The Real Lucifier

If I were to ask you, is there a devil? I think most here would say, well, yeah, yeah, that's what we believe, that's what we understand. So if I were to ask this question to persons out on the street in any major city within the United States, we would probably get different answers, probably varied answers, wouldn't we? Some would probably say, well, yes, I think there is. And some would say, well, no, I don't think there is. And some would say, just a fable. And some would say, you know, I really don't know. And if you and I asked the following question to people on the street, who is Lucifer? Who is Lucifer? What would they say? Well, I would guess again that the answers on the street would be varied, wouldn't they? Most likely, and probably maybe surprising to some of us, to hear what men and women believe or don't believe about the spirit world in general and about Lucifer in particular. You know, but even more shocking to me, maybe than other people's varied opinions, is that in just a few days, and maybe you've heard this, there's a new upcoming television series on Fox entitled Lucifer. Have you heard of it? Have you heard of this yet? Okay, it's entitled Lucifer. The series is going to focus on a character by the name of Lucifer, and according to writers of this new television series, they will picture Lucifer, and I quote, as bored and unhappy being the Lord of Hell. He's been the Lord of Hell, but he doesn't like that anymore. He's bored and he's unhappy. According to the show, Lucifer resigns his throne, abandons his kingdom of Hell for the beauty of Los Angeles, where he gets his kicks helping the Los Angeles Police Department punish criminals. Fox Television seems to plan to help Lucifer appeal to weak modern humanity in their scheduled series of Lucifer that is going to begin airing at the end of this month. If you went online, they've got Fox online, and they've got, you can go to Lucifer, and they talk about the show. They talk about the show. They give you little tidbits of what it's going to be like, and this is how it says on Fox's online about the show, it presents the devil as fun, as charming, as charismatic, and devilishly handsome. No negative consequences or no negative characteristics there, are there? Fun and charming and charismatic and devilishly handsome. Fox explains Lucifer decides to leave Hell and experience the good and bad life here on earth. While in Los Angeles, he lives his life like a modern Dave Playboy. In the show, Lucifer refers to God like this, and I'm quoting. This is what he's speaking as part of probably the first episode. He says, hey, he's my father, not yours. And I can say whatever I want about the guy. I can quit Hell because I was sick and tired of playing a part in Dad's plan. I believe in free will and not the tyranny of all of his predestination hoo-ha. He continues. This is again, I'm quoting, still quoting. He's talking to somebody. He says, thank you, but I've been doing a fair amount of thinking. Do you think I'm the devil because I'm inherently evil or simply because dear old Dad decided I was? I'm still quoting. Is this a classic case of labeling? What do you think? Pretty clever, isn't it? I've just been labeled. I'm not really evil, but my father has labeled me as such. According to one news source, the series is quite demonic in its subtlety. It's very subtle. In a nightclub clip show, plenty of gyrating, scannily clad dancers, sexual innuendos glorify a party lifestyle and portray Lucifer as a fun-loving young man while God and his angel are portrayed as no fun at all and don't relate to modern man. Fox advertises, and I quote, Lucifer is coming to Fox January 25th. He gives bad a good name.

You know, brethren, we have known Satan as the great deceiver, and he continues to deceive the whole world, and now it's going to be partly done through this television series. It'll be all part of the deception process that he's had going on for years. It's going to be done in a sense and with the help of writers and actors and producers.

It's going to start within just a matter of days, and you know, I can tell you it's going to be done in a very clever way. It's going to be very attractive, and it's going to bring people in, and they're going to start to watch it.

And you know, that's the way he was. He granted, you know, he just makes evil look good. I mean, that's the power of his deception. And so if you watch the trailer, you can get online and watch it. You're going to think, oh, I can see... you know, they had... oh, what do they call it? A pilot, you know, where they did it about a year ago, and they have an audience that comes in to see whether they're going to be favorable or not?

Audience was favorable. They liked what they were seeing. The title of the message today is The Real Lucifer. The Real Lucifer. And specifically, what I would like today is to... I want to address and answer from Scripture some questions about Lucifer.

Who is he? Who is he? Where did he come from? When did he come on the scene? Is God his Father? Let's address that question from Scripture. And where does he live? Does he live in hell? Does he live in heaven? Or does he live on this earth? Where is he? Where does he spend his time? And I think very importantly is, what is his purpose? What are his goals?

So how did Lucifer become Satan the Devil? Was it just a family feud, a father and son disagreement like the television series suggests? You know, thousands if not millions of people are going to watch this television series and they're going to be influenced. They're going to be influenced. They're going to form opinions based on the misrepresentations that are going to be made about who Lucifer really is. So instead of going to the television screen, let's go to the source, the source of truth.

Let's go to God's Word and see what God has to say about Lucifer. Let's go back in time for a moment. Let's go back in time before mankind, before Adam and Eve, before the creation of Adam and Eve. Let's go back to Job chapter 38. Let's go back in Scripture here. I think a lot of us here are familiar about the story of Job, that he was a devoted follower of God.

He was a servant of God. He was a righteous man. But he was being tested and he endured some terrible things, some terrible calamities, some terrible sufferings. And then he did pretty well in that trial at first, but then he began to question God's judgment. Was God really being fair with me? And God responds to Job. And God asked Job some pointed questions, because he's trying to begin to help Job to understand something, to help realize that maybe Job didn't have as much wisdom and understanding as he thought he did.

And so during this conversation between Job and God, God begins to reveal some things about the creation of the earth. So let's pick it up in verse number four of Job chapter 38. God is speaking to Job and he said, where were you, Job, when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell me if you have understanding. Who determined its measurements?

