The Spirit World
(Satan, Messengers, Demons, etc.)
The So-Called Angel World (4
parts)
A thorough treatment, in four parts, of the whole subject of the spirit world,
ranging from Satan, to messengers (angels) and other inhabitants of the celestials,
terrestrial spirits (demons), and also including some popular ficticious angels.
God and Satan
Satan, called the Serpent, is a product of God’s own hand. It is important
that we give this matter of God making the serpent some serious thought, for in it lies
the whole cause of sin’s entrance into the world. Did God make this serpent (Satan or
the devil) just as an experiment? Or did He know, being an all-wise God, just what would
be the result?
Satan
In the creeds of Christendom there seem to be two gods, one the source of good,
who is opposed by another, the source of evil. The latter is apparently more able to
achieve his purpose, especially as man’s “free will” is generally aligned
with his plans. As regards the present, he quite clearly is dominant, if all the conflict
and discord is to be traced back to him. And the future would appear to be his, for the
vast majority of mankind are unmindful of the claims of the other God of Christendom.
This, however, conflicts with the truth of Scripture, that there is one God, the Source of
all, and one Lord, the Channel of all.
The Fall Of Satan
Satan’s fall is only another and coarser form of Gnosticism, the
“science, falsely so-called,” against which the spirit of God has warned the
saints. It is the old, old, attempt to relieve God of the responsibility of the creation
as we know it, and to shift its shadows to the shoulders of His creatures. The Gnostics
divided this responsibility among many, and thus dissipated the blame. Today it is
concentrated on Satan, the Slanderer, who deceived our parents in Eden.
The King of Tyre
Several passages of Scripture have been forced to buttress the theory that Satan
is a fallen angel. Ezekiel 28, particularly the section which speaks of the king, of Tyre,
is a favorite passage on which to base assumptions showing that Satan is there spoken of
in figure. Is the king not distinguished from the “prince?” The very
plausibility seems to freeze our minds and prevent investigation; we seem unable to look
below the surface, and so we go on to formulate another query: Is not the king of Tyre
said to be the Anointed Cherub? And, further, was he not in Eden, the garden of God?
Surely such details must refer to Satan!
Isaiah 14
Another of the several passages of Scripture which have been forced to buttress
the theory that Satan is a fallen angel is Isaiah 14. The mis-translation
“Lucifer” has lead many to believe this passage, a prophecy of the King of
Babylon, refers to Satan.
The Slanderer
“Abode” Not in The Truth
With great emphasis our Lord insists, concerning the Slanderer, that he is the
very father of that which is false (John 8:44). This denies the traditional teaching that
Satan was once in the truth and fell from it.
Spirit Manifestations
God’s Word assures us that, in the last days, that is, in our time, men will
depart from the faith. Only believers can fall from the faith. In second Thessalonians
(2:9) Paul speaks of Satan’s power, and signs, and false miracles. What a warning
against the lack of care of most saints, who imagine that all that seems miraculous must
be from God!
The Doctrines Of Demons
God warns His own. We are to beware of these doctrines. The church holds most of
these doctrines already. Not the nominal church merely, but those who are aggressively
evangelical and uphold vital truths. Many who are loud in their warning against the
doctrines of demons hold them, contend for them, and denounce others who refuse to receive
them!
A Review of “The
Devil — An Expose”
Mr. Knoch reviews the book “The Devil —
An Expose” and "exposes" it's many errors, including the popular
notion that Satan is only an impersonal force.
