[Mike Greider] Well, it's been a couple of weeks now since the Feast of Tabernacles and the 8th day have ended, but I hope that we still have a picture in our mind of what those wonderful holy days we'll picture. And it's hard to fathom the changes that are going to occur, both initially with the physical changes at the start of the millennium and then ultimately the spiritual changes that will last forever. And at our fee site this last year, the coordinator, he put out an announcement and he asked the kids to submit job professions that will be extinct in the millennium. So, there was a suggestion that there would be no more locksmiths because you won't need locks anymore. I guess one submission suggested that private eyes and detectives won't be needed anymore in the millennium. All sorts of jobs and professions that are still very much needed in our busy world right now, but will be hopelessly outdated in the millennium when Jesus Christ sets up a new kingdom.

Now, I want to set the stage today by refreshing this vision in our mind, by turning back to Isaiah 11. Isaiah 11, I want to just put this vision right back in our minds as we start. No doubt you covered this section of Scripture just a few weeks ago at the feast.

Isaiah 11:6-9 It says, “The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, the calf and the young lion and the fatling together, and the little child shall lead them. The cow and the bear shall graze, their young ones shall lie down together, and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. The nursing child shall play by the cobra's hole, and the weaned child shall put his hand in the vipers den. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain, for this earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.”

Now, there are other scriptures that you no doubt read that also describe this place of safety, of peace, of tranquility, a place of great, abundant food, a place of meaningful work, solid relationships. It's an idyllic world, a utopia, no less. It doesn't matter how good your life is right now. The desire for a world run in the right way with the right leadership producing the right fruit. Well, that is something very tantalizing to think about. Which is why it's all the more startling about what we read about at the end of the millennium when Satan is released out of that pit and allowed to cause havoc for a little bit longer, at least for a short time.

Now, I would think, maybe naively, I guess, that the people that were living in the millennium there, that they would be enjoying their lives so much that they would not even be the least bit interested in what Satan is trying to convince them. I mean, after all, Satan can't force anyone to do anything. He can't take over people. In fact, the people have to choose to go his way. I want to notice something back in Revelation 20:7-9. Revelation 20:7-9, I'm going to pick it up in verse 7.

Revelation 20:7-9 It says, “Now, when the thousand years have expired, Satan will be released from his prison.” This is just after the millennium. As we know, he was previously bound up and now he's released and he has just this very short window now where he's allowed back in to interact with mankind after this peaceful, idyllic millennial period. “And will go,” that's Satan, that is, “Will go out to deceive the nations which are in the four corner corners of the earth, Gog and Magog to gather them together to battle, whose number is as the sand of the sea.” Now, that's a lot of people here. “And they went up from the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of saints in the beloved city.” Now, they were so fired up here, they were so wrapped up in this frenzy here that they're actually going to go out into battle, they're going to go destroy, they're going to actively resist and to fight against what God has put into place. And we know the result. “And fire came down from God out of heaven and devoured them.”

Now, this is not just a small handful of people off in the corner somewhere, this is not just a group of people that were on the fence, maybe oscillating back and forth here. This is a great multitude that have bought into a movement against God to the point of trying to go and murder his saints in battle. Now, what in the world could Satan promise these people in order to deceive them? I mean, clearly, he is a master salesman in order to get this great group of people buy into an idea that is so counterfeit, where they would get these two ideas of life in front of them, one that God proposes and one that Satan has.

And they weigh them together and they say, “You know what? I think this other guy's on to something here.” I mean, up to this point, Satan has been bound and in chains. So, it's clear that God has more power and more authority, but the people still fall for it. And to make matters worse, we're going to be there. You know, I think that's one of the startling things, we're going to be teaching. We're going to be leading during the millennial period. And we'll know this is coming.

Everyone's going to know this is coming, right? And we'll be saying, “You know, heads up, the time is almost here. Satan is going to be released. He's going to come at you, he's going to try to trick you.” And we've been there. We've gone through this. His way doesn't work. Don't believe him. But after all of this, after living in this idyllic world, having teachers that prepare them for this event, after all of this, Satan will still be successful in convincing some of them that he knows a better way. That is nuts.

