"SATAN CAME AMONG THEM"

(Orignially by Jimmy Tuten and completely reworked by David Riggs)


Intro.
   A. In Job 1:6, Satan presented himself before Jehovah with the
      angels.
      1. Being "among them" Satan falsely accused Job of serving
         God only because he had been richly blessed.
         a. God allowed Satan to take away all of Job's blessings
            and, as we know, Job remained faithful in spite of all   
            the adversity he had to face.
   B. In this study, let us focus on the thought of "Satan among     
      them."
      1. As we do this, we can learn a lot about how Satan works.
      2. This helps us to better resist him. 2 Cor. 2:11

I. SATAN CAME AMONG ADAM AND EVE IN THE GARDEN. Gen. 3:1-6
   A. It is odd here that Eve was not frightened, although a snake
      talked to her.
      1. Evidently, animals were able to talk in that ancient time in
         the garden.
   B. From this text in Genesis, let us remember that Satan will use 
      the same devices on us that he used on Eve.
      1. John said that three things comprise all that is of the     
         world. 1 John 2:15-17
         a. These three realms of enticement were used on Eve.
            Gen. 3:6
            (1) She saw that the tree was good for food (lust of the
                flesh), pleasant to the eyes (lust of the eyes), and
                desired to make one wise (pride of life).
      2. These same three allurements are the ones Satan uses on us.

II. SATAN CAME INTO JESUS' PRESENCE WHEN HE WENT INTO THE WILDERNESS 
   BEFORE BEGINNING HIS MINISTRY. Luke 4:1-13
   A. The same three avenues of enticement were again used on the
      Lord.
      1. We see the "lust of the flesh" in verse 3, the "lust of the 
         eyes" in vs. 6, and the "pride of life" in vs. 9.
         a. We can be thankful to God that this is all Satan has.
            (1) He cannot tempt us above that which is common to
                man. 1 Cor. 10:13
   B. Jesus answered every temptation with "It is written."
      1. Let us "go and do likewise."

III. SATAN COMES AMONG PEOPLE IN ORDER TO HINDER THEM FROM ACCEPTING 
   THE TRUTH.
   A. Note the parable of the sower. Luke 8:11-15
      1. Satan is among them to take away the word. Luke 8:12
      2. He wants to take away the word before they respond to it,
         and before they establish a foundation in it.
   B. The devil takes away God's word and supplies his own.
      1. In the latter times there would be "doctrine of devils." 1  
         Tim. 4:1; 2 Thess. 2:9-10
      2. Satan appears as an angel of light and his ministers are
         disguised as ministers of righteousness. 2 Cor. 11:13-15
         a. Someone once asked, "Can someone be a minster of
            Satan and not know that he is?"
            (1)   The answer, of course, is: "Most certainly.
      3. Consider the many ways in which Satan's ministers deceive
         today.
         a. His ministers make people think that one church, faith,
            or doctrine is as good as another.
            (1) This makes people who are in Satan's kingdom
                think that they are in a kingdom which is as good as
                God's kingdom.
            (2) As long as people remain in his kingdom, Satan
                doesn't mind their being religious.
            (3) The Bible plainly teaches that there is only one     
                faith (Eph. 4:5) and one church (Eph. 4:4; 1:22-23), 
                and division is condemned (1 Cor. 1:10).
            (4) How pathetic it is to know that there are so many
                millions today who have been mislead into thinking
                that the church to which they belong doesn't matter.
            (5) If they ever try to improve themselves spiritually,
                they usually only become more dedicated and
                engrossed in an organization that will condemn
                them in the last day. Matt. 15:13; Psalm 127:1
         b. His ministers make people think that baptism is not
            necessary in order to be saved.
            (1) Baptism is the last act of obedience that puts one
                into Christ, or the body of Christ. Gal. 3:26-27
            (2) Thus, if one is not baptized for the remissions of
                sins, no matter how religious he might become, he
                is still not a Christian or a saved individual.
            (3) Thus, it is easy to see why Satan would make
                baptism a stumbling block.

