Who is Satan?

[Apoc]

A sermon at church today prompted a random thought of mine.  Pastor asked what things might we find hard to believe and why, because he was teaching about Thomas' request to see Christ's hands.  I thought about all the observations of Christ, his disciples, angels, miracles and then about the very limited siting of Satan.  I thought, why don't we know more about Satan and who has seen him? 

I'm interested in what studies and conclusions others have made.  Who was Satan, where was he and where is he now?  I can only think of one New Testament siting/depiction. From what I can tell, only Jesus has seen him and conversed in length.  For some reason there are many sermons today about this evil being and yet very little experiences to draw from.

Matthew 4:1-11 (New International Version)
The Temptation of Jesus

Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil. After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. The tempter came to him and said, "If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread." Jesus answered, "It is written: 'Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.' "

Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. "If you are the Son of God," he said, "throw yourself down. For it is written:
   " 'He will command his angels concerning you,
      and they will lift you up in their hands,
   so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.' "
Jesus answered him, "It is also written: 'Do not put the Lord your God to the test.' "

Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. "All this I will give you," he said, "if you will bow down and worship me." Jesus said to him, "Away from me, Satan! For it is written: 'Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.' "  Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him.

[Dallas]

I'm interested in what studies and conclusions others have made.  Who was Satan, where was he and where is he now?  I can only think of one New Testament siting/depiction. From what I can tell, only Jesus has seen him and conversed in length.  For some reason there are many sermons today about this evil being and yet very little experiences to draw from.

That's because Satan is a very minor character in the bible. He is very insignificant, just a bit part.

People need to control people, and fear is the biggest control mechanism. When the church got thir hands onto this devil character they played him up to control the masses, to fear people into tithes...now the movement seems to be moving more into blaming him for everything wrong to eleviate their own responsibility. The church has also expanded this saying unless you do this or that YOU have become one of his followers.

Control, through fear...my oh my, religion is good for the people.

[claypot]

Everyone has their own interpretation of everything that comes their way and the person of Satan and the subject of who 'he' is, is no different. Each of us will pick and choose what we need for our belief system to remain in tact but my prayer for all of us is that in the end God will have us all where He wants us and I am content with knowing that this prayer is in line with Gods will and will not return void.

Now let me render my 2 cents here. I see Satan as a many layered reality but my foremost thought is that Satan and the carnal mind are strongly linked. It just makes so much sense to me. Both are adversarial to God. Both tempt us in opposition to God. Both are intimately with us in various ways like when Jesus was led by the Spirit to some remote solitary place yet Satan was right there. Both create thoughts. And so on.

I have had conversations within my own being, with myself. Some of these  'conversations' are very real and some are very much in opposition to God. They create a struggle within. I think of Jesus when He sweat great drops of blood. What an inner struggle He must have been having. Jesus never had a carnal mind but He was tempted like us.

Can you imagine never giving in to lust and greed and all that? It is hard to be so disciplined. It seems impossible yet Jesus did it. We got to admit, giving in to a temptation can be a great relief, at least until we wake up again and see how weak we are and fall on our knees to seek forgiveness. Jesus never gave in.

For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points  tempted  like as [we are, yet] without sinheb4.15

cp

[chuckt]

the advisary, takes on many forms.

at one point peter was an advisary, and Jesus called him satan.


for me, my biggest advisary at this time is ""SELF""  the battle tales place in my mind, the high place.

chuckt

[claypot]

the advisary, takes on many forms.

at one point peter was an advisary, and Jesus called him satan.


for me, my biggest advisary at this time is ""SELF""  the battle tales place in my mind, the high place.

chuckt

I totally understand Chuck. I am my own worst enemy (satan) at times. That's why I see 'satan' as my own mind when it's in it's carnal state. Peter was an adversary to Jesus only in the sense that satan ruled his mindset at the time. I am adversarial to Jesus at times too and I do hear His voice reprimanding me.

The fact that satan is personified, I think, confuses us as is normal. Wisdom is also personified in Scripture.

Just my thoughts.

cp

[chuckt]

every sunday the ""devil"" is bound in the name of Jesus, all over the world that old guy is bound, some how he gets loose.  :sigh:

The battle is in our MIND, the high places, the carnal man makes war with the spiritual, the war takes place in our mind, is it not with the mind we bring EVERY though captive?

they (( orthodox fundies )) will say our war is not with flesh and blood but with principalities in high places, well they are still on the ground, argueing from traditions of men.

was in a discussion on this just the other day:

i said:

um your battle is between your flesh/dust and the spirit.

serpent cursed to eat dust, YOU made of dust.

this battle takes place in the realm of the mind, also know as the high places.

reply:

So Paul was wrong when he declared that believers wrestle not against flesh and blood but principalities and powers in the heavenly places ?????

i procceded to post scriptures about the mind, and so forth, and more obfuscation followed...

he said:

so demons and fallen angels do not exist ? What did Jesus and the Apostles cast out of people? What went into the herd of swine that jumped off the cliff When Jesus cast them out ? Did he cast out their minds or thoughts ????

