Lord\u2019s Supper that You\u2019ve given us to do, have a time of fellowship after the service to receive truth from Your Word.\u00a0 I do ask, Father, that You would be with us this morning as we do these things. And we just pause just for a moment to privately confess any sins we as Christians may have committed against You, and exercise 1 John 1:9 so we can receive freely this morning, unhindered from You.\n\nFather, we\u2019re grateful for 1 John 1:9 and that You promised to forgive us of all transgressions.\u00a0 We know that we are positionally secure in You but we can do things that alienate fellowship from You and so we thank You that You\u2019ve given us 1 John 1:9 to remedy that problem.\u00a0 We\u2019ll be careful to give you all the praise and the glory.\u00a0 We ask these things in Jesus\u2019 name, and God\u2019s people said\u2026. Amen!\n\nIf we could take our Bibles and open them to the Book of 1 John, chapter 5 and verse 19.\u00a0 And I want to thank Brother Jim for filling in last Sunday morning while I was in Australia, the land down under where everything is the opposite of what it is in the United States.\u00a0 I mean, they drive on the opposite side of the road.\u00a0 Did you all know that?\u00a0 That\u2019s a good thing to figure out before you get there.\u00a0 Here it\u2019s hot, over there it\u2019s cold.\u00a0 And even their politics are different; what they call conservative we call liberal and what we call liberal they call conservative.\u00a0 I mean, the same beliefs but it\u2019s the exact opposite labels.\u00a0 So if you don\u2019t get there confused you\u2019re really confused.\u00a0 But in spite of all that we had a really profitable time of ministry there.\n\nBut anyway, back to more pressing subjects, the doctrine of Satan. And I told you guys, didn\u2019t I, to pray for us because we might have some problems when we start studying the doctrine of Satan.\u00a0 You notice we don\u2019t have any carpet anymore [laughter].\u00a0 That\u2019s actually a good thing because we\u2019re getting better carpet\u2026 amen!\u00a0 And you can keep Dan Denim in your prayers, he had a bicycling accident, it wasn\u2019t fatal or anything but he\u2019s in a lot of pain and so he can\u2019t work the AV, so my dear sweet wife is up there getting the job done, what a multitasker!\n\nSo the doctrine of Satan, Satanology, this is part of our study of the angels, the Doctrine of the Angels.\u00a0 We\u2019ve covered the good angels and now we\u2019re moving into the second major section of our study, the doctrine of Satan.\u00a0 And we cover Satan under angelology because Satan at one time was a high-ranking angel who is now a fallen angel.\u00a0 So, here\u2019s our outline for Satanology.\u00a0 We\u2019ve looked at the existence of Satan.\u00a0 Do you guys believe in the existence of Satan.\u00a0 The Old and New Testament clearly affirms his existence.\u00a0 And if you don\u2019t believe in his existence try to do something for God and you\u2019ll figure out he exists really quick because there\u2019s always some kind of spiritual force at work thwarting the work of God\u2019s people.\n\nAnd from there we moved into the personhood of Satan, trying to communicate the point that Satan is not just the dark side, an impersonal negative source of energy but he\u2019s actually a person that\u2019s described with personal pronouns, who is morally accountable, that has all of the elements of person\u00adhood.\u00a0\u00a0 And from there we moved into names and titles of Satan.\u00a0 And the reason we started talking about that is because the Bible spends a lot of time giving us his names and titles and we talked about the fact that you can learn a lot about someone\u2019s character and destiny in the Bible just by studying their name, like the name Petros, Peter.\u00a0 So, if I remember correctly we started to look at the names and titles of Satan and I think we made it through the first six, if memory serves.\n\nAnd this takes us to number seven in a list of about 18, really 20 because two of them in the next slide I kind of doubled up on.\n\n-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\n\nNAMES AND TITLES\n
    \n \t
  1. Lucifer (2 Corinthians 11:14)\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 Prince of this world\u00a0 (John 12:31)<\/li>\n \t
  2. Satan (Zechariah 3:1)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Prince and power of the air\u00a0 (Ephesians 2:2)<\/li>\n \t
  3. Devil (Matthew 4:11)\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 God of this world\u00a0 92 Corinthians 4:4)<\/li>\n \t
  4. Serpent of old (Revelation 12:9)\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Prince and power of the air (Ephesians 2:2<\/li>\n \t
  5. Destroyer (Revelation 9:11)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 God of this world\u00a0 (2 Corinthians 4:4)<\/li>\n \t
  6. Dragon (Revelation 12:9)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Beelzebub (Luke 11:15)<\/li>\n \t
  7. Evil one (1 John 5:19)\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 Tempter Matthew 4:3 \u00a0<\/u><\/strong><\/li>\n \t
  8. Belial (2 Corinthians 6:15)\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Accuser of the Brethren (Revelation 12:10)<\/li>\n \t
  9. Anointed cherub (Ezekiel 28:14, 16)\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 Enemy (Matthew 13:39)<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\n\nBut one of the names of Satan is the Evil one, and you\u2019ll see that right there in 1 John 5:19.\u00a0 It says, \u201c\u00a0<\/sup>We know that we are of God, and that the whole world\u201d look at that, \u201clies in the power of<\/em> the evil one.\u201d\u00a0 I think it was Lewis Sperry Chafer that described that verse as sort of like a mother rocking her newborn to sleep.\u00a0 And that\u2019s the imagery that you get from that verse, \u201cthe whole world lies in the lap\u201d or \u201cthe power of the wicked one.\u201d\u00a0 He\u2019s just sort of rocking the world, he has authority over the world, and sort of lowering the entire world to sleep.\n\nYou\u2019ll also see Satan described as the evil one over in Matthew 13:19, you can just jot that one down.\u00a0 [Matthew 19:13, \u201cWhen anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one<\/em> comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is the one on whom seed was sown beside the road.\u201d]\u00a0 So that reveals an awful lot about Satan, first of all he\u2019s a person, it doesn\u2019t say source of evil, it says \u201cthe evil one.\u201d\u00a0 And then of course it reveals his character; his character is 100% evil or diabolical.\n\nIf you go over to 2 Corinthians 6:15 you come to number 8 where Satan is actually called \u201cBelial.\u201d \u00a0\u00a02 Corinthians 6:15, and notice what it says there: \u201cOr what harmony has Christ with Belial, or what has a believer in common with an unbeliever?