Many people think Satan is evil…
Is he though?
Is he really?
We don’t know the details of how he got chucked out of heaven…
Indeed we’ve only heard God’s side of the story
And it doesn’t follow that just because God is (supposedly) good then his adversary must be evil
Also, I think that in the bible God has killed more people than Satan ever did
And killing is against his own commandments - he obviously does not follow what he preaches, law-givers should obey the rules they make. But then perhaps God had to kill loads of people to establish his rule? I don’t know. Unless of course the events in which God killed people never truly happened? For instance I very much doubt the great flood (that would have killed millions of people) ever happened…
God is clearly more powerful than Satan - God is omnipotent, omnipresent, omniscient and Satan is none of these, he is a mere fallen angel. And history is written by those who are the most powerful.
The relationship between God and Satan is supposed to be adversarial, they relate to each other as adversaries, not as enemies. If they were enemies then I’m sure God would have annihilated Satan long ago. If they are adversaries that means they are on the same side but working against each other. Like two people playing a friendly game of chess. A game of chess shouldn't be a fight to the death. It is about check-,mating the other player, not annihilating them. I don’t think God would do this with Satan were Satan actually evil. I think he'd have destroyed him, to stop evil.
Also, God wants us to worship him. That’s not nice. I see God as being like a parent and parents don’t require their children to worship them! Celebrate and praise, yes. But grovel and prostrate, no. That’s not healthy.
As a Christian I love God and want to live according to his will. I believe God is good, regardless of how he is said to have behaved in the Old Testament. But when it comes to Satan, I just don’t see him as evil. I think that he works for God and because of the role he plays people consider him evil, in contrast with God.
Satan is the opposition, yes. But he is not evil.
It is not about good verse evil, it is about obeying God verses not obeying God.
As a Christian I must be wary of his influence and work to glorify God whilst resisting Satan’s temptations. I think Satan wants to lead me away from God but that he does so because that's what God wants him to do, not because he is evil
Basically: What “evil” stuff has he ever done (in the bible) except challenge God?
Also: Satan got chucked out of Heaven for challenging God. But casting him out of heaven didn’t stop him challenging! Therefore, God has not defeated Satan, which implies they are not at war - if he wanted to defeat Satan then I’m sure he could very easily. It looks as though God wants Satan to be active, tempting people away from God, so as to make following God a struggle, to test our faith
Conclusion: God and Satan are on the same team and work together, with God pulling us towards himself and Satan pulling us away from God, perhaps as a kind of test?
That's what I think anyway.
Scientists are in cahoots with Covid19. In fact Covid19 is not bad at all. Scientists are using it for a good purpose. This is obvious, because they are not getting rid of it. In fact, the number of deaths prove this, and the fact that no vaccine has yet been produced to bring the people relief from the deadly virus.
This sounds quite reasonable to me.
The above is an illustration.
It illustrates how we can create some interesting stories based on reasoning that may seem logical to us, but given careful consideration of, and having a reasonable approach to the facts, we can find the truth.
If we consider these facts, for example...
1) Because scientists have not yet been able to defeat the virus, does not mean they like it, or want it around, or are working in co with it.
2) They have started taking measures against it.
3) Some things take time. They don't happen at the snap of a finger, like magic we see on TV. For example, we don't see a building finished in a millisecond. It's progressive.
Comparatively,
1) the fact that Satan is still around, does not mean that God likes him around, or is working in co with him, etc.
2) God has taken action - put in place measures to remove the Devil permanently. These measures were put in place some years after the fall of man, because man is needed for this project to be completed. Genesis 3:15.
3) It will take some time to bring all things to a finish, and God does not feel rushed, nor is he delaying except from man's standpoint, because as Almighty, God can, and will undo any damages or loss accumulated during the working out of his purpose. (Ephesians 1:8-14)
When this "project" is completed, man will be completely delivered, and there will never again be a repeat.
The seemingly slow operation is to ensure that. It is to be complete - final.
#1
Is the Corona Virus deadly? Yes, of course. It is not a friend of mankind, but an enemy. It destroys the body's important dependencies.
Is Satan evil? Why, yes, of course. The Bible says of him... "
That one was a murderer when he began, and he did not stand fast in the truth, because truth is not in him. When he speaks the lie, he speaks according to his own disposition, because
he is a liar and the father of the lie." (John 8:44)
Therefore, since the “young children” are sharers of blood and flesh, he also similarly shared in the same things,
so that through his death he might bring to nothing the one having the means to cause death, that is, the Devil, (Hebrews 2:14)
Keep your senses, be watchful!
Your adversary, the Devil, walks about like a roaring lion, seeking to devour someone. (1 Peter 5:8)
The one who practices sin originates with the Devil, because
the Devil has been sinning from the beginning.
For this purpose the Son of God was made manifest, to break up the works of the Devil. (1 John 3:8)
There we have it. The Bible is clear - against many opinion -
The Devil is evil. He seek to destroy lives, and he uses lies to do so. He has the means to cause death.
#2
Do we have the details of why Covid19 has proved to be so formidable? To a great extent, the scientists tell us.
Do we have details on how, and why the devil was cast out of heaven? Certainly!
Again, the Bible give the clear answer.
Revelations 12:7-12 tells us how swiftly he came down - like lightning. he put up a fight, but he lost, and he and his hoards had a swift eviction. Good riddance. The angels in heaven rejoiced exceedingly
Jesus saw this, ahead of time - (Luke 10:18) . . .I see Satan already fallen like lightning from heaven.
Why was Satan cast out of heaven?
It is one of the progressive steps in the "project". It is progressing nicely - allowing people in the meantime to choose if the are on the side of God's sovereignty, or if they side with Satan.
That's going nicely too, because those who choose Satan's side, are deciding that they want to Join Adam, and return to the dust, without any hope of life.
#3
Killing is not against God's commandment. Murder is. There is a difference.
God kills, or terminates those deserving of death, as he wills.
It's like a garbage collector, getting rid of garbage in order to keep the place clean.
Unlike humans, who pollute the earth, and heavens, God does not make a place to store those he determines unfit to live.
God is more powerful than anyone yes,
However, as said above, he has a very organized and controlled way of doing thing. This shows his superlative wisdom.
He is against the Devil, and will crush him, just as a person will crush a bug they hate.
(Romans 16:20) . . .the God who gives peace will crush Satan . . .
Yes. We have heard Satan's side of the story.
That's why all the apostles could relate it... as well as Jesus. 1 John 5:19
What is a very significant fact about the Devil, which the Bible highlights, is that the Devil has his ministers here on earth - not angels, but men. These do Satan's works of misleading others, by pretending to represent Christianity, in order to create confusion, to turn people away from Christ. this is an evil, that clearly shows how connected these ones are to their father Satan.
How sad for them, that they choose the side of the wicked one - choosing death really.
I think that shows that Satan does not even care about his imps, but somehow they are convinced that Satan is good.
(2 Corinthians 11:3) But I am afraid that somehow, as the serpent seduced Eve by its cunning, your minds might be corrupted away from the sincerity and the chastity that are due the Christ.
