Why did Satan decide to betray God and rule in Hell?

Wow! That’s an awesome question! In order to understand who Satan is and how he came to be, we need to look at Old Testament scripture and, in particular, the Book of Ezekiel, Chapter 28. Remember that Satan was an angel named Lucifer. In fact, he was more than just an angel, he was an archangel and was literally God’s second-in-command.

 

But, pride entered Lucifer’s heart and he wanted to be like God. Ezekiel 28:17 reads, “Your heart became proud on account of your beauty and you corrupted your wisdom because of your splendor.” So because he became wicked and corrupted and because he was filled with violence and sinned, Satan was kicked out of Heaven. God expelled him BUT God did not send Satan to rule in Hell … Satan was cast down to earth. Satan is not the ruler of Hell, he rules here on earth to those who do not have Christ in their hearts. Sadly, not only was Satan cast down, so were a third of the heavenly hosts (angels) who decided to follow Satan. They are no longer angels but are called demons. Between Satan and his demons, all sorts of bad things have happened here on earth and will continue to happen. It started for us in the Garden of Eden and continues on to this day and beyond.

 

Satan wants to stop God’s plan because he knows that, in the end, he will lose against God. But, God’s greatest victory over Satan is Jesus Christ. Because of Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross and His resurrection on Easter Sunday, death has been defeated and we can be assured eternal life with God in Heaven.

 

Oh, by the way, Satan will eventually be condemned to Hell where he will “reign and rule” for all of eternity, but not for a while yet.

What does 666 mean and where does it come from?

Wow! That is an awesome question! The number “666” is only mentioned once in the Holy Bible and it is in the Book of Revelation in chapter 13, verses 16-18. It reads, “He also forced everyone, small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on his right hand or on his forehead, so that no one could buy or sell unless he had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of his name. This calls for wisdom. If anyone has insight, let him calculate the number of the beast, for it is man’s number. His number is 666.”

So, this number represents both the name of the Beast (Satan) and the number of his name. However, the origin of that number or what it signifies isn’t really known.

Many Bible scholars believe that the number “6” is man’s number. It is one number short of God’s number, which is “7”. The number “7” represents perfection. We fall short of God’s perfection so mankind is given the number “6”. Because God presents Himself to us as three persons – God, the Father; God, the Son; and God, the Holy Spirit – the Beast tries to imitate God and so we have the number 6-6-6.

Then, there are all sorts of other theories involving that number, which include using some sort of mathematical formula to determine who the Anti-Christ will be based on a secret code involving the letters of a person’s name. In fact, one group of people who believe this (they’re called numerologists) thought that if you make the letter A = 101, B = 102, C = 103 and so on until you get to Z = 126, the name Hitler equaled 666! Weird, huh? 

Still other numerologists believed that if you used the Hebrew alphabet, as opposed to the American alphabet, the name Nero, who was an evil Roman leader who persecuted Christians, also equals 666. 

The truth is we don’t really know where “666” originated from; we just know that it is the name of the beast or the number of his name and it’s based on man’s number.

Why did Eve listen to Satan and eat the forbidden fruit?

Wow! That’s an awesome question! There are actually two reasons and they kind of relate to each other. First, Eve was deceived by the serpent. That wily old snake came to Eve and confused her. He twisted God’s words (which, by the way, he does all the time with you and me) and made her question God.

Remember what he said to her? He first said, “Did God really say ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden?’” So, he first got her to question God. Then he said, “You will not surely die!” Again, making her question what God said!

Then, Satan added, “For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” Now here’s where it gets interesting. Satan first got Eve to question God, then he appealed to her pride. He told her she could be “like God.”

Did you know that pride is one of the sins God absolutely detests? In Proverbs 6:16-19, it lists seven things that are detestable to God and pride is listed first. That is because pride was the first sin ever committed, even before the creation of man. In fact, it was Lucifer (Satan) that committed the sin of pride when he wasn’t satisfied just being an angel and wanted to be “like God.” (Sound familiar?). His sin of pride also took a third of the angels with him.

