There's a Satan in the Old Testament but he does God's bidding.
There's a devil in the New Testament but we know nothing about him other than he causes trouble.
There's Ezekiel and Isaiah that the bible literalists draw allegorical connections to the morning star translated as Lucifer (which is what Jesus calls himself in Revelations.)
Both are talking about human kings and kingdoms.
Who is this international evil mystery that causes me to do bad things?
2007-10-23 02:44:26 · 12 answers · asked by Emperor Insania Says Bye! 5 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
Disdain for God? No... Disdain for false doctrines and theologies, yes.
2007-10-23 03:08:33 · update #1
Some of what people think about this fictional being comes from the demonization of the God Pan.
http://www.mc.maricopa.edu/~tomshoemaker/StudentPapers/pan.html
2007-10-23 04:29:46 · answer #1 · answered by Raven's Voice 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The Christian God isn't a forgiving god until you supply his clergymen and pastors a great number of money and the place in Hell would Lucifer get money to pay of the tele and radio evangelists that make money off Lucifer as a risk.
2016-11-09 06:55:52 · answer #2 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Check out The Screwtape Letters by CS Lewis (yes, the Narnia guy). Though I recommend them to everyone, they are written by Christian for Christians.
By turning the story of temptation on its ear (telling it from the demon's perspective), he points out the dangers of blaming temptation and weakness on an outside source instead of recognizing that they are part of the human condition.
2007-10-23 04:34:39 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
Lucifer was an angel who wanted to be above God. He was kicked out of Heaven for his PRIDE, this being an abomination. Read all, understand all.
2007-10-23 02:54:37 · answer #4 · answered by rikirailrd 4 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Lucifer was a creation of man, just as god was.
2007-10-23 02:47:56 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 2⤋
Dr Evil!
2007-10-23 02:53:36 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 2⤋
Annnnnnd....Let's bow to the Emperor's wisdom, for he speaks, as always, with that commodity we rarely find on R&S: intelligence.
2007-10-23 02:54:02 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 5⤊ 1⤋
All inventions come from mans mind.
2007-10-23 02:49:55 · answer #8 · answered by Birdy is my real name 6 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Satan the Devil: The spirit creature who is the chief adversary of Jehovah God and of all who worship the true God. The name Satan was given to him because of his becoming a resister of Jehovah. Satan is also known as the Devil, because he is the foremost slanderer of God. Satan is described as the original serpent, evidently because of his using a serpent in Eden to deceive Eve, and for this reason “serpent” came to signify “deceiver.” In the book of Revelation, the symbolism of a devouring dragon is also applied to Satan.
How can we know whether such a spirit person really exists?
The Bible is the chief source of evidence. There he is repeatedly referred to by name (Satan 52 times, Devil 33 times). Eyewitness testimony as to Satan’s existence is also recorded there. Who was the eyewitness? Jesus Christ, who lived in heaven before coming to earth, repeatedly spoke of that wicked one by name.—Luke 22:31; 10:18; Matt. 25:41.
What the Bible says about Satan the Devil makes sense. The evil that mankind experiences is far out of proportion to the malice of the humans involved. The Bible’s explanation of Satan’s origin and his activities makes clear why, despite the desire of the majority to live in peace, mankind has been plagued with hatred, violence, and war for thousands of years and why this has reached such a level that it now threatens to destroy all mankind.
If there really were no Devil, accepting what the Bible says about him would not bring lasting benefits to a person. In many instances, however, persons who formerly dabbled in the occult or who belonged to groups practicing spiritism report that they were at that time greatly distressed because of hearing “voices” from unseen sources, being “possessed” by superhuman beings, etc. Genuine relief was gained when they learned what the Bible says about Satan and his demons, applied the Bible’s counsel to shun spiritistic practices, and sought Jehovah’s help in prayer.
Believing that Satan exists does not mean accepting the idea that he has horns, a pointed tail, and a pitchfork and that he roasts people in a fiery hell. The Bible gives no such description of Satan. That is the product of the minds of medieval artists who were influenced by representations of the mythological Greek god Pan and by the Inferno written by the Italian poet Dante Alighieri. Instead of teaching a fiery hell, the Bible clearly says that “the dead . . . are conscious of nothing at all.”—Eccl. 9:5.
Is Satan perhaps only the evil within people?
Job 1:6-12 and 2:1-7 tell about conversations between Jehovah God and Satan. If Satan were the evil in a person, the evil in this case would have to be in Jehovah. But that is in complete disagreement with what the Bible tells us about Jehovah as being One “in whom there is no unrighteousness.” (Ps. 92:15; Rev. 4:8) It is noteworthy that the Hebrew text uses the expression has·Sa·tan′ (the Satan) in the accounts in Job, showing that reference is being made to the one who is outstandingly the resister of God.—See also Zechariah 3:1, 2, footnote in NW Reference edition.
Luke 4:1-13 reports that the Devil endeavored to tempt Jesus to do his bidding. The account relates statements made by the Devil and answers given by Jesus. Was Jesus there being tempted by evil within himself? Such a view does not harmonize with the Bible’s description of Jesus as being sinless. (Heb. 7:26; 1 Pet. 2:22) Although at John 6:70 the Greek word di·a′bo·los′ is used to describe a bad quality that had developed in Judas Iscariot, in Luke 4:3 the expression ho di·a′bo·los (the Devil) is used, thus designating a particular person.
Is blaming the Devil just a device used in an effort to escape from responsibility for bad conditions?
Some people blame the Devil for what they themselves do. In contrast, the Bible shows that humans often bear much of the blame for the badness they experience, whether at the hands of other humans or as a result of their own conduct. (Eccl. 8:9; Gal. 6:7) Yet, the Bible does not leave us