\u201d\u00a0 And most people believe Belial there is a reference to Satan or at least a high-ranking demon.\u00a0 And what does Belial mean?\u00a0 It means worthless one, something without value, something without redemptive quality.\u00a0 So, you\u2019ll notice that in all of these ages of time Satan\u2019s character is never rehabilitated.\u00a0 He is, from the standpoint of God, a 100% lost cause and the only reason God keeps him around is because God actually uses Satan to fulfill God\u2019s will in certain areas, which is something only God can do.\u00a0 Only God can use the actions of His archenemy to accomplish His ultimate will.\n\nBut he\u2019s called Belial, and then if you go down to number 9, we don\u2019t have to turn there because we\u2019re going to be spending a lot of time in that chapter, maybe we\u2019ll get to it today, he\u2019s also called, Ezekiel 28:14 and verse 16 \u201can anointed cherub.\u00a0 [Ezekiel 28:14, \u201cYou were the anointed cherub who covers, and I placed you there<\/em>\u2026.\u201d\u00a0 [16] \u201cBy the abundance of your trade, you were internally filled with violence, and you sinned; Therefore, I have cast you as profane from the mountain of God.\u00a0 And I have destroyed you, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire.\u00a0 You were on the holy mountain of God; you walked in the midst of the stones of fire.\u201d]\u00a0 We\u2019re going to talk about how a cherub, or we have talked about how a cherub guards God\u2019s holiness.\u00a0 There are certain angels that guard God\u2019s holiness and Satan was originally one of those.\n\nAnd you\u2019ll notice he\u2019s called the \u201canointed cherub\u201d and also the covering cherub, meaning he\u2019s not just a cherub but he actually is what we would call a high-ranking cherub or high ranking angel.\u00a0 A lot more on that a little bit later.\u00a0 And that, by the way, is one of the reasons Michael, an archangel, doesn\u2019t want to dispute with Satan concerning the body of Moses, Jude 9.\u00a0 [Jude 9, \u201cBut Michael the archangel, when he disputed with the devil and argued about the body of Moses, did not dare pronounce against him a railing judgment, but said, \u2018The Lord rebuke you!\u201d\u2019]\n\nIt probably has something to do with the fact that Satan was not just an angel prior to his fall but he was the covering cherub or an anointed cherub.\u00a0 And you\u2019ll see that Ezekiel 28:14, 16.\u00a0 A lot more on that later. [Ezekiel 28:14, \u201cYou were the anointed cherub who covers, and I placed you there<\/em>.\u00a0\u00a0 You were on the holy mountain of God; you walked in the midst of the stones of fire.\u201d\u00a0 [16] By the abundance of your trade you were internally filled with violence, and you sinned.\u00a0 Therefore, I have cast you as profane from the mountain of God.\u00a0 And I have destroyed you, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire.\u201d]\n\nAnd then we come to number 10, his tenth title and go over to John 12:31; it\u2019s interesting, Jesus calls him \u201cthe prince of this world.\u201d\u00a0 In fact, about three times with the span of about four chapters Jesus calls Satan \u201cthe prince of this world.\u00a0 Once in John 12:31. Once in John 14:30.\u00a0 [\u201cI will not speak much more with you, for the ruler of the world is coming, and he has nothing in Me.\u2019\u201d] \u00a0\u00a0And a third time in John 16:11. [John 16:11, \u201cand concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged.\u201d]\n\nSo Jesus, when He was on the earth knew exactly who was running the world system.\u00a0 John 12:31 says, \u201cNow judgment is upon this world; now the ruler of this world\u201d some say \u201cthe prince of this world, is about to \u201cbe cast out.\u201d\u2019\u00a0 \u201cCast out\u201d is just one phase of Satan\u2019s defeat.\u00a0 And when we get to the eschatology of Satan I\u2019ll show you that he\u2019s not defeated in one fast swoop; I think there\u2019s about six or seven stages in his defeat and Jesus is just explaining another phase of his defeat that\u2019s coming with the cross.\u00a0 But in the meantime, he is very clearly called \u201cthe prince of this world.\u201d\u00a0 That\u2019s why these insurance companies always sort of bother me because they call catastrophic acts, acts of what?\u00a0 \u201cActs of God,\u201d and I\u2019m thinking why do we have to blame everything on God?\u00a0 I mean, can\u2019t we give the devil a little bit of credit?\u00a0 So if you start an insurance company you might consider calling them acts of Satan; I don\u2019t know if you\u2019re going to get too many people to sign up for your policy .\n\nIf you go over to Ephesians chapter 2, verse 2, he\u2019s also called \u201cthe prince and power of the air,\u201d which doesn\u2019t necessarily mean he\u2019s on the radio or on television.\u00a0 But Ephesians 2:2 says, \u201cin which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience.\u201d\u00a0 \u201cPrince and power of the air\u201d most people believe is a reference to the prince and power of the atmosphere.\u00a0 It\u2019s not talking about oxygen and things like that, carbon dioxide, it\u2019s talking about the philosophies of the age.\n\nSo there are certain philosophies in the world, most of them anti-God.\u00a0 And who orchestrates those philosophies that captivate the hearts and minds of men and women.\u00a0 It\u2019s Satan, and consequently he\u2019s called \u201cthe prince and power of the air.\u201d\n\nIf you go over to 2 Corinthians 4:4 the twelfth title he has is the god of this age or the god of this world. \u00a0Paul the apostle says in 2 Corinthians 4:4, \u201cin whose case the god of this world\u201d now the word for \u201cworld\u201d there is cosmos, where we get the word cosmopolitan, worldly.\u00a0 There\u2019s even a magazine called Cosmopolitan.\u00a0 Now don\u2019t tell me you\u2019re a reader of that or we\u2019ll be able to point out all the worldly Christians in here.\u00a0 But it says, \u201cin whose case the god of this world,\u201d look at what it says here, \u201chas blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 So Satan, as the god of this age or this world, is busy blinding spiritual eyes so people can\u2019t see through. \u00a0That\u2019s why what they desperately need is the Holy Spirit inside of them through regeneration which opens the eyes.\n\nYou will also notice over in Luke 11:15, the thirteenth name He has is He is called Beelzebub, or Beelzebul, which basically means prince of demons; it\u2019s actually believed by some to be lord of the flies.\u00a0 [Luke 11:15, \u201cBut some of them said, \u201cHe casts out demons by Beelzebul, the ruler of the demons.\u201d]\u00a0 And it\u2019s actually a pagan name derived from the Philistine religion.\u00a0 So that\u2019s sort of interesting, it tells you who was behind Philistine false religion.\u00a0 It was Satan!