163 Sermon Illustrations on Satan

Sermon in Ephesians series.

"PRINCIPALITIES AND POWERS" Ephesians 6:10-13

I. Illustration of modern terrorism.

II. Christians are involved in a silent but deadly struggle.

III. The enemy we face.

A. The existence of evil forces is assumed in this passage.

B. "Struggle/wrestle" metaphor may refer to hand-to-hand combat.

C. "Rulers, authorities, powers..." 6:12

IV. Our devil is too small if... " #1287

A. He is merely a personification.

B. Satan is consigned to long-ago times and faraway places.

C. We assume he leaves Christians alone. 1 Pet 5:8

D. We decide he is not capable of performing miracles.

E. We think we are smart enough, quick enough, strong enough,

V. What area of your life is most open to Satan's attack?

A. Insecurity and fears.

B. Temptations and addictions.

C. Spiritual laziness.

VI. What God has done to help you.

A. Jesus Christ has defeated the power of the devil.

B. Satan is defeated, but not yet destroyed.

VII. What you must do to win the victory.

Traditional Christian beliefs are in decline, according to a recent survey by the Barna Research Group of Glendale, California. While 88% believe Jesus Christ was a real person, what they believe about Him differs sharply from Scriptural teaching.

Forty-two percent of those surveyed believe that while He lived on earth, Jesus committed sins, just like other people. Even among born-again Christians, one-quarter believe Jesus sinned during His time on earth.

A whopping 61% believe the devil is just a symbol of evil, not a living being. And 54% believe that if people are good enough, they will earn a place in heaven, regardless of their religious beliefs.

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Another version from SermonCentral.com, 2002:

NOT JUST A SYMBOL

The New York Times reported a study about the diminishing belief in the devil among Americans. Two-thirds of Americans do not believe in the devil as a living entity. In a randomly selected survey of over 1,000 Americans, pollsters asked whether they agreed that Satan is “not a living being, but a symbol of evil.” Sixty-two percent agreed with the statement. That means nearly 149 million Americans believe that Satan has no influence, but that Satan is just a symbol of evil. We should know and understand that Satan is real, and evil is real, and this is our number-one enemy as believers in Jesus Christ.

________

Contributed by Christopher Roberts

We are at war, and we need to know about the enemy.

1. Who is Satan?

2. What are Satan's objectives?

a. Keep unbelievers in the dark.

b. Render believers spiritually ineffective.

c. Hinder the work of God in the world.

3. What are Satan's tactics?

a. Deceit.

b. Accusation.

c. Capitalizing on weakness.

d. Oppression through demonization.

e. Oppression through demonized physical objects.

f. Physical affliction.

4. Our victory over Satan.

The bad news: We have an enemy who actively seeks to destroy us. The good news: In Christ, we have the authority to keep him at bay until his final defeat.

The New Testament frequently reminds us that we have a spiritual enemy (Mt. 6:13, 2 Cor. 11:3, Eph. 6:10–18, James 4:7). Peter further warns us to be “self-controlled and alert” around this enemy, whom he clearly identifies as the devil (1 Pet. 5:8). But unless we understand who our enemy is and what his tactics are, we give him a great strategic advantage over us.

Who Is Satan?

Just as the Bible nowhere presents an argument for the existence of God, it nowhere gives us an obvious explanation of who Satan is or where he came from. Jesus’ reference to “the devil and his angels” (Mt. 25:41), John’s account of the war in heaven between Michael and his angels and “the dragon and his angels” (Rev. 12:7), and the possible reference to him in Ezek. 28:14 as a “guardian cherub” have led many to the conclusion that he was a high-ranking angel who rebelled against God and led a group of the angels to follow him in rebellion.

Paul tells us that the coming of the lawless one at the end of this age “will be in accordance with the work of Satan.” This imposter under Satan’s control “will oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sets himself up in God’s temple ... proclaiming himself to be God” (2 Thess. 2:4, 2 Thess. 2:9). Satan was acting out this ambition to be God when he tempted our Lord to fall down and worship him in exchange for all the kingdoms of the world (Mt. 4:8–9).

We know that Satan will never achieve his goal of being like God, and he knows it. No matter where we put Revelation 12 (describing a vanquished Satan and his angels) in view of the end times, Satan knows that he has a limited time to pursue his diabolical purposes (Rev. 12:12). Yet spiritual warfare is a fact of life as long as this enemy is still loose on the earth and the final victory of the Kingdom of God is in the future.

God allows Satan to retain his power and operate as a part of this world because God’s sovereignty over the world is not in question. God is able to use the work even of this enemy to accomplish His own purposes — to make us stronger rather than weaker.

We can conclude, then, that Satan is a powerful angel who rebelled against God and now sees God and God’s children as his special enemies. The other angels who went along with the rebellion are what we now call demons (Jude 6).

What Are Satan’s Objectives?

Satan’s goals grow out of his jealousy and hatred of God. What does Satan hope to accomplish?

Keep unbelievers in the dark. Satan would like to rule the world. Since that will never happen in the ultimate sense, he has to settle for something less as he deals with people.

For the unredeemed his strategy is to keep them from hearing and receiving the truth of the gospel. Paul tells us that “the god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God” (2 Cor. 4:4). Satan tries to keep them from even hearing the message. If an unbeliever hears but does not understand, Jesus tells us that “the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart” (Mt. 13:19).