So, Satan both deceived Eve and appealed to her pride, which caused her and Adam to eat the forbidden fruit. The result: sin entered mankind.

Now, if that were the end of the story, our lives would be hopeless! The Bible tells us that the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23). But, God, in His infinite mercy and by unending grace gave us His One and Only Son, in the person of Jesus Christ, and it is through our acceptance of Jesus as our Lord and Savior that we are spared death and assured eternal life in Heaven. The key is that you have to accept that gift of grace. The beautiful part is, you don’t have to do anything to earn it! It’s His gift to you! Have you made that commitment yet? If you have, are you living out your faith every day?

Who was the snake in the garden with Adam and Eve?

That is an awesome question!!! Although the Book of Genesis never actually refers to the snake, or serpent, as Satan, we can determine who this serpent was (or rather who was controlling and speaking through this serpent) from other passages of the Bible.

In Ezekiel 28:13, it indicates that Satan was in the Garden of Eden. The only other people that were in the garden were God, Adam and Eve. The snake spoke to Eve and we know that no other animals spoke to Adam or Eve. So, someone was speaking through the snake. And since the Bible shows that there were only four people in the garden, it stands to reason that Satan had possessed the snake.

Next, we can see from Revelation 12:9, 12:15 and 20:2 that the serpent is called “the devil and Satan” not once, but three times! When we combine those passages with what the Apostle Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 11:3, the identification of the serpent in the Garden of Eden with Satan is unmistakable.

Also, in Genesis 3:14-15 we see God cursing the snake. And in that passage it says that God will put “enmity” (which is hatred and warfare) between the seeds (future generations) of the snake and the woman. This makes no sense if the snake were simply a physical animal.

Finally, although the snake wasn’t actually the devil, the devil was working through the snake and had assumed the snake’s identity. Remember, this is very close to the time of creation or the beginning of time. And it says in 1 John 3:8, “He who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work.” Here it shows that Satan was around near the beginning of time, which further supports that he was in the Garden of Eden.

Additional Scripture Citations:

“You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone adorned you: ruby, topaz and emerald … Your settings and mountings were made of gold; on the day you were created they were prepared.” Ezekiel 28:13

“The great dragon was hurled down – that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him.” Revelation 12:9

“Then from his mouth the serpent spewed water like a river, to overtake the woman and sweep her away with the torrent.” Revelation 12:15

“He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil, or Satan, and bound him for a thousand years.” Revelation 20:2

“But I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent’s cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ.” 2 Corinthians 11:3

Is Leviathan exaggerated? How does it have “fiery breath?”

It’s interesting that Leviathan, which is actually mentioned six times in the Holy Bible, is described in such vivid detail in the Book of Job (Job 41:1-35). But, Leviathan is also mentioned in the Psalms and in Isaiah. Many Bible scholars have argued over what Leviathan was. Some argue it was a crocodile, some argue that it may have been a type of dinosaur, and others have argued that it was, in fact, some sort of creature that we commonly refer to as a dragon. A dragon?? Is that even possible?

Did dragons exist? Well, hmmm … Satan has been described as “the dragon.” And, in the book of Isaiah, chapter 27, Isaiah declares that the Lord will punish and slay Leviathan. Isaiah calls him the “monster of the sea.” In the King James translation, Leviathan is described as that “crooked serpent” and that “dragon in the sea.”

Dragons, throughout history, have been described as “fire-breathing.” In this case, it may have been true fire or, and here’s where it gets tricky, it may have been a description of the evil speech coming from the mouth of the dragon. Remember, the dragon could be a representation of Satan - and Satan is the Prince of Lies and represents everything bad in this world. So, Leviathan’s “fiery breath” could be the lies, the hate and the anger that Satan spews from his mouth.

It could also, quite literally, be fire. Leviathan could have been a fire-breathing dragon that existed in the sea. We just don’t know for sure. Is the description of Leviathan literal? Is it descriptive? Is it exaggerated? Or is it spot on? Again, we truly don’t know for sure.

