The questions many ask is, does the devil really exist?
Or is he merely an imaginary figure for those who feel the need to blame something or someone other than ourselves for much of the evil that exists in the world? It's something to think about. Has mankind invented the devil as a scapegoat to avoid guilt and self-blame? What does the Bible say about this?
Well the Bible emphatically states, "He that commits sin is of the devil; for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose, was the Son of God manifested (revealed), that He might destroy the works of the devil" (1 John 3:8). While according to Matthew's gospel account of Christ's forty days of temptation in the wilderness, the Scripture reads, "Then was Jesus led up by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil" (Matthew 4:1).
Furthermore, the apostle Paul who many consider to be the champion of the Christian faith, wrote in one of his letters to his protege' Timothy, that those who cannot comprehend spiritual matters, "may recover themselves from the snare of the devil, who has taken these individuals captive to do his will" (2nd Timothy 2:26).
And finally, one more of the many passages in the Bible that will attest to the existence of the devil, is when the Lord Jesus confronted the hypocritical religious rulers of His day and said, "You are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father you will do. He was a murderer from the beginning..." (John 8:44).
The Bible pulls no punches. God's Word tells it like it is, and we could either take it or leave it. Either there is a real being known as the devil, sometimes referred to as Satan and Lucifer, or there isn't.
However, if for arguments sake there is not an actual being known as the devil, then Christianity is false. There are many references in the Scriptures regarding the devil and demons. If untrue, the Bible would be filled with falsehoods and deception.
But I have chosen to believe what the Scriptures declare. This being that the devil is real, and he is responsible for much of the misery and evil that's in the world. And so too is fallen man.
Yet I also believe the devil is an already defeated being. Jesus defeated both the devil and death when He went to the cross to pay the price for humanity's sins, and in so doing won the battle over evil. Nevertheless, in this present age of grace the devil remains active. He is still allowed to tempt and deceive mankind. But according to the holy Bible his days are numbered. For Lucifer, the Lake of Fire awaits.
D. B.
Revelation 20:10-15
Well the Bible emphatically states, "He that commits sin is of the devil; for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose, was the Son of God manifested (revealed), that He might destroy the works of the devil" (1 John 3:8). While according to Matthew's gospel account of Christ's forty days of temptation in the wilderness, the Scripture reads, "Then was Jesus led up by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil" (Matthew 4:1).
Furthermore, the apostle Paul who many consider to be the champion of the Christian faith, wrote in one of his letters to his protege' Timothy, that those who cannot comprehend spiritual matters, "may recover themselves from the snare of the devil, who has taken these individuals captive to do his will" (2nd Timothy 2:26).
And finally, one more of the many passages in the Bible that will attest to the existence of the devil, is when the Lord Jesus confronted the hypocritical religious rulers of His day and said, "You are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father you will do. He was a murderer from the beginning..." (John 8:44).
The Bible pulls no punches. God's Word tells it like it is, and we could either take it or leave it. Either there is a real being known as the devil, sometimes referred to as Satan and Lucifer, or there isn't.
However, if for arguments sake there is not an actual being known as the devil, then Christianity is false. There are many references in the Scriptures regarding the devil and demons. If untrue, the Bible would be filled with falsehoods and deception.
But I have chosen to believe what the Scriptures declare. This being that the devil is real, and he is responsible for much of the misery and evil that's in the world. And so too is fallen man.
Yet I also believe the devil is an already defeated being. Jesus defeated both the devil and death when He went to the cross to pay the price for humanity's sins, and in so doing won the battle over evil. Nevertheless, in this present age of grace the devil remains active. He is still allowed to tempt and deceive mankind. But according to the holy Bible his days are numbered. For Lucifer, the Lake of Fire awaits.
D. B.
Revelation 20:10-15
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