Lessons From a Confrontation – Part 2, Facts About ‘The Adversary’
2005 : April  |  Website Version  

Last week we looked at John 8:42-47, and it taught us some lessons about our Lord. This week we change directions and begin looking at these verses to see what they teach us about the devil. In these verses, Jesus is giving us some facts about Satan; Jesus is direct and to the point:

	44 You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father He was a 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.
	John 8:44 (NASB)

There are no shades of grey in His description. Instead, Jesus preaches fearless truth that resonates to and shakes the foundations of Hell:

Truth 1: The Devil Exists
This first point may seem obvious to most Bible believing, born again, Christians, but most unsaved people think that Satan is a fairytale with no factual basis. Unfortunately, we are not dealing with mythology; we are dealing with reality. Jesus tells us the devil is a living entity with a personality and the capacity to think and reason. The book of Job shows us that Satan is real; it records the text of a conversation between God and Satan:

	7 The LORD said to Satan, "From where do you come?" Then Satan answered the LORD and said, "From roaming about on the earth and walking around on it." 8 The LORD said to Satan, "Have you considered My servant Job? For there is no one like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, fearing God and turning away from evil." 9 Then Satan answered the LORD, "Does Job fear God for nothing?"
	Job 1:7-9 (NASB)

Jesus recognizes the existence of Satan. Based on that alone, regardless of what the rest of the world thinks, the devil exists.

Truth 2: Satan has Desires
The Hebrew proper name of Satan means ‘the adversary,’ and this name is descriptive of his character. He is God’s adversary and our adversary. One of his desires is to separate us from the love of God, but that’s not his main ambition. Make no mistake about it, Satan’s primary desire, the one thing he covets most, is to take God’s place. He wants to be worshipped as God. This burning passion is revealed to the prophet Isaiah:

	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. 14 'I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.'
	Isaiah 14:13-14 (NASB)

If one desires to do the will of God, it’s a good thing, but Satan does not does not desire to do the will of God. Contrary, he desires to do his own will. He has the audacity and pride to covet God’s throne; he wants to be worshipped.

Truth 3: Satan is a Murderer
Genesis 1:31 records God surveying His work of creation and being pleased with it, “God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.” (NASB) He set Adam and Eve in the midst of this ‘very good creation’, and they were told not to eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. A stern warning was issued by the Lord regarding obedience on this issue:

	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.
	Genesis 2:17 (NASB)

Death was the ultimate consequence if they ate of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

Into this ‘very good creation’ Satan, the adversary, entered and did his malicious work.

	1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, "Indeed, has God said, 'You shall not eat from any tree of the garden'?" 2 The woman said to the serpent, "From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat; 3 but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, 'You shall not eat from it or touch it, or you will die.'" 4 The serpent said to the woman, "You surely will not die! 5 "For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." 6 When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took from its fruit and ate; and she gave also to her husband with her, and he ate.
	Genesis 3:1-6 (NASB)

Death and sin entered creation through this act of disobedience. Adam and Eve were responsible for disobeying God, but Satan played a horrible part in their fall. Willingly, he deceived them, and lied about what God had said. Willingly, he distorted God’s words. Willingly, through this pre-mediated act, he helped death, sin, murder and destruction enter God’s exceedingly good creation: all this from a murderous heart, all this in an effort to usurp God’s throne.

For his part in the fall of man, Satan is cursed by God; he will suffer eternally:

	13 Then the LORD God said to the woman, "What is this you have done?" And the woman said, "The serpent deceived me, and I ate." 14 The LORD God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this, Cursed are you more than all cattle, And more than every beast of the field; On your belly you will go…
	Genesis 3:13-14 (NASB)

When we read about Satan’s destructive work in Eden, it helps us to understand the words Jesus uses to describe him, “He was a murderer from the beginning.”

We will continue studying John 8:42-47 in the next devotion, as we continue to look to Jesus to teach us about our adversary.

May the grace and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you today and always…

*** Words of Jesus Christ appear in red