I do know one thing, when I get to Heaven I am going to ask Job (who clearly saw Leviathan) what in the world was he describing!

Why didn’t Jesus do what Satan told him to do?

Jesus is also God. And our God is all-powerful and sovereign. That means that all things were created by Him and for Him. This would include Satan.

Satan is a created being. He is not equal to God and Satan cannot make God do anything. God created Satan. Because Jesus is God, Satan cannot tell Jesus what to do. Of course, there are several instances where Satan tries to tell Jesus what to do; in fact, in the book of Matthew, chapter 4, we see Satan try and tempt Jesus in the desert. But, Jesus does not give in to Satan and uses the word of God to resist him.

Never forget that you have the strength of Jesus in you. Jesus died for all of us and we are saved because of His sacrifice. When you feel pressured by friends to do things that are wrong, ask for Jesus’ help. If you ever have any doubts about Jesus’ abilities, just think of Philippians 4:13, which reads:

“I can do all things through Him who gives me strength.”

Why is Jesus waiting to come back?

Wow! That is a great question! The truth is because of His great mercy. Jesus is giving us all a chance to be rescued from our sin and to come to Him before He returns.

You see, when sin came into this world through the act of disobedience by Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden when they ate the forbidden fruit, it opened up the door for Satan to enter and create all sorts of chaos and to try and disrupt God’s unstoppable plan. Satan has tried so hard, and for a long time, to get us all to turn away from God by tempting us with all sorts of bad things! And, because God gave us all free will, we’ve made a mess of this world. The world is full of bad people, terrible situations and evil temptations.

The good news is that, in order for us to have eternal life with Jesus, we have to admit our sins, believe that Jesus is who He says He is and then choose to follow Him. We have to turn from all those bad things and bad people and accept Jesus’ gift of grace. If we don’t, we’re not going to enjoy the salvation that Jesus gives us and the eternal life He promises.

But, make no mistake. Jesus will someday come back and He will defeat Satan once and for all. But, He loves us and wants to give us every opportunity to come to repentance and to choose Him as our Savior before He does return. That’s why He is waiting.

If God knew that Satan would turn bad, why did he create him?

Wow, that is an awesome question! The truth is that no one knows why God does certain things. When God initially created Satan, Satan’s name was Lucifer and he was an archangel. In fact, he was the equivalent of God’s second-in-command. Lucifer was the most beautiful angel and he was given a lot of power. His job was to take care of God’s glory.

But, then Lucifer became prideful and thought he could do the job just as well as God could do it. So he tried to take over heaven. The problem was: Lucifer was a created being created by God! He only had the power and authority God gave him. God, on the other hand, has always been here and always will be here and He is all-powerful, all-knowing and ever-present. There was no way Lucifer could win.

I suppose God could have just destroyed Lucifer right then and there but, instead, he cast him down and, sadly, also threw one-third of the angels out of heaven that decided to align themselves with him. And ever since that time, Satan has been corrupting this earth and God’s people through sin.

God has allowed Satan to live and roam the Earth and let bad things to happen And, for the record, let me just say that God could take Satan out anytime that He chooses, if he wanted to, but that God has a greater unstoppable plan in store for us. In fact, I know God can take Satan out because, eventually, God does get rid of Satan by throwing him in the Lake of Fire.

The real question is why didn’t God do it yesterday or why doesn’t God just do it now??? I mean, if God had gotten rid of Satan yesterday, I wouldn’t be tempted the way I am today, right? The best way to get rid of temptation, it seems to me, is to get rid of the Great Tempter, right??? So, why doesn’t God do that?

Well, the Bible does not directly answer that question. But, here is a truth we do know: God sent His one and only Son to us and it is through His death on the cross that you are saved! And when you put your love, faith and trust in Jesus despite Satan’s lies, tricks and temptations, Jesus’ glory will shine through you and you will be able to overcome anything! “I can do all things through Christ Jesus who gives me strength.” (Philippians 4:13)

Why do people do evil things?

