"The Devil is God's Enemy"
I homeschool my oldest child (eventually I'll homeschool my other two as well), and I am also teaching another homeschooled child math along with my own since they are at the same level. Today when I was done teaching and they were settled into their "homework" assignments, my daughter asked if I could turn some music on because she wanted to dance. I didn't think music would distract my students, so I said yes and put on a CD of Biblically inspired music. After a song or two played, my guest student turned to me and stated in a matter of fact tone: "The devil is God's enemy."
I must say I wasn't sure how to respond to his doctrinal statement. I didn't completely agree with it. But, if that is what his parents (who go to church) are teaching him, then I don't want to undermine their authority in his life. He was waiting for me to agree with him. What do I say? So, I replied: "The devil is certainly our enemy, and we should resist him."
Then he says: "The devil isn't real."
"Isn't real?"
"No, the devil isn't real."
My overly logical brain is processing... Devil=God's enemy; no devil; therefore, no God? I respond: "There is a devil, he is our adversary, our accuser."
He didn't make anymore statements, and our brief theological discussion ended.
You may be wondering what possible disagreement I could have with the boy's first statement: "The devil is God's enemy." Afterall, isn't the devil (a.k.a. satan) trying undermine God's plans and trying take over YHVH's throne? Isn't that his plan? According to scripture? not exactly. The devil is shown as the enemy of righteous people throughout scripture, and it appears that his desire is to rule over the earth and all that is in it, to be the King of the world, or at least to stop the children of YHVH from attaining The Kingdom. Their really isn't much in scripture to tell us about satan, but he is never shown as a power strong enough to fight or even resist YHVH.
The idea that the devil is some power in direct opposition to YHVH is dualism, not monotheism. The devil, no matter how angelic, is a created being. YHVH is almighty God, the creator of all that is, there is none higher nor equal in any way to Him. There is no power that can injure Him or even rise up against Him! He has no enemies that can rightly be called enemies. YHVH, however, can be the enemy of created beings because He has the power to wound and destroy His own creation. So, YHVH might be the devil's enemy in the end, but the devil could never be God's enemy.
I must say I wasn't sure how to respond to his doctrinal statement. I didn't completely agree with it. But, if that is what his parents (who go to church) are teaching him, then I don't want to undermine their authority in his life. He was waiting for me to agree with him. What do I say? So, I replied: "The devil is certainly our enemy, and we should resist him."
Then he says: "The devil isn't real."
"Isn't real?"
"No, the devil isn't real."
My overly logical brain is processing... Devil=God's enemy; no devil; therefore, no God? I respond: "There is a devil, he is our adversary, our accuser."
He didn't make anymore statements, and our brief theological discussion ended.
You may be wondering what possible disagreement I could have with the boy's first statement: "The devil is God's enemy." Afterall, isn't the devil (a.k.a. satan) trying undermine God's plans and trying take over YHVH's throne? Isn't that his plan? According to scripture? not exactly. The devil is shown as the enemy of righteous people throughout scripture, and it appears that his desire is to rule over the earth and all that is in it, to be the King of the world, or at least to stop the children of YHVH from attaining The Kingdom. Their really isn't much in scripture to tell us about satan, but he is never shown as a power strong enough to fight or even resist YHVH.
The idea that the devil is some power in direct opposition to YHVH is dualism, not monotheism. The devil, no matter how angelic, is a created being. YHVH is almighty God, the creator of all that is, there is none higher nor equal in any way to Him. There is no power that can injure Him or even rise up against Him! He has no enemies that can rightly be called enemies. YHVH, however, can be the enemy of created beings because He has the power to wound and destroy His own creation. So, YHVH might be the devil's enemy in the end, but the devil could never be God's enemy.
posted by fencekicker | 5:26 PM
9 Comments:
Very interesting points and you made me have to think about this one a while. I'm trying to remember the verse that says something like "you said to yourself I will ascend up to heaven and sit on the throne" (VERY bad paraphrase there). Does it suggest that he was going to sit on YHWH's throne or perhaps the right hand of YHWH's throne where Y'shua would sit? There would be a HUGE difference and you may be exactly correct. If you know the answer please send me an email (lkn4truth@verizon.net)
Your are probably thinking of Isaiah 14:
4 that you will take up this taunt against the king of Babylon, and say, "How the oppressor has ceased, and how fury has ceased! 5 YHVH has broken the staff of the wicked, the scepter of rulers 6 which used to strike the peoples in fury with unceasing strokes, which subdued the nations in anger with unrestrained persecution.
