2 Corinthians 2:11 Part 1

2 Corinthians 2:11
Part 1:

Theme: The Origins of Satan
Read 2 Cor 2:9-11

I’ve been preaching on 2 Corinthians 2 for several months because it is so rich in historical context and linguistic implications and so relevant to our church even though it was written more than 2000 years ago half way around the world.

You’ll recall that the situation that prompted Paul to write chapter 2 had to do with a man in the Corinthian church who had wrongly charged Paul with selfish and sinful motives and behaviour. The resulting division that it created in the church caused Paul much grief and, as we shall see, opened the door to Satan. Galatians 5 warns Christians about creating division in the church saying,
13 For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another…. 15But if you bite and devour one another, beware lest you be consumed by one another! (vv.13-15).

In the midst of his discussion on forgiveness in 2 Corinthians, Paul brings up Satan referring to his “devices” as though it is a natural consequence of church division. Gordon Fee explains that the type of disunity that existed in the Corinthian church “if left unremedied by forgiveness, provides Satan an occasion to take advantage of the church and work his destructive schemes within.”
Paul’s desire to forgive is not cheap grace; it is his deliberate effort to render Satan impotent of his devices. Paul would rather be wronged than to let Satan have is way. Macarthur explains that “an unforgiving spirit plays right into Satan’s hand and gives him the leverage he needs to split a church apart.”

In Verse 11, Paul uses a word play saying “we are not unmindful of Satan’s mind”. Paul thought that was true of the Corinthians, but is it true of us? Are mindful of Satan’s mind? I think most believers today are not. When it comes to Satan the church has become agnostic; we are hiding our heads in the sand. And it naturally follows that our ignorance towards Satan is our ignorance of his devices.

Being ignorant of his devices means that we give him permission implicitly and explicitly to exhaust all of his inexhaustible devices against us- we unwittingly fall into his hands and become conduits of his devices rather than being conduits of God’s comfort and love.

Sadly, I think that more often than not, we Christians knowingly allow ourselves to be conduits of Satan’s devices because the grace of God weighs too lightly with us.

So my plan for this text is to instruct some and remind others about the person of Satan and his devices. This may take several weeks, but I believe that, rather than sensationalizing a sensationalistic topic, this will prosper us in our Christian walk and make it so that we can be strong and courageous in uncertain times in 2009.
1. The Names of Satan:
Satan is known by various names in the scripture: Apollyion and Abaddon/ The Destroy and ruling angel of Hell (Rev. 9:11); the accuser of the brethren (Rev 12:10); the adversary (1 Peter 5:8); Beelzebub, the Lord of the flies/dung (Matt 12:24); Belial (2 Cor 6:15); the devil (Matt 4:1); the enemy (Matt 13:39); an evil spirit (1 Sam 16:14); the father of lies (Jn 8:44); The great dragon (Rev ?) The old Serpent (Rev. ?); the power of darkness (Col 1:13); the prince of this world (Jn 12:31); the spirit that workd in the children of disobedience (Eph 2:2); god of this world (2 Cor 4:4); and churches can become so swayed by his power that they can become known as synagogues or churches of Satan.

2. The Person of Satan
Unlike God, Satan is a created being. He is not the divine negative; the ying to God’s yang, as so many other religions teach. Satan is subject to the will of God and God could, with a word, squish Satan in an instant. God is all-powerful, Satan is not; God is all-knowing, Satan is not; God is everywhere-present, Satan is not. Do not make the mistake of ascribing to Satan the attributes of God. He is a created being and a fallen one at that!

Another mistake that people make is to understate the power and potency of Satan. For instance, many liberal scholars and some so-called Evangelicals argue that Satan is simply a personification of evil or a metaphor and not a literal person, scripture makes is clear that Satan is a distinct personal being with a will and an intellect.
A modernistic preacher … announced in defending his liberal theological position, “I’m not afraid of the Devil.”
“That is not what matters so much,” one of his acquaintances replied. “Let me ask you a more important question: Is the Devil afraid of you?”[1]

According to a recent survey,
Nearly two out of three adults—62%—agreed that Satan “is not a living being but is a symbol of evil.” This response has remained relatively consistent throughout the Nineties. Among the more surprising findings, however, are that a majority of born again Christians deny Satan’s existence (52%); nearly three-quarters of Catholics say the devil is non-existent (72%); and women are more likely than men to reject Satan’s existence (64% vs. 59%).
Barna Research Group, Ltd., Oxnard, CA[2]

By neglecting the reality of Satan, Christians let their guards down and become easy targets of his devices.

Remember, Satan does not focus his attacks on unbelievers— he already has them where he wants them. Satan’s attacks are focused squarely on the professing church of Christ.

3. The Origin of Satan
We first meet Satan in Genesis 3:1 where he is described as “more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made.” But there are descriptions of him which predate this appearance. For instance, he is described by the prophet Ezekiel as, “…the seal of perfection, Full of wisdom and perfect in beauty” (Ezekiel 28:11). Satan was special and unique above all other angels—“the anointed Cherub” (v. 14). But his “heart was lifted up because of [his] beauty” and he “corrupted [his] wisdom for the sake of [his] splendor”

In other words, God created Satan to be one of the most powerful and beautiful and important angels in heaven. But that wasn’t enough for Satan; his ambition deceived him and diluted his reason so that he led a revolt against God seeking to take the throne for himself. Can you even begin to imagine a universe ruled by the father of lies?

Isaiah 14 describes Satan’s fall this way,
“How you are fallen from heaven,
O Lucifer, son of the morning….
13 For you have said in your heart:
‘I will ascend into heaven,
I will exalt my throne above the stars of God…
14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds,
I will be like the Most High.’ (vv. 12-14).

Many people wonder when it was in time that this Fall of Satan had occurred. I believe that it had to have been after God had finished creating heaven and earth—after the 7th days of creation because, God described everything in creation as good. The presence of a fallen angel in the universe is not good.

Because Satan had apparently failed in His attempt to impose his agenda on God, he decided to impose his agenda on humanity. He is very persistent. Our own fall was authored by Satan. And he appealed to the same ambition in us that caused his own downfall— to be like God. “For God know,” he explained to Eve on that fateful day , “in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God…” (Gen 3:5).

The insidiousness of that lie was that the opposite was true, Eve was already like God, but by disobeying God eating that fruit, the image of God in us was lost and Satan usurped our supremacy over the earth and became the god of this world. The world has been under his dominion ever since.

Conclusion
I will close with this warning. According to Oswald Sanders the are five strategies that Satan uses on believers:
Strategies of Satan with Believers
1. Annihilate the church or neutralize its witness from within (Acts 5:1–6).
2. Virulent persecution from without.
3. Smother its witness by according it great popularity.
4. Disturb the unity of the church by creating discord and division
5. Subversion of the church through apostasy and heresy (2 Peter 2:1–2).
Satan is No Myth, J. O. Sanders, Moody, 1975, pp. 72ff[3]

Have you been ignorant of Satan’s devices and given him a foothold in your life and the life of the church? We must be vigilant and not ignorant of Satan’s devices. Resist the devil and he will flee.
[1]Paul Lee Tan, Encyclopedia of 7700 Illustrations : A Treasury of Illustrations, Anecdotes, Facts and Quotations for Pastors, Teachers and Christian Workers (Garland TX: Bible Communications, 1996, c1979).
[2]Galaxie Software, 10,000 Sermon Illustrations (Biblical Studies Press, 2002; 2002).
[3]Galaxie Software, 10,000 Sermon Illustrations (Biblical Studies Press, 2002; 2002).