Surely you know. You know, he may be a little bit sarcastic, Job. You know, here you've known so much here about whether I am on target here or not, since you know everything. Maybe you can explain this to me as well, as the implication. Or who stretched the line upon it? To what were its foundations fastened? And of course it's out there in space. Or who laid its cornerstone? When the morning stars sang together, we're talking about an angelic realm here, when the morning stars sang together and all of the sons of God shouted for joy.

I mean, it's almost like when they saw this jewel that God had created, they couldn't help but sing together and shout for joy. So God reveals in this passage here information that nobody could know, because no man was present at the creation of the earth.

And God describes it, this earth, as part of his creation that was just dazzling. It was just a beautiful jewel, in a sense, that was out there, floating in space. And it was so magnificent that the angels could not do anything but sing together and shout for joy. Now the angels were spear beings that God had created. They had already existed before God made the earth. How could they have sang together and shouted for joy when it came into being?

And they were united together, all of them. They were united together in their joy when God created the world. And they were in perfect harmony and agreement at that time. So how does Lucifer fit into this picture? Let's go back now to Genesis chapter 1 and verse 1, the very first scripture in all of the Bible. Genesis chapter 1 and verse number 1.

It says in the beginning, God. So God is the author of creation. He's the one that made it. He's the one that created everything. It's pretty important. He's the author of all life. It says in the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. And so we've already read about in Job chapter 38 that when that was done, it was a magnificent creation. The angels couldn't contain themselves. This is awesome. But something happened between verse 1 and verse number 2.

In verse 1, when we know when God created the heavens and the earth, everything He does is good. But then it says in verse number 2, the earth was without form and void. Without form and void. Verse number 2 tells us something that after God created things, something happened to the earth. You know, the English translation here, there isn't really the best translation in verse number 2. It's not really clear. It doesn't really relay clearly what the original Hebrew says.

So I want to spend a little bit of time with verse number 2. In the verse number 2, where it says, without form, the earth was without form, that comes from one Hebrew word. It's four letters. It's tohu. T-O-H-U. Tohu. That's the Hebrew word that's translated in English without form. We're going to talk about what tohu means in a moment. And the word void that's also in verse number 2, the English word void, that comes also from a Hebrew word, which is similar to the other one. It rhymes. It's also four letters. It's bohu.

B-O-H-U. That's the Hebrew word. So let's dive into this this meaning just a little bit, because I think it's going to help us to understand what God says actually happened to the earth after it was originally created in a beautiful way. Something happened to it. If we look at the English, it says without form that that Hebrew word is tohu, that means to become desolate, to lie in waste, to become to lie in waste, or to become desolate. And the word void, which is in the English, which is the Hebrew word bohu, means to be empty, to be empty, an emptiness, to come to ruin, to be void.

Now wait a minute, I thought when God created the earth, it was a beautiful place. What's it saying here in verse number two, where the earth was wasted, the earth was empty, the earth had come to ruin. Because, and I'll just refer to Isaiah chapter 45 and verse 18. You can write that in your notes. You can turn into it right now if you'd like. We'll come back to Genesis. You do turn away. But God expressly says of the earth that He did not create it in vain.

And that word, English word vain, is the Hebrew word tohu. God did not create the earth without form. Okay? He did not create it in vain. He did not create it in a wasteful situation or a desolate situation. That's from Isaiah chapter 45 and verse 18. Well, God did not create the earth without form or in with weight, in the sense of desolation, how did it come to that condition? Part of the answer is also here back in Genesis in verse number two. We're going to look at another English word. It's very important. There's three English Hebrew words we're going to be focusing on in verse two.

The word was, the third word in verse number two, the earth was. Okay, we're going to look at that verse here. In Hebrew, it's Heya. It's H-A-Y-A-H. H-A-Y-A-H. And it's translated was here, but in other parts of the scripture, that same Hebrew word is translated became. So it could be rendered that the earth became wasteful. The earth became desolate. The earth became void at some point after its creation. In fact, that word, Hebrew word Heya, it's translated became in two other scriptures in the book of Genesis. One of them is Genesis chapter two and verse number seven. If we just turn over there, Genesis chapter two and verse number seven, it says, the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life and man became a living being.

Became something he wasn't before. And the earth was not created in vain. It was not created in togus. But it became that way. One translation, the Rotherhams emphasized Bible, I think, gives a very, very good translation of Genesis chapter one and verse two. And this is how it reads. It says, now the earth had become waste and empty. The earth had become.

So it wasn't created that way, but it became that way. God created it a very special place, a sparkling, beautiful jewel. And that the angels were so overjoyed they couldn't help but sang and shout for joy. But something happened to bring it to a condition of devastation and emptiness. But then God reshaped it. He restored it during the six days of creation into a beautiful home for the first human beings, for Adam and Eve. And God gives us some additional details about what happened between Genesis chapter one, verse one, and Genesis chapter one and verse two. Between those two verses, God gives us things to tell us what happened to bring the earth to a condition of waste and confusion.

Let's go to 2nd Peter chapter two. There are other places that the Bible begins to share things with us about what happened. Here little there little as we put pieces of the puzzle together to get a complete picture of what God says happened. 2nd Peter chapter two. The Bible records several examples of God's judgment for wrongdoing of God's judgment for sin. We'll pick it up in verse number five of 2nd Peter chapter two.

