Our Ancient Foe

  We have taken a pause from our study in Colossians on Sunday mornings in order to reflect upon the advent season. So I decided to start a short advent sermon series that centers on the theme of "The Coming of the King". I know, I know, the title is not terribly original, but this is not supposed to be a topic or theme that basks in originality. It's of utmost importance to recognize and understand our pressing need for a King... who He is, and what He has done. This great need for a king goes back to the fall of creation, to the sin of Adam and Eve. That is why I began the series by looking at Genesis 3.... The temptation of Eve in the garden. In studying that chapter again, and preaching through it, I was struck by the tactics of that ancient serpent, Satan. One of the truths that stood out to me about the devil's attack on Eve is that he really hasn't changed in all these years. 
     Now, I'm not a guy that sees the devil behind every case of the sniffles, but I do think that Christians today neglect to see his powerful influence in the world. There is a tendency to overemphasize his personal influence, while minimizing the size and influence of his followers.  Satan is a created being.  He is not omnipresent like God.  It is very likely that we have never personally been confronted by Satan. But his followers are many and they are organized. His attack against Eve is informative for today because he still attacks in the same manner.




  He Doubts God's Word


       His first words to Eve were, "Did God actually say, 'You shall not eat of any tree in the garden'?"(Genesis 3:1). He immediately tried to get Eve to question whether she could trust the faithfulness of God's Word to her. It is not that surprising that he attempted the same tact against Jesus in the wilderness in Matthew 4. After being baptized, the voice of God the Father affirmed that Jesus was His beloved Son. The Spirit then immediately led Jesus to the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. The first words of the enemy to Jesus were, "If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread" (Matthew 4:3). Isn't it interesting that God had just declared Jesus to be His beloved son, and the first words from the enemy are ..."if you are the Son of God"? The enemy tries to have people question the reliability and validity of the Word of God. Is there any wonder why we sometimes struggle to trust in the promises of God? 
     Jesus supplies the perfect answer to Satan's attacks. The devil wanted to have Jesus question God's Word and misuse His divine power. Jesus responds by actually quoting Scripture, and by affirming, not just the reliability of God's Word, but its essential nature. But he answered, "It is written, 'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.'
Satan always claims that God lies to us.  That is part of his character (John 8:44).



  He Distorts God's Word


       I also think it is significant to note how Satan uses God's Word to Eve in the garden. He places a negative emphasis on God's Word. He asks "Did God actually say, 'You shall not eat of any tree in the garden'?"(Genesis 3:1). But that is not what God told the man and the woman in the garden. God said, "You may surely eat of every tree of the garden,  but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die." 
     Satan claims God said they could not eat from any tree in the garden.  God said they could eat from every tree in the garden, with one exception. It is not surprising that the world has such a negative view of the Bible and of God's commands in general.  The world says the Bible is irrelevant, too harsh, and outdated.  This viewpoint makes perfect sense once we consider that the ancient serpent is also the ruler of this world.  The enemy loves to drape God's Word in negative light.



He Dilutes God's Word


     After the devil successfully got Eve to begin to question God's Word through his seemingly innocuous question, he now moves on to flat out deception. He says, “You will not surely die.  For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” (Genesis 3:4-5).
     It should not surprise us that the enemy blatantly lies to the woman, claiming that she would not die.  This too was a direct attack against God's Word. If that were not bad enough, Satan then mixes some truth in with his lies.  He said, "their eyes would be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil".  Their eyes would be opened....he's right! Their eyes were opened and they now knew good and evil. But he neglected to mention how this new knowledge would lead them to feel guilt and shame for the first time, or how this new-found knowledge would cause separation between them and God.
     Satan is a strong and dangerous enemy.  He knows the Bible and he mixes some truth in with all of his lies. This testifies to his craftiness.  Our only hope to stand against his lies is to so immerse ourselves in the truth of God's Word. Only then will those diluted lies stick out to us.  We must be calibrated to the Scriptures, so that any variation from God's truth will become immediately obvious to us. 
      We can't afford to sleep.  We can't afford to think that the enemy is not real, or that he is not interested in our fall. He is real, and he disguises himself as an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:14). We need to be devoting our time to learning, knowing, and practicing God's Word, so that we won't fall prey to his attacks.

Satan's Failed Adoption

      One of the most well known and important incidents that takes place in the Gospels is when Jesus is tempted in the wilderness by Satan.  At the very beginning of His ministry Jesus submitted himself to be baptized by John the Baptist.  We are told that it was at that baptism that Jesus was anointed by the Holy Spirit.... "the heavens opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him" (Matthew 3:16.).  From there, the Spirit led Jesus into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.
      After fasting for forty days, Satan comes on the scene and presents Jesus with three temptations.  The first was to turn stones in to bread. The second was to jump off the pinnacle of the temple, trusting that God would send His angels to protect Jesus.  And the third was to bow down and worship Satan in exchange for all the kingdoms of the world.
       Now, I grew up in the church and have studied this passage multiple times and even preached on it before, but  recently a book I'm reading has helped my understanding of these temptations quite a bit. The book is Russell Moore's "Tempted and Tried", and the author made an observation about these temptations that has really opened my eyes.  He points out that these temptations that Satan was assailing Jesus with were actually failed attempts of adoption.  Here is what Dr. Moore says:

"Satan was not just trying to tempt Jesus; He was attempting to adopt Jesus. Satan, in all three temptations, is assuming the role of father --first in provision, then in protection, and now in the granting of an inheritance. Satan didn't just want to be Jesus' lord; he wanted to be his father." (pg.137)

        I believe this observation really pinpoints Satan's motivation in attacking people.  Satan looks to take the role of father... more specifically our Heavenly Father.  He wants God's throne.  That is why he was kicked out of heaven to begin with (Isaiah14:13-14).  And in this most important of temptations, he sought to take the role of God the Father in the life of God the Son.
        When I think of the role of father, I think of two words: trust and dependence. We look to our fathers to provide for us, protect us, and to keep  His promises to us.  Satan tries to cast doubt on God's trustworthiness. He asks us, Can you believe His Word? Will He meet your needs?  What about the future? 
       Now, Satan is not necessarily looking for us to do what he was asking Jesus to do in third temptation. He does not explicitly ask us to bow down and worship him, but that type of worship is taking place when we begin to doubt the trustworthiness of God.  That doubt robs God of glory that belongs exclusively to Him.  We then fail to ascribe the proper "worth" to God that He deserves. 
      The adversary wants us to trust in something else rather than God.  I don't think he cares what we trust in, just so long as it is not in God.  This could include your spouse, job, talents, friends, seatbelt....whatever. He's happy for you to have all kinds of fathers just so long as you are not resting in your Heavenly Father.
      But when we start to think that we must provide for ourselves, Satan becomes our father.  When we start to think that we are independent, Satan becomes our father. When we worry about our future inheritance, Satan becomes our father.   
      These are temptations that will manifest themselves in our lives in different ways.  What should we do? Well, we are given an example by Jesus to combat this attack.  Jesus answered all the devil's attacks by quoting God's Word back to him. In doing that, He affirmed that God, and His Word are trustworthy.  He is proving that our Heavenly Father is faithful, and will meet our needs. Who is your Father?

42 Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and I am here. I came not of my own accord, but he sent me. 43 Why do you not understand what I say? It is because you cannot bear to hear my word. 44 You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and has nothing to do with the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies. 45 But because I tell the truth, you do not believe me. 46 Which one of you convicts me of sin? If I tell the truth, why do you not believe me? 47 Whoever is of God hears the words of God. The reason why you do not hear them is that you are not of God.” -John 8:42-47