Quite simply, it’s because of sin. When Adam and Eve disobeyed God and took a bite of that apple, it let sin and evil into this world. But, I need to be clear on this too … God gave us all free will to either choose sin or to choose righteousness. Some people are just truly evil for whatever reasons. They’ve turned their backs on God and decided to live lives that we can’t even understand. We look at truly bad people and say, “Wow, I’m glad I’m not him!” The sad part is we all sin to some degree. Even though we don’t mean to be evil, we sometimes do things that hurt the heart of God. For example, lying to your parents or friends, being angry at someone and hoping something bad will happen to them, cheating on a test, or maybe stealing some candy when no one is looking. The Bible tells us specifically:

“There is no one righteous; not even one.” (Romans 3:10)

“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23)

It seems hopeless, doesn’t it? But, guess what? Here’s the Good News: Jesus Christ came to this earth and died on the cross for our sins. Our belief in that death and resurrection and the gift of grace that Jesus gives us through faith is what saves us from eternal punishment! Now, you have to ask yourself, do I really believe that? I am here to tell you without hesitation or shame that, yes, I believe that.

The reason that belief is so important is because if you don’t believe it or you question your faith, then that’s when fear creeps in. You begin to question things, especially when bad things happen! I have had many kids ask me, “How could God kill all those people in Haiti during that earthquake?” or, “Why does God let little children die?” Because we can’t make sense of it, we begin to falter in our faith, not trusting that God has a reason for it.

And when we doubt God, we allow fear to override our faith. I truly believe that it’s Satan trying to deceive us and to discourage us from trusting God completely. Satan knows that if he can create doubt in your mind, that’s when the fear can creep in. Satan is a master liar. He will do everything he can to make you doubt God’s abilities or love for you; he will even twist God’s word! Remember what he said to Eve in the Garden of Eden? Satan came as a serpent and convinced Eve to take a bite of the apple by saying to her, “Did God really say not to eat from any tree in the garden?” (Genesis 3:1) Then that darn serpent said, “You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good from evil.” (Genesis 3:4-5)

He tricked Eve and sin came into the world. Once sin entered the world, it allowed doubt to also enter our minds. When we doubt God’s abilities or love for us, we get scared. It’s not because we don’t believe in God, it’s because Satan makes us doubt that God is who He says He is and that God couldn’t possibly do all those things.

But, remember this…it’s all about faith. Know in your heart that God is who He says He is. Know that God is good all the time and that He cannot sin. Know that God loves you and that He has plans for you…plans to prosper you and not to harm you; plans to give you a hope and a future. (Jeremiah 29:11)

What does death lead to?

Wow …. I think the Bible makes it pretty clear that there are only two options when you die: either eternal life in Heaven with Jesus or eternal torment in Hell. There is no middle ground or some holding tank for second chances.

Bottom line: If you are saved, you go to Heaven. If you are not saved, you go to Hell. I think it is very important at this point to make a very important distinction or clarification and that is: it’s all about being saved, not being good. Good people don’t go to Heaven; saved people do.

What I’m trying to say here is that it’s not about the good things you’ve done in your life or that you will do in your life that determines whether you go to Heaven. You can’t “earn” a spot in Heaven. It’s already been bought for you by Jesus’ death. He gives it to you as gift … a gift called grace. I love Ephesians 2:8-9, which says it clearly, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith --- and this is not from ourselves but it is a gift of God --- not by works, so no one can boast.” It is right there for the taking! Jesus gives you eternal life with Him as a gift! All you have to do is accept it. You don’t have to “do” anything. If you try and do things to somehow earn it, you take away Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross and make it about earning salvation. Jesus is crying out, “No! I bought and paid for you with my blood! I did it willingly because I love you.”

Let me also say something about Hell. God did not create Hell for people. It is a place that was created for Satan and his demons. In Matthew 25:41, Jesus tells those who never came to Him, “Depart from, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.”