And today, I would like to discuss the tactics that Satan has used quite effectively, as we well know through time, to deceive people from the very beginning, all the way to as we read the very end. I'd like to investigate how Satan has worked through the Bible, piecing together the examples as we can find them and see if we can put together a pattern that Satan often deploys. Because if we can do that, then we can also put together an effective strategy for repelling those very same attacks. And we're going to need it, not just for our own lives right now as we defend against Satan's attacks, but also it's going to be one of the core areas we're going to be teaching and one of our core areas of responsibility in the millennium as we become teachers to others.

Now, I have four different areas of focus that we can draw upon today, and the first one is back at the dawn of mankind with Adam and Eve. My first focus is Adam and Eve. And you can head back there to Genesis 3. Genesis 3, we've focused on the story of Adam and Eve so many different times throughout the years, but I was recently considering it from the context of what we're talking about here today. Now, as we read through this story, I think we should just pause and think about this just for a moment. Satan has been alive for countless amount of years. He knows God's plans for mankind. He knows what God has in store. And he knows that God's ultimate plan starts in action when these first human beings are created on the Earth. And here in Genesis 3, he finally has a chance to engage with it. Who knows how many years he plotted and schemed for this day?

And in my mind, I kind of picture him pacing back and forth, going through different lines and different approaches to see what he's going to finally use. And it all culminates here in Genesis 3. Now, I guess, in some ways, it's like a lion being let out or a lamb being let out in front of a lion. Adam and Eve could not have afforded to let their guard down, even just for a moment. So, here we are in Genesis 3: 1-6. Adam and Eve have been walking with God. They have a relationship with God. They have this lovely Garden of Eden. You can obviously some of the parallels between the millennial story as well. They're living a version of this idyllic life. So, again, what could Satan possibly offer them?

Genesis 3:1 “Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, has God indeed said you shall not eat of every tree of the garden?”

Again I want to pause there just for a moment and think about that. There are a lot of differences, a lot of differences between Satan and Jesus Christ. But one of the ginormous differences between them two is that Jesus Christ came to live as a human in the flesh. He literally did understand what it was like to be a human being. Now, Satan, he can only speculate. So, when Satan is probing human desires on many levels, he has to guess what makes us tick.

Now, Jesus Christ, by experiencing a physical life like us has a unique understanding that Satan can never have. And Satan here, he's probing. It's almost like he's running his hands over a box and he's trying to find the seams and the cracks that he can exploit. And here he's found one. He sees a spot where he can introduce doubt in God. Like he's saying, “Well, you can't eat all the fruits here. It's kind of strange, don't you think? God would dangle something in front of you and then say, you can't have it. Mm, I bet there's a little more to the story than what he's telling you here.”

Genesis 3:2-5 “And the woman said to the servant, well, we may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden but the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, that one God has said, you may not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die. And then the serpent said to the woman, you shall not surely die for God knows that in that day that you eat of it, your eyes will be open and you will be like God knowing good and evil.”

Now, countless years of waiting, finally he gets this grand chance and here's his approach. He says, “Well, I know God's working with you. I know you have a relationship with Him. I know He's promised you all these things. But look, He's not being 100% upfront here with you about this tree. In fact, if you look at this tree, which God put here, not me, you can see that for yourself. If you take that tree, you're going to know good from evil. And I got to tell you, I don't think God wants you to know this, but if you eat of that tree, you're not going to die.”

Genesis 3:6 “So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took its fruit and ate and she gave to her husband with her and he ate.”

Now, maybe if Satan would have just come out and say, like, “Just disobey God, like, you don't have to listen to God, you don't need God. Maybe if he would have been so obvious like that, then Adam and Eve would have seen right through it, maybe a mile away.” But he's very subtle, pulling at the very right strings with the right half-truths, really working his fingernails across the cracks ever so skillfully.

