How much power does Satan really have?

Question

I've heard many times that all the evil in the world is because of Satan and the Fall. But the world is, by and large, a harsh place. Is everything someone would consider bad, or even non-ideal, the work of Satan?

Do you think the devil suddenly made animals carnivorous,

allowed fire to be able to spread uncontrollably,

opened the earth to blows from asteroids,

introduced defective genes that caused mental retardation,

removed resistance to harsh radiation,

tweaked bacteria so it can adapt and resist antibiotics,
...and this is all just the tip of the iceberg.

Or was it just sin in general, and not specifically the devil? If so, how did "sin" get this magic ability? Wouldn't it have to have been god that gave sin this power, since, supposedly, nothing exists that god didn't create?

Or did god create a harsh world, and then just remove his protection as a punishment for Adam and Eve sinning? Doesn't that make him both capricious, and outright unfair?

Wow, this is unreal. Do believers truly not have an answer for this? All I've seen so far is that sin is some kind of mystical force, and some even implying that it is outside of god's control.

I don't want to be a jerk, but so far all of the answers by believers are just mindless recitations of Christian tag lines that don't explain a thing.

Seriously. Someone finish this sentence:

"The world is physically imperfect, in a way that it wasn't originally, because it was changed by..."

Answer 1

This whole thing with thinking of this world as punishment is a huge waste of life. Satan or no Satan. Yes, to your question. It does make this entity both capricious and unfair. What is worse, a rather large body of people don't seem to think so and feel it's their job to have more people overlook their life and concentrate on what comes after death. So, NO ONE is to take responsibility for what happens here.

Or for WHO they are. My husband of 17 years actually surprised me yesterday. He admitted after reading something one of you wrote and had to leave because he found himself offended.

He has alittle Christian in him, he says. OH REALLY? Pre-marital sex, drinking and recreational drugs are part of the Catholic religion? HE has never actively embraced his religion in the entire time that I've known him. Never found the need to even talk about it, and he's worried about his afterlife? YEP, I saw this man shy away from even questioning this entity. Something I'm finally taking the time to do myself. Right here and right now. I've given a major portion of my life over to this religion, and that gives me the right to question it.

Right in front of Christians. Here's how it looks to me. It looks to me that the Christian religion is actually in existence to SAVE humanity from this godhead.


But no one questions what they would rather ignore out of FEAR. Lets just love this judgemental, obnoxious, selfish god. The worst of our human traits. One wonders at the incongruity of that as well. One wonders at the sin of knowledge and wanting to expand beyond previous knowledge.

The sin of Satan? To be better than God? My children are more improved than me and I applaud that. For I shall die, and I leave you with these people. They have many gifts, talents and I look for all the opportunities that I can for them to develop them further. IF Satan came here after a response like the one God gave, I bet it was a CHOICE, and what does this snake in the grass tell us to do? He tells us to embrace knowledge.

This is pure evil?

Not to me.

Of course, I'm left to reason it out. And I don't have the threat of eternal death in the pits of hell to keep me in check. Which is exactly how Christianity looks to anyone outside of it. YOu think it's you yourselves that are being criticized. Perhaps to some. For others, you being asked to think. THIS question is asking you to think, not what you have learned verbatim.

How does that affect me? Because this god has to much power over humanity, imagined or not and no action that this entity has made constitutes this loyalty. IT's simply not for our own good, and Jesus didn't think so either. Or he wouldn't need to step in and be a savior.

SIN OF KNOWLEDGE OF GOOD AND EVIL? THat's what we're dieing for?

That's what my husband has on the back burner while he lives his life as he sees fit?

If you see god differently, and have imagined a god with more grace it's because that's what is in you.

Answer 2

I think that nature suffered as greatly as the human race did when we fell from grace because of Adams disobediance, and not just sin but all manner of negativity entered the world, Satan cannot create nor can he introduce into creation anything that has life no matter how primitive it is.
Also he does not possess the Angelic powers that he once did,these have been severly restricted by his rebellion and he just loves people to believe that he is so powerful and unstoppable.
The perfect order that was creation has become imperfect becuase of open rebellion to God and by deliberate sin, Adam and Eve would not have known pain or hunger or any of the negative feelings that we experience if they had remained loyal to God and neither would we, now Christ did not come to restore the imperfection of nature but to enable mankind to once more connect to God and have the promise of eternal happiness in the new creation which will come one day.