It is a terrible place…the Holy Bible can’t even adequately describe it. We do know that it is a place where even Satan is tormented day and night forever (Revelation 20:10). It is a place of total darkness, where you are completely alone and where you are in constant anguish from the searing flame with a thirst that cannot be quenched and where there will be a constant weeping and gnashing of teeth (Revelation 14:11, Mark 9:4, Jude 7, Matthew 22:13). If that scares you, that’s okay … it scares me too.

There are people, who are non-believers, who will say, “How can a loving God send people to a place like Hell?” The truth is God doesn’t send us to Hell. The non-belief in Him and sin, choosing the devil’s way, put people in Hell. Remember, God is holy and will not allow sin in His kingdom.

But, know this: God does not want anyone to perish! He wants all of us to come to repentance. (2 Peter 3:9) More importantly, God sent His One and Only Son to die for us so that we would not go to Hell. But, it’s not enough just to know that Jesus died for us. You must truly believe that He died for us and then confess Him as your Savior. Remember our A-B-C’s in the Bridge Illustration? You must Admit your sins, Believe that Jesus is who He says He is and Confess Him to be your Savior.

Never forget how much God loves you!!! He loves you so much that while we were still sinners he sent His son to die for us! (Romans 5:8) And the reward is so great, too, because the Bible says that, “For God so loved the world that he gave His one and only Son that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His son into the world to condemn the world but to save the world through Him” (John 3:16-17)

Can Satan kill people?

Wow, that is a very good question and the short answer is yes…BUT only if God allows it. The best example of this can be found in the Old Testament in the Book of Job. God allows all sorts of bad things to happen to Job, including allowing Satan to kill Job’s sons and daughters (Job 1:18-19). But, God does not allow Satan to kill Job (Job 1:12). So, my question was, “Well, why did God allow that?”

I think it is really, really important to remember here that God did not kill anyone. He allowed Satan to kill Job’s family for a divine purpose. Again, we cannot begin to understand how God thinks or what his end result is supposed to be but we do know that God has an unstoppable plan and there are parts of that plan that we, while we are here on earth, may never, ever understand. But, it does serve God’s purpose.

Another very important thing to remember is God’s purpose is always good. God does not do anything out of hate or with evil intentions. We sing a song in church that says that God is good ALL the time, ALL the time, God is good. So, when He allows Satan to kill, God does not have an evil purpose or mean purpose behind it.

I know that is hard to understand. It is for me too. And whenever I’m faced with that question of “why” I always remind myself of Proverbs 3:5-6, which says, “Trust in the Lord, your God, with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding but in all ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight.”

Why did Satan tempt Adam and Eve?

So, that is a really awesome question!!! We know the story of how Satan appeared as a serpent and tempted Eve and she took a bite of the apple from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. And the end result was that sin then entered the world. But, the big question is why it happened in the first place, right? Well, we also know why Satan did it…he wanted to rule Heaven and he felt that he could disrupt God’s unstoppable plan by bringing sin into the world. Satan has been battling God since the beginning and this was just another attack against God. But, what we really wonder is why did God allow it?

It’s important to remember that Satan is not God or the exact opposite of God. He is a created being, just like you and me. God created Satan. If God wanted to, He could defeat Satan with a simple thought, make him disappear forever and make all of us obedient to His will and be without sin. The problem then is that we’d all be like a bunch of robots, walking around chanting, “God is holy, holy, holy,” without giving it much thought.

God doesn’t want that. He wants us to love Him but He also gave us free choice to do so. He wants us to desire to have a relationship with Him and for us to recognize that we need Him. So, God allowed Satan to introduce sin into the world so that we would realize how badly we need a kind and loving God. When you seek out God and give yourself to Him despite Satan’s attempts to pull you away from God, it brings God great joy! Remember the parable of the Lost Sheep? God celebrates everytime a “lost” person finds Him. So, that’s why Satan tempted Adam and Eve…to try and stop God’s unstoppable plan by bringing sin into this world.

What if you are in Hell and you pray about your sins? Will God take you to heaven from hell?