\u00a0 Satan is actually behind every false religion the world has ever seen.\u00a0 Paul, the apostle, talks about how in the last days people are going to be following doctrines of demons, 1 Timothy 4:1.\u00a0 [1 Timothy 4:1, \u201cBut the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons,\u201d]\n\n1 Corinthians 10:21 says, \u201c21\u00a0<\/sup>You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons; you cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons.\u201d\u00a0 And he\u2019s talking there about pagan temples in Corinth.\u00a0 And essentially what he\u2019s dealing with here is how demons, working under Satan, are the source of those false religions, so he\u2019s given this name Beelzebub.\n\nA fourteenth name that he is given is the tempter.\u00a0 Look at Matthew 4:3 for a minute.\u00a0 The Gospel of Matthew, chapter 4 and verse 3 and I think he\u2019s called this at least twice.\u00a0 This is referring to the temptation Satan gave to Jesus in the Judean wilderness. It says in Matthew 4:3, \u201cAnd the tempter came and said to Him,\u201d so it\u2019s a real person that\u2019s speaking, it\u2019s described with the pronoun \u201cHim,\u201d at least that\u2019s used of Jesus but other times that pronoun is used of Satan, \u201cAnd the tempter came and said to Him, \u201cIf You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.\u201d\u00a0 So, he\u2019s clearly called \u201cthe tempter.\u201d\n\nAnd if you go over to 1 Thessalonians 3:5 you\u2019ll see Paul using that same designation related to Satan.\u00a0 \u201cFor this reason, when I could endure it no longer I also sent to find out about your faith for fear that the\u201d what? \u201cthe tempter might have tempted you and our labor would be in vain.\u201d\u00a0 Paul\u2019s worried about the Thessalonians, that they may have fallen into the influence of the tempter.\u00a0 So that would raise an interesting question, what is the temptation exactly?\u00a0 Well, a temptation can be defined simply as this: a solicitation to sin, an invitation to sin.\u00a0 Now one of the things that\u2019s very important to understand in the Christian life is being under temptation, being tempted to do something wrong in and of itself is not a sin.\n\nWhy do I say that?\u00a0 Because Hebrews 4:15 says Jesus was \u201ctempted in all ways, yet without sin.\u201d\u00a0 [Hebrews 4:15, \u201c\u00a0<\/sup>For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet<\/em> without sin.\u201d]\u00a0 So just because you\u2019re being tempted to do something that God would not have you to do or to not do something God wants you to do, how the way the temptation comes to you simply being under the temptation itself is not a sin or else Christ was the biggest sinner that ever lived.\u00a0 He was tempted in all ways yet the Book of Hebrews, chapter 4, verse 15 says, yet He was \u201cwithout sin.\u201d \u00a0\u00a0[Hebrews 4:15, \u201cFor we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin.\u201d]\n\nI think where it becomes a sin is when you start to mull over it in the arena of\u00a0 your mind and then it becomes a fantasy about doing it.\u00a0 That\u2019s where you get those statements in the Sermon on the Mount about if you\u2019re angry with your brother you\u2019re a murderer; if you\u2019re in lust then you\u2019re an adulterer.\u00a0 Matthew 5, you\u2019ll see all that in there.\u00a0 \u00a0[Matthew 5:21, \u201cYou have heard that the ancients were told, \u2018YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT MURDER\u2019 and \u2018Whoever commits murder shall be liable to the court.\u2019 [22] \u201cBut I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court; and whoever says to his brother, \u2018You good-for-nothing,\u2019 shall be guilty before the supreme court; and whoever says, \u2018You fool,\u2019 shall be guilty enough to go<\/em> into the fiery hell. [23] \u201cTherefore if you are presenting your offering at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, [24] leave your offering there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and present your offering.\u201d\u00a0 \u2026 [27] You have heard that it was said, \u2018YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT ADULTERY\u2019; [28] but I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.\u201d]\n\nBut being under the initial temptation itself is not a sin; giving in to it in the arena of the mind, then it becomes a sin.\u00a0 I had a seminary professor that put it this way once, he said it\u2019s not the first, for example, looking lustfully at somebody, it\u2019s not the first look that\u2019s the problem, it\u2019s the second look and it\u2019s the third look, etc.\u00a0 And I like this saying here, \u201cYou can\u2019t stop the birds from flying over your head, but you can keep them from building a nest in your hair.\u201d\u00a0 Right!\u00a0 So, the temptation itself is really not the problem; the problem is when it becomes an act of vanity in the arena of the mind.\n\nAnd so Satan doesn\u2019t cause us to sin or force us to sin but he puts the environment into place where your sin nature has an opportunity to express itself.\u00a0 And who created that opportunity?\u00a0 Well, his designation \u201cthe tempter\u201d tells us it was Satan that created that.\u00a0 So a temptation is designed to entice us in a way that we would be destroyed.\u00a0 Temptation is something that Satan does.\u00a0 Temptation is not something God does to us.!\u00a0 We know that from the Book of James.\u00a0 The Book of James says, \u201cLet no one say when he is tempted, \u2018I am being tempted by God\u2019; for God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone. [14]\u00a0<\/sup>But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his\u201d what? \u201chis own lust.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 [James 1:13-14]\n\nNow this interesting, this doesn\u2019t even mention Satan.\u00a0 My own lust of my sin nature can give me temptation.\u00a0 But Satan can be active in the process of putting me in the right environment where the invitation is right there.\n\nLet\u2019s say I\u2019m struggling with feeling things, or whatever, suddenly I find myself in the office\u00a0 at night without the cameras on, and I have access to the cash box, who created that environment?\u00a0 Not necessarily God but Satan did and he\u2019s not forcing you to put your hand in the cash box but he\u2019s certainly soliciting you to do that.\u00a0 God is not going to do that to you.\u00a0 God does not set\u00a0 us up for moral failure; what God does with us is He tests\u00a0 us and that\u2019s earlier in the Book of James, James 1:2-4.\u00a0 [James 1:2-4, \u201cConsider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, [3] knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. [4] And let endurance have its<\/em> perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.\u201d]\n\nAnd the trials and tests that God sends us into are not designed to make us bitter but to make us better.