Render believers spiritually ineffective. Believers are in a position to bring glory to God by their very lives, and that’s something Satan is committed to prevent. In the Ten Commandments it’s clear believers are not to “take the name of the Lord your God in vain” (Exod. 20:7, NAS). God’s intent was far more than to prohibit the use of His name in oaths or curses. He was saying we should not be called “children of God” and then not live in a manner that points others to God. We are not to take the name of God on ourselves by saying we are His children and then not reflect His character. That’s why Paul says, “Whether you eat or drink [the most basic functions in life] or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God” (1 Cor. 10:31).

Peter says Satan’s aim is to “devour” us (1 Pet. 5:9). The root meaning of the word devour is “to swallow.” Satan will try to get us so swallowed up in worldly and self-centered living that we “fall short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:23).

Hinder the work of God in the world. Paul wrote to the Thessalonians that he had attempted to come to them many times, but “Satan thwarted us” (1 Thess. 2:18, NAS). In Ephesians 6, Paul characterized Christian life and ministry as struggling against the demonic powers in the world. He clearly implies that if we do not use the spiritual armor and weapons provided for us, the enemy will press the attack and keep us from carrying out our Lord’s marching orders. Even when we are operating on faith, as Paul did, we are not spared the heat of the battle. Paul suffered many things (2 Cor. 6:3–10, 2 Cor. 11:23–33). Though much of his suffering came at the hands of human opponents, I believe Paul would have seen it as part of the battle with supernatural forces.

What Are Satan’s Tactics?

The more an army knows about the strategies and tactics of an enemy, the more effective it will be in combat with that enemy. Paul indicated that in his warfare with Satan he was not “unaware of his schemes” (2 Cor. 2:11). Unfortunately, the Christian army today is often quite ignorant of Satan’s schemes and becomes easy prey. What are some of Satan’s basic warfare tactics?

Deceit. Jesus said that when the devil lies he speaks out of his very nature (Jn. 8:44). He first appears in the Bible in Genesis 3 using deception to lure Adam and Eve into sin (see 2 Cor. 11:3). In Rev. 12:9, (NAS) he is called the one “who deceives the whole world” (see also Rev. 18:23, Rev. 19:20, Rev. 20:10).

If a person is openly attacked, he can defend himself. If he is tempted, he can make a choice. But if he is deceived, he doesn’t even know anything is wrong. In 2 Tim. 2:24–26 Paul says that some people in the church who were opposing the truth were in “the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will.” He also indicated that the way out of that trap is the truth (v. 25).

Satan will deceive us about how powerful he is. Many people ascribe power to Satan that he doesn’t have, simply by fearing even to talk about him. Satan then will capitalize on this fear by attacking us — usually when we’re alone, when it’s dark, and when we’re in a weakened condition.

Satan also deceives us by offering us power to deal with the problem areas of our lives. People in all parts of the world, including what appears to be a highly secularized Western world, carry good luck charms, consult psychics and fortune-tellers, go to practitioners who use magic to heal diseases, consult with spirits claiming to be from people of past ages, consult the alignment of stars, and engage in a multitude of other activities we call the occult. Satan promises power but delivers only enough to keep his victims coming back, and he charges a very high price in the form of bondage in some area of a person’s life.

Satan also deceives us about spiritual truth. Paul tells the Corinthians, “I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent’s cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ” (2 Cor. 11:3). He wrote to Timothy: “The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons” (1 Tim. 4:1).

The two most foundational truths that come under attack are the character of God and the identity of the believer as a child of God through faith in Jesus Christ. Once a person’s concept of God is perverted, his concept of what it means to be a child of God is affected. This sometimes takes the form of blaming God for all the bad things that happen in life. It also takes the form of believing we have to reach a certain level of perfection before God will accept us. Since people may not live what they profess but will always live what they believe, success in spreading these wrong beliefs gives Satan an inroad in the most foundational area of our lives — our hearts (Prov. 4:23).

Accusation. Satan is also called “the accuser of our brothers” (Rev. 12:10). He accuses us to God and he accuses us to ourselves. God convicts us of sin by showing us how to deal with it through the Cross. Satan accuses us to discourage us and make us want to give up. He will sometimes put an evil thought in our minds and then say, “And you say you are a Christian — look what you’re thinking!” I’ve talked with ministers and missionaries who’ve struggled with this. It’s one of the reasons Paul tells us to “take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ” (2 Cor. 10:3–5).

Capitalizing on weakness. A standard modus operandi of Satan is to find a weakness in our lives and intensify it to a compulsive level (2 Cor. 10:3–5). Weaknesses such as the effects of trauma or a dysfunctional family or wrong patterns of thinking may open the door for his involvement. Satan doesn’t fight fair. He’s ruthless in his attacks, and God’s protection is not automatic just because we are His children.

Oppression through demonization. In demonization, a demon holds some measure of control over a person. This relationship has often been called demon possession, but that is a misleading term and, if used at all, should refer only to the more extreme forms of demonic control over unbelievers.

Satan’s henchmen, the demons, seek to establish strongholds in people — both Christians and nonChristians (2 Cor. 2:10–11, 2 Cor. 10:3–5, Eph. 4:27). Symptoms such as an inability to grow spiritually, compulsive thoughts or behaviors, and undiagnosable or untreatable physical symptoms may indicate a demonic stronghold. So do the more classic symptoms of superhuman strength, different voices, and an inability to cope with everyday life. A truly Spirit-filled believer will not be demonized — not because an evil Spirit cannot be where the Holy Spirit is (God is omnipresent) but because that person is appropriating the spiritual power and authority available to him as a child of God (Luke 10:19, Eph. 1:19).