Wow, dude, that is an awesome question! Sadly, though, the Bible is quite clear on that and the truth is, no. Once you are in Hell, it is for all eternity.

Jesus actually talks more about Hell than He does about Heaven and the reason is because He does not want any of us to ever go there. Hell was not created by God for you and me. It is a place that was created for Satan and his demons. In Matthew 25:41, Jesus tells those who never came to Him, “Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.”

It is a terrible place…the Holy Bible can’t even adequately describe it. We do know that it is a place where even Satan is tormented day and night forever (Revelation 20:10). It is a place of total darkness, where you are completely alone and where you are in constant anguish from the searing flame with a thirst that cannot be quenched and where there will be a constant weeping and gnashing of teeth (Revelation 14:11, Mark 9:4, Jude 7, Matthew 22:13). If that scares you, that’s okay…it scares me too.

There are people, who are non-believers, who will say, “How can a loving God send people to a place like Hell?” The truth is God doesn’t send us to Hell. The non-belief in Him and sin, choosing the devil’s way, put people in Hell. Remember, God is holy and will not allow sin in His kingdom.

But, know this: God does not want anyone to perish! He wants all of us to come to repentance. (2 Peter 3:9) More importantly, God sent His one and only Son to die for us so that we would not go to Hell. But, it’s not enough just to know that Jesus died for us. You must truly believe that He died for us and then confess Him that He is your Savior. Remember our A-B-C’s in the Bridge Illustration? You must Admit your sins, Believe that Jesus is who He says He is and Confess that He is your Savior.

Never forget how much God loves you!!! He loves you so much that while we were still sinners he sent His son to die for us! (Romans 5:8) And the reward is so great, too, because the Bible says that, “For God so loved the world that he gave His one and only Son that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His son into the world to condemn the world but to save the world through Him” (John 3:16-17)

If God has more power than Satan, why doesn’t He destroy Satan?

Great question! The truth is that no one knows why God allows Satan to live and roam the Earth and allow bad things to happen And, for the record, let me just say also that God could take Satan out anytime that He chooses, if he wanted to, but that God has a greater unstoppable plan in store for us. In fact, I know God can take Satan out because, eventually, God does get rid of Satan by throwing him in the Lake of Fire.

The real question is why didn’t God do it yesterday or why doesn’t God just do it now??? I mean, if God had gotten rid of Satan yesterday, I wouldn’t be tempted the way I am today, right? The best way to get rid of temptation, it seems to me, is to get rid of the Great Tempter, right??? So, why doesn’t God do that?

Well, the Bible does not directly answer that question. Perhaps God is allowing Satan to tempt us because it brings us closer to God’s glory and developing a relationship with Jesus when we overcome those temptations. And, don’t forget the most important aspect when we battle those temptations to do bad things: God sent His one and only Son right in the middle of that battle and it is through His death on the cross that you are saved! And when you put your love, faith and trust in Jesus in spite of Satan’s lies, tricks and temptations, Jesus’ glory will shine through you and you will be able to overcome anything! “I can do all things through Christ Jesus who gives me strength.” (Philippians 4:13)

What would happen 2 da world if Satan turned [his heart] to God and became good??

Wow, that is a very interesting question! Do you realize that if there was no Satan, then there would be no evil or no temptation? If Satan became good again and became Lucifer, the archangel, there would be no wars, no hate, no jealously, no sin, period! That would be kind of cool, wouldn’t it?

What would we be like??? Would we be like robots just worshipping God without really understanding who God is? Would we know who Jesus is? Would there even be a Jesus??? I mean, if there was no sin, then there wouldn’t be a need for Jesus would there? Hmmm…

But, sadly, there is a Satan and he is a terrible, terrible being. He uses lies, doubt, distractions and evil to take our eyes off God. And, because there is a Satan, that’s why God sent us a Savior. God sent His one and only Son down to Earth to take all the sin of the world upon Him so that we wouldn’t die but that we could have eternal life with God in Heaven.

