Ephesians 6:10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.
11 Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
There is no sense in trying to stand against the wiles of the devil if we are not familiar with his strategies, and capabilities, for wherever persons are ignorant of his devices, they become vulnerable to his varied assaults. Even though we know that Christ already gained the victory, yet we are still in this world, and are subject to temptations from time to time.
Having a deep relationship with Jesus does not ever prevent one from being tempted, because even The Lord was tempted in the wilderness. Therefore, if we delude ourselves into thinking that because of Christ’s victory, we do not have to make concerted efforts to become acquainted with satan’s devices, we will run the risk of falling into one or more of his snares, inadvertently.
There is something called unnecessary temptation, and that’s why Christ cautioned us not to enter into temptation, but avoid it as much as possible. It will take a diligent study of God’s word coupled with the power of the Holy Ghost to fend off multiple efforts to overthrow our souls.
One of the aspects of spiritual warfare is that many persons are not able to tell the difference between what God is doing and what satan is capable of, and for this reason, hurricanes and tornadoes are often referred to as Acts of God in insurance terminology.
The reason for this is generally twofold: [1] Persons deny the existence of satan. [2] If they do believe that he exists, they usually relegate him to being an inferior who is not worth the time and effort for any person to investigate.
But the Bible sings an entirely different tune, for not only does it tell us that satan was once the highest angel in heaven; his intelligence, wisdom and power is greatly superior to that of mankind, and as such it will do us well to be fully aware of what satan can, and cannot do. Let’s read:
Revelation 12:12 Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you having great wrath because he knows that he hath but a short time.
Ezekiel 28:3 Behold, thou art wiser than Daniel; there is no secret that they can hide from thee.
6 Therefore thus saith the Lord God; Because thou hast set thine heart as the heart of God;
7 Behold, therefore I will bring strangers upon thee, the terrible of the nations: and they shall draw their swords against the beauty of thy wisdom, and they shall defile thy brightness.
The purpose of the Bible study is to enlighten our minds about what is currently taking place behind the scenes in our world, and also to prepare us to be able to tell the difference between the sacred and the satanic, as the last days converge, since too many persons are prone to confuse the two.
Thus, the following are just a few of the capabilities satan has at his disposal. Some are employed when granted permission by God, while there are others that are implemented via our freedom of choice, by which we give him lee way to work great harm if we agree with, or bow to his principles and suggestions.
The capabilities would be divided up into two main categories, beginning with the bad things satan can do, and ending with the good things he often does, and everything will be backed up or certified by the word of God. For the record, satan can do both bad and good things, as the Bible clearly shows.
[1] Satan absolutely has the power to bring upon the face of the earth many tornadoes, hurricanes, and other unnatural disasters. Every occurrence of this sort might not be attributable to him, but he does have the power to implement them.
When all Job’s children were having their birthday bash, it was a tornado, triggered by satan that came from the wilderness, and smote their house at the four corners, thus destroying life and property. It is worthy of note that very closely associated with any tornado are rain, wind, and hail, and thus these are to be included in his capabilities.
There is a real and valid reason why God chose to draw back the curtain, in the experiences of Job, to reveal to persons what often takes place behind the scenes, so that we would not be misinformed when we speak, for according to the word of God, many of the disasters occurring on earth are of satanic origin. Let’s read:
Job1: 13 And there was a day when his sons and his daughters were eating and drinking wine in their eldest brother's house
19 And, behold, there came a great wind from the wilderness, and smote the four corners of the house, and it fell upon the young men, and they are dead; and I only am escaped alone to tell thee.
Psalms 78: 48 He gave up their cattle also to the hail and their flocks to hot thunderbolts.
49 He cast upon them the fierceness of his anger, wrath, and indignation, and trouble, by sending evil angels among them.
[The Great Controversy pp 589] In accidents and calamities by sea and by land, in great conflagrations, in fierce tornadoes and terrific hail-storms, in tempests, floods, cyclones, tidal waves, and earthquakes, in every place and in a thousand forms, Satan is exercising his power.
He sweeps away the ripening harvest, and famine and distress follow. He imparts to the air a deadly taint, and thousands perish by the pestilence. These visitations are to become more and more frequent and disastrous. Destruction will be upon both man and beast.
[2] He can bring certain diseases on persons If, and when he is permitted to do so.
What often takes place is that persons are tempted to violate the Biblical teachings on diets and foods, by partaking of forbidden things, and then natural consequences do follow. However, in addition to this, satan is also able to afflict persons directly with diseases. Let’s read:
Job 2:7 So went Satan forth from the presence of the Lord, and smote Job with sore boils from the sole of his foot unto his crown.
Luke 13: 15 The Lord then answered him, and said, Thou hypocrite, doth not each one of you on the sabbath loose his ox or his ass from the stall, and lead him away to watering?
16 And ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan hath bound, lo, these eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the sabbath day?
