I. Introduction
A. Villain Origin Stories
1. Some of the most fascinating stories to me are the villain origin stories.
2. Often, these stories help us understand something significant about the hero of our story.
3. The villain usually represents a weakness or chink in the armor of our hero that they must overcome to understand their true purpose and to overcome self-doubt.
4. That is not the case with the hero of our story.
B. Villains of the Bible Series
1. On the fourth Sunday night of each month, I will preach a sermon on one of the villains we find in the Bible.
a. Why should we study villains?
b. To better identify and understand our enemy.
c. To figure out how to prepare for spiritual warfare.
d. To be encouraged by God’s victory, often working through humans to do so.
2. In Sun Tzu’s The Art of War he writes, “If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle.”
C. Satan
1. The first villain we will examine is the father of them all—Satan.
2. Understanding him will help us understand all the villains we study in this series.
3. Satan’s origin story
a. We don’t have a true origin story about Satan. As the Bible opens, he just appears in the Garden of Eden. (Genesis 3:1-15)
b. It is commonly thought that Satan was an angel who disobeyed God and was cast out of heaven, but that is not a narrative we find in Scripture definitively.
4. Possible Passages about Origin
a. In Isaiah 14:12-15, we read about God’s judgment on the King of Babylon, but could this passage also be a comparison to Satan’s origin and downfall?
b. In Ezekiel 28:12-19, we read about God’s judgment on the King of Tyre. But, again, could this be a comparison to the origin and downfall of Satan?
5. Neither one of these accounts is suggested by most scholars as a definitive account of Satan’s downfall.
D. Satan’s Part in the Story- We find Him in a lot of places in the Bible
1. Genesis 3:1-5 Deceives Eve
2. Job 1:6-7 Accuses a righteous man
3. Matthew 4:1-11 Tempts Jesus
4. John 13:2 Aids Judas
5. Revelation 12:7-12 Defeated Adversary to God
E. Real
1. Satan is not some fairy-tale character with a red suit, horns, and a pitchfork. He is very real.
a. This first lesson sets the foundation for the reality of evil in our world.
b. Ephesians 6:12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.
2. Every villain we study as part of this series will reflect:
a. Satan’s pride
b. Satan’s deception
c. Satan’s hatred of the truth
3. He is not the only villain, but he is the template.
4. Now that we know something about Satan, what can we learn from our enemy?
II. Lessons from Satan
A. Satan is (Genesis 3)
1. Disguise and are tactics of deceit he uses to entrap people.
a. 2 Corinthians 11:14-15 And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. So it is no surprise if his servants, also, disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. Their end will correspond to their deeds.
b. In the Garden of Eden, he places doubt in Eve’s mind. (Genesis 3:1, 4-5)
c. This doubt leads Eve to sin, but notice that Eve makes the choice; Satan does not make her do anything.
2. Satan is an excellent deceiver. He convinced Eve to question the consequences that God had put forth.
a. Sin always promises what it cannot deliver, but always costs more than we imagine.
b. As a result of Eve listening to Satan, mankind is punished by exclusion from the garden, physical death, and separation from God, among other curses (Genesis 3:14-19).
3. So many things involving sin look so good, but end up so bad; the worst is separation from God.
B. Satan is (Job 1)
1. In the scene involving the temptation of Job, we see Satan active, ruthless in pursuit, and ever pressing in his accusations against Job.
a. In Job chapters 1-2, Satan accuses Job twice (Job 1:6-12; Job 2:1-8)
2. This is not the only time we read of Satan’s determination.
a. In Luke’s account of the temptation of Jesus, he records, “And when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from him until an opportune time,” (Luke 4:13).
b. Peter also reminds us that Satan is always on the prowl (1 Peter 5:8-11).
c. It has always been interesting to me that the devil’s playbook is seen in the beginning and the end of the Bible (Genesis 3:6 & 1 John 2:16).
3. Satan has not , and will not quit until the end of all time.
C. Satan is (Matthew 4:1-11)
1. Satan is not God. He is in his power, reach, and influence.
a. In the temptation of Christ, we learn how to fight back against Satan.
b. Notice that Jesus never works a miracle and never calls an angel; He quotes Scripture.
2. We have more power than we think in our war with him. Jesus teaches us this in His encounter with the Adversary. Let’s look at some lessons Jesus teaches us.
3.
a. Jesus knew who His real enemy was during His ministry.
b. In 1 Peter 5:8, we often focus on the description of Satan prowling around, but notice that Peter tells us that we can easily spot a roaring lion—we just have to be sober-minded and on alert.
c. The Message translates the passage as, “Keep a cool head. Stay alert.”
d. Satan loves to distract us and deceive us into thinking the people around us are the enemy.
e. Don’t forget who the real enemy is (Ephesians 6:11-12).
4.
a. Remember, Jesus doesn’t work a miracle in this encounter; He simply allows God’s Word to speak.
b. One of the disturbing things we learn is that Satan knows Scripture, too (Matthew 4:5-6).
c. “It is written,” so that we might be prepared for whatever comes our way.
d. We would do well to implant God’s Word on our hearts so that we have a ready defense any time the enemy strikes.
5.
a. This encounter with Satan reminds us that he only has the power we grant him.
b. James 4:7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
c. I’m not suggesting that Satan isn’t powerful; he is powerful. I’m not suggesting that Satan isn’t good at what he does; he’s very good at what he does.
6. The Bible teaches that Satan has limited power and influence. That is a message that should give us hope.
III. Conclusion
A. Our Hero
1. There is no weakness in our hero.
2. There is never a time He loses, even when it looks like it.
3. Our hero has even overcome death—for real.
B. Invitation