And, here’s sort of the weird part about this that kinda sounds kooky but it’s true: Satan exists so that we can have a personal relationship with God. Like I said earlier, if there was no Satan, we wouldn’t need Jesus and we’d all walk around like a bunch of robots not knowing God’s full greatness. But, because Satan shows us how weak we really are, we know we need Christ in our lives to overcome Satan’s attacks. And the only way to know Christ is to have a personal relationship with Him.

We need to accept Christ into our hearts and talk to Him every day through prayer and ask Him to help us from the evil one’s temptations. Remember when Jesus taught his disciple how to pray? It’s called the Lord’s Prayer and part of it, after acknowledging God and His greatness, is a request where we ask God to, “lead us not into temptation but deliver us from the evil one.” Jesus knew Satan’s power and knew that we couldn’t battle Satan without God’s help. It was so important that he included it in His prayer.

That tells me that, as tough as I think I am, I can’t do it without God’s help. I need God in my life. I need Jesus, who died for me on that cross, to save me from Satan. And, the best part is…He will! All you have to do is ask Him and trust in Him and believe that He died for your sins and the sins of the world.

Why do we have wars and why can’t people just compromise?

Wars have been around since Satan battled God’s angels and was thrown out of Heaven along with a third of the angels that took his side. Wars are a result of sin.

Sin is a state we are born into and, although we try to overcome our sin nature by ourselves, we just can’t do it. That’s why Christ had to die for us. Only by His sacrifice was sin defeated.

And, one of the biggest sins is: PRIDE. When prideful, sinful people can’t get along or can’t agree, that’s when wars occur. They are just too stubborn and prideful to give in and compromise.

If Satan is evil in Heaven and in the Bible it says there is no sin in Heaven, why did Satan sin then?

WOW!!! That is a very awesome question! And, to be quite honest with you, I don’t know the answer to that question and I don’t think anyone, other than Jesus, really knows. But, here’s what I do know to be true:

God absolutely hates sin. He cannot even be in its presence.
There is no sin in Heaven.
Satan was once God’s most perfect angel named Lucifer and he was cast out of Heaven because he sinned against God.
A third of the angels also sinned and were cast down to Earth with Satan.
Satan is also known as the “accuser of the brethren” because he gets to go to the Throne of God and point out the sinners to God but Jesus protects us by saying, No, Satan, you’re wrong, They are covered by my death.” (Job 1:6-12 and Revelation 12:7-9 tell some of the story!)

So, there are a lot of bible scholars who believe that there are different realms of Heaven and that when Lucifer sinned against God it was in one of the realms of Heaven but not Heaven itself. There are also some Bible scholars that believe the Throne of God isn’t in Heaven but just outside Heaven which would allow Satan to come close to Heaven without being able to get it to Heaven itself.

We have to remember that God is all-knowing, all-powerful and ever-present. He has an unstoppable plan for us and for Satan. Don’t forget…Satan is not God or the opposite of God. He is a created being just like you and me. God created Satan. Satan cannot create life, he is not all-knowing, he is not all-powerful and he cannot be in two places at once. Never, ever think that God and Satan are equal because they are not.

In fact, if God wanted to, He could make Satan disappear with just a thought. But, God has a plan for us all, including Satan, and God’s plan is perfect and unstoppable. We cannot ever imagine or begin to know why God does some of the things he does or allows some of the things he allows. We will never know, until we go to Heaven, why God allowed Satan to sin.

If you know God is by your side, how can you still feel scared?

That is an awesome question!!! I actually love this question because I’ve had a lot of kids ask me this in person and it gives me the chance to ask a question back and that question is: Why are you scared?

I can promise you that it’s not because God isn’t there for you. He is always with you and thinks about you more times than there are grains of sand on a beach. He also knows every hair on your head and knows your every thought, hopes and dreams.