Now, we have the benefit of hindsight. We have literally lifetimes of experiences in the Bible that we can read about. We have all this information at our fingertips to be able to see through this temptation and see Satan for who he is. And Adam and Eve, they did no better. They knew they shouldn't have done that. But in a lot of ways, this was a very battle for them to win. Consider that Satan is still able to tempt us as super smart, modern-day Christians with God's Holy Spirit. If he's still able to tempt us today, we have to be careful about judging how Adam and Eve did. Satan is no dummy. Satan knows just the right strings to pull. And sometimes we think that if we can just kind of quote Scripture at him, we can somehow outsmart Satan and his demons. But they've been around the block a little bit longer than us human beings have. We're going to quote Scripture. They were there when it was written. It's only through the power of God's Holy Spirit that we are able to stand up and resist them and their tactics.

Well, what were those specific tactics that Satan used? One of the main ones, and I think we'll see this thread throughout the message today, is that Satan exploited their natural inclinations and their natural weaknesses of Adam and Eve. They knew they were totally dependent on God. They knew it. And it had to be appealing to know good and evil for themselves. That way they could be a little bit more self-reliant. We have that same temptation today about wanting to be self-reliant when we also need to be fully reliant on God. But we can put this one down in the books as a sale for Satan. The first two human beings, the first two to fall for his tricks. And this is the earliest human example but we can actually go back even further.

Back before Adam and Eve, there was another example of Satan convincing others, and it's way back when Satan actually convinced himself and the angels. That's focus number two. Focus number two is Satan himself. Now, we only have a very small window into this event, and we really kind of have to piece it together with different scriptures in the Bible. But we do have a couple of keys in Isaiah 14, you can turn back there. Isaiah 14, we're going to read verses 12 through 15, and this was back at a time where God's creation was beautiful and wonderful, but one being already one of the most powerful beings ever created, at least that we know of, convinced himself that maybe there was a better way with a better leader that was better suited to this task.

Isaiah 14:12-15 It says, “How you have fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning, how you are cut down to the ground, you who weakened the nations.” Well, what was the idea that caused this fall? What precipitated this event? Verse 13, “For you have said in your heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God. I will also sit on the mount of the congregation, on the furthest sides of the north, and I will ascend above the heights of the clouds. I will be like the Most High. Yeah, you will be brought down to Shoal, to the lowest depths of the pit.”

Now, Ezekiel 28:16-18, we're not going to turn there, but they have a companion section of Scripture to this event, and it reiterates again that he was perfect at the beginning. Then he became filled with violence and he sinned. And many people have speculated over the years that, what was that specific idea? What was that thing, that trading that started Satan down this path? He wasn't created in a flawed way, so there was some external factor that helped plant the seed. And, of course, the Bible doesn't say, but perhaps when he understood the plan God was creating for these silly human beings, these tiny, insignificant creatures that were made from the dust of the earth, that would eventually become higher than the angels, higher than people as beautiful as Himself. Maybe that was the idea that turned his mind and he decided that his ideas might be a little bit better than God's.

Now, we do know that Satan was a covering Charim, a strong, powerful, smart angel. But just like Adam and Eve, Satan did have his own weaknesses. And he allowed his own thought process to wiggle in through the cracks and find fertile ground to grow and to sprout. Now, I'd be curious to ask God, maybe we'll get a chance to do this, how long this actually took. I mean, did this take generations? Thousands of years? I know time didn't really have the same impact back then, but how long did it take for Satan to convince himself? Did he talk it over with God and just maybe not like the answers he got back?

Did he try to hold it secret just to himself until it finally consumed him and overwhelmed him? How did it actually happen? And when I think of this story, part of me also thinks about how sad this must have been to see Satan fall like this, a beautiful creature that was created fall in the way that he did. And how twisted his thinking must have been to think like this and to give up on what God was offering him. But at the same time, we also can't overlook that he was able to convince a third of the angels that his idea was right. He wasn't just some crazy angel that turned in isolation, but he was powerful in how he convinced one-third of those angels, one-third of angels that had access to God, that were in contact with him. He was able to persuade them to ignore that and take his ideas as superior.