\u00a0 So everything that happens in your life as it comes through the sovereign hands of God into your life is designed to conform you into the image of Jesus Christ in your daily life.\u00a0 Romans 8:28-30, because Paul says \u201cFor we know that all things work together for good to those that love Him and are called according to His purpose\u201d What\u2019s His purpose?\u00a0 His purpose is that my practice would catch up with my position.\u00a0 [Romans 8:29, \u201cFor those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; [30] and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified.\u201d\u2019\u00a0 I\u2019m already Christ-like in my position but God wants my practice in daily life to start to reflect that more and more.\u00a0 It\u2019s not that I become sinless but I sin less.\u00a0 And so everything that comes into your life is designed by God to accomplish that purpose\n\nSo you\u2019ll notice that the passage doesn\u2019t say all things are good.\u00a0 I hear this misquoted all the time.\u00a0 A tragedy happens in someone\u2019s life, cancer, car accident and someone says well, all things are good.\u00a0 That is NOT what the Bible says; the Bible never says all things are good!\u00a0 What it says is God uses them for good. See that!\u00a0 To conform us into the image of His Son.\u00a0 [Romans 8:29, \u201cFor those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren;\u201d]\n\nSo God actually takes negative things that can happen to us in a fallen world and can reorient them for the higher purpose of conforming us into the likeness of Jesus Christ so that what\u2019s happening to me is that my daily life is catching up gradually with my position that\u2019s already been declared about me. That\u2019s how God works with us but that\u2019s not how Satan works with us.\u00a0 Satan sets you up to fail.\u00a0 He sets you up for moral failure and he puts you in an environment where all of a sudden you have an invitation for the sin nature to express itself.\u00a0 And that\u2019s why it\u2019s very appropriate that he\u2019s called here the \u201ctempter.\u201d\n\nAnd what else do we learn of Satan?\u00a0 This takes us to number 15, notice Revelation 12:10.\u00a0 \u00a0You guys are experts in the Book of Revelation now, aren\u2019t you? \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0I mean, you probably know more about the Book of Revelation than what you ever signed up for.\u00a0 And I\u2019m in that same boat, I did my dissertation on a subject of the Book of Revelation.\u00a0 I know so much about the Book of Revelation that a lot of it is just worthless knowledge, I\u2019ll never use it anywhere so I decided to pastor a church where I get a captive audience, where somebody had to listen to me.\u00a0 But you\u2019ll notice Revelation 1210\u2026 actually before that I became a professor so you guys can just leave; when you\u2019re a professor, you know, you have a little bit more control of things.\u00a0 Anyway, there\u2019s my sin nature manifesting itself.\n\nRevelation 12:10 says, \u201c\u2026for the accuser of our brethren has been thrown down, he who accuses them before our God day and night.\u201d\u2019\u00a0\u00a0 [Revelation 12:10, \u201cThen I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, \u2018Now the salvation, and the power, and the kingdom of our God and the authority of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren has been thrown down, he who accuses them before our God day and night.\u2019\u201d]\u00a0 Wow!\n\nZechariah 3:1 says Satan stood up to accuse the high priest, Joshua, in that post exilic community.\u00a0 [Zechariah 3:1, \u201cThen he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the LORD, and Satan standing at his right hand to accuse him.\u201d]\n\nAnd Jesus said this to Peter in Luke 22:31.\u00a0 \u201cSimon, Simon,\u201d now why would he call him Simon, his Hebrew name when his name had already been changed to Peter?\u00a0 Because Peter was acting like his old self so Jesus calls him by his old name.\u00a0 See that?\u00a0 Isn\u2019t that interesting how names are such a big deal in the Bible.\u00a0 \u201cSimon, Simon,\u201d this is just before\u2026 you know, as Peter was falling asleep when he should have been praying, this is just prior to or right around the time period of his three denials of Christ.\u00a0 Luke 22:31, \u201cSimon, Simon, behold, Satan has requested permission to sift you like wheat; \u00a0[32] but I have prayed for you.\u201d\n\nHow would you like the Lord to tell you that one day.\u00a0 By the way\u2026, Ron\u2019s here in the front, I\u2019ll pick on Ron\u2026 by the way, Ron, there\u2019s been some conversations going on back and forth between myself and Satan about you, and Satan just asked permission to sift you like wheat.\u00a0 I mean, wouldn\u2019t that be an eerie thing to be told that by the Son of God.\u00a0 I would just as soon the Lord not tell me that even if it were true. But that goes to his nature, he\u2019s the accuser of the brethren.\u00a0 And what Satan does is he accuses man before God constantly.\n\nWhat\u2019s the classic book on that?\u00a0 The oldest book of the Bible, the Book of Job.\u00a0 Over in the Book of Job, chapter 1 and verse 9 it\u2019s sort of interesting, there\u2019s a whole conversation that takes place between God and Satan that Job didn\u2019t know anything about nor did his three, and later four counselors know anything about and it reveals so much about Satanology.\u00a0 It\u2019s interesting that this is revealed right at the beginning of God\u2019s recording of the Scripture for us.\u00a0 Job 1:9, \u201cThen Satan answered the LORD, \u2018Does Job fear God for nothing? \u2018\u00a0 [10] Have you not put a hedge about him and his house and all that he has, on every side?\u00a0 You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land.\u00a0 [11] But put forth Your hand now and touch all that he has; he will surely curse You to Your face.\u201d\n\nSo what is Satan doing there?\u00a0 He\u2019s accusing Job\u2019s character in the presence of God; of course Job serves you, (Satan says to God) look at all the money you give Him and the beautiful family and the beautiful house he lives in, and look at the resources in his bank account, look at the car he drives, look at his salary, look at his retirement account, but You take some of that away and he\u2019ll curse You right to your face.\u00a0 So that\u2019s a bold and bald accusation of a prosecuting attorney in the presence of God accursing Job.\u00a0 And Revelation 12:10, at the end of the Bible, says Satan does this how frequently?\u00a0 \u201cDay and night,\u201d in other words it\u2019s nonstop.\u00a0 [Revelation 12:10, \u201cThen I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, \u2018Now the salvation, and the power, and the kingdom of our God and the authority of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren has been thrown down, he who accuses them before our God day and night.