MY reply:

Luk 8:35 Then they went out to see what was done; and came to Jesus, and found the man, out of whom the devils were departed, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed, and in his right mind: and they were afraid.


that when i got banned/suspended, they though i was saying the poster was not in his right mind  :dontknow:

little did i know i was speaking with a mod who already had it in for me....


ok rambling......woot.

love
chuckt

[claypot]

I think God must love a good debate because look at Paul for one and then at all our (all of us the world over in all time) discussions and when you consider it is God working IN US to will and to do of His GOOD PLEASURE, well then I conclude He must be having a colossal time! :laughing7:

cp

[chuckt]

I think God must love a good debate because look at Paul for one and then at all our (all of us the world over in all time) discussions and when you consider it is God working IN US to will and to do of His GOOD PLEASURE, well then I conclude He must be having a colossal time! :laughing7:

cp

absolutly, i beleive he also has taught me great patience.

peace man!

chuckt

[peacemaker]

Satan, a principle that results in active resistance, opposition, or contentiousness within the human nature.

peacemaker

[claypot]

PM, that is good. A principal, like in principalities in high places or spiritual places. Seems like your explanation lines up with Scripture.

For out the heart comes.................opposition.

cp

[chuckt]

for me the heart/mind is the high places and this is where we do battle.

we are to take every thought captive!

2Cr 10:5 Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;

what is the main thing that ' exalteth itself against the knowledge of God ' ? i say flesh/self.

more to this i know...

peace

[Nathan]

And here in this thread lies the perfect example of what sound does.  Everyone is singing the song of spiritual sound.  Each may sing a different note, but each note harmonizes with the others and the song of what's being said rings true.  I relate to every one of your thoughts and posts. 

Satan is not what Jesus called Peter.  The translators chose that word, the original word Jesus said to Peter was "adversary".  Which is what one of the previous posts here eluded to.  When Jesus was tempted in the wilderness . . .the king of darkness, as tradition percieves satan to be . . .the king of darkness has NOTHING that would ever tempt Jesus.  Yet Scripture says he indeed was tempted.

However, when we see Jesus, as God who manifests fully in flesh, we then can understand that even in the fleshly manifestation of Jesus was a carnal thinking mind that needed to be aligned before his ministry could affect the world as originally intended.  Jesus needed to put his flesh into submission and that's all that was happening in the wilderness. 

From the serpent in the garden of Genesis to the dragon in Revelation this carnal force has been in existance in every mind of man.  It's the most subtle "beast" in all the field.  This was not a depiction of natural snakes, but it "is" a principle of how carnality works in our lives.  Satan is the carnal force subtly at work in my mind.  Which means it works just under my awareness.  My mind is dependant on knowledge, carnality is the governing force that influences my natural mind, thus making it an adversary to the nature of God. 


Satan is what my carnal mind is . . .it's an adversary.  The "devil" is what my mind "does".  The authors of Scripture never used "devil" either.  What they did use was "traducer" which is our term for "accuser".  My carnal mind accuses me night and day of my shortcomings and my failures.  Quoting Scriptures may win the battle, but the war continues on.  It's not until we exercise the authority in us and command the alignment to manifest that we finally shut the enemy down all together.  That's what Jesus did with Peter when he called him satan and that's what Jesus did with his own mind in the wilderness.  "Get thee behind me" is a decree of alignment.

[chuckt]

good stuff...

its almost like we all have a cain and able inside us  :mshock:

[claypot]

good stuff...

its almost like we all have a cain and able inside us  :mshock:

I fully believe we do Chuck. Out of the SAME LUMP (each individual person or Adam) God makes a vessel of honor (Able) and dishonor (Cain). Romans 9.21

Put off the old man (Cain) and put on the new (Able) Paul says.

cp

[Dallas]

Satan is not what Jesus called Peter.  The translators chose that word, the original word Jesus said to Peter was "adversary".

The reason they did chose that word is because in the origonal language Satan means adversary. It was what Jesus called Him, Adversary became a proper name for the serpent... there were those like Peter who at that moment was acting adversarial towards the plan of God, and there is also THE Adversary.

God is even called satan, for in the Aramaic the word adversary is SATAN...and in Chronicles I think it is God is adversarial towards Israel, therefor in the origonal aramaic it does say that God was satan towards Israel.

[peacemaker]

Satan, a principle that results in active resistance, opposition, or contentiousness within the human nature.

A principal, like in principalities in high places or spiritual places.

Predominantly ruling; having influence or control over others as well.

   :secret:

[rosered]

A sermon at church today prompted a random thought of mine.  Pastor asked what things might we find hard to believe and why, because he was teaching about Thomas' request to see Christ's hands.  I thought about all the observations of Christ, his disciples, angels, miracles and then about the very limited siting of Satan.  I thought, why don't we know more about Satan and who has seen him? 

I'm interested in what studies and conclusions others have made.  Who was Satan, where was he and where is he now?  I can only think of one New Testament siting/depiction. From what I can tell, only Jesus has seen him and conversed in length.  For some reason there are many sermons today about this evil being and yet very little experiences to draw from.