Now, that's a staggering thought to consider. Satan was the master salesman long before Adam and Eve, was he not? Now, we're giving precious little about these events before mankind was created. And like I said, just little pieces and hints throughout the Bible. But John 8:44 has one comment. Let's go back there. John 8:44. In this section of Scripture, Jesus Christ, He's engaging with the Pharisees. And Jesus is making the comparison here that they are slaves to sin, and they keep coming back to Him, and they say, “No, we're from Abraham's lineage. We've never been slaves, you know, we're part of Abraham. He's our father.” And by the time we get down to verse 44, Jesus is pointing out that their spiritual father or the father that they were clinging to at that level is actually quite a bit different than what they expect.

John 8:44 It says, “You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do.” Okay. Well, what does that mean? What are the defining characteristics that they are modeling that Satan typifies? “He was a murderer from the beginning, and he does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. And when he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it.”

Now, in comparing how the Pharisees thought and how they behaved, we can see a type of how Satan thought and behaved. They were both liars. They both seeked after their own ends, even knowing it wasn't right. They both ignored the truth when it inconvenienced them and many more. There was a terrible movie that came out about a decade ago, and the plot was that lying hadn't been invented yet. And everyone was straightforward, always told the truth. Everyone was 100% honest. And then one of the main characters finally discovered or invented how to lie. And the movie was absolutely ridiculous. But it's kind of an interesting take on something that we've never experienced before, and that is a world without lying and deceit. And there was a point in time where this was the case. It says that God is truth and there is no deceit or dishonesty in him. And it was only when Satan discovered, I guess, or invented lies and half-truths, that this was changed. It must have been a weird concept to have to teach the rest of the angels when they were first exposed to something that wasn't 100% true.

I want to go to one other example, this time a little further into the future. We saw how Satan worked with the first human creation, with Adam and Eve, and we can see his handy work throughout time. But one of the next big sections of Scripture outlining his tactics comes from just a few thousand years ago, and that is his interactions with Christ himself. That's focus number three is Christ himself. One of the next detailed, recorded sections of Scripture, at least, is of Satan tempting someone in the Bible, and that is Jesus Christ himself. And, oh, boy, just like with Adam and Eve, I can't imagine just how giddy Satan must have been to finally be allowed to take on Jesus Christ in this way. Now, I wish we had a section of Scripture kind of like we do back in the book of Job, where it talks about the accuser going back and forth and they're setting the boundaries of what he was allowed to do with Job. I wish we had a section of Scripture like that before this event, because I think it would have been absolutely fascinating to know. But as you can imagine, this was a very seminal point in time. And I want to pick up the thread here in Matthew 4, and we'll start verses 1 through 10.

Matthew 4:1-3 It says, “Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And when he had fasted 40 days and 40 nights afterward, He was hungry,” I would guess so. “And when the tempter came to Him, he said, if you are the Son of God, command that these stones be turned into bread or become bread.”

And this is a start of three distinct different temptations that Satan was offering Jesus Christ. Now, again, you might also be thinking, what can Satan offer Christ? What could he possibly offer Him that would be all that tempting? Now, we know that Satan is limited by God. He doesn't have unlimited power or authority. So, in some sense, the only things he could offer Jesus Christ were the things that God allowed Him to offer. And as a result, it is interesting to note what Satan actually uses. And again, he's had literally thousands of years, if not more, to consider what these offers should be.

And surely there are layers and layers to each one of these temptations. But certainly, from the onset, the first temptation deals with Jesus Christ's physical needs. He was in a weakened state from fasting, of course, so was His physical needs that he went after.