Oppression through demonized physical objects. God made it plain that His people should not bring certain religious objects into their homes. They were, in fact, to detest them and burn them (Deut. 7:25–26). Evil spirits can use such objects as a medium to come to people (Deut. 32:17, Ps. 106:37, 1 Cor. 10:19–20). For instance, a missionary child suffered severe nighttime disturbances until a ceremonial dagger hung in his room was removed and destroyed.

Physical affliction. Satan may also attack the physical body (Job 2:7, Mt. 9:32–33, Luke 13:16, 2 Cor. 12:7). Sometimes physical attack is the result of doors we open to the enemy through our own sin, as in the case of a woman who had undiagnosable fevers and pain that moved about in her body. When she confessed and renounced her participation in occult practices, the fevers and the pain left with no recurrence.

Our Victory over Satan

It’s easy to focus too much on what Satan can do and be intimidated. Instead, we should focus on our resources in Christ so we can meet Satan’s challenges with confidence.

The decisive battle in spiritual warfare was fought and won by Christ at the Cross and the Resurrection. Paul wrote to the Colossians, “And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross” (Colossians 2:15). The writer to the Hebrews affirmed this victory when he said, “Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might destroy him who holds the power of death — that is, the devil — and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death” (Colossians 2:14–15). Our faith is in the victory of Christ and in our relationship to Him.

Luke gives us an interesting glimpse into the process many go through to learn of their spiritual authority over Satan. In Luke 10, he tells of Jesus sending seventy-two disciples out to practice what He had been teaching them. When they returned, they said, “Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name” (Luke 10:17). They seemed somewhat surprised at this. Jesus said, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.” I think He was saying their ministry had all the authority of the Kingdom of God behind it. To make it more explicit He said, “I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you. However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you” [this does not make you some special group of privileged, gifted disciples],”but rejoice that your names are written in heaven” [being a child of God gives you this authority] (Luke 10:18–20).

John McMillan, in his little book The Authority of the Believer, compares our authority to that of a policeman. A policeman’s authority does not reside in his own identity but in his position as a representative of the state. It doesn’t matter whether he’s one week out of the police academy or a twenty-year veteran. As policemen, both have the same authority.

So it is with the believer. It’s not one’s giftedness or age; it is being a child of God that gives us spiritual authority. Even a young child who knows the Lord can ward off the attacks of the enemy in the name of Jesus.

We are at war whether we like it or not. The only question is whether we can say with Paul “I have fought the good fight” (2 Tim. 4:7) by being “strong in the Lord and in his mighty power,” taking our stand “against the devil’s schemes” (Eph. 6:10–11).

Sermon for Christmas Eve Candlelighting service, 1995. Revelation 12:1-9

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COSMIC COMBAT

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I. A tense time of year.

A. Christmas family squabbles are legendary.

Movie, "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation."

Chevy Chase is visited by relatives in a recreation vehicle.

They are staying only a month.

Some of those kind of relatives may be here tonight!

(What do we do with them?? Take them to church!)

B. When everyone is together, tensions are under surface.

1) First Christmas was just like this.

2) Underlying tension of evil king trying to get baby.

3) But there is even more in view - cosmic combat.

a) Nativity sets have animals, Magi, shepherds...

b) One person who should be there, and is missing, is Satan.

II. More than meets the eye.

A. Christmas is actually a great battle.

1) In ancient times, earth was taken over by bad guys.

2) God wanted to get it back, but he knew there'd be opposition.

B. God's secret plan.

1) Do an "end run" - invade where they least expect it!

2) A pregnant unmarried teenager, an obscure village in a small

country, the God-man laid in a feeding trough.

3) God uses the simple things to confound the wise and powerful.

a) He still operates this way today.

b) God wants to conquer our pride and selfishness.

C. Revelation 12 puts Christmas in cosmic perspective.

1) Woman is either Mary or God's people (better).

2) Messiah is obviously in view. 12:5

3) Dragon tries to kill mother and child.

a) Satan tried to get Jesus throughout his ministry.

1> Slaughter of innocents, and flight to Egypt.

2> Temptation in wilderness.

3> Inspiration for Judas and cross.

III. Bad guys and good guys.

A. Evil king Herod.

1) "Let me know what you find." Matt 2:8

2) He then kills all the little kids in Bethlehem.

B. Satan himself.

1) The Bible speaks of a great spiritual war going on.

2) Satan is real, though many doubt him.

Humorist Jeanne Robertson tells about a story that appeared

in Southern newspapers a few years back.

The story was about an unusual occurrence at the Porter's Chapel

Church near Erwin, N.C.

The devil was picketing the church one Sunday morning --

startling sinners, frightening small children, and exhorting

passersby to stay away from church.

Folks who passed the little cinder block church on N.C. 82 saw a

red-suited creature with forked tail marching up and down in

front of the church.

He carried a pitchfork in one hand and a sign in the other that

urged people not to attend church.

According to a deputy, people were frightened to death.

Little kids were crying and even some of the grown folks looked

a little upset.

It turned out that the "devil" was only the pastor in disguise.

I know what some of you are thinking.

It's usually the other way around - pastors are usually the

devil in disguise.

The Rev. Floyd Turlington told Harnett County deputies that he

engineered the masquerade as an experiment in reverse

psychology.

"If you tell people not to do something, then they're going to

do it," he said.