\u2019\u201d]\n\nNow if that\u2019s true I sure am glad I have the positional righteousness of Jesus Christ because I don\u2019t think my life could stand up under that type of accusation and criticism and scrutiny.\u00a0 And then when you go over to Job 2:4, the second round, it happens again, Satan answered the Lord and said skin for skin.\u00a0 [Job 2:4, \u201cSatan answered the LORD and said, \u2018Skin for skin! Yes, all that a man has he will give for his life.\u2019\u201d]\u00a0 Yes, all that a man has he will give for his life.\u00a0 [5] However, put forth Your hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh; he will curse You to Your face.\u201d\u2019\u00a0 Now you\u2019ve got to not just take away his wealth, you\u2019ve got to take away his physical health and if you take away wealth and health he\u2019ll curse You.\u00a0 That\u2019s why there\u2019s so many statements in the Book of Job, chapter 19, he says, \u201cin My flesh I will see God,\u201d because Satan had attacked His flesh and Job is affirming the belief in a future resurrection body..\u00a0\u00a0 [Job 19:26, \u201c\"Even after my skin is destroyed, Yet from my flesh I shall see God;\u201d]\n\nBut this is basically how Satan operates; he constantly accuses man before God; he is \u201cthe accuser \u00a0\u00a0of the brethren.\u201d\u00a0 And not only does he accuse man before God but the opposite is true; he accuses God before man.\u00a0 He always wants to create an image of God in your mind that\u2019s distorted, that\u2019s not fully accurate.\u00a0 You see this going on very early in the Book of Genesis, the dawn of human history.\u00a0\u00a0 What were Adam and Eve allowed to do,\u00a0 Genesis 2:16-17?\u00a0 Anything except they couldn\u2019t eat from the tree which is in the garden.\n\nAnd if you go to Genesis 3:1 it says, \u201cNow the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made.\u201d\u00a0 So Satan is at work here through the serpent.\u00a0\u00a0 And if you go over to verse 4, Genesis 3:4 it says, \u201cThe serpent said to the woman, \u2018You will not surely die.\u2019\u201d God said the day you eat from the forbidden tree is the day you\u2019ll die. Right!\u00a0 What does Satan say?\u00a0 You will not die, \u201cFor God knows that in the day you eat from it is the day your eyes will be opened \u2026 knowing good and evil. \u201c\n\nSo it\u2019s interesting when you study the original command that God gave them, what did God say?\u00a0 Genesis 2:16-17, \u201c \u201cThe LORD God commanded the man, saying, \u201cFrom any<\/u> tree of the garden you may eat freely;\u201d that doesn\u2019t sound very restrictive to me, and when you look at how Satan paraphrased what God said in Genesis verse 1 it says, \u201cNow the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, \u2018Indeed, has God said, 'You shall not eat from any tree of the garden \u2018?\u201d\u00a0 Is that what God said?\u00a0 Did God ever say they couldn\u2019t eat from any tree in the garden?\u00a0 He never says that at all.\u00a0 He says you can eat freely from any tree you want except one.\n\nSo what has just happened here? Satan has created an image of God in the minds of our forbearers making it look like God is a big Meany, God is a big Ogre.\u00a0 This is actually the beginning of legalism, adding things to the commandments of God that are not there.\u00a0 God is not fair, God does not care about you, God is not looking out for your best interests.\u00a0 So what do you call this?\u00a0 I would call it an accusation of God before man.\u00a0 See that?\u00a0 And you think how affective this lie is, there are many, many people that won\u2019t come to Christ because they think Jesus is going to wreck their lives.\n\nIn fact, I know of a particular person, he was given a wrong presentation of the gospel; the person that gave him the gospel said something about dancing, you can\u2019t dance anymore.\u00a0 Well, we can get into a debate about dancing if you want but I don\u2019t see that in any presentation of the gospel in the Bible.\u00a0 Do you?\u00a0 Do you see that in John 3:16 or any such thing.\u00a0 So you can\u2019t go out dancing.\u00a0 And so this person just stayed away from Christ because he liked to go out and go dancing.\u00a0 So what happened is because of a bad presentation of the gospel Satan distorted God in this person\u2019s mind, he accused God before man and the person, as far as I know, is away from Christ because of that lie.\u00a0 So this is how Satan works.\u00a0 He is the accuser of the brethren, he accuses man before God and God before man.\n\nWhat else?\u00a0 Look at number 16 here, and let\u2019s go to John 8:44, and here we\u2019re cramming two titles into one verse.\u00a0 John 8:44, this is a tremendous verse on the doctrine of Satan.\u00a0 Jesus here is speaking to the Pharisees, and he says, \u201cYou are of your father the devil,\u201d wow, no wonder they wanted Jesus dead, he just took on the whole religious establishment of Israel, the people that were considered to be the most righteous in the whole nation and he just openly and boldly said \u201cYou are of your father the devil.\u201d\u00a0 Wow, how would you like to be in on that conversation?\u00a0 Wouldn\u2019t you like to be a fly on the wall to hear this exchange and see the reaction of them.\u00a0 And then in the process he starts to describe what Satan is like who was empowering or motivating these religious leaders.\u00a0 \u201cYou are of your father the devil and you want to do the desires of your father.\u201d\u00a0 Well what are those?\u00a0 \u201cHe was a\u201d what?\u00a0 \u201c\u2026a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies.\u201d\n\nSo, who is Satan?\u00a0 He is, number one, \u201cthe father of lies.\u201d\u00a0 You see the definite article in front of \u201cfather\u201d?\u00a0 He\u2019s not just a liar, he\u2019s the ultimate liar; he\u2019s the architect of lying.\u00a0 In fact, when he lies he\u2019s speaking his own native tongue because that\u2019s what he normally does.\u00a0 It\u2019s like\u2026 you know, the joke about lawyers (and I can make a few of those because I have a law degree, licensed to practice in the state of California) the joke is how do you know a lawyer is lying?\u00a0 Well, his lips are moving.\u00a0 How do you know a politician is lying?\u00a0 His lips are moving.\u00a0 How do you know Satan is lying?\u00a0 His lips are moving because that\u2019s his nature.\u00a0 A dog with the nature of a dog acts like a dog.\u00a0 A cat with the nature of a cat acts like a cat.\u00a0 Satan has inherently corrupted nature and he is a classic liar.\u00a0 In fact, he\u2019s so good at lies he\u2019ll even mix truth with lies because if you mix a little truth with a lie it\u2019s harder to recognize.\u00a0 Right?