Matthew 4:4-7 “But He answered and said, it is written, man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. He's saying that my physical needs are secondary to my spiritual needs.” Jesus Christ always put the physical on the back burner and the spiritual on the front burner. Verse 5, “And the devil took Him up onto the holy city, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, if you are Son of God, throw yourself down. For it is written, He shall give His angels charge over you. And in their hands, they shall bear you up lest you dash your foot against a stone.” It's interesting to note that Jesus Christ comes right back at him, quoting Scripture Himself. Verse 7, “And Jesus said to him, it is written again, you shall not tempt the Lord your God.”

This is second temptation is really interesting. And to me, it shows bit of the mindset that Satan had. Now, Jesus Christ had come down into the flesh, surely He was feeling more physically vulnerable. Certainly, the threat of physical pain and suffering is more real than it had ever been before. Now, would Christ here use His own authority for His own protection? Would He use His authority for His own needs?

Matthew 4:8-10 “And again, the devil took Him up to an exceedingly high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. And he said to Him, all these things I will give to you if you will fall down and worship me. And Jesus said to him, away with you Satan. For it is written, you shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.”

And finally, we get to this last temptation and Satan really strikes at the core of why Jesus Christ is here. Now, he knows why Jesus Christ is on the earth. He knows the love and the compassion Jesus Christ has for His creation. And he also knows all the pain, all the sorrow, all the suffering that human beings will experience then and into the future. And Satan as the ruler of this world is offering a shortcut to the end of that pain and into that suffering that is to come. Now, I could see how that would be very effective to many of us if we knew that we could take an action to prevent a loved one or many loved ones from suffering. That would be a very difficult choice to ponder.

Now, in these temptations, the specifics are different but some of the same patterns emerge time and time again. Satan is continually looking for those cracks to exploit weaknesses to take advantage of. He continues to try and use our natural inclinations as opportunities to strike. And Jesus Christ its physical sustainment, its food, its desires for physical safety and protection. His authority and its attempt to exploit the compassion and the love He has for His people. Jesus Christ, though, He had a greater defensive shield guarding those hotspots. He held fast, of course, and He didn't allow any cracks in the armor for which Satan could weasel his way into. Now, everyone has similar natural inclinations that can be targets for Satan. We all want to have our needs met. And clearly, Satan knows this very well, and he is able to target those physical underpinnings of our physical existence to show alternatives that seem to be more desirable shortcuts to get us to where we think we want to be just a little faster. Those threads and those patterns repeat time and time again.

Well, the final area that I want to focus on is how Satan tempts us. How Satan tempts us. And I want to consider what exactly is in his brochure that he's offering us and these modern times. Now there's a famous memory Scripture back in 1 Peter 5:8. You don't need to turn back there. I think you might know it by heart.

1 Peter 5:8 It says, “Be sober, be vigilant because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.”

Remember this Scripture, and we're talking about how Satan interacts with us, Christians. I think maybe sometimes this scripture can be a little bit misleading. If Satan were to just pounce on one of us and throw up an obvious temptation, I think most of us wouldn't bite. If I walked outside and I saw a huge pile of gold was unguarded in someone's car, I'm not going to smash a window and steal it, right? I don't think that's how most of us would behave. And I think that doesn't fit with most of the experiences that we see. If someone were to collapse on a sidewalk, the vast majority of people would run over and try to help. They wouldn't run over and just try to steal his wallet and run away.

But there are a variety of attributes that a lion can use when hunting. It's not just sheer overwhelming power. A lion is also very resilient. And while a lion can be very powerful, it also conserves energy until it has the right time for maximum effectiveness. It can also be very patient and ensure that it's in the right position before it attacks. A lion has full control over his domain. And in a direct parallel with Satan, both of these types walk around in their environment fully believing that they are the biggest, the strongest alpha animal in the area. What do we see in our own life experiences? And that is that Satan use a wide variety of tools, and tips, and tricks to sell a way of life that is counter to God's. But most of them are extremely subtle, or they ramp up gently over time versus just kind of slapping us across the face.