What Turlington had not counted on was the panic that resulted.

Switchboards at the sheriff's office and the Erwin police

department flashed with frantic calls.

There was one interesting sidelight.

Turlington said that one passing motorist stopped his car and

said, "I just want to shake the devil's hand.

I'VE BEEN MARRIED TO HIS SISTER FOR A LONG TIME."

#2942

C. God.

1) He protects mother and child in wilderness. 12:6

2) Hints of flight to Egypt and Great Tribulation.

D. Angels.

1) They "hover" in the next dimension.

a) Michael takes on Satan here. 12:7

b) Gabriel announces birth of Messiah in gospels.

2) Takes faith to see them - only godly shepherds are aware.

IV. The good guys win in the end.

A. Once again, God does it in a cunning way.

1) Instead of an all-powerful general, he sends a baby.

2) Instead of a crushing battle, he dies on a cross.

B. The battle isn't over yet.

1) We are still engaged in it.

2) As long as peace is not on earth, we are at war spiritually.

C. Victory will come when Jesus returns.

1) Satan will be vanquished.

2) The Divine Baby shall rule the earth.

#3442

*

A downpour pelts Tim McClard as he floats down the Suriname River in a dugout canoe. The night is so dark that McClard, a Southern Baptist International Mission Board missionary from Farmington, Mo., can hardly see who's in front of him, let alone the river ahead. But he's not worried. He knows who's steering the canoe.

It's 39-year-old George Eduard, an evangelical Christian who grew up in the bush country of Suriname, a South American nation that's a former Dutch colony. Eduard, like many men from a tribe called the Saramaccans, knows every rock in this river. He knows them so well he often guides the boat at night without alight.

Tonight when Eduard nears Dang (pronounced DAHNG) Village, he stops the outboard motor and drifts toward the bank. He and his passengers -- McClard and some visiting Baptists -- get out and slosh toward the village school. There they join a crowd of Saramaccans for worship.

During the service Eduard tells a story about Satan and stresses Jesus' power to overcome evil. That's an intriguing topic for Saramaccans, descendants of African slaves who escaped from Dutch plantations in the 17th and 18th centuries. Today Saramaccans retain many African traditions, including voodoo and animism. Their religion -- called "Kunu" -- revolves around evil spirits.

"The evil is real -- and you can feel it here, but we're trying to show them that the creator of everything loves them and is much more powerful than evil," says McClard's wife, Judy, from Ironton, Mo.

One Saramaccan who has discovered that truth is a woman who calls herself Maria (Mary) Magdala. Villagers used to pay her to consult a demon they believed spoke through her. But when several of her relatives died, people began rejecting her.

"She felt that even the devil didn't like her," recalls Eduard.

But when she heard Eduard preach about Jesus' love, she accepted Christ. "When I prayed with her, the spiritual battle was so intense," Eduard recalls.

The Lord gave her the power to renounce her Kunu practices. "I just call upon my Jesus, and he gives me the strength to do what I need to do," Magdala says. "Prayer keeps me going."

After tonight's service, she asks McClard and Eduard to pray for her and her 15-year-old daughter, who has accepted Christ, too. The two will soon take the public stand of baptism in front of a village that's long been a Kunu stronghold. Eduard knows well the pressures that decision might bring them.

He became a Christian as a youth and recalls as a teen going with his grandfather to preach in a nearby village. After a witch doctor accepted Christ there, villagers stoned them. They escaped, but that night the persecutors dragged Eduard's grandfather from his hut, beat him with a chain and poured tar on him. Eduard, hiding in the darkness, watched in horror.

After he grew up and left home, Eduard strayed from his faith. But one night Jesus appeared to him in a dream. "I'm getting ready to do a great work on the Suriname River," the Lord told Eduard. "I need you to help."

Meanwhile, the Lord began to call the McClards to that work, too. After they heard about the Saramaccans through some missionary pilots, the McClards began to pray for the tribe. They asked Southern Baptist prayer supporters to pray, too. Soon they met Eduard, who then worked at the school their children attend in Paramaribo, Suriname's capital.

Eduard paved the way for McClard and IMB missionary Chip Collins, from Houston, to visit some Saramaccan villages and meet with the tribal chief. The chief gave them permission to bring in Southern Baptist volunteers to do human needs ministries in the area.

"Many groups have promised to help us, but they haven't kept those promises," the chief said. "We'll be watching you to see if you keep yours."

Since that conversation almost three years ago, volunteers have conducted medical and dental clinics, construction and water well projects and Vacation Bible Schools in several villages. "Their work has opened many doors for us to spread the gospel," says McClard.

The door to Dang Village opened in 1997 when volunteers from First Baptist Church, Palatka, Fla., renovated a school. During the project, about 175 Saramaccans accepted Christ after viewing the "Jesus" film.

Volunteer Steve Nettles witnessed their commitments in amazement. "Other than my own conversion, it was the most spiritually overwhelming moment of my life," he says.

He had a similar response when he saw Magdala's baptism during another volunteer project this summer. "That makes everything worthwhile," said Nettles, just after Magdala was baptized with four believers she helped lead to Christ.

The baptisms were the first ones resulting from work of an evangelical church-planting team that includes Eduard, the McClards and several other missionaries. Saramaccans from five villages gathered to see the event, which village leaders allowed to happen in the river in front of Dang Village.

"We're seeing God moving along this river like we've never seen before," McClard says. "The power of Satan is being broken here."