\n\nBut if I want to poison somebody with this bottle of water how much of the water bottle do I have to corrupt?\u00a0 Just a drop or two, I don\u2019t have to corrupt the whole thing.\u00a0 Just a little drop or two and I can poison somebody.\u00a0 That\u2019s how Satan works.\u00a0 Truth, truth, truth, truth, little lie, truth, truth, truth, truth and he wins.\u00a0 See that?\u00a0 So, he is the father of lies, THE father of lies, when he lies he speaks his native language.\u00a0 And then Jesus says he\u2019s a murderer.\u00a0 Well, who did he murder exactly?\u00a0 Well number one, he murdered himself because he, by rebelling against God consigned his destiny to an eternal hell.\u00a0 He murdered himself.\u00a0 Number two, he murdered a third of the angels, we know that from Revelation 12, it talks about how when he fell a third fell with him.\u00a0 I\u2019m assuming they had to be deceived into it or talked into it and so how many angels are there?\u00a0 Ten thousand times ten thousand; a third of them are on their way to hell with no opportunity for redemption because of a stunt that Satan no doubt had influence over in the Luciferian rebellion.\n\nNumber three, he murdered the human race.\u00a0 The whole human race is dying because of what Satan did in Eden.\u00a0 God said in Genesis 2:16-17 the day you eat from the tree thereof is the day you shall surely die.\u00a0 [Genesis 2:16-17, \u201che LORD God commanded the man, saying, \"From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; [17] but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die.\u201d]\u00a0 Satan comes along in Genesis 3:3 and says to Eve, \u201cYou will not die!\u201d\u00a0 Oh, wait a minute, God said they would die, now Satan comes along and says they wouldn\u2019t die.\u00a0 What do you call that?\u00a0 You call it a lie!\u00a0 And because of that lie the whole human race is subject to death.\u00a0 Romans 5:12 says death has come into the world and it overtakes every human being in Adam\u2019s lineage because of the lie of Satan.\u00a0 [Romans 5:12, \u201cTherefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned\u2014 \u201c]\n\nAnd you know, what is it, yesterday, two major shootings in the United States, Dayton, Ohio and here in Texas, El Paso.\u00a0 I mean, who do you blame for that?\u00a0 Well, I would blame the sin natures of the people that pulled the trigger, but I would also put a lot of the blame on Satan who obviously created the right scenario to put these people under pressure or put the right garbage into their minds, whatever it is, to cause them to do this heinous act.\u00a0\u00a0 This is who Satan is, his nature!\u00a0 I mean, he\u2019s just a rampant murderer.\u00a0 And that\u2019s what Jesus calls him out on here in John 8:44, and then says to the Pharisees, you guys are just like him; you\u2019re just like your father.\u00a0 The religious establishment that everybody looked up to is the most holy people in the country.\u00a0 That\u2019s what Jesus just said.\n\nSo there\u2019s a lot of Satanology right there in John 8:44. By the way, did you notice the masculine pronoun \u201che\u201d there in John 8:44, describing Satan.\u00a0 He\u2019s not an it, he\u2019s not a that, he\u2019s not an impersonal energy or force, he\u2019s an actual being with an actual personage and personality.\u00a0 And one of the tragic things is watching evangelicalism start to deny the existence of Satan.\u00a0 In fact, I was in, I think it\u2019s Rhode Island, Providence, Rhode Island, and I got to go to the church, the First Baptist church in Rhode Island.\u00a0 The whole state was named after him, he\u2019s a famous preacher, Roger Williams, one of the first churches built in the United States, a huge church, beautiful church.\u00a0 And today it\u2019s basically a place where you can go and do a tour because nobody goes there.\u00a0 They do have church services there but there\u2019s a very small number of people.\n\nAnd one of the interesting things is to go around and talk to the elderly people or people that have worked there for a long time and get the story on how that church went liberal.\u00a0 And I got into a conversation with a guy and he said at one point in this church what happened is they started to deny the existence of Satan, they sort of said things like there\u2019s not a real Satan, and so they kind of re-categorized evil as something else and once that lie takes over then liberalism quickly follows.\u00a0 Satan is an actual person, an actual being, an actual angel, an actual real entity, the evil one, and his nature, now that he\u2019s fallen is a liar and a murderer.\n\nAnd then we come to number seventeen here, 1 Peter 5:8, where two more names are used to describe Satan.\u00a0 1 Peter chapter 5 and verse 8 says, \u201cBe of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your\u201d what? \u201cadversary, the devil, prowls around like\u201d so it\u2019s a simile, \u201clike a\u201d what? \u201croaring lion, seeking someone to devour.\u201d\u00a0 So, there are two more names for Satan right there, (A) adversary, which means opponent, or enemy, and number two, he\u2019s like a \u201croaring lion seeking someone to\u201d cuddle up with\u2026 it doesn\u2019t say that!\u00a0 Have a glass of iced tea with\u2026 it doesn\u2019t say that!\u00a0 \u201cto devour.\u201d\u00a0 So once an animal gets its teeth into something there is no mercy.\u00a0 And animal doesn\u2019t have any conscience; the concept of mercy is gone from an animal, and that\u2019s how Satan is, he\u2019s animalistic in that sense.\n\nAnd I think this is probably more literal than most people take it as because this was written during the days of Nero and what did Nero do with Christians?\u00a0 He put them into the lion\u2019s den, didn\u2019t he?\u00a0 And I think it\u2019s a statement by Peter that you know who\u2019s behind this lion\u2019s den where the masses would come and cheer as the animals devoured the Christians, how they were killed in the first century, martyrdom under Nero.\u00a0 I think Peter is actually making\u2026 and some of his audiences was most likely going to be thrown into this environment, to suffer a martyr\u2019s death.\u00a0 And so when Peter says your enemy, \u201cyour adversary the devil roams about like a roaring lion seeking someone to devour\u201d it\u2019s a simile of imagery of an animal without conscience that just wants to destroy.\u00a0 But it might also be the source of empowerment behind the coliseum that Nero was orchestrating for the Christians.\n\nAnd then one more, let\u2019s go to Matthew 13:39.\u00a0 He\u2019s called a roaring lion, he\u2019s called an adversary, and one more title is used of Him, Matthew 13:39, and that\u2019s the title of \u201cthe enemy.\u201d\u00a0 Matthew 13:39 of Satan and his activity in the interadvent age, it says \u201cand the enemy who sowed them is the devil,\u201d this is talking about the tares amongst the wheat, \u201cthe enemy who sowed them is the devil and the harvest is the end of the age; and the reapers are angels.