So, where does this fear come from then? Why do we get scared? And believe me, we all get scared at one time or another. Is it Satan trying to deceive us and to discourage us from trusting God completely? Satan does know that if he can create doubt in your mind, that’s when the fear can creep in. Satan is a master liar. He will do everything he can to make you doubt God’s love for you; he will even twist God’s Word! Remember what he said to Eve in the Garden of Eden? Satan came as a serpent and convinced Eve to take a bite of the apple by saying to her, “Did God really say not to eat from any tree in the garden?” (Genesis 3:1) Then that darn serpent said, “You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good from evil.” (Genesis 3:4-5)

He tricked Eve and sin came into our world. Once sin entered the world, it allowed doubt to also enter our minds. When we doubt God’s love for us, we get scared. It’s not because we don’t believe in God, it’s because Satan makes us doubt that God is who He says He is and that God couldn’t possibly do all those things.

But, remember this…it’s all about faith in God. Know in your heart that God is who He says He is. Know that God is good all the time and that He cannot sin. Know that God loves you and that He has plans for you…plans to prosper you and not to harm you; plans to give you a hope and a future. (Jeremiah 29:11)

And when things seem to be going bad, remember this: “TRUST in the Lord, your God, with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding but in all ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight.” (Proverbs 3:5-6)

Why did God send Jesus into the desert to be tempted by Satan?

That is an awesome question! If you read the very first line of the Book of Matthew, Chapter 4, Verse 1, it says, “Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil.”

So, just by this verse alone, we learn two things: 1, God (the Spirit) was involved in this plan and 2, He allowed Jesus to be tempted. And you’re saying, “Okay…but why???”

God sent Jesus to show us how to resist the devil. Remember, Jesus is God so, if He wanted, He could have made Satan disappear with just a thought. But, instead (and this is the part I love), He responded to Satan as a human to set the example for the rest of us humans. He showed us through His actions how to resist temptation!

And, if you were listening real close you heard how Jesus set the example for us. Do you recall? He accessed God’s strength. He used the passages from the Bible to give Him the strength He needed to resist Satan’s temptations. He turned to God’s Word. He did that to show us that if we can access God’s strength through prayer or knowing God’s Word and trusting in God’s Word that we can also resist temptation. Because, guess what? We can’t do it alone. And Jesus was showing that He couldn’t do it alone as a man.

Remember 1 Corinthians 10:13? It said, “No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But, when you are tempted, He will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.” That is a promise from God to you. God knows we can’t do it alone. Jesus knew it and that’s why He showed us how to resist temptation by turning to God and by turning away from Satan and to keep walking away from him.

So, that’s why God sent Jesus into the desert to be tempted by Satan. It was to demonstrate to us how we can beat Satan by turning to God and by turning away from the temptation of the devil. Remember Philippians 4:13…”I can do all things through Him who gives me strength.”

Can Satan create? If so, did he make dinosaurs and were they evil so they could not go on the ark?

One of the problems with Satan is that a lot of what we think we know about him is popular mythology – meaning that we get our ideas from stories and history and traditions that are not in the Bible. That Satan is a mean dude in a red suit with a pitchfork is a good example of a description of Satan that is not in the Bible. Another idea – a surprising one - is that Satan is in hell. The Bible states that he roams earth looking for someone to destroy (Job 1:6-7; 1 Peter 5:8). The point I am making is that we want to use only the Bible to understand Satan.

One of the clearest statements about Satan is Revelation 12:9, which states that “this great dragon – the ancient serpent called the Devil, or Satan, the one deceiving the whole world – was thrown down to the earth with all his angels.” There are a lot of other passages in the New Testament that also describe Satan as humanity’s deceiver, adversary and challenger. 1 Peter 5:8 makes it clear that Satan wants to destroy us and Matthew 4:1-11 is a great example which shows that not even Jesus was free of his challenges.

To answer your question directly as it refers to dinosaurs, Satan is not the Creator, God is. God is the Creator of everything, of all matter and energy and space and time and life, and everything in creation that God called first “good” and later “very good.” This includes dinosaurs! God created dinosaurs and they were good.

The reason they did not make it onto the ark was probably because they were already extinct, not because they were evil.