#4463

*

A FOX caught in a trap escaped, but in so doing lost his tail.

Thereafter, feeling his life a burden from the shame and ridicule to

which he was exposed, he schemed to convince all the other Foxes that

being tailless was much more attractive, thus making up for his own

deprivation. He assembled a good many Foxes and publicly advised them

to cut off their tails, saying that they would not only look much

better without them, but that they would get rid of the weight of the

brush, which was a very great inconvenience. One of them interrupting

him said, "If you had not yourself lost your tail, my friend, you

would not thus counsel us."

Satan too lost his "tail" when he rebelled against God. Now, he is

advising the human race to get rid of their reliance upon God since

they will be so much happier. Unfortunately, too many souls listen to

Satan without realizing that they are losing their opportunity to

enjoy eternal life. Don't let this happen to you.

"Anyone who has ever tried to formulate a private prayer in silence, and in his own heart, will know what I mean by diabolical interference. The forces of evil are in opposition to the will of God. And the nearer a man approaches God's will, the more apparent and stronger and more formidable this opposition is seen to be. It is only when we are going in more or less the same direction as the devil that we are unconscious of any opposition at all. A man prayed, and at first he thought that prayer was talking. But he became more and more quiet until in the end he realized that prayer is listening." --Soren Aabye Kierkegaard

Deception has always been part of military strategy. The British put it to good use during World War II in North Africa against German forces led by General Erwin Rommel. They constructed pasteboard look-alikes of tanks and airplanes to deceive the Germans. From the air this fake equipment looked real enough to foot reconnaissance personnel, and it could be easily moved.|Deception, Gambling, Satan

Rock and Demon Possession

* “We come bursting through your bodies/ Rape your helpless soul/Transform you into a creature/ Merciless and cold/ We force you to kill your brother/ Eat his blood and brain/ Shredding flesh and sucking bone/ Till everyone's insane...” “Demons” - Rigor Mortis (1988).

* “Anyway, I don't do very many things until A CERTAIN FORCE tells me to do them. THE FORCE tells me when and then I make my move”. - Michael Jackson.

* “It happens subliminally. IT'S THE MUSIC THAT COMPELS ME TO DO IT. You don't think about it, it just happens. I'M A SLAVE TO THE RHYTHM.” (Michael Jackson.)

* “In Haitian voodoo as in Africa the drum is holy. The drummer is seen merely as the servant of the drum...but through his drum HE HAS GREAT INFLUENCE ON THE CEREMONY. Each loa (demon) PREFERS A FUNDAMENTALLY DIFFERENT RHYTHM, and the drummer knows them all and all their variations. HE CAN OFTEN INVOKE POSSESSION BY WHAT HE PLAYS...” (“Hear That Long Snake Moan', by Michael Ventura, Whole Earth Review, Spring, 1987, p.34.)

* “We're making our music into electric church music - A NEW KIND OF BIBLE, not like in a hotel, but a Bible you carry in your hearts, one that will give you a physical feeling. We try to make our music so loose and hard-hitting so that IT HITS YOUR SOUL HARD ENOUGH TO MAKE IT OPEN. IT'S LIKE SHOCK THERAPY OR A CAN OPENER...” -- Jimi Hendrix ('Scuze Me While I Kiss the Sky' - Henderson, 1978.)

* “Atmospheres are going to come through music, because music is in a spiritual thing of its own...you hypnotize people to where they go right back to their natural state which is pure positive... and when you get people at that weakest point, you can PREACH INTO THE SUBCONSCIOUS WHAT WE WANT TO SAY...” - Jimi Hendrix.

* “You've been polluted so long/ But here's a way for you to get clean/ By chanting the names of the Lord and you'll be free/ The Lord is awaiting you all to awaken and see...” “Awaiting on You All”, “All Things Must Pass” - George Harrison (1970).

* “They call you Christ, Vishnu, Buddha, Jehovah our lord/ You are Govindam, Bismillah, creator of all...” “Life Itself”, “Somewhere In England” - George Harrison.

* “Paul Simon says that he was connected up to the sounds of Brazil when he was asked to guest on a recording made by singer Milton Nascimento...drummers who still used their instruments in quasi-religious ceremonies AIMED AT INVOKING DEITIES. Simon says, “That's why I hope the music on the album [“Rhythm of the Saints”] is hypnotic BECAUSE THE DRUMS ARE INVOKING SPIRITS, AND HAVE BEEN FOR A LONG TIME...rhythm does interest me mostly now, simply because it links up with the kind of '50s music I grew up on, with Elvis, with doo-wop...” “Flyaway Paul”, by Steve Grant, Time Out, October 24-31, 1990, p. 15.

* “It was the same way with The Doors when we played in concert. The sets didn't last that long, but I think that our drug experiences let us get into it that much quicker. We knew the symptoms of the [altered] state, so that we could try to approximate it. It was like Jim [Morrison] was an electric shaman and we were the electric shaman's band, pounding away behind him. Sometimes he wouldn't feel like getting into the state, but the band would keep on pounding and pounding, and little by little it would take him over. God, I could send an electric shock through him with the organ. John could do it with his drumbeats. You could see every once in a while - twitch! I could hit a chord and make him twitch. And he'd be off again...” Ray Manzarak (former organist with The Doors.)