\u201d\u00a0 So you\u2019ll notice the word \u201cdevil\u201d there and you notice he\u2019s called \u201cthe enemy,\u201d or the opponent.\n\nSo, I\u2019m kind of the type of personality where I want everybody to like me. I wish that were true, but the reality is the moment you trusted in Christ as your Savior and then went further in your walk with God and began to submit to the walk of discipleship as Jesus is now not just your Savior but He\u2019s your Lord, you automatically inherited an enemy.\u00a0 There\u2019s no wiggle room out of this; you\u2019ve got an enemy whether you like it or not.\u00a0 It\u2019s like stepping out on the basketball court: the moment you step out on the basketball court, they\u2019re trying to beat you; they\u2019re trying to defeat you.\u00a0 Now you may have had supper with the opposing team last night, those may be your best friends out there, but the fact of the matter is because you\u2019ve got one color jersey and they have a different color jersey, there\u2019s an automatic conflict where they\u2019re out trying to defeat you.\u00a0 So, it\u2019s kill or be killed, speaking, of course, hyperbolically.\u00a0 So, either you suit up for war or you\u2019re just going to be demolished, because, whether you like it or not, the enemy is yours the moment you submit to the walk of discipleship.\n\nAnd cheer up, it gets worse.\u00a0 You don\u2019t even just have one enemy, you have three. \u00a0I call it three-dimensional warfare\u2014the flesh, the world and the devil!\u00a0 The flesh is the sin nature that I had at the point of conception that even though I\u2019m born again I\u2019m still going to have that sin nature until my dying day or until the rapture comes first I still have a nature that\u2019s at war with God.\u00a0 But I have a new nature inside of me and so I have to learn to live according to the desires of the new nature and to do what Romans 6 says, reckon dead the yearnings of the old nature.\u00a0 And you have to do that moment by moment and understand the resources God has given you to do that or you can\u2019t make any progress in the middle tense of your salvation.\n\nBeyond that you\u2019ve got the world system that\u2019s at war with your mind.\u00a0 That\u2019s why we\u2019re told over and over again, Romans 12:2, \u201cDo not be conformed to the pattern of this world but be renewed through your mind, [so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.\u201d]\u201d through an intake of truth, because the world system is constantly exerting pressure on the mind to influence the way you think, to get you to think wrongly about God and truth in His Word.\n\nSo, I\u2019m contending with the flesh.\u00a0 I\u2019m contending with the world.\u00a0 And if that weren\u2019t bad enough I\u2019m contending with Satan as my third enemy and it\u2019s not just Satan, it\u2019s Satan and a third of the angels that fell with him, that we call demons.\u00a0 And that\u2019s why I\u2019ve got to \u201cput on the full armor of God,\u201d Ephesians 6.\u00a0 I mean, why is it that so many Christians remain in infancy throughout their whole Christian life and they never really grow up?\u00a0 Because they don\u2019t know who their enemies are and if you don\u2019t know who your enemies are how can you win any battle.\u00a0 I mean, the first thing you do at war or a battle is you define the enemy, and then you have to know what your formula for victory is because when you get into the Bible you\u2019re going to discover that God has a pattern for victory over all three.\u00a0 There are ways to overcome the flesh; there are ways to overcome Satan.\u00a0 There are ways to overcome the world, not through our own human grit but through the resources that God has given us.\n\nAnd if no one has talked to you about this or told you about it you just remain a victim your whole Christian life.\u00a0 And you stand before the Lord at the Bema Seat Judgment of Christ, you have no reward, no crown given, although you\u2019re in heaven, although you can still smell the smoke on your garment because we\u2019re not talking about three-dimensional warfare in the church today.\n\nPastors are too busy trying to get their churches to be bigger and get everybody in the door.\u00a0 Well, gosh, if I\u2019m going to do that I can\u2019t talk about three-dimensional warfare, unchurched Mary and Harry don\u2019t want to hear that!\u00a0 So, the body of Christ remains unequipped, unequipped for battle because they\u2019ve never really been taught the principles of warfare, spiritual warfare.\u00a0 Israel fought physical enemies; we don\u2019t do that as a church, we fight spiritual enemies, and you\u2019ve got three.\u00a0 So you notice here Satan is called the enemy.\u00a0 So isn\u2019t it amazing how much information we can get into just by looking at the names and the titles of Satan.\n\nAll right, let\u2019s move into part four of this study and let\u2019s talk about the original state and first sin of Satan. I don\u2019t know how deep we can get into this today but how did Satan become Satan exactly?\u00a0 And you only have two Old Testament passages that give you any information on this.\u00a0 The first one is Ezekiel 28:12-17 and the second one is Isaiah 14:12-15.\n\n[Ezekiel 28:12-17, \u201cSon of man, take up a lamentation over the king of Tyre and say to him, \u2018Thus says the Lord GOD, \u201cYou had the seal of perfection, Full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. \u00a0\u00a0[13] \u201cYou were in Eden, the garden of God; Every precious stone was your covering: The ruby, the topaz and the diamond; the beryl, the onyx and the jasper; the lapis lazuli, the turquoise and the emerald; and the gold, the workmanship of your settings and sockets, was in you.\u00a0 On the day that you were created they were prepared. \u00a0\u00a0[14] \u201cYou were the anointed cherub who covers, and I placed you there. <\/em>\u00a0You were on the holy mountain of God; You walked in the midst of the stones of fire. \u00a0[15] \u201cYou were blameless in your ways from the day you were created until unrighteousness was found in you. \u00a0[16] \u201cBy the abundance of your trade you were internally filled with violence, and you sinned; therefore, I have cast you as profane from the mountain of God.\u00a0 And I have destroyed you, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire. \u00a0[17] Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty; You corrupted your wisdom by reason of your splendor. I cast you to the ground; I put you before kings, that they may see you.\u201d\n\nIsaiah 14:12-17, \u201c \u201cHow you have fallen from heaven, O star of the morning, son of the dawn!\u00a0 You have been cut down to the earth, you who have weakened the nations! \u00a0[13] But you said in your heart, \u2018I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God, and I will sit on the mount of assembly in the recesses of the north. \u00a0[14] \u2018I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.