Answer 3

He has as much power in the real world as Harry Potter and other fictional characters.

He has the power to sell books, mostly for the Christians, and to fill Christian Pews.

Without Satan, where would the Christians be today?

He's their best recruitment tactic. Look at the Iranian Clerics with their rants about "The Great Satan". Where would they be if everyone just laughed at nonsense like that?

Besides, it means you have to believe in a story with a talking snake.

It's unbelievable how simple some people can be. Listen to the people on this board talking about it like it's real. They're as deluded as the Ayatollah.

Answer 4

Satan can only do what God allows him to do. God has complete control over all demons and over satan as well.

Why does God permit Satan to exist and have so much power? Is God unable to destroy Satan? No, God could do it, but Satan is permitted to operate for certain reasons. Firstly, so there could be a choice - people must choose to worship God now - there is an alternative. Secondly, Satan and his kingdom exists to ensure that people reap what they sow. Thirdly, Satan is permitted to operate while God gives mankind time to repent. For God could not forcibly remove evil from the Universe justly unless He also destroyed sinners at the same time. God instead is holding back his wrath, giving men time to turn to Him.

Answer 5

The only power that Satan has is to tempt man to rebel against God/to sin. It is man by his/her own selfish, self centered, greedy pursuits that yields to the devils promptings just as Adam and Eve did in the garden. God did not create sin or evil but when Satan rebelled against God and was throne out of heaven God created a place for him and the fallen angels to spend eternity...hell. Hell was not created for man. God's intention was that man would obey his commands, God would provide everything that man needed to survive, and man would live forever in splendid bliss. But what happened to Adam is what happens to people around the world every day. He and Eve wanted something that they knew they couldn't have. Here they are in a place of plenty having no need of anything and all the animals were docile and under their direct command but the tree of knowledge stood glistening in the middle of the garden and to make it worse Satan took the form of a serpent and talked Eve into eating the fruit. But it was Eve who then talked Adam into eating it also. Notice how the fall of man didn't occur until Adam ate the fruit. The reason is because all of the earth was given to Adam to care for and to oversee and that included the woman. He traded in his headship for the promptings of the gift/woman that God gave him, which was to disobey God in an attempt to get the woman's approval. This theme continues to play itself out in the worldly pursuits of both men and women everywhere, which is why sin and evil is still rampant in the world. Satan hates God and wants to show Him up. What better way than to plague man with all these afflictions and temptations and perpetuate the cycle of sin in the earth? We are pawns in the devil sick game and we play into it every time we sin or don't believe in God. But God is so very wise. He sent Jesus to die on the cross, to shed his blood as the perfect payment/sacrifice for all the sins of the world. Satan is defeated but man doesn't know that all the sin he/she commits has been washed and forgiven by God. The only thing Satan has now is to make life so unbearable for human beings that they turn their backs on God and refuse to believe in His perfect solution to sin.

Answer 6

Nun... !

actually, satan / hell was created by christianity - so shall they go there, to burn in their hell.

Here's the Solution for christianity and religion:

Create a private, personal, direct, divine Relationship with Our Creator and save your Soul from religion.

Love and Believe in Our Creator;
Love and Believe in Yourself.

Only with Our Creator's Love and Peace will we be Truly Free!

Answer 7

to be like god adam had to know good from evil. Satan played his part unwittingly and became more miserable when he realised he had put in a chain of events that would eventually leave him powerless. However in the meantime he has as much power as we give our hearts to him. As far as the laws of nature are controlled by God and they comply to his will and the bounds he set them

Answer 8

Satan only has power if you give him power, if you say no & believe in only one God then he is powerless.

For everytime you do good & pray to God , Satan becomes less powerful in your life.

Prayer & faith will always put you the right path.

Answer 9

God and Satan are equal in power.

Zero is still zero.

Answer 10

he has a weak power although he can take over you if you let him, don't be fooled, he sits behind waiting for you to fall....but if you were smart you would want to fly, into Gods hands!