IV. SATAN COMES IN AMONG GOD'S PEOPLE.
   A. Satan came among the twelve apostles.
      1. He would have sifted Peter as wheat. Luke 22:31-32
      2. Judas allowed Satan to take control. Luke 22:3
   B. The devil uses his ministers to infiltrate and work inside the
      church. 2 Pet. 2:1-2; Jude 4; Acts 20:29-30
      1. His ministers within the church do more damage than those
         who persecute the church from without.
      2. Remember, too, that they come as ministers of righteousness
         in sheep's clothing, with strong deception.
   C. Not only does Satan devour God's people through false
      teachings, but he is also mightily at work with the enticements
      of the world.
      1. Consider the example of Ananias and Sapphira. Acts 5:1-5
         a. Notice how Satan worked in this instance.
         b. Ananias and Sapphira wanted to be praised as though
            they had given all that their possession was worth;
            however, their love of money caused them to keep back
            part of the proceeds from their sale.
         c. The sin was severe because it was before God. They
            could have fooled their brethren, but not God.
         d. We must be careful not to give false impressions and
            cause others to think we are better than we actually are.
      2. Another great weapon of Satan is simply to cause people to
         be indifferent.
         a. This is from Early Christians of the Twenty-first
            Century, by Chad Walsh: "Millions of Christians live in
            a sentimental haze of vague piety, with soft organ music
            trembling in the lovely light from stained glass windows.
            Their religion is a pleasant thing of emotional quivers,
            divorced from the will, divorced from the intellect, and
            demanding little except lip service to a few harmless
            platitudes. I suspect that Satan has called off his      
            attempt to convert people to agnosticism. After all, if a
            man travels far enough away from Christianity, he is     
            liable to see it in perspective and decide that it is    
            true. It is much safer, from Satan's point of view, to   
            vaccinate a man with a mild case of Christianity so as to
            protect him from the real disease."
         b. No doubt, many churches of Christ today are like
            Laodicea, and have long since been vomited out of the
            Lord's mouth.

V. HOW CAN WE OVERCOME SATAN'S DEVICES?
   A. We must turn from Satan. Acts 26:18
      1. We must be delivered from the power of darkness and
         translated into the kingdom of God's dear Son. Col. 1:13
      2. We must be added to the church by obeying the gospel. Acts
         2:38,41,47
      3. This is the first step in overcoming Satan's devices. Until 
         you do this, you are a child of the devil.
   B. We must resist Satan. James 4:7; Eph. 4:27
      1. We need to resist when Satan tries to turn us from the      
         truth.
         a. His ministers will come in all demonstration of piety and
            righteousness. We cannot recognize them by outward
            appearance.
         b. We shall know them by their fruits (by what they do and
            teach). Matt. 7:15-16
         c. We must constantly be on guard lest we be led away
            from the truth. 2 Pet. 3:17-18
      2. We need to resist when Satan tries to lure through the lust 
         of the world. 1 Pet. 2:11
         a. Consider Paul's warning and admonition to the young
            widows. 1 Tim. 5:11-15
         b. The Bible is forceful on this point. We should not
            tamper with sin, but should flee from it. 
            (1) Jesus said, "If your hand offend you, cut it off."
                Mark 9:43
            (2) Illustration: The drunk man said, "I only meant to
                take one drink." The young unmarried couple, upon
                discovering that they would have a child, said, "We
                didn't mean to go too far." The young married
                woman, after going out with another man, said, "I
                didn't mean to hurt my husband's feelings." These
                were tampering with sin instead of fleeing from it.
         c. 1 Thess. 5:22; Jude 23; Prov. 6:27-29,32
   C. We need to put on the whole armor of God so that we can resist.
      Eph. 6:10-13,16
      1. It is hard enough to overcome temptations with the armor; it
         is next to impossible without it.
   D. We can take courage that others are successfully resisting     
      Satan. 1 Peter 5:8-9
      1. We need to worship regularly with those who are faithfully
         living the Christian life.
      2. As those who live in the far North know, when temperatures
         plunge well below zero, few cars left outside will start.   
         Cold batteries are incapable of giving enough power. Only
         batteries that are kept warm or those frequently charged    
         will do the job. Unused batteries have the danger of        
         freezing, and when one attempts to charge a frozen battery, 
         there is the danger of an explosion.
      3. Likewise, our spiritual batteries need to be regularly
         recharged, and faithfully worshiping with fellow Christians 
         is a good way to do this.
         a. By regular worship, our spiritual strength is maintained.

Concl.
   A. Let us continue to be strong in the Lord and in the power of   
      His might.
   B. Let us continually be on guard against the wiles or schemings  
      of the devil.
      1. He will be walking to and fro among us, seeking whom he
         may devour.
      2. Let us not give him opportunity, but resist him will all our
         might.