The Serpent of Paradise: The Incredible Story of How Satan's Rebellion Serves God's Purposes by Erwin W. Lutzer

Author:Erwin W. Lutzer [Lutzer, Erwin W.]
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Publisher: Moody Publishers
Published: 1986-08-07T04:00:00+00:00

Now that we know that Satan is limited by God’s power, we might think that God would confine his role to relatively few battles on earth: an occasional burst of flurry here, an attack there. Many people are startled to discover that Satan is allowed to cause spiritual blindness throughout the world in the minds of those who will not embrace the good news of the gospel. Interestingly, Paul wrote that our gospel is veiled to those who are perishing, “in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving, that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God” (2 Corinthians 4:4).

If that doesn’t convince you that Satan is allowed to stifle the ability of the unsaved to hear the gospel, then consider the words of Christ. He said the Word of God is like a seed planted on different kinds of soils. One of these soils is so hard that the seed cannot penetrate at all. Here is Christ’s explanation: “These are the ones who are beside the road where the word is sown; and when they hear, immediately Satan comes and takes away the word which has been sown in them” (Mark 4:15). He can take some thoughts out of their minds!

What is God’s purpose in this work of the enemy? It is to affirm that all of us serve a god of some kind. If we are not united with the true God through Christ, we will be blinded by the false god, Satan. We must walk in the light or be overcome by the darkness. Those who harden their hearts find them to be doubly hardened.

This blindness, however, is subject to the will and purposes of God. In the case of those who believe, God overcomes their blindness with the light of the gospel, and there is nothing the devil can do about it. A thousand devils cannot keep a soul from believing in Christ if God has chosen to grant such a one the gift of life. This power was the imagery that fired the imagination of Charles Wesley when he wrote.

Long my imprisoned spirit lay

Fast bound in sin and nature’s night;

Thine eye diffused a quick’ning ray,

I woke, the dungeon flamed with light;

My chains fell off, my heart was free;

I rose, went forth, and followed Thee.

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