And I want to go back to the works of flesh section back in Galatians 5. You can turn back there. Galatians 5, and this is really the playbook that Satan is working from when he's building his pitch deck to us. It's Galatians 5, and as we know, verses 19 through 21, that's the works of the flesh. And there's adultery, there's fornication, there's hatred, there's jealousies. There's a big list here. It's very comprehensive, but some are bigger than others. In fact, some are actually quite subtle. Envy, for example. That is something that can live up in our brains and there can be no outward manifestations of that, where it can live and grow in a space where no one sees until it becomes this tiny crack. Just a small crack that's just wide enough for Satan to get a little fingernail into so that he can then start digging in and working his magic. But I want to go back to a little bit earlier in this Chapter, because what instigated this? Why is Paul even talking about this in the first place? And there's a lot happening in the book of Galatians, a lot happening in chapter 5, but I want to pick it up in verse 13 of Galatians 5.

Galatians 5:13-15 It says, “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. For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even this you shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Verse 15, “But if you bite and devour one another…” Wait a second. Devour? Where have we heard that word before? What is the other example of someone waiting to devour? “If you bite and devour one another, beware, lest you be consumed by one another.”

Now, Paul, he gets right down to business. The liberty of our calling was being misapplied. And kind of the whole point of why we are here was being misplaced. It should be used as a way to show love for one another. And when it's not used in that way, the opposite happens. It's divisive. It's not uplifting.

Galatians 5:16-18 “And I say, then walk in the spirit and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lust after…” Excuse me. “For the flesh lust against the spirit and the spirit against the flesh. These are contrary to one another so that you do not do the things that you wish.”

And then the list goes on in verse 19 with the works of the flesh. When things start to go the wrong way and the primary goals of loving God and loving your neighbor, they start to be on the back burner, then that gives just this wide birth for a wide variety of attacks and works of flesh to creep in and set up shop. And that's why the fruit of the spirit, singular, and the works of the flesh, plural, go hand in hand. When one is fully engaged with God's way of life and focused on true love, then the fruit of the spirit is the result. All of those characteristics become growing in their nature. But when it breaks down, the individual works of the flesh can seep in through those unguarded areas and leave little tentacles exposed as a roadmap for Satan. He just has to look for our natural inclinations, our natural desires, see what works of the flesh can be effective in corrupting. And then hone his sales presentation for maximum temptation.

Now, I want to take a minute just to consolidate the four examples that we have gone through today. We've covered a handful of places where in the Bible it's written that Satan's slimy sales tactics were used to entice. No doubt Satan has adapted over time, we're sure of that. But even so, we can see some underlying threads that have been in his arsenal and some strategies that he will continue to use until he's finally put away for good. Now, what are some of those patterns that emerge? Well, Satan often comes at our existing natural inclinations. That could be food, it could be procreation, health, safety, life, the need to belong, the desire to be loved, our desire for self-sufficiency, things that are already inherent desires, and he magnifies them.

He takes those needs which are not wrong in and of themselves, and he perverts them and he twists them. And he tries to convince people that God's way is unnecessarily hard, or that it doesn't make any sense, or that it's unfair. And that if you just follow his approach, you'll get what you want. In fact, you'll get it faster, you'll get it cheaper, you'll get it a little bit better, and you'll get it in greater quantities, you name it. Now, I want to go back to Ephesians 1. Ephesians 1, Paul has a good summary of these two conflicting ideas, what God has promised contrasted with what Satan is really offering. And I want to break into the thought of verse 3 of Ephesians 1.

Ephesians 1:3-6 It says, “Blessed be the God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ. Just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him. In love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasures of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He has made us accepted in the Beloved.”

Now, it goes on in the following verses. It says, "God has given us an inheritance, that He's working with each and every one of us. He has plans for us that are far greater than what we can comprehend, and He wants to share them with us. He wants us to be active participation in this plan." And this is what Satan disagrees with. This is what he's opposed to. Let's drop down to verse 17, still Ephesians 1, now, verse 17.

Ephesians 1:17-20 It says, “That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom, and revelation, and the knowledge of Him. The eyes of your understanding being enlightened, that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance and the saints. And what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us, who believe according to the working of His mighty power, which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places far above, all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that His name named not only in this age but also in that which is to come.”