[3] If given the chance, he will temporarily take possession of a righteous person’s mind and thus cause him/her to say and do things that are entirely contrary to God’s revealed will. Let’s read:
For us to think that simply because a person might be a Christian, he or she is immune to being moved upon by satan, is an absolute misnomer. A person who is a genuine Christian can succumb to several suggestions and infusions of contrary thoughts, by the enemy of souls, if he/she is not girded with the presence and power of The Holy Ghost, moment by moment. Let’s read:
1st Chronicles 21:1 And Satan stood up against Israel, and provoked David to number Israel.
Matthew 16: 22 Then Peter took him, and began to rebuke him, saying, Be it far from thee, Lord: this shall not be unto thee.
23 But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offence unto me: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men.
[4] He can take possession of the minds of men who are under his control and he can move upon such persons to commit violent acts against innocent people. Let’s read:
Job 1:14 And there came a messenger unto Job, and said, The oxen were plowing, and the asses feeding beside them.
15 And the Sabeans fell upon them, and took them away; yea, they have slain the servants with the edge of the sword; and I only am escaped alone to tell thee.
17 While he was yet speaking, there came also another, and said, The Chaldeans made out three bands, and fell upon the camels, and have carried them away, yea, and slain the servants with the edge of the sword; and I only am escaped alone to tell thee.
[5] Satan can cause lightening, and fire to come down from the skies, and do literal damage to certain persons. Let’s read:
Job 1:16 While he was yet speaking, there came also another, and said, The fire of God is fallen from heaven, and hath burned up the sheep, and the servants, and consumed them; and I only am escaped alone to tell thee.
Revelation 13: 13 He does great wonders, so that he makes fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men,
14 And deceives them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast.
[The Great Controversy pp 553] No mere impostures are here foretold. Men are deceived by the miracles which Satan's agents have power to do, not which they pretend to do.
[6] Satan can, and often does cause persons under his control to commit suicide.
God never drives a person to take his or her own life, because life is sacred, created, and then bought again by the precious blood of Christ. Therefore, all suicidal thoughts, including assisted suicide and any thoughts of killing oneself, which are the result of a use of certain drugs do not originate with God. Let’s read:
1st Samuel 16: 14 But the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the Lord troubled him.
15 And Saul's servants said unto him, Behold, now an evil spirit from God troubles thee.
1st Samuel 31:4 Then said Saul unto his armor-bearer, draw thy sword, and thrust me through; lest these uncircumcised come and thrust me through, and abuse me. But his armourbearer would not; for he was sore afraid. Therefore, Saul took a sword, and fell upon it.
5 And when his armor-bearer saw that Saul was dead, he fell likewise upon his sword, and died with him.
Luke 22:3 Then entered Satan into Judas surnamed Iscariot, being of the number of the twelve.
Matthew 27:3 Then Judas, which had betrayed him, when he saw that he was condemned, repented himself, and brought again the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders.
5 And he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple, and departed, and went and hanged himself.
[7] He can take possession of individuals, as well as certain animals which fall under his domain. Persons may know that people can be possessed, but some might not have known that animals, and lower life forms can be demon possessed too. Let’s read:
Matthew 8:31 So the devils besought him, saying, If thou cast us out, suffer us to go away into the herd of swine.
32 And he said unto them, Go. And when they were come out, they went into the herd of swine: and, behold, the whole herd of swine ran violently down a steep place into the sea, and perished in the waters.
[8] Satan has power to bring before persons the forms of their dead relatives and friends and these appearances are picture perfect, in replication. Mannerisms, hand gestures, perfumes, smiles, one’s manner of speech, complete with slangs, dialect, vocabulary, language and lingo are all reproduced with 100% distinctness. Let’s read:
1st Samuel 28:1 And when Saul saw the host of the Philistines, he was afraid, and his heart greatly trembled.
6 And when Saul enquired of the Lord, the Lord answered him not, neither by dreams, nor by Urim, nor by prophets.
7 Then said Saul unto his servants, Seek me a woman that hath a familiar spirit, that I may go to her, and enquire of her. And his servants said to him, Behold, there is a woman that hath a familiar spirit at Endor.
11 Then said the woman, Whom shall I bring up unto thee? And he said, Bring me up Samuel.
12 And when the woman saw Samuel, she cried with a loud voice saying why have you deceived me? for thou art Saul.
14 And he said unto her, What form is he of? And she said, An old man cometh up; and he is covered with a mantle. And Saul perceived that it was Samuel, and he stooped with his face to the ground, and bowed himself.
15 And Samuel said to Saul, Why hast thou disquieted me, to bring me up? And Saul answered, I am sore distressed; for the Philistines make war against me, and God is departed from me, and answers me no more, neither by prophets, nor by dreams: therefore, I have called you, that you may make known unto me, what I shall do.
[The Great Controversy pp 552] He has power to bring before men the appearance of their departed friends. The counterfeit is perfect; the familiar look, the words, the tone, are reproduced with marvelous distinctness. Many are comforted with the assurance that their loved ones are enjoying the bliss of Heaven; and without suspicion of danger, they give ear to “seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils.”