7 "The whole earth is at rest and is quiet; they break forth into shouts of joy. 8 Even the cypress trees rejoice over you, and the cedars of Lebanon saying, 'Since you were laid low, no tree cutter comes up against us.'
9 "Sheol from beneath is excited over you to meet you when you come; It arouses for you the spirits of the dead, all the leaders of the earth; from their thrones. 10 They will all respond and say to you, 'Even you have been made weak as we, you have become like us. 11 Your pomp and the music of your harps have been brought down to Sheol; Maggots are spread out as your bed beneath you and worms are you covering.'
12 "How you have fallen from heaven O star of the morning, son of the dawn! You have been cut down to the earth you who have weakened the nations! 13 But you said in your heart, 'I 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. I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.'
15 "Nevertheless you will be thrust down to Sheol, to the recesses of the pit. 16 Those who see you will gaze at you, They will ponder over you, saying, 'is 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 home?' 18 All the kings of the nations like in glory, each in his own tomb. 19 But you have been cast of or your tomb like a rejected branch, clothed with the slain who are pierced with a sword, who go down to the stones of the pit like a trampled corpse. 20 You will not be united with them in burial, because you have ruined your country, you have slain your people. May the offspring of evildoers not be mentioned forever.
21 "Prepare for his sons a place of slaughter because of the iniquity of their fathers. They must not arise and take possession of the earth and fill the face of the world with cities."
22 "I will rise up against them," declares YHVH of hosts, "and will cut off from Babylon name and survivors, offspring and posterity," declares YHVH. (NASB with "the LORD" restored to YHVH)
This description of the demise of the King of Babylon is often attributed to Satan instead. The KJV uses "Lucifer" instead of "star of the morning" in verse twelve. Some feel that "Lucifer" is another name for Satan. However, as I understand it from scripture and other ancient writings, "Star of the morning" is a phrase used to describe the king of the whole earth, and can apply to any such king whether the king is righteous or unrighteous. That is why it can in this chapter be used to describe the arrogant and cruel King of Babylon, and then be used to describe Yahshua in Revelations 22.
Technically, what you are asking is "Who is the ARCH ENEMY of God."
If you were to ask a random sampling of people on the street - or even in church - "Who is the arch enemy of Jesus?" nearly everyone would say "Satan!"
But that isn't true.
Satan is an angel. His arch enemies are Michael and Gabriel, the two remaining arch angels who were equal to Lucifer in power and authority before he got kicked out of heaven.
Yes, the devil is an enemy of God, but his is not arch enemy. God has no arch enemies. He has no equal. That's why God will win in the end, because there is no one who can oppose Him.
Joey,
Thank you for your comment. :)
As I understand it, "The Satan" is more of a title than a particular being. Any created being can fill that role. For instance, Jesus once called Peter "Satan" because at that moment he was tempting Jesus, and not trusting in God. In the book of Job, Satan was not the adversary of Job, not of God. God permits Satan to challenge the faith of Job, and is overseeing the work of Satan. In Revelations, Satan is chasing after the holy people. "Lucifer" was the king of Babylon. In Genesis, Satan was getting mankind into trouble. Satan is any created being (human or angelic) that interferes with our relationship with God, and God allows that interference so that we can learn discipline, and so He can show mercy when we fail and then turn back to Him.
Thanks again for your comment.
Th., 8/21/08
In Orthodox synogogues I have learned that the alleged "Devil" doesn't exist in the Torah. The Hebrew word "Satan" means "temptor" or "adversary." For a Jew to believe in the existence of a "Devil" is a violation of the 2nd Commandment, a belief in a plurality of gods.
I also learned that angels lack free will. This conclusion is deduced from the Torah account of Jacob wrestling with the angel. After Jacob wins, he asks the angel his name; but the angel is silent. The conclusion is that that angel lacked free will.
The "Satan as Devil" myth begins to unravel when one asks the question, "Why does G-d let 'Satan'
get away with it?" Is this supposed Devil actually doing G-d's Will? Think about it.
Your blog keeps getting better and better! Your older articles are not as good as newer ones you have a lot more creativity and originality now keep it up!
In Gen_3:15; GOD tell's the serpent the devil that HE would put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel. The woman seed is THE LORD JESUS. So we know that THE LORD JESUS and the devil are enemies.
Mat 13:36 Then Jesus sent the multitude away, and went into the house: and his disciples came unto him, saying, Declare unto us the parable of the tares of the field.
Mat 13:37 He answered and said unto them, He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man;
Mat 13:38 The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one;
Mat 13:39 The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels.
James 4:4
New International Version (NIV)
4 You adulterous people,[a] don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God.
It looks like anyone could become an enemy of God.
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