Verse five discusses the flood at Noah's time. It says, "...and did not spare the ancient world, but he saved Noah, one of eight people, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood on the world of the ungodly, and turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes, condemned them to destruction, making them example to those who afterward would live in ungodly life." But let's go up to verse number four. Verse number four we read that, "...if for God did not spare the angels who sinned, but he cast them down to hell." Well, there you go.

So there it is. He lives in hell. Well, not necessarily. It's not the Greek Hades. It's the Greek Tardoru, which is a condition of restraint, a condition of restraint. He can't do everything he used to do. He has some freedoms to do certain things, but there is also time that he's restrained and he cannot do what God does not allow him to do. He delivered them down to Tardoru, a place of restraint or condition of restraint, and delivered them into the chains of darkness to be reserved for judgment.

Let's learn a little bit more from Jude, the book of Jude, second to the last book of the New Testament. Verse number six, Jude chapter six. Verse six, chapter one.

"...and the angels who did not keep their proper domain..." So they left. They did not keep their proper domain, but they left their own abode. He has reserved in everlasting chains under darkness for the judgment of the great day. I think the NIV puts it this way, that same verse, New International Version, says this. It says, "...and the angels who do not keep their positions of authority but abandoned their home, these God has kept in darkness bound with everlasting chains for judgment of the great day." They left their place. They left their position.

That God had created them to have, had given to them, and they rebelled against their own maker. They rebelled against their own Creator, the God of the universe. The God that created not only the physical universe, but also the spiritual realm. Let's go to Isaiah chapter 14. Isaiah chapter 14, we find some more information. I know these are reviewing scriptures for many of us, but there are probably some here that have not heard these. Isaiah chapter 14, this chapter makes reference to the angelic rebellion, identifying its ringleader. It gives us some important details that we could not learn any other way.

Isaiah chapter 14. As we turn there, we'll see in verse 4, it talks about the king of Babylon. It mentions that phrase in verse 4, the king of Babylon. Now in Isaiah's time, the king of Babylon was emerging as a major power in the then-known world. And in fact, this king of Babylon was a warmonger, taking something that didn't belong to him.

He was expanding his empire through force, through brutal force. He enslaved, he plundered, he devastated some of the nations around him. And you know, really in context, this has some dual meaning, I think, because towards the end of the age, as the scriptures talk about, I think it's in Revelation 17 and 18 about Babylon the Great and how they operate. You know, there's some duality here. So the philosophy of the king of Babylon here is satanic, acquiring power at the expense of others and gaining it through violence, gaining it through bloodshed.

And I think this king of Babylon exemplifies Satan and his characteristics. Now as we come to verse number 12 here in Isaiah 14, the subject shifts from a physical king. From the king of Babylon, it begins to shift to a ruler that is higher, a spiritual ruler. Maybe that's behind the physical one.

In fact, many biblical scholars recognize that the original language of this passage in this form here is a lament. Now what's a lament? Remember the book of Lamentations, you know? Jeremiah was the author, God inspired him. You're lamenting about something that happened that you wished wouldn't have happened. So many biblical scholars believe that the language here is in the form of a lament, which was a reflection of God's mourning and a sense of great loss due to the events that we're about to read about here or that are described here.

How are you fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning? Maybe we haven't thought about that as a morning, but you know God doesn't want anyone to perish. He doesn't want anyone to be hurt. He wants peace and harmony for everyone, certainly for his angelic realm that he created.

How are you fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning? So here's the word Lucifer. First and only time, I believe, in Scripture here. It's translated, though, Lucifer is an English word. It's translated from the Hebrew word, hell-el. Five letters. H-E-L-E-L. It's a Hebrew word, hell-el. And of course we know that the last two letters, el, are God, right? In fact, some of the angels, in a sense, maybe have the word God in it, in a sense, el is God.

We have Gabriel. We have Mike-el. And we have hell-el here. It is the only time that it occurs in Scripture. Now, according to Strong's Exhausted Concordance, this is what hell-el means or Lucifer means. Shining one can be translated as it was a Lucifer. It can also be translated shining one, light-bearer. And the word Lucifer is taken from the Latin Vulgate, which translates hell-el as meaning morning star or as an adjective, light bringing. And the Septuagint renders hell-el in Greek as heiosphoros, meaning literally bringer of the dawn.

You know, a lot of darkness you need light. Dawn is the beginning of light. Bringer of dawn or the morning star. It's a little bit about the background of what that means. Now, let's continue to read in verse number 12. We start at verse 12. Let's finish it. How are you fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning? How are you cut down to the ground, you who weakened the nations? So now we begin to understand that he has an influence on the nations. And it doesn't sound like it's a good influence.

He weakens the nations. And he says in verse 13, For you have said in your heart, so something began to happen in his heart. Something began to mount up in his heart, this angel's heart. And he says, I will ascend into heaven. I will exalt my throne above the stars of God. Now, I'm going to have you reference here a scripture. You can write this down in your notes. Revelation chapter 1 and verse 20 tells us that the stars of God symbolize angels.

The stars of God symbolize angels. That's in Revelation chapter 1 verse 20. He says, I will ascend into heaven. I will exalt my throne above the stars of God. I'm going to sit on the mount of the congregation on the farthest sides of the north. I'm going to ascend above the heights of the clouds. I will be like the Most High. This created being wishes to exalt himself above all of the other angelic realm above the stars of God and even begins to challenge God himself as ruler of all. Look at all the eyes here. You know, I'm going to ascend into heaven. I'm going to exalt my throne above the stars of God.

I'm going to sit on the mount of the congregation on the farthest sides of the north. Just full of self. He really is. And something had happened in his heart to get him to this point. I'm going to ascend above the clouds.

