THE LORD OF HOSTS Once, when I was teaching a large Bible class, I asked what might seem to be a trick question. I asked, "How many of you believe that God and Satan are in a war?" Almost everyone raised his hand. Did you know that all Christian theologians would tell you that is false? The church has long maintained that Satan and God are not in a war! The church and Satan, yes, are at war, but Satan and God are not. The Bible teaches that Satan is nothing more than a tool in God's hand. God is the LORD of hosts. That means He is the Lord of the armies. Both armies. The church and the forces of darkness. Satan is a crooked lawyer that operates by law. He can do nothing unless God permits it. Jesus said to Peter, "Simon, Satan has asked permission to sift you. But I have prayed for you that your faith fail not." Peter was then sifted, but his faith did not fail. Satan could not do it unless God had permitted it. Satan had to ask permission to tempt Job. Since God permitted it, God took responsibility for it. WHO BROUGHT ALL THE ADVERSITY UPON JOB? JOB 42:11 Then all his brothers, all his sisters, and all those who had been his acquaintances before, came to him and ate food with him in his house; and they consoled him and comforted him for all the adversity that the LORD had brought upon him. Each one gave him a piece of silver and each a ring of gold. JOB 2:3 Then the LORD said to Satan, "Have you considered My servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, one who fears God and shuns evil? And still he holds fast to his integrity, although you incited Me against him, to destroy him without cause." DUALISM Zoroastrianism, the ancient religion of Persia, teaches that God and Satan are at war, and that God will win because He is holy and almighty. This is eastern dualism. God and Satan are not fighting each other. Satan rules by law. He can only do evil to us when we give him legal loopholes. The word Satan was not used in the Bible until after the Jews were carried to Babylon and rubbed shoulders with Zoroastrians. God had not revealed much about Satan before that. An example would be when Moses was on his way back to Egypt and it says, "The LORD sought to slay Moses." Now days we would say the devil sought to do it. The Hebrews had to first understand that God is in control of all things. The devil was going to kill Moses because he had a legal right. Moses had not circumcised his son. Since Satan was allowed to do that, the buck stops with God. (Psalm 94:20; Prov. 26:2) The word Satan is found only three times in the Old Testament, and those three books were placed in the canon after the Babylonian captivity. Those three places are Job (Job appears to be a book from Persia, but excludes all notions of dualism.), 1 Chronicles 21:1 (written by Ezra), and Zechariah 3:1.2.
SATAN DEVISES EVIL BY LAW Satan is an evil lawyer. He devises evil by law. When we sin we give him legal rights. The answer is to abide under the shadow of the Almighty. PSA 94:20 Shall the throne of iniquity, which devises evil by law, Have fellowship with You? SATAN PRESENTS HIMSELF BEFORE GOD'S COURT JOB 1:6 Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came among them. JOB 2:1 Again there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan came also among them to present himself before the LORD When the Captain of the Lord's host (army) appeared to Joshua, he said he was on neither the side of Israel nor their enemies, but was captain over both sides. CAPTAIN OF THE LORD'S HOST Josh 5:13 And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted his eyes and looked, and behold, a Man stood opposite him with His sword drawn in His hand. And Joshua went to Him and said to Him, "Are You for us or for our adversaries?" 14 So He said, "No, but as Commander of the army of the LORD I have now come." And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshipped, and said to Him, "What does my LORD say to His servant?" 15 Then the Commander of the Lord's army said to Joshua, "Take your sandal off your foot, for the place where you stand is holy." And Joshua did so. Not only are demons part of God's army, but Satan himself appears before the court of the Lord as an evil lawyer. CURSES HAVE CAUSES Prov 26:2 a curse without cause shall not alight. There is a cause for every curse. It is called sin. When we sin, we give the evil lawyer, Satan, certain legal rights. The remedy is repentance. SATAN IS GOD'S TOOL The New Testament also teaches that Satan is the tool of God. Look at the following examples. In the first example, Paul is referring to the young man who had been sleeping with his step
mother. Paul told them to deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.. (1COR 5:5 ) Paul meant they should turn him out of the church, have no fellowship with him, and not allow him to take communion in order that Satan might get at him and torment him to the point of repentance (the destruction of the flesh), that he might be saved. Hymenaeus and Alexander had been teaching that the resurrection was past. According to Paul, Satan can teach us not to blaspheme by tormenting us to the point of repentance. So we see that God can use Satan as an evangelist. (Tongue in cheek. Just kidding.) 1Tim 1:20 of whom are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I delivered to Satan that they may learn not to blaspheme. The king of Assyria is a type of Satan. He is called the rod of God's anger. He carried the northern kingdom of Israel and many cities of Judah into captivity. God sent him because of His people's sin. But then He promised to also punish Assyria. Isaiah 10:5 Woe to Assyria, the rod of My anger and the staff in whose hand is My indignation. Just as Assyria was the rod of God's anger, so is Satan. The two passages below prove that the wrath of God and Satan do the same thing. Satan stood up against Israel and the anger of the LORD was aroused against Israel. It says "He moved David" and "Satan moved David". The way the wrath of the LORD does it is through Satan.8 2 Samuel was written before the Babylonian captivity, and Chronicles was written afterward. 1Chron 21:1 Now Satan stood up against Israel, and moved David to number Israel. 2Sam 24:1 Again the anger of the LORD was aroused against Israel, and He moved David against them to say, "Go, number Israel and Judah." In the following passage, we see that God uses demons and that they are part of His army. We see here that God sent a lying spirit to be in the mouth of false prophets. 1 KINGS Then Micaiah said, "Therefore hear the word of the LORD: I saw the LORD sitting on His throne, and all the host of heaven standing by, on His right hand and on His left. 20 "And the LORD said, 'Who will persuade Ahab to go up, that he may fall at Ramoth Gilead?' So one spoke in this manner, and another spoke in that manner. 21 "Then a spirit came forward and stood before the LORD, and said, 'I will persuade him.' 22 "The LORD said to him, 'In what way?' So he said, 'I will go out and be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.' And He said, 'You shall persuade him, and also prevail. Go out and do so.'
