How does Satan work?

Satan is not a being that you want to mess around with. I know that in many stories, songs, movies, etc Satan is presented in many different ways but seldom is he presented as Jesus and Peter portray. John 8:44

He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in 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. John 8:44
Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.
(1Pe 5:8)

We know that Satan tempts us and Satan uses a variety of tools to accomplish his task. Sometimes it is a frontal assault as he did with Eve (Gen 3) challenging directly the words of God. Sometimes it is the influence of someone that we think we should be able to trust as happened to the young prophet of 1 Kings 13 where the older prophet lied to him-and he believed him. Still other times, it can happen in our own thoughts and concerns as happened to King Jeroboam (1 kings 12:26ff) when his fears of Israel reuniting with Judah led Jeroboam to build golden calves and lead the people into idolatry.

All of these are powerful forces and yet one question, if it had been asked, answered, and heeded, would have prevented the problems that these individuals faced later. That same question will help us too with the many different temptations that Satan brings our way.

That question is this: What did God say? Eve already knew but she got caught up in her own desires. Jeroboam also should have known how God hated idolatry and trusted that God would protect him even if the people continued to worship in Jerusalem. And the young prophet should not have listened to the older prophet. God was very clear to the young prophet and even if the older prophet seemed believable, or had an honest face, trusting God rather than men is always a good idea.

Today Satan does the same thing and we have the same challenge. What does the Bible say about how a Christian is made? What does the Bible say about the purpose of the church? What does God say about the type of life a Christian is supposed to lead?

Not only do most of the people in the world not come to Jesus for salvation, many of those who preach a gospel about Jesus do not preach the gospel which is the power of God but a watered down version of belief w/o obedience, and some Christians give into to the lie that they can live an immoral life and still be ok with a Holy God who is the standard of Morals.

Do you study God’s word? Do you read it? Do you ignore it? So many ignore it, I hope you are not one of them.

Do you have questions about the Bible? Ask me. A Bible question will get a Bible answer.