I will be like the Most High. He is going to push God off of his throne. Verse number 15, yet you shall be brought down to Sheol to the lowest depths of the pit. You know, this section of Scripture, verses 12 through 15, is very revealing. Here is where Lucifer's original rebellion against God is recorded. He desires to exalt his throne, which means he had to have a throne to exalt, doesn't it? To exalt his throne, he had to have a throne.

A throne indicates a place of rule. It indicates a dominion, as well as a kingdom to rule over. It has all of those elements in it. Where was his throne? Where was his kingdom? Well, it says it was below the stars of God, and it was below the heights of clouds. Why does that really leave us? I think it leaves us the earth, don't you think? Below the clouds? His throne was below the clouds, and he's going to exalt it above the clouds? Lucifer had a throne on the earth. And then he rebelled against God. Let's go to Exodus chapter 28. Excuse me. Ezekiel. Ezekiel chapter 28. God gives us an answer to who this created being is. Now, this is an interesting and helpful chapter, and I think, in a way, we'll see a connection that it's also written very much like Isaiah chapter 14, because God begins by discussing a human ruler, a human leader, and then he shifts to the spiritual power behind the throne, the behind-the-scenes spiritual ruler who actually controls the kingdoms of this world. Let's pick it up in verse number 2 of Ezekiel chapter 28. In that verse, you can see here it addresses the Prince of Tyre. You see that there in the verse? The Prince of Tyre. We'll see that gets translated later. It moves to a king of Tyre. But the Prince of Tyre. Now, Tyre was a coastal port city north of ancient Israel on the Mediterranean Sea. It was famous for a trading center, but its rulers had grown haughty. They grown presumptuous because of their wealth and because of their influence. And verses 6 through 10 tells us this ruler that because of his arrogance and his might and his wealth that he was going to fail and he was going to be overthrown. But notice number verse number 12 here in Ezekiel 28 because God begins to address the king of Tyre rather than the Prince. This figure is really the true ruler, the real power behind the throne. Let's take a look at that because we'll see here this couldn't have been a human being. In fact, the description of this king of Tyre makes it clear that he's not speaking of a physical human being.

Let's pick it up here in verse number 12 and notice the insight that God gives us here.

It says, Thus says the Lord God you were the seal of perfection, the full of wisdom, imperfect in beauty. You were in Eden, the garden of God. Every precious stone was your covering, the sardius, the topaz, diamond, barrel, onyx, jasper, sapphire, turquoise. You know, these are all precious stones and emerald with gold and the workmanship of your timbrels and pipes was prepared for you on the day that you were created. So this being was a created being.

He has not always existed. He was a created angel of God and no mortal man could be described as having the seal of perfection, full of wisdom, perfect in beauty. This entity was created and was in the garden, was in the garden of Eden. Now we know that there were two humans that were also in the garden of Eden, Adam and Eve, but then they were pushed out. After they sinned, God expelled them and in fact God put an angel there to protect from anyone entering the garden of Eden.

But let's continue to read in verse number 14 and notice that this created being is no mortal man.

Verse number 14, you were the anointed carob who covers.

You know, the being that God is addressing is an angelic carob. It's a carob. It's not a human being. It's the carob who covers indicated that he had once been one of the great angels that God himself was serving at the very throat, had serving at his very throne.

So this magnificent being apparently held a position of high honor and distinction in God's angelic realm. Now the scriptures tell us that God dwells between the carob and I'll give you a few references that we're not going to turn near.

One is 1 Samuel chapter 4 and verse 4. One is 2 Samuel chapter 6 and verse 2. A couple more. 2 Kings 19-15 and Psalm chapter 80 and verse 1. That God dwells between the carob, showing that these wondrous creatures accompany and serve God at the seat of his power. So verse 14 says, you were the anointed carob who covers an I established you, which means God placed him in this position. He created him and gave him a very, very high position with big responsibilities.

You were on the holy mountain of God.

You walked back and forth in the midst of the fiery stones.

God says to this carob in verse number 15, you were perfect in your ways from the day that you were created until something happened. Until iniquity was found in you.

You know, this being was created by God. He was extraordinary. He was perfect. He had incredible wisdom. He had incredible wisdom until iniquity was found in him, until sin was found in him.

Verse number 16. By the abundance of your trading, you changed.

You became something different from what you were because of choices that you made.

By the abundance of your trading, you became filled with violence.

You know, that's God's way of saying, you know, filled to the full.

You were filled with it. You were filled with violence within, in his heart, what made him who he was. And you sinned. God calls his fate a spade. He changed. He became something different. He became filled over time, filled with violence within. And then he sinned. And God said, I had to cast you away as a profane thing out of where you were. I can't allow you to speak here.

I cast you as a profane thing out of the mountain of God, and I destroyed you, or it can also be rendered. I removed you from your position. O covering carob from the midst of the fiery stones.

And then verse 17, I think, zeros in on the problem that Lucifer had. Verse 17, your heart was lifted up because of your beauty. He went to his head. You corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor. You know, he had pride that began to mount up into his heart, and it led to rebellion against his own maker, his own creator. I know more than you.

Is basically what he said. I don't agree with you, is basically what he said. I think I know a better way than you, is basically what he said. So he challenged God, who, of course, is powerful and controls the universe. What had been an amazingly beautiful and immensely talented spirit being, with great responsibility in the angelic order, became something different. He came through his rebellion against Almighty God, a reprehensible and a despicable being.

