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By Newsweek Editors
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The Bible makes it abundantly clear that Satan is real, and that he is very powerful. He is not a myth, nor is he just a projection of our minds as we attempt to explain the mysteries of evil. He is a malevolent spiritual power whose sole goal is to oppose the work of God, and he does so at every turn, both in the world and in individual lives.
At the same time Satan bears very little resemblance to the caricatures we often see of him. In fact, I suspect Satan rather likes those caricatures- forked tail, horns, pitchfork, etc.-because they make him appear relatively harmless, or even cute. But the reality is far different. Jesus said that Satan "was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies" (John 8:44).
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Satan's greatest lie is his contention that evil is actually good-that sin will not harm us, and his way is the path to happiness for us. Tragically, he deceives people with this lie every day, although human experiences should warn us other,vise. Satan even tried (in vain) to tempt Jesus into believing that his way was better than God's way. There is much about evil that we do not understand, but one thing is clear: Satan's way leads to slavery and death.
It is ironic that some people today have a harder time believing in God than they do in Satan. A recent Gallup poll in Canada, for example, revealed that from 1985 to 1995 belief in God slipped from 87 percent to 70 percent--but during the same time period belief in the I)evil rose from $8 percent to 54 percent. Perhaps this is because of the daily headlines that tell of repeated acts of senseless violence and unexplainable horrors that continually rock our world--events that can only be explained by the reality of an active evil spiritual power.
But one further thing needs to be said: the Bible makes it clear that Satan is a defeated foe. By His death and resurrection Christ broke the power of Satan over sin and death and hell, and at the end of time that victory will be complete when Christ's eternal Kingdom is established. This is the supreme hope of every Christian. But in the meantime we can know victory over evil and sin and Satan, as we open our hearts to Christ and allow His Spirit to rule in our lives.
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