\u2019 \u00a0\u00a0[15] Nevertheless you will be thrust down to Sheol, to the recesses of the pit. \u00a0[16] \u201cThose who see you will gaze at you, they will ponder over you, saying<\/em>\u00a0\u2018Is this the man who made the earth tremble, who shook kingdoms, [17] Who made the world like a wilderness and overthrew its cities; who did not allow his prisoners to go<\/em> home?\u2019\u201d]\n\nIt\u2019s interesting that Paul, the apostle, when he\u2019s talking about the selection of elders and deacons in the church says this in 1 Timothy 3:6 concerning an elder, \u201cand not a new convert, so that he will not become conceited and fall into the condemnation incurred by\u201d who? \u00a0\u201cthe devil.\u201d\u00a0 So first comes pride, then comes the fall and who\u2019s the ultimate example of that?\u00a0 Satan!\u00a0 So, Paul must be referring to something in prior revelation that reveals this.\u00a0 I mean, when did Satan exactly become lifted up with pride and subsequently fall?\u00a0 It had to have happened somewhere in the Bible or else why would Paul reference this.\u00a0 Paul is assuming something that\u2019s already happened.\u00a0 So, when did it happen? Why did it happen?\u00a0 Where did it happen?\u00a0 Those kinds of questions you only have two chapters of the Bible that help you, Ezekiel 28:12-17 and Isaiah 14:12-15.\u00a0 So, let\u2019s briefly just introduce the Ezekiel passage.\n\nNotice, if you will, Ezekiel 28:12-17. I use this one first because I think of the two it\u2019s clearer that it\u2019s referring to Satan.\u00a0\u00a0 Notice what it says, [12] \u201cSon of man, take up a lamentation over the king of Tyre and say to him that thus says the Lord GOD: \u2018You were the seal of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. [13] You were in Eden, the garden of God; every kind of precious stone was your covering, the ruby, the topaz, the diamond, the beryl, the onyx, the jasper, the lapis lazuli, the turquoise and the emerald; and the gold, the workmanship of your settings and sockets, was in you. On the day that you were created they were prepared.\u00a0 [14] You were the anointed cherub who covers, and I placed you there.<\/em>\u00a0You were on the holy mountain of God; You walked in the midst of the stones of fire.\u00a0 [15] \u201cYou were blameless in your ways from the day you were created but unrighteousness was found in you.\u00a0\u00a0 [16] By the abundance of your trade you were internally filled with violence, and you sinned.\u00a0 Therefore, I have cast you as profane from the mountain of God. \u00a0And I have destroyed you, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire.\u00a0 [17] Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty;\u201d here\u2019s the sin, \u201cYour heart was lifted up because of your beauty, you corrupted your wisdom by reason of your splendor.\u00a0 I cast you to the ground; I put you before kings, that they may see you.\u201d\n\nNow I know what you\u2019re asking; you\u2019re saying well wait a minute here, you say this is about Satan?\u00a0 If you look at verse 12 it says \u201ctake up a lamentation over the king of Tyre,\u201d which is north of Israel, it\u2019s basically modern-day Lebanon.\u00a0 You say well how can you see Satan in here when Ezekiel clearly tells us it\u2019s a lamentation against a literal king in Ezekiel\u2019s day?\u00a0 Well, here\u2019s what I would call this; I would call this a Matthew 16:23 moment.\u00a0 [Matthew 16:23, \u201cBut He turned and said to Peter, \"Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on God's interests, but man's.\u201d]\u00a0 You remember when Jesus made a statement that He had to go to the cross and die?\u00a0 You remember what Peter said?\u00a0 This will not happen to You!\u00a0 Remember what Jesus said in response?\u00a0 \u201cGet behind Me, Satan.\u201d\u00a0 Wait a minute, I thought Peter made the statement.\u00a0 He did!\u00a0 But Jesus wasn\u2019t addressing Peter, He was addressing the spiritual force that motivated Peter\u2019s statement.\u00a0 See that?\n\nThat\u2019s what\u2019s happening here with the King of Tyre, a wicked king.\u00a0 But as you look at this very carefully the language goes beyond the King of Tyre and it gets into the force that\u2019s motivating the King of Tyre because verse 13 says \u201cYou were in Eden\u2026.\u201d \u00a0\u00a0[Ezekiel 28:13] Was the King of Tyre in Eden?\u00a0 Not that I know of.\u00a0 Verse 15 says \u201cYou were blameless in your ways.\u201d\u00a0 [Ezekiel 28:15, \u201cYou were blameless in your ways from the day you were created Until unrighteousness was found in you.\u201d\u00a0 Is a human being ever blameless?\u00a0 I thought all human beings under Adam\u2019s lineage inherited a sin nature.\u00a0 Psalm 51:5. [Psalm 51:5, \u201cBehold, I was brought forth in iniquity, And in sin my mother conceived me.\u201d]\u00a0\u00a0 He also calls the King of Tyre perfect, verse 12.\u00a0 I mean, are human beings ever perfect in their fallen state?\u00a0 [Ezekiel 28:12, \u201cSon of man, take up a lamentation over the king of Tyre and say to him, \u2018Thus says the Lord GOD, \u201cYou had the seal of perfection, Full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.\u201d]\n\nAnd then the dead giveaway is verse 14, \u201cYou were the anointed cherub,\u201d see, he\u2019s addressing an angel.\u00a0 And then if you look at verse 16, towards the very end of that verse it says, \u201c\u2026 and I have destroyed you, O covering cherub.\u201d\u00a0 [Ezekiel 28:14, \u201cYou were the anointed cherub who covers, and I placed you there. You were on the holy mountain of God; You walked in the midst of the stones of fire.\u201d\u00a0 Ezekiel 28:16, \u201cBy the abundance of your trade You were internally filled with violence, And You sinned; Therefore, I have cast You as profane from the mountain of God. \u00a0And I have destroyed You, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire.\u201d]\n\nSo, he\u2019s addressing the angelic force motivating the King of Tyre and in the process of this prophecy the Holy Spirit reveals to Ezekiel a tremendous picture of Satan\u2019s original state and first sin.\u00a0 In other words, how did Lucifer become Satan?\u00a0 How did an angel become the devil?\u00a0 And you\u2019ll get a description of it and we\u2019ll also be learning all kinds of attributes about Satan simply by studying this passage.\n\nSo, I promised my wife that because she\u2019s running the camera today we would stop at 10:40 and I hope, sweetheart, you can look at the clock, it\u2019s exactly 10:40 [laughter] because a happy wife is a happy life, amen!\u00a0 [laughter] So we\u2019ll shut the camera off, we\u2019ll pick it up next time.","series_sermon_number":""},"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t