God didn't create a sinful being. It's not what he created. God didn't create a devil. But Lucifer became rebellious and made himself the enemy of God and also of all humanity.

The immense powers that he had, that he used to use in the service of God, began to be twisted, began to be corrupted, began to be turned. All of his powers, all of his energies, and what he was going to do, turned away from God and what God had asked him to do. No longer to serve God, but actually to thwart God and his plans.

His enormous talents and abilities actually led him to believe that he was equal to, if not better, than God himself, and his thinking became corrupted. But he was not alone in this rebellion.

He was not alone. He was the ringleader. He was the one that started it. He was the author of this whole process. But he wasn't alone, because millions of other angels joined him in rejecting God's authority and rejecting God's leadership. Let's go over to Revelation 12 and verse 3.

Revelation chapter 12 and verse 3.

And another sign appeared in heaven. He hold a great fiery red dragon, and his tail drew a third of the stars of heaven and threw them to the earth. Verse 9 identifies this dragon as Satan.

As we saw earlier, the Bible uses the stars as a symbol of angels.

You know, it's hard to believe that one-third of the angels followed Satan in this rebellion. That's a pretty significant number, isn't it? One-third. And they were cast down to the earth with him. It became known as demons. And this attempt to take over, we know, wasn't successful. We know it's, you know, two-thirds of the angels remain loyal to God. And so, in the sense, they're a more numerous force. But that being said, more importantly, God is omnipotent. He's all powerful.

He can't be overthrown.

Jesus said in Luke chapter 10 and verse 18, I'll just refer to that. In Luke chapter 10 verse 18, Jesus said, I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.

You know, he went up to rebel. And when God said that's enough enough, it didn't take God long to send him back. It wasn't a big struggle. He fell like lightning. So what have we seen so far?

Well, the Bible tells us that Lucifer, whose name was changed to Satan, was created by God as a carer of the powerful, one of the most powerful of God's angelic beings. Sometime after his creation and before the creation of mankind, he rebelled against God and he influenced one-third of the angels also to join him in that rebellion. He was created a perfect being. He was described as originally being wise and completely righteous, however, pride in his heart being lifted up caused him to fall. As it says, your heart was lifted up because of your beauty. And he wanted to exalt his throne above God's. When was the original rebellion? Well, what we read in Job, chapter 38, pretty much suggests it occurred between the original creation of the earth and before Adam and Eve were created at the beginning of the recreation of the earth. And presumably, all the sons of God, which would have included Lucifer as well, hadn't rebelled at the time that the earth was first created. They all, it says, shouted for joy.

So what is his purpose? What's his purpose?

In the way that he moves and makes choices and decisions, what are his goals? I think it's important to understand how he works and how he uses his powers. We should also understand his intentions and his overall goal. He led one-third of God's angels astray.

That's part of his purpose. That was part of his goal. He led one-third of the angelic realm astray. And because of his lust for position and power, he led them into war against their own creator. Has he changed since then? That was the original rebellion. Has he changed? I think we'll find that the rebellion continues. It continues. Let's go over to Genesis chapter 3. After failing to overthrow God and his throne, and God begins the plan of mankind, or to be his sons and daughters, what does he do? What does he do? He's been cast back to the earth along with his angels.

What does he do? He is stiflingly trying to thwart and disrupt God's plan.

Hasn't changed God's plans with the human race.

Trying to do them harm. Trying to do us harm. We see in Genesis chapter 3 verse 2 that he wastes no time in interfering shortly after God created Adam and Eve. Notice verse number 2 of Genesis 3. Satan suddenly asks Eve, has God indeed said you shall not eat of every tree of the garden? Has God said you can't eat of any of this?

He cleverly avoided mentioning all that God had given to her and had given to Adam and every plant and every tree and every kind of fruit in the garden. Instead, he focuses on, he succeeds in getting her to concentrate on the fruit of the one tree from which God said don't eat of that one.

You can eat of all the rest of them, including the tree of life, but don't eat of that tree because it will kill you and I don't want you to die. So if you eat of that tree you'll die.

Well, he was pretty clever, didn't he? He succeeded in here to focus on the one tree which was forbidden to eat and this account, brethren, helps us to see that Satan's primary goal, his primary purpose, is to thwart God's plan to build a family relationship, to have a family.

I mean, that's why God created all of this, to have sons and daughters. That's why he created the angelic realm, to be servants, to serve God's sons and daughters.

So Satan isn't finished with his rebellion against God. He took the form of a serpent right there at the Garden of Eden to tempt Eve. He was there. He attempts to thwart God's plan to build a family relationship with mankind to this very day.

And he started right at the very beginning of Adam and Eve.

I'll just refer to the scripture here. Well, let's go to Luke, chapter 22.

This is now thousands of years after Adam and Eve. Has he changed?

Has Lucifer or Satan, as he's come to be known, has he changed?

Has his rebellion stopped? Luke, chapter 22 and verse 31.

You may remember this scripture. And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, Satan has asked for you. He hasn't changed at all, has he? Satan has asked for you. This is thousands of years now after Adam and Eve. Christ is on the earth. And he said, Simon, Simon, indeed Satan has asked for you that he may sift you as wheat.

That's how he spends his time. That's how he spends his energy. He's trying to destroy what God is trying to build. Let's go over to Luke, chapter 8, verse 12. Luke 8, just a few pages back. Luke, chapter 8 and verse number 12.

Another familiar parable. So we see that his rebellion continues.

God is sowing seeds, and Satan tries to uproot them.