* “Kenneth Anger [a master satanist] told me I was his right-hand man. It's just what you feel. Whether you've gotten that good and evil thing together. Left-hand path, right-hand path... Once you start, there's no going back...IT'S SOMETHING EVERYBODY OUGHT TO EXPLORE...I JUST TRY TO BRING IT INTO THE OPEN A LITTLE...There are black magicians who think we are acting as unknown agents of Lucifer and others who think we are Lucifer. EVERYBODY'S LUCIFER...” - Keith Richards (guitarist with The Rolling Stones.)

* “I was round when Jesus Christ/ Had his moment of doubt and pain/ Made !@#$% sure Pilate washed his hands and sealed his fate.../ Just as every cop is a criminal/ And all the sinners saints/ As heads is tails/ Just call me Lucifer/ Cause I'm in need of some restraint...” “Sympathy for the Devil”, “Beggars Banquet” - The Rolling Stones (1968).

* “He [Jimi Hendrix] used to always talk about SOME DEVIL OR SOMETHING WAS IN HIM, you know, and he didn't have any control over it, he didn't know what made him act the way he acted and what made him say the things he said, and songs...just came out of him...He was so tormented and just torn apart...and I used to talk about my grandmother and all her weird stuff, you know, and he used to talk about us going down there and having some root lady or somebody see if she COULD DRIVE THE DEMON OUT OF HIM.” - Fayne Pridgeon in “Jimi Hendrix - The Movie.”

* “And it's whispered that soon if we all call the tune/ Then the piper [Pan] will lead us to reason/ And a new day will dawn for those who stand long.../If there's a bustle in your hedgerow, Don't be alarmed now/ It's just a spring clean for the May Queen.../The piper is calling you to join him...” “Stairway to Heaven” - Led Zeppelin (1971).

* “More than anything it was the time and the place when the Beatles came up. Something did happen there...It was as if several people gathered around a table and a ghost appeared. It was that kind of communication. So they were like mediums in a way. It was more than four people...As I said, they were like mediums. They weren't conscious of all they were saying but it was coming through them...” - Yoko Ono, The Playboy Interviews, p. 133.

* “But my joy is when you're like possessed, like a medium, you know. I'll be sitting around and it'll come in the middle of the night or at the time when you don't want to do it - that's the exciting part...I don't know who the #$%@# wrote it - I'm just sitting here and the whole #$%*$ song comes out. So it, you're like driven and you find yourself over on a piano or guitar and you put it down because it's been given to you or whatever it is that you tune into.” - John Lennon, “The Last Lennon Tapes (1981).

Satan's Beatitudes

If the Devil, whom we don't hear much about today, were to write his Beatitudes, they would possibly go something like this:

"Blessed are those who are too tired, too busy, too distracted to spend an hour once a week with their fellow Christians in Church --- they are my best workers.

Blessed are those Christians who wait to be asked and expect to be thanked --- I can use them.

Blessed are the touchy, with a bit of luck they may stop going to church --- they are my missionaries.

Blessed are those who are very religious but get on everyone's nerves --- they are mine forever.

Blessed are the troublemakers --- they shall be called my children.

Blessed are those who have no time to pray --- they are easy prey for me.

Blessed are the complainers --- I'm all ears for them.

Blessed are you when you read this and think it is about other people and not yourself --- I've got you."

- Author unknown

Randy Alcorn: "A battering ram may hit a fortress gate a thousand times, and no one time seems to have an effect, yet finally the gate caves in. Likewise, immorality is the cumulative product of small mental indulgences and miniscule compromises, the immediate consequences of which were, at the time, indiscernible. Our thought is the fabric of which we weave our character and destiny." ("Strategies to Keep from Falling," LEADERSHIP, Winter 1988, p. 46).

Subject: I Was Tricked!

Date: For the Week of June 21, 1999

Imagine that you got an official notice in the mail a couple of weeks back. All you had to do was show up last Saturday at the Pontiac (Michigan) Silverdome to claim a pair of free tickets to an upcoming event, a television set, and possibly even a car. Good deal, huh? Maybe. Maybe not.

Oakland County police decided to make the offer of free prizes to a select clientele. The notices were mailed to various probation violators and felons running from the law. More than 70 of the curious recipients showed up. Officers were waiting and presented them with their real "winnings" -- arrest warrants and transportation to waiting jail cells. Talk about an unexpected windfall!

By the way, several of the shocked felons were composed enough to ask if they would still get their free TVs. Does it sound at all familiar?

You've probably had some of those too-good-to-be-true offers made to you. See if any of these ring a bell . . .

* Nobody'll ever know if you take just a few dollars from the drawer.

* You can handle it. Just a couple more drinks before hitting the road won't be a problem for somebody as strong as you.

It's just an innocent flirtation. You know you're not going to let this go anywhere.

* You've gotta work these long hours to give your family the things you want them to have. They'll love you for it.

These are simply variants of the Michigan scam in reverse on some criminals. And they are all startlingly similar to some Bible stories you might recall from Sunday School. Eve was offered only a piece of fruit -- not everything else that came with it. David could only see a beautiful woman -- not a destroyed family and a divided nation. Judas thought he was bargaining for 30 pieces of silver -- not his soul.

If you'll think about it, you know someone who has fallen for this old trick. Yes, it saddened and shocked you when it happened. But part of your reaction was probably to this effect: Why would anybody be so stupid as to fall for that?

Think again, though, and you may be able to recall the last time you fell to the same tactic. Dangle some sparkly stuff. Bait the hook with a trinket. Offer a quick fix for an old and deep hurt. Play to our egos. We bite -- and Satan springs the trap!