23 "Now therefore, look! The LORD has put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these prophets of yours, and the LORD has declared disaster against you." This says that God put a lying spirit in the mouths of false prophets. This lying spirit was a member of God's host (army). We know that God would not send a holy angel to lie. Therefore, it had to be a demon. The word "host" is translated "army". We thus must conclude that demons are part of God's army. We also see this in the New Testament according to 2 Thessalonians 2:10 and 11. It says that God sends a strong delusion to those who hate the truth. GOD SENDS STRONG DELUSION 2Thess 2:10 and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved. 11 And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, SATAN CANNOT MAKE YOU DO IT 1COR 10:13 No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it. This verse in 1 Corinthians 10:13 teaches that God is faithful. If we say we cannot take any more, we are accusing God of being unfaithful. We are not trusting God. If we trust Christ, Satan is bound, destroyed, disarmed, and cast out. (A day in His courts is as a thousand years.) We cannot blame the devil. We have the power. To those who believe, Satan is defeated and bound in the bottomless pit. Believers are seated in heavenly places in Christ Jesus-ruling and reigning with Him for a figurative "thousand years." Look at the following Scriptures that say he is destroyed, disarmed, cast out, and bound. SATAN WAS DESTROYED HEB 2:14 Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, SATAN WAS DISARMED COL 2:15 Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it. SATAN WAS CAST OUT JOHN 12:31 "Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out.
SATAN WAS BOUND REV 20:1 Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, having the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. 2 He laid hold of the dragon, that serpent of old, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years; 3 and he cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal on him, so that he should deceive the nations no more till the thousand years were finished. But after these things he must be released for a little while. Praise is the major tool at our disposal for the defeat of Satan in our lives. THE POWER OF PRAISE PSA 149:6 Let the high praises of God be in their mouth, And a two-edged sword in their hand, [these two are the same thing] 7 To execute vengeance on the nations [of demons], And punishments on the peoples [the ungodly]; 8 To bind their kings [principalities] with chains, And their nobles [powers] with fetters of iron; 9 To execute on them the written judgment--this honor have all His saints. Praise the LORD! ONLY SIN CAN TURN US OVER TO SATAN We see from the following passage in Judges that when we sin, God turns us over to our enemy Satan and his companions. When we cry out to God, He raises up a Deliverer to set us free. This is just as true now as it was in the Old Testament. Be assured of that. These things were written for us. JUDG 3:7 So the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD. They forgot the LORD their God, and served the Baals and Asherahs. 8 Therefore the anger of the LORD was hot against Israel, and He sold them into the hand of Cushan-Rishathaim king of Mesopotamia; and the children of Israel served Cushan-Rishathaim eight years.
9 When the children of Israel cried out to the LORD, the LORD raised up a deliverer for the children of Israel, who delivered them: Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb's younger brother. God is transcendent. I believe in God the Father Almighty. Satan is His servant who operates according to law under God's authority. He can do nothing unless God permits it. Believe it and quit being afraid of the devil. Fear God and get wise. I knew a lady who had an experience with God when she was a child. This story illustrates how we can trust God to be in control of all things at all times. She was about eleven years old and was a baptized Christian, but had a terrible phobia of thunder storms. One night as she sat at home alone, a big thunder storm broke out with howling wind, lightning, and thunder. As she sat there terrified and trembling, she suddenly felt a hand on her shoulder, and a voice from behind her saying, "Don't be afraid. Nothing can happen to you unless I allow it. And if I allow it, it is for your good...even unto death." She believed the word of the Lord. The fear immediately left. She went to bed and immediately fell asleep. She has not been afraid of a storm since. Our God is in charge. He is transcendent. He is in charge of all circumstances, all people, and all devils. Nothing can happen to the obedient believer unless God lets it happen. And if He does, it is for our good even unto death. Do you believe it? Do you believe that God's plan for you is better than yours? If not, you still need to be converted. When you are converted, strengthen the brethren. (Luke 22:32) I know a person who was thinking about going on vacation by airplane, but chickened out because of all the news reports about crashes. I said to her, "Do you really think you can keep God from killing you if He wants to?" She changed her mind and trusted God. 1. What is dualism? QUESTIONS: 2. In what sense is Satan the wrath of God? What Scriptures prove it? 3. Why did God send a lying spirit? 4. Why did the Captain of the Lord's host (armies) answer "No" to Joshua's question? 5. Are God and Satan at war?