Luke, chapter 8, we'll pick it up in verse 11. Now the parable is this. The seed is the word of God, God's word being seed. God's word, his message. Verse 12, those by the wayside are ones who hear, and guess what? The devil comes and takes away the word out of their hearts. He doesn't want it there.

Takes the word out of their hearts that they should believe and be saved. I think we're talking about from eternal death, to be saved, to be a part of the family of God.

And we could go on here, and we can see here that he's involved. He's involved.

And then 1 Peter, chapter 5 and verse 8. Let's go over there. 1 Peter, chapter 5 and verse number 8.

The rebellion continues. It hasn't ended. 1 Peter, chapter 5 and verse number 8.

It's hard to imagine, isn't it? It's hard to imagine someone that could be so focused on trying to destroy.

But it has the ability to make things look good.

If you see that trailer, you'll say, you know what? That's kind of interesting.

Or you might be tempted to say that. 1 Peter, chapter 5 and verse 8.

Peter, who Jesus Christ said, you know, said, wants you.

Peter tells us now in 1 Peter, chapter 5 and verse 8, be sober, be vigilant, because your adversary, the devil, walks about like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour, the destroyer. You know? He's not in heaven. He's not the king of hell or the ruler of hell. He's on the earth.

He's walking to and fro, seeking whom he may destroy, devour. He's here on the earth. He's not in heaven. He's not in hell. I want to address one point here. Let's go over to Matthew, chapter 25, because they say he's the Lord of hell in this particular television series.

Now, that was his place that he was supposed to be. His kingdom was there. He didn't want to be there anymore. Well, he's the Lord of hell. Is he in charge of hell? I don't think so. Matthew, chapter 25, because the Bible tells us different. Matthew, chapter 25, we'll pick it up here in verse number 41. He says, then he will say to those on his left hand, depart from me, you curse into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels. Is he in charge of hell? Is he the Lord of hell? Absolutely not. Hell was prepared for him. God prepared hell for him and for his angels. It's here in the Bible. Depart from me, you are cursed into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. And, of course, anyone that follows in his footsteps.

And so, hell is not, he's not the Lord of hell. Hell is not where he is. He's on the earth. He's not in hell. He's not in heaven. He's on the earth. From the beginning, God has designed a magnificent plan to have sons and daughters in his family to extend the way that he lives with human beings that can eventually be spirit beings. We know that one of God's most familiar passages, memory verse, John chapter 3 verse 16, God so loved the world that he was willing to give his only begotten son so that whoever believes in his son would not perish but have everlasting life.

We know from Romans chapter 8 and verse number 19, I'm not going to turn there, but I'll refer to it.

We know that God wants to vastly expand his family. That's his goal. That's his purpose. That's what he's up to. And it says there in that scripture, for the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God. That's the purpose for the whole creation is to have spirit-born sons and daughters.

God promised that he who overcomes shall inherit all things and I will be his God and he will be my son. That's from Revelation 21 verse 7. Second Corinthians chapter 6 and verse 18 says, I will be a father to you and you shall be my sons and daughters. That's second Corinthians chapter 6 and verse 18. The whole creation waits for you and me. That's why you were created to be God's sons and daughters. Was Lucifer ever a son of God?

Was Lucifer ever a son of God? The television series says, hey, he's my father, not yours.

Which would suggest, in other words, I'm his son and not you. He's my father, not yours.

Was Lucifer ever a son of God? Let's go to Hebrews chapter 1 verse 5.

Hebrews chapter 1 and verse number 5.

For to which of the angels said he at any time? You are my son. To which of the angels did God ever say at any time, you are my son, this day have I begotten you? And which to the angels did he ever say at any time, I will be to him a father and he shall be to me a son? It's not in scriptures. God specifically says he never has said that. Verse 5 is an often overlooked verse. The angels that created powerful beings have never been spoken of as sons of God. God never called Lucifer or Satan his son.

Verse number 6. But when he again brings forth the firstborn into the world, talking about Jesus Christ, the first of the firstfruits, but when he again brings the firstborn into the world, he says, let all the angels of God worship him. So the angels were to worship God. They were to worship the son of God, the firstborn son of God.

And verse 7, he talks about the angels. And of the angels, he says, he makes his angel spirits, they're spirit beings, and his ministers, they're his helpers, they're his servants, but they're to serve God in his goals and his purposes. They were created to do that.

The sons and daughters of God needed help. They needed service. And God created them.

So verse 7, and of the angels, he says, who makes his angel spirits and his ministers, his helpers, his servants, a flame of fire. They're powerful.

They were to be powerful beings on our behalf to help us.

Let's jump to verse number 13. But to which of the angels has he ever said, sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool? He's never said that to any of the angels. And he goes on to talk about their purpose again in verse 14. Are they not all ministering spirits? They're helpers, they're servants. They're spirit beings to help God and to help his sons and daughters. They were sent forth to minister, which means to help and serve for those who will inherit salvation. That's you and me. God doesn't want any of us to perish. He wants us to be saved. And so that's why they were created.

So Lucifer's purpose began to serve God. It began eventually to change and be corrupted, to now thwart God and his plan. How does he do it? How does he do it?

Well, he's got several ways, but one of them is deception. He deceives.

He deceives people. He deceives God's sons and daughters. He deceived Eve.

You know, we throw that word deceive around a lot. But how would you define it?

How would you define it? I looked it up. This is one definition of the dictionary. Deceive.

Causing someone to believe something that is not true. Causing someone to believe something that is not true typically in order to gain some personal advantage.

Causing someone to believe something that is not true typically in order to gain some personal advantage. Selfish. For me. Who does it sound like? I think we know who it sounds like.