Be on your guard this week. Your old adversary will offer an easy "prize" to disguise his real intent to destroy you. Don't be so gullible as to fall for it.

A lady sat at her window on a bright, balmy spring morning. The sun was out without a cloud, the blooming flowers were sending forth their fragrance to perfume and bless the earth, and the birds sang their songs of gladness as they went forth to their daily toil. Soon the lady saw that a little worker had chosen a rosebush for its home and was very busy bringing in sticks and hair and feathers and other material to make its house.

“Ah, you pretty little creature,” said the lady, “you are building too low. Soon the destroyer will come and break up your sweet home.”

And so it was. The days passed by; the nest was finished, and then there were eggs in the nest, and then four great big mouths were open whenever the low chirp of the mother announced that she had something for them to eat.

One day the lady sat by the window sewing when suddenly she heard the cry of the birds, in the deepest distress, and she looked out to see what was the matter. There was a great snake that had crawled up and was devouring the helpless little ones, while just above them the poor heartbroken mother fluttered about in the wildest distraction. But it was too late; her children were gone, and her home was left desolate, a sad reminder of her folly in building so near the ground.

So I think it is with people who have no higher ambition than earthly pleasures, wealth or honors. They build too low. Their heart’s home is in easy reach of death and the devil, and depend upon it the destroyer will come, soon or late.

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“Present Day Parables” by J. Wilbur Chapman

THE ASS and the Fox, having entered into partnership together for

their mutual protection, went out into the forest to hunt. They had

not proceeded far when they met a Lion. The Fox, seeing imminent

danger, approached the Lion and promised to contrive for him the

capture of the Ass if the Lion would pledge his word not to harm the

Fox. Then, upon assuring the Ass that he would not be injured, the

Fox led him to a deep pit and arranged that he should fall into it.

The Lion, seeing that the Ass was secured, immediately clutched the

Fox, and attacked the Ass at his leisure.

Those who follow Satan will be greatly surprised of how quickly and

easily he will betray them in the end!

"Why should there always be this fear and slaughter between us?" said the Wolves to the Sheep. "Those evil-disposed Dogs have much to answer for. They always bark whenever we approach you and attack us before we have done any harm. If you would only dismiss them from your heels, there might soon be treaties of peace and reconciliation between us." The Sheep, poor silly creatures, were easily beguiled and dismissed the Dogs, whereupon the Wolves destroyed the unguarded flock at their own pleasure.

Yes, Satan call tell Christians, "Ah, don't obey the Commandments. Go ahead and sleep in on Sunday mornings. O, come on, this little 'sin' won't hurt anyone, etc." However, Satan's sole purpose is not to help us, but to destroy us!

An eagle, overwhelmed with sorrow, sat upon the branches of a tree in company with a Kite. “Why,” said the Kite, “do I see you with such a rueful look?’ “I seek,” she replied, “a mate suitable for me, and am not able to find one.” “Take me,” returned the Kite, “I am much stronger than you are.” “Why, are you able to secure the means of living by your plunder?’ “Well, I have often caught and carried away an ostrich in my talons.” The Eagle, persuaded by these words, accepted him as her mate. Shortly after the nuptials, the Eagle said, “Fly off and bring me back the ostrich you promised me.” The Kite, soaring aloft into the air, brought back the shabbiest possible mouse, stinking from the length of time it had lain about the fields. “Is this,” said the Eagle, “the faithful fulfillment of your promise to me?’ The Kite replied, “That I might attain your royal hand, there is nothing that I would not have promised, however much I knew that I must fail in the performance.”

Satan will go as far as to promise you the world so that you give him your allegiance. However, once you do, don’t be surprise if he or sin fails in delivering what was promised!

Some travelers, journeying along the seashore, climbed to the summit of a tall cliff, and looking over the sea, saw in the distance what they thought was a large ship. They waited in the hope of seeing it enter the harbor, but as the object on which they looked was driven nearer to shore by the wind, they found that it could at the most be a small boat, and not a ship. When however it reached the beach, they discovered that it was only a large faggot of sticks, and one of them said to his companions, “We have waited for no purpose, for after all there is nothing to see but a load of wood.”

Too often Satan will promise his followers many wondrous pleasures and joys. Yet when all is said and done, they will ultimately discover how empty his promises really were.

WOLF, meeting with a Lamb astray from the fold, resolved not to lay

violent hands on him, but to find some plea to justify to the Lamb the

Wolf's right to eat him. He thus addressed him: "Sirrah, last year

you grossly insulted me." "Indeed," bleated the Lamb in a mournful

tone of voice, "I was not then born." Then said the Wolf, "You feed in

my pasture." "No, good sir," replied the Lamb, "I have not yet tasted

grass." Again said the Wolf, "You drink of my well." "No," exclaimed

the Lamb, "I never yet drank water, for as yet my mother's milk is

both food and drink to me." Upon which the Wolf seized him and ate

him up, saying, "Well! I won't remain supperless, even though you

refute every one of my imputations."

The tyrant will always find a pretext for his tyranny, and Satan won't

need any excuse in his attempt to attack and destroy God's lambs. But

greater is Jesus than the prince of darkness!

A DOG lay in a manger, and by his growling and snapping prevented the

oxen from eating the hay which had been placed for them. "What a

selfish Dog!" said one of them to his companions; "he cannot eat the

hay himself, and yet refuses to allow those to eat who can."

Satan is much like that dog. Because he lost his place in Paradise,

he is feverishly determined that no human will inherit what he lost!