Now, let us turn our attention to the good things satan has the power to do, for some persons have been completely deceived on this point. To chalk up everything that is good to God, and everything that is evil to satan is a gross misunderstanding of the way things work in the spiritual realm.
In fact, there are several things that are good in and of themselves that devils have the power to do, and which are often erroneously credited to God. Thus, if folks believe that it is God doing those good things then they would have no problem with worshipping and praising, who they believe must be God.
[9] Satan can cause religious ministers to preach good things from the Bible, and he can, and often causes persons to join the church.
Here is where we get into deep waters, for some have erroneously concluded that if a preacher has the word of God in his hand, then it must be Jesus, and God’s truth that is being preached. This error has led many to perdition, and indeed has proven to be one of the most successful, and soul-destroying devices of the adversary of souls. Let’s read:
2nd Corinthians 11: 13 For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ.
14 And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.
15 Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.
Acts 16: 16 And it came to pass, as we went to prayer, a certain damsel possessed with a spirit of divination met us, which brought her masters much gain by soothsaying.
17 The same followed Paul and us, and cried, saying, These men are the servants of the most high God, which shew unto us the way of salvation.
18 And this did she many days. But Paul, being grieved, turned and said to the spirit, I command thee in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her. And he came out the same hour.
[10] Satan can give great wealth, riches and honor to folks, in return for them obeying, and/or worshiping him. Let’s read:
Matthew 4:8 Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and shows him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them.
9 And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.
[11] Satan can literally heal certain diseases.
This last capability will lead us into our Bible study, for whenever it comes to the healing of diseases, it touches a sensitive nerve in people. No one loves to be sick or bedridden, and thus, some folks would be willing to do any, and everything just to be healed.
Chronic pain, cancers, and diabetes are diseases or conditions that cause persons to be on a regimen of drugs, and therefore, if it is known that a reputable healer is in town, many would not hesitate to go get healed.
This fact can be certified by the mega congregations numbering in the many thousands, who often go to the “faith healers” of the day, even though for some unknown reason, those same healers were missing in action when Covid was ravaging the country.
Simon magus had built up a stellar reputation in the city in which he resided and he had won the respect and confidence of all, because when people would go to him for healing, he would deliver the goods on a regular basis. In other words, Simon Magus could be depended on, when folks ran into health issues. Let’s read:
Acts 8: 9 But there was a certain man, called Simon, which before-time in the same city used sorcery, and bewitched the people of Samaria, giving out that himself was some great one.
10 To whom they all gave heed, from the least to the greatest, saying, This man is the great power of God.
11 And to him they had regard, because that of long time he had bewitched them with sorceries.
The problem is that the people were crediting God erroneously for something, which to their minds, that was apparently good. The same is true in our day where so-called faith healers claim that it is the power of God operating in and through them. Thus, many are inadvertently led to put darkness for light and bitter for sweet, and evil for good.
But the Bible issues a stern warning to us pertaining to deception on this very point, for if we believe it is God who is working, when He is not, the praise and thanksgiving for the works of healing will ultimately flow through the so-called healer to satan, who, in the minds of the people, must be God.
Thus, many persons have inadvertently been taken in this snare, and with some, it has become quite difficult to reverse course, for what can you say to the contrary, if an individual who has actually been healed by one of these false prophets believes that it is God who performed the good work? Let’s read:
Matthew 24: 3 And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?
4 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.
5 For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.
11 And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many.
[The Great Controversy pp 623] Fearful sights of a supernatural character will soon be revealed in the heavens, in token of the power of miracle-working demons. By these agencies, rulers and subjects will be alike deceived. They will perform wonderful miracles of healing, and will profess to have revelations from Heaven, contradicting the testimony of the Scriptures.
Thus, as we find ourselves hedged in with more and more difficulties, for which man does not have the answers, the outworking of satanic forces would be seen and felt more decidedly, across the globe in real time. But if we do not take the time to become familiar with the truths of God’s word, we will run the risk of being deceived, with buyer’s remorse.
Furthermore, on a personal level, the Bible does not teach that there is any such thing as middle ground, for there are only two masters operating currently in this world. There are only sheep and goats, with no hybrid in between, and we can only serve either the God of heaven, or the God of this world. Let’s read:
[The Desire of Ages pp 324] We must inevitably be under the control of one or the other of the two great powers that are contending for the supremacy of the world. It is not necessary for us deliberately to choose the service of the kingdom of darkness in order to come under its dominion. We have only to neglect to ally ourselves with the kingdom of light. If we do not co-operate with the heavenly agencies, Satan will take possession of the heart, and will make it his abiding place.
Let us therefore use wisely, the remaining moments of probationary time, to become knowledgeable in the truths of God’s word, and thus be prepared for the deceptions that would be taking the world by storm.
We therefore end with a passage of scripture which should enable us to correctly appropriate and evaluate God’s instructions to us, for according to the Bible, they are intended for the godless as well as the remnant people of God. Let’s read:
Matthew 24:23 Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not.
24 For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.
God Bless!