Sounds like Satan, the devil. Let's go over to Revelation 12, verse 9.

As a master of persuasion, Satan easily deceived mankind into focusing on, has deceived us into focusing on almost anything but God. For example, the theory of evolution. He's convinced millions of people that God doesn't even exist. Through hundreds of corrupt religions, he has over the ages convinced billions of people to worship the sun, to worship the moon, to worship the stars, to worship stone. Convinced people to do that. And you know he's done such an effective job in confusing people to what the Bible really says. He doesn't care, I suppose, in how he does it.

Whether we believe in God, whether we don't, or whether we accept and worship a false God, as long as it alienates man from God. Perhaps this helps us to better understand why it says here in Revelation chapter 12 verse 9 that God means what he says when he tells us that the devil has deceived the whole world. Let's pick it up in verse number seven. It says, And war broke out in heaven. So he is trying to attack. Michael and his angels fought with the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought. But the dragon his angels did not prevail, nor was their place found for them in heaven any longer. They were going up to try to take over the throne.

Verse 9, So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the devil, and Satan, who deceives the whole world. He was cast to the earth. Not in heaven, not in hell, was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.

Verse number 12 tells us, We jump there, therefore rejoice, O heavens, and you that dwell in them.

Woe to the inhabitants of the earth, though, in the sea, for the devil has come down to you.

So this is where he resides at this time. He still has dominion. He still has a throne. He tempted to exalt his throne, but he was placed back where he started. And the devil has come down to you, having great anger, because he knows he has but a short time. Let's go over to 2nd Corinthians chapter 4 verse 4. 2nd Corinthians chapter 4 and verse 4.

He deceives. He tries to cover up the truth. He tries for you to believe in a truth that is not the truth, that is a lie. He persuades you to believe something that is not true for his personal gain.

Let's notice a little bit more here is what it shares in 2nd Corinthians chapter 4 verse 4.

Talking about the God of this age, he has blinded those who do not believe.

We're talking about believing the truth, believing in God, the creator, and the destiny that he has for them. The God of this age has blinded those who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine into them. He doesn't want the light to shine. And, of course, God in you is the hope of glory. Christ in us. He doesn't want that to be understood. He doesn't want that to be believed. The rebellion continues.

Jesus reminded us in Matthew chapter 7 in verse number 13.

Let's turn over there. Matthew chapter 7 in verse number 13.

Says, the gate is wide, the road is easy, that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. There are many who take that road.

You know, the gate is narrow, and the road is hard, that leads to life. There are few that find it. Satan has effectively deceived the world throughout history by influencing mankind to cut themselves off from God and from his guidance. He's influenced us to do our own thing, to make our own choices, to follow our own paths, rather than God, rather to yield to him, rather than to submit to him and his authority. Satan's got a lot of different devices which he uses to deceive, and that's a sermon in itself, and that may be something that down the road I'll bring to you. But as a deceiver, he has no equal. There's no one quite as good as him. In addition to being the world's greatest con artist, he's also a very accomplished counterfeiter. He's an accomplished counterfeiter. Let's notice Paul's warning to the Christians at Corinth in 2 Corinthians chapter 11. 2 Corinthians chapter 11.

And we'll pick it up in verse number three.

I'm going to read this from a different translation, but it'll be pretty close to the New King James.

The rebellion continues is what Paul is telling us here. The deception continues. But I fear less somehow as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so that your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. For if he who comes, practices, preaches, another Jesus whom we've not preached, or if you've received a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted, you may well put up with it.

You know, Paul here describes three areas that Satan the devil cleverly counterfeits the truth to deceive Christians. Do you notice it here in this section of Scripture here?

First, he represents Jesus as being different than what he actually is. He represents Jesus as being quite different from the way that Jesus and Christ is revealed in the Bible, in effect, creating another Jesus. It's a counterfeit. It works. It's a deception. He, in effect, creates another Jesus, or in a sense, a false messiah, a false Christ. We see a little bit of a flavor of that at the Christmas season, but it goes way beyond that. That's one thing here in this section of Scripture, because it represents a different Jesus, a counterfeit Jesus. The second set here, or the second part of this clever deception, is to represent a mere outpouring of human emotions as God's Spirit. You know, you know, hundreds of thousands of people are deceived every year in this way or in this manner. They are impressed by what they see or feel, instead of the fruit of God's Spirit as mentioned in Galatians chapter 5.

It's a deception. It's a counterfeit. You've got to have this feeling.

So they rely on a feeling rather than the Word of God and what it says the fruit of the Holy Spirit is and what the teaching is about the Holy Spirit and its fruit that God has shared with us.

We know the Holy Spirit is the power of God, but Satan receives us into thinking it's the third member of the Godhead. He then further deceives people into thinking vain babblings and nonsensical words, worked up through human emotions, which is really a demonic spirit, that that is of God. There's a third counterfeit or deception here in this set of scriptures. And the third one is twisting the gospel message that Jesus Christ brought from God the Father, a twisting or a counterfeit of the gospel. It says if you receive here a different gospel than the one, than the right one. So we see Jesus explain that as soon as people would begin to respond to God's Word, we've already touched on that, you know, the Word of the Kingdom, that Satan would go in there and try to change it. He tried to twist it. He tried to remove that from their hearts, get that true understanding out away from them, snatch it quickly out of their hearts and out of their minds, or put it down a different path than what it actually is, the gospel message. How many understand the true gospel message? We're very, very fortunate, brother, that we understand that it's a coming Kingdom of God, what Jesus Christ is as the King of Kings. Let's go over to Galatians chapter 1 verse 6. Galatians chapter 1 and verse number 6. Let's notice Paul's lament, if you will, over what was happening to some of the brethren in Galatia who had been converted under his ministry. Galatians chapter 1. We'll pick it up in verse number 6. He said, I'm horrible. I am shocked. I am, you know, marvel means, whoa, what's going on here?

