Why does Satan exist and how do I discern his activity in my life?
by Robert Krumrey
There are a number of things about the Christian life that are a bit mysterious. The work of the Holy Spirit, prayer, even Christian conversion itself. The mysterious category also includes Satan - a powerful being that somehow fell from heaven along with some other powerful beings that are opposed to God and his people (see Revelation 12 and Luke 11:18). Most modern-day Christians are comfortable not thinking too much about Satan and his schemes. This is a problem since the New Testament takes all of this satanic stuff very seriously (see Ephesians 6:10-12).
Last Sunday (5/10/20) I preached on the topic of Satan from Luke 11:14-23 (video / audio). In this text we are reminded that Satan is strong and should be taken seriously, but that in Christ’s strength, we are stronger and have been given authority over him. I also talked a bit about how a disciple of Jesus actually does this so if you haven’t listened to the sermon, take some time to watch/listen to it this week. In the rest of this blogpost, I want to address some of the questions that came up after the sermon.
Why is Satan allowed to have influence in the life of a Christian in the first place? Sifting.
One of the questions that comes up regarding Satan is why he’s allowed to have influence in the lives of Christians in the first place. I must admit this is not something that can easily be answered to most people’s satisfaction. From a 30,000 foot view, we can lump Satan in with everything else that is evil on this earth - that God is somehow working out purposes that are glorifying to him and good for his children. Martin Luther famously said that, “Even the Devil is God’s Devil.” Nothing that exists is outside the sovereign control of God.
There are also some passages that give us some clues as to what God may be up to in allowing Christians to be attacked by Satan. Jesus gives us a hint in his comments about Peter’s future denials when he says this:
“Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.”
Jesus here gives us a window into the inner workings of the spiritual world. In this brief comment to Peter, we are told that Satan is working against Christians (like Peter), that Jesus is using power (through prayer) to overcome Satan, and lastly that somehow Satan is being used for a good purpose in Peter’s life. Jesus’ use of the word “sift” is very telling. When you sift wheat, you purify it from the chaff or stems before you grind it into flour. Jesus is showing that Satan’s attack, while certainly coming from an evil motive, will ultimately be turned into a means to accomplish the purposes of God in Peter’s life and the lives of the other disciples. This satanic attack will result in a stronger Peter who will then turn and strengthen the other disciples. Why is Satan allowed to attack Christians? In a word, Sifting.
One of the ways God has used satanic attacks to sift me has been to increase my prayer life. As much as I wish the opportunity to spend time with God my Father was motivator enough, I have periodically found myself in times of prayerlessness. One of the ways that God awakens me out of this spiritual stupor is to pull the lid off of the spiritual forces of evil. These attacks have manifested themselves through things like my own intense negative thoughts or the thoughts of those close to me, an overwhelming sense of despair, and evil people who were attacking my reputation or the reputation of the church. Each time these kinds of things rear their heads and we discern that they are from the evil one, our prayer lives increase exponentially. In the midst of this heightened prayer, I find myself not only concerned with the attacks at hand, but also enjoying being in the presence of my God who loves me. The result has often been a matured prayer life that continues even after the spiritual attack is over.
How do we differentiate between physical and spiritual causes for things like night terrors? Discernment
While there are hard and fast truths that we can apply to our fight against Satan, we can’t get away from the fact that there is a tremendous amount of subjectivity involved in this part of the Christian life. Most Christians lean too far one way or the other. Either we put way too much stock in what we feel when it comes to spiritual realities or we give no room at all for the subjective side of our discipleship. Honestly, I would say I’ve been in both camps and am now only beginning to get a handle on what seems like a healthy balance.
So how does one subjectively discern what is going on in a situation like a kid having a night terror or an overwhelming sense of despair that seems to come out of nowhere. The Bible teaches that some of us are going to be better at this than others. The Apostle Paul even points out that some Christians have a gifting in the area of discernment of spirits (see 1 Corinthians 12:10). We don’t talk about this gift very much at MH, but there is certainly a need for brothers and sisters in Christ who have an intuitive sense of what is going on in the spiritual realm. This seems to be both a gifting, but also something that comes with experience.
The Bible also teaches that all Christians are given some level of discernment in these areas. For example:
“The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned. The spiritual person judges all things, but is himself to be judged by no one. “For who has understood the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ.”
This means that every Christian has (or could have) the ability to discern what is going on in the spiritual realm because they have the Spirit of God dwelling in them. I’d say that not only includes things like understanding the Bible and what to pray but also what is going on in the area of spiritual warfare. This means that if you are a Christian, you have the raw material for discerning what is going on in the spiritual realm. It also means that if we are struggling to discern something that we can ask for the ability to do so. The Apostle Paul himself asks this from God for the Philippians:
“And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment,”
According to this scripture, you can pray for discernment that you may currently be lacking. This means, for example, that if you have a kid who is experiencing night terrors, that you should pray for understanding from God that will help you discern what might be going on. It also means that you pray with your child in light of these truths. We are convinced that our children experienced terrors caused by the enemy at different times in their lives. This seemed to be a way to affect us indirectly through our children who were more vulnerable to attack. The result was an increased prayer life and some very powerful conversations with our kids about the realities of the evil one and our ability to take authority over him when he attacks. It was a sifting for sure and a part of the discipleship of our children.
I think you’re seeing Jesus exercise this kind of discernment when Peter rebukes him in Matthew 16. Jesus says this famous statement to the Apostle:
“But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.””
This statement seems to come from out of nowhere. Peter and Jesus are having a conversation between the two of them and all of the sudden Jesus confronts the invisible presence in the room and speaks to him directly. Jesus realizes that in this moment Satan is attempting to derail his cross-centered mission to save the world and that he is using his closest human companion to do so. Jesus uses his powers of discernment, rebukes Satan and continues to move forward on his mission to save humanity.
This mission that was fulfilled at the cross is what makes any of this possible. Jesus shows his absolute power over Satan by dying on the cross, rising from the dead, and ascending to the right hand of the Father. Jesus tells his disciples in Matthew 28 that “all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me” (see Matthew 28:18). When he says that he means that he exercises absolute authority in both the unseen and the seen. Jesus has taken absolute authority over all things and he is exercising that authority through his followers. Take seriously the instructions given to us in the New Testament and continue to move in this almighty power and authority given to us by Savior King Jesus!