Now, God has created a plan that all creation is subject to, and all created things fall well within His realm of control. And in the end, He wins. But that doesn't mean that Satan has accepted that, does it? Nor does it mean that he's given up on his path. In fact, we are sure that Satan will go down fighting till the very, very end. And it's in this thread to continue to chapter 2:1. In the thread that we just read.

Ephesians 2:1-3 “And you, He made alive.” Meaning all these glorious, wonderful things that we just discussed, all of God's plans, “He has made us alive and you He had made alive who were dead in trespasses and sin. In which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air," according to that master salesman selling snake oil by the gallon. "The spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lust of flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind. And were by nature children of wrath, just as the others."

The promises of God are true and eternal. Satan's product is a cheap knockoff, and it can't compare. One conclusion. I want to turn back to one capstone Scripture. It's a memory scripture for many. It's James 4:7. James 4:7. You can head back there.

James 4:7 Says, “Therefore submit to God, resist the devil and he will flee from you.”

Well, I think the question needs to be asked. Why will he flee from you? I mean, is Satan afraid of us? Can we hurt him in some way? Why would a being that's more powerful than us flee from these little human beings? And as we've read today, he certainly doesn't think he's weak. He's got plenty of supporters and he's effective at what he does. So, how could this possibly work?

Now, if we go back up in this chapter, we see all that's leading up to the Scripture, and Satan's tactics were successful. We've got war, we've got fights, we've got strife. Verse 2 says, “Coveting, lusts.” All of these things have Satan's fingerprints all over them. And in these cases, the people have bought what Satan is selling. The only effective antidote is verses 7 and 8. When Satan tries to ramp up his attacks, when he's really pushing his agenda, then we get to 7 and 8.

James 4:7-8 “Therefore, submit to God. Resist the Devil, and he will flee from you.” Why? Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Now, that is a promise that God will perform. “Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.”

There's a little more to it than just telling Satan to kind of go away. Stop bothering me. When you submit to God, you are putting a shield around those weak points that Satan likes to attack. When a burglar comes up against the house and he sees an alarm system, he sees a strong front door, he kind of hears a growling dog in the background. He's going to go somewhere else. And that's not because he's afraid of the house, but that he knows that he has easier targets to hit. It's not worth his time to go against a secured area because it has effective defenses that negate his tactics.

Now, of course, we're not going to be perfect, right? For sure, there's going to be plenty of times when he entices us and we're going to take the bait. That's going to happen. Absolutely there are going to be times when we prop open a desired door that should have been long since sealed shut, and Satan is going to worm his way right back in. But we're on to him, right? We understand his tactics. We've seen how he works with Adam and Eve, how he convinced even himself how he went after Jesus Christ. And, of course, we're very familiar with how he comes at us. We can also be pretty confident that he will continue to use some of these exact same tactics until he's finally put away for good.

Sometime in the future, after Jesus Christ returns to the earth, we will become spirit beings and we'll be given areas of responsibility and assignments. Some will have cities, it says. Maybe counties, maybe even we'll know a few people that have whole states. I'm hoping for just a couple of houses on a little cul de sac somewhere that'd be plenty for me. That's probably all I can handle, and I'd be fine with that. During this millennial time, you better believe we're going to go over this again and again and again. Because regardless of our areas of responsibility, whether we have a million people, 100 people, or one person, we know that Satan is going to pull out all of the tricks and the last-ditch effort to convince the world that his way is the right way.

And as we read, it's going to work. for a lot of people. It's going to be effective because he's been effective in the past and he will still be effective in the future. And unfortunately, some people, even after experiencing this wonderful millennium, this idilic world, sadly, some of these people will be tricked into buying a defective product from a sleazy dishonest salesman. But not on our watch, right? To the best of our abilities, let us learn the tips of the trade and develop the countermeasures to limit his effectiveness. Let us expose this flawed product and the lying salesmen for what they are. And then let us hold fast to God's way of life as a shield over our weaknesses.