Matthew 4:1-11 (New International Version)
The Temptation of Jesus

Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil. After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. The tempter came to him and said, "If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread." Jesus answered, "It is written: 'Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.' "

Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. "If you are the Son of God," he said, "throw yourself down. For it is written:
   " 'He will command his angels concerning you,
      and they will lift you up in their hands,
   so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.' "
Jesus answered him, "It is also written: 'Do not put the Lord your God to the test.' "

Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. "All this I will give you," he said, "if you will bow down and worship me." Jesus said to him, "Away from me, Satan! For it is written: 'Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.' "  Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him.

  I like these answers folks have given and studied enough on them to know

there is Truth in them 
Apoc , I like it that you used this  scriptures  to bring in your point 

  what does it mean to make stones bread ?

  and what does it mean to  throw  yourself down from a high place ?

and what does it mean to worship satan ?

  these questions all  come to my mind   as Jesus answered  Satan 
simply   Every Word that comes out of the Mouth of God , not just the bread    or the spiritual mans  sustaining food , because Jesus hungered for a  time and  understood  what it  is like to ''be empty''  just running on faith and nothing else .
  and the second  simple answer  was,Not to tempt  the  Lord God   into performing  miracles /signs
  in the  natural   realm  for Spiritual gain
  Seems to me that faith would NOT , be  the substance
  that would keep the Spiritual man alive  if that was what God done all the time
   the last simple answer  was  to worship God in Spirit and Truth

  not in the natural realm so much , because this is the ''signs '' miracles  the carnal men  of Israel seek after and  the nations , seek knowledge

  both seem to fail  when it comes to God and His will

   the darkness  that satan has kept men in, is a form of  ignorance  to the ways of God
  So I feel Satan is powerless  to any who have the Light / Knowledge of God and His Spirit in them dwelling

   when Jesus  called Peter satan / adversary , the thing that got me even more was  Jesus told him , you savor  ,'' taste '' the things that be of men and NOT of God
  this ''tasting  death ''  for every man   Jesus  went though was these temptations we also experience   in this world
 
satans/ devils  power over  death is triggered by '' fear ''and  ''bondage ''  not faith 
  So I do see them as  polar opposites

    the Fear of the Lord is the begining of Wisdom ,
  because  God is the One who is in total and complete  control  over all things entirely , the devil cannot touch you unless God allows it , and usually its for  your benefit , the destruction of the flesh is  one of the most painful ways there is to suffer , but it does teach us NOT to put any confidence in our flesh or  anyones flesh

  and Faith comes by hearing what the HOLY SPIRIT is saying

  and without faith it is impossible to please God
  Jesus heard His Father all the time  and His Father head Him all the time 
that confidence  and trust was unbreakable
  because Jesus was given the Spirit without measure 

  why ? I just figure it was because  Jesus was concieved in the Holy Spirit
  and that nature knows what it is Perfectly ,  by LOVE OF GOD

  being mindful  of the things of God is what the HOLY SPIRIT  is .

the works of God and Christ together as all  those found in Christ Body   in the  earth and  heaven and even below
  because  God is ALL consuming Fire ..

  the lake of fire where the  devil and false prophet and  beast are found
  are consumed by  God as with everything else  in the End

[micah7:9]

I like this study. Praise the Lord!

[Syndicated]

Satan... isn't he the one who scored the overtime goal between Boston and Buffalo last night? :laughing7: :icon_jokercolor:


Sorry, had to get that on there...

All joking aside, if Satan means aversary, then all of us at one point or another (I would gather to say maybe a few hundred times) have been a 'satan' to others we have come in contact with in our lives.  We all have adversaries throughout our lives, and the Devil happens to be the adversary of God, trying to destroy what He has already done.

[Beloved Servant]

Satan = adversary (adverse) = opposite of (what?)
Truth  = Word of God = Jesus Christ
                   — so —
            Satan is the The Lie

[claypot]

Satan... isn't he the one who scored the overtime goal between Boston and Buffalo last night? :laughing7: :icon_jokercolor:


Sorry, had to get that on there...

All joking aside, if Satan means aversary, then all of us at one point or another (I would gather to say maybe a few hundred times) have been a 'satan' to others we have come in contact with in our lives.  We all have adversaries throughout our lives, and the Devil happens to be the adversary of God, trying to destroy what He has already done.

Amen

cp

[chuckt]

(http://i277.photobucket.com/albums/kk76/chuckart/th_louvin_cover1.jpg)

[Syndicated]

Hahaha!!!!  That's awesome Chuckt!

:laughing7:

[willieH]

Satan... isn't he the one who scored the overtime goal between Boston and Buffalo last night? :laughing7: :icon_jokercolor:

:laugh:  Yeah... when it comes to OVER :clock: ---> :talkangry: has one heckuva... :Shoot:

... willieH  :laughing7:

[micah7:9]

Earlier I printed 9 pages of this post and discussion and I will say that by far it has been the most refreshing study I have seen to date. There is much to learn and say about this entity, that orthodox religions cannot begin to teach, for it would tear down, not just the building, but the very foundation. Praise the Lord Jesus King of Kings, Saviour of the world