I marvel that you are turning away so soon from him who called you in the grace of Christ to a different gospel, which isn't another. But there are some who trouble you and want to pervert. They want to corrupt. They want to counterfeit, if you will, the gospel of the Jesus Christ brought, the gospel of Christ. But if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed. So he's counterfeiting. He's changing. He's corrupting the truth. It looks good. It's got some logic to it, but it's not the truth.

It takes you away from the truth. And not surprising, Satan will use the same tactics he used on the angelic realm with us.

Satan is darkness. Jesus brings the lights that we can see. Lucifer's power means, though nothing, really, compared to the potential of mankind. He's not as powerful as God. He's more powerful than we are right now, but he's not as powerful as God's sons and daughters will be. Let's go over to Hebrews chapter 2, verse number 5. Hebrews chapter 2 and verse 5. We don't want to be ignorant, though, of his devices, which will be a message all of its own, which hopefully I'll bring to you in the fairly near future. We've already covered the fact that, you know, he's never said to the angels at any time in Hebrews chapter 1, you are my son. I've begotten you. He's never said that. But that they're ministering spirits sent to minister those who are heirs of salvation.

That was their purpose. That was their reason that they were created, was to serve God's people.

But let's pick it up in Hebrews chapter 2 and verse number 5.

But he has not put the world or the age to come, as it could also be translated, he is of which we speak, in subjection to angels. No. They have a different role. It's the way that God designed it.

He's the potter, we're the clay. I said, in a sense, the angels were the clay. They had a role. There they were made a certain way with a certain vessel, with a certain purpose.

But it was not to do this, to put the world to come, which we speak in subjection to the angels, because one testified in a certain place, saying, What is man? You know, David realized that we didn't have the power of the angels. And who are we? And the son of man that you take care of, you have made him a little lower than the angels. Or some translations say you've made him for a little while, a little lower than the angels, that you have crowned him with glory and honor and have set him over the work of your hands, not the angelic realm, but mankind.

Mankind is going to rule. We can't do what angels do now, but in the future, we will.

And more, and more. The malice of Lucifer is such that he's always wanted to be not only known, not only worshipped as God is worshipped, but by angels, other angels, and by human beings. And he even asked Jesus Christ to fall down and worship him. Remember that story when the temptation after Christ fasted? He said, You know, I'll give you all this, if you'll fall down and worship me. We can know the truth and not be deceived by Satan's or Lucifer's origins, his purpose, and his devices. We can resist him, which means we stay away from anything that would pull us into this world, because there's a lot of influence out there, and we are susceptible to it. But scripture constantly warns God's people to not have anything to do come out of this world. Don't get close to the witchcraft. Don't get close to the wizards. Don't get close to the mediums, the vampires, the witches. But it's all around us. Retailers are creating games which call for demonic spirits to even participate in the game.

It's out there. Money is made by fortune tellers.

God says, Resist the devil. Don't get involved in this world. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Let's go over to Ephesians chapter 6.

A couple more scriptures and we'll wrap things up. Ephesians chapter 6 in verse number 11. We don't have to fear him, brethren, but we do need to be vigilant of his devices. And separated from man, man chooses to go his own way, if we know. He doesn't have very good results. In fact, devastating. But under Satan's influence, humanity has rejected God's revelation and his guidance and has built societies and civilizations on a wrong foundation.

We've got to be put on the alert, as Paul told, the Galatian churches. And then, as he tells our brothers and sisters in Ephesus that we need to put on the armor to defend ourselves because we're in a war. Verse 11 of Ephesians chapter 6 put on the whole armor of God. Why? Why should we put this on? So that we may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil or against his schemes.

The armor which is putting on, of course, includes Christ, his attitude, his characteristics.

He had the armor on. His frame of mind, his approach, the way he approached things, that we might stand just as Jesus was able to stand. Notice verse 16, above all, taking the shield of faith which you will be able to quench or, in other words, put away all the fiery darts of the wicked one. So we need to know what the truth is.

And, of course, Satan's trying to cover up the truth.

We need to know what the truth is because it will set us free. We'll be free of the deception, free of the lies, free of the twisted thinking that's out there of a great deceiver. You know, his reign is eventually going to end. And thank God for that. It's not going to be ongoing forever.

It's eventually going to end. That's God's will. And we know what his future is. Apparently, doesn't buy the future that God reveals to us. He will try once again to dethrone God. And he will continue to deceive humankind. And he will continue to rebel.

His mind is set in stone. He's not going to change.

But in God's time, and according to his plan, he will be cast into the lake of fire, hellfire. So we need to be on guard, as the Scripture says, resist the devil, and he will flee. And we draw closer to God, and he will flee. We need to keep our eyes firmly fixed on God's goal and on his purposes. In Matthew 4, verse 10, I'll just write it down. You can look it up here if you want to right now. But I think what we want to do as we stay close to God is to repeat the words that Jesus Christ said in his confrontation with the enemy. Remember that confrontation?

At the end of that, he says, away with you, Satan, for it is written, you shall worship the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve. Stay close to God. Resist him, brethren.

And let's worship God. And let's understand the real Lucifer and who he has become, and what his goals and what his purposes are.