THE PIGEONS, terrified by the appearance of a Kite, called upon the

Hawk to defend them. He at once consented. When they had admitted

him into the cote, they found that he made more havoc and slew a

larger number of them in one day than the Kite could pounce upon in a

whole year.

Avoid a remedy that is worse than the disease.

A CERTAIN HOUSE was overrun with Mice. A Cat, discovering this, made

her way into it and began to catch and eat them one by one. Fearing

for their lives, the Mice kept themselves close in their holes. The

Cat was no longer able to get at them and perceived that she must

tempt them forth by some device. For this purpose she jumped upon a

peg, and suspending herself from it, pretended to be dead. One of the

Mice, peeping stealthily out, saw her and said, "Ah, Mister Cat, even

though you should turn into a big cheese, we will not come near you."

In the same manner, Satan will stop at nothing to tempt Christians.

However, Christians should take the same attitude and caution as the

mice: we must not come near Satan nor his temptations.

THE LION, the Fox and the Ass entered into an agreement to assist

each other in the chase. Having secured a large booty, the Lion on

their return from the forest asked the Ass to allot his due portion to

each of the three partners in the treaty. The Ass carefully divided

the spoil into three equal shares and modestly requested the two

others to make the first choice. The Lion, bursting out into a great

rage, devoured the Ass. Then he requested the Fox to do him the favor

to make a division. The Fox accumulated all that they had killed into

one large heap and left to himself the smallest possible morsel. The

Lion said, "Who has taught you, my very excellent fellow, the art of

division? You are perfect to a fraction." He replied, "I learned it

from the Ass, by witnessing his fate."

Happy is the man who learns from the misfortunes of others. Indeed,

happy is the man who learns how Satan operates.

A WOLF saw a Goat feeding at the summit of a steep precipice, where

he had no chance of reaching her. He called to her and earnestly

begged her to come lower down, lest she fall by some mishap; and he

added that the meadows lay where he was standing, and that the herbage

was most tender. She replied, "No, my friend, it is not for the

pasture that you invite me, but for yourself, who are in want of

food."

Satan operates much in the same way. He'll invite us to partake of

the pleasures of the world when, in fact, his sole goal is to destroy

our souls. Indeed, like the goat, Christians need to fend off the

enticements of Satan.

A COBBLER unable to make a living by his trade and made desperate by poverty, began to practice medicine in a town in which he was not known. He sold a drug, pretending that it was an antidote to all poisons, and obtained a great name for himself by long-winded puffs and advertisements. When the Cobbler happened to fall sick himself of a serious illness, the Governor of the town determined to test his skill. For this purpose he called for a cup, and while filling it with water, pretended to mix poison with the Cobbler's antidote, commanding him to drink it on the promise of a reward. The Cobbler, under the fear of death, confessed that he had no knowledge of medicine, and was only made famous by the stupid clamors of the crowd. The Governor then called a public assembly and addressed the citizens: “Of what folly have you been guilty? You have not hesitated to entrust your heads to a man, whom no one could employ to make even the shoes for their feet.”

It is rather amazing how many souls tend to follow Satan and his “medicine,” when Satan's medicine is nothing but empty promises and empty dreams.

“Satan hates me, yet is loathe to lose me.” [1] So speaks the great Renaissance poet John Donne, the sage who wisely instructed us that no man is an island. Here he instructs us again, not on the nature of humanity, but on the one who conspires to corrupt the nature of humans.

The Christian Scriptures call him Satan, or the Devil, or even Beelzebub, but maybe most appropriately “the father of lies.” As the Scriptures tell it, Satan has been hounding the human race since Eden. Why? Because he is at war with God. God has made us precious to Himself, and so to Satan we are precious booty to steal from the heart of God. You see, the Scriptures continually affirm that God is supremely interested in our benefit. Jesus said this when He said that He came to bring us abundant life. Isn't that beautiful? Jesus, the one who even the skeptics recognize as good, tells us that His mission is to bring us abundant life.

With this backdrop we can understand Donne's line of verse: “Satan hates me, yet is loathe to lose me.” Satan hates me because God loves me; because we are the apple of God's eye, we are the object of Satan's enmity. And the goal of his enmity is to destroy you and me.

Many, no doubt, in our scientific age are uneasy with such talk of the devil, for to them the personification of evil rings an immature tone. Evil, they think, is just an impersonal force, like earthquakes or tidal waves. To this person, let me ask, “Is good also entirely impersonal?” In my experience it is not. Yes, there are good things that are not directly attributable to a person's agency, but the most meaningful and deepest experiences I have of goodness are intimately connected to a person. Love for my mother, care for a dear friend, in such things you cannot extract the person from the goodness without ravaging both. So goodness can be essentially personal. Thus it should not unsettle us that evil too can be essentially personal.

You see, if God is personal (and our universe so populated by persons suggests He is) then it makes sense that the devil is personal too. This, of course, does not settle the question of earthquakes, but it does give us insight into the question of hatred. We aren't original when we hate. Donne tells us this, for “Satan hates me, yet is loathe to lose me.”

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1. John Donne, Selections From Divine Poems, Sermons, Devotions, and Prayers (New York, Paulist Press, 1990) pp. 78.

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Copyright © 2003 Ravi Zacharias International Ministries (RZIM). Reprinted with permission. "A Slice of Infinity" is a radio ministry of Ravi Zacharias International Ministries.

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[Original illustration at this number was a duplicate of HolwickID #3157]