Gospel of John [16:12-15]. The Doctrine of the HS, part 63 - Satan. Eph 6:10-20; 1Co 4:3-4; 1Pe 5:8.

Title: Gospel of John [16:12-15]. The Doctrine of the HS, part 63 - Satan. EPH 6:10-20; 1CO 4:3-4; 1PE 5:8.

 

World­liness is revealed to rob the Christian of fruit, choking the Word.

 

MAT 13:22 "And the one on whom seed was sown among the thorns, this is the man who hears the word, and the worry of the world, and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.

 

The world is declared crucified by the cross of Christ.

 

GAL 6:14 But may it never be that I should boast, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.

 

The Christian is to be in the world but not of the world, to bear a witness to the world, but not to allow the world to cor­rupt him. The power of the world is such, however, that this is impossible except for the power of the Holy Spirit. Christ has overcome the world.

 

Satan does incorporate into his vast system certain things which are good in themselves. Doubtless these things give occasion for many deceptions.

 

The root of evil in the cosmos is that there is an all-comprehensive system and order in seeming good things and bad, which has based its methods on complete independence from God.

 

God has no present program which He is following along lines of reformation, education, or civilization, and so there is no conflict or satanic resistance in those spheres. God has a definite program to save out of the cosmos an elect people for His heavenly glory. In this there is therefore conflict and Satan has a two-fold objective to exalt himself and to oppose God in His salvation offer and the spiritual growth of His saints.

 

The believer needs to decide for himself which things he may partake of, do and go towards that are not in a manner of sin for him and does not defile the conscience of others. Paul said that all things were lawful for him but not all things were profitable. The seeming good things in the system, the humanitarianism, morality, and certain aspects of culture and entertainment must be seen for what they are, in other words, the believer must see the truth behind them. One believer may enjoy all manner of things in the world without sin, since he perceives the truth about them, while to another believer, those things may involve sinfulness.

 

The fundamental truth:

 

ROM 14:23

whatever is not from faith is sin.

 

is not believed or recognized in the cosmos. The Lie must run its course.

 

It began with the repudiation of God by angel and man and will continue in that perspective trait until anti-christ appears and it is destroyed. The humanitarian enterprises, the culture, the laws, and religious forms of the cosmos constitute no evidence that God is recognized in His true position or honored. This is a Christ rejecting cosmos. Its princes crucified the Lord of glory and if it weren't for the restraint of G/HS they would destroy all His witnesses today. The Savior is disowned and rejected. They borrow social ideals from His teaching while completely rejecting and spurning His salvation work. The independent, self-centered, self-satisfied, autonomous cosmos asks for no redemption since it recognizes no need. Cain is the archetype in his self-reliance and his hatred of his brother who fully relied upon God. ROM 3:10-12 says that there none righteous, not even one. There is none that understand, there is none that seek after God. All have gone astray, they have all together become useless, there is none that does good, not even one. It does not outwit God in any way, which is obvious. It will run its course and it will be judged and destroyed and nothing will be salvaged.

 

The power of Satan. The Christian’s warfare is essentially with Satan. He is the believer's greatest enemy.

 

The Christians conflicts and trials are accounted for in his three enemies, the world, the flesh, and the devil, yet the mighty enemy is the god of this world and the evil nature which dominates the flesh was born of Satan's lie in the Garden of Eden. He is the only living personality that is against the believer. He is a fallen angel, the prince of the fallen angels, the originator of sin, a murder and a liar from the beginning, and the accuser and slanderer of the brethren - and he is very real.

 

The important doctrines of Satanology, so neglected in most theological discussions, make the responsibility of attaining Christian standards of conduct all the more difficult. Satan is revealed in the Scripture to be the greatest power apart from God.

 

/Paul knew from revelation and experience that we don't wrestle with flesh and blood, but with Satan and the KOD.\

 

EPH 6:10 Finally, be strong in the Lord, and in the strength of His might.

 

EPH 6:11 Put on the full armor of God, that you may be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil.

 

EPH 6:12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.

 

Satan and the fallen angels do not sin in the same manner as we do as there is no evidence that they are tempted as we are in our human body. They do not have relations with one another and so sexual sins and adultery are not an issue. Gluttony, lust for wealth, stinginess and theft are out of the question since, as far as we know, they do not have possessions as we do.

 

Angels cannot sin in the manner of our fleshly body, however, what we do see in the fallen angels are the sins of ambitious pride and untruth.

 

Therefore, the sinfulness of Satan is not to be discovered by comparing it with wickedness in human spheres, but rather by a due comparison of it with the holiness of God, and in light of that which God has required of the angels.

 

EPH 6:13 Therefore, take up the full armor of God, that you may be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm.

 

EPH 6:14 Stand firm therefore, having girded your loins with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness,

 

EPH 6:15 and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace;

 

EPH 6:16 in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming missiles of the evil one.

 

EPH 6:17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

 

EPH 6:18 With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints,

 

EPH 6:19 and pray on my behalf, that utterance may be given to me in the opening of my mouth, to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel,

 

EPH 6:20 for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in proclaiming it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.

 

Satan blinds the minds of unbelievers to the gospel, making necessary a work of the Holy Spirit to enable them to believe.

 

2CO 4:3 And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing,

 

2CO 4:4 in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving, that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.

 

Every observing soul winner is sooner or later impressed with the more than natural inability of the unsaved to comprehend the offer of salvation apart from human merit and by faith alone.

 

Speaking of the veil which Satan casts over the minds of men, F.C. Jennings states:

 

He so weaves the course of this age: its religious forms, ceremonies, external decencies, respectabilities, and conventionalities as to form a thick veil, that entirely hides 'the glory of God in the face of Christ Jesus,' which consists in righteous mercy to penitent [repentant] sinners only. This veil is not formed by evil-living, depravity, or any form of what passes as evil amongst men; but by cold formality, heartless decency, proud self-complacency, highly esteemed external respectability, and we must add, church-membership - all without Christ. It is the most fatal of all delusions, the thickest of all veils, and the most common. It is the way that because it is religious, respectable, decent, 'seems right unto a man but the end thereof is death'; for there is no Christ, no Lamb of God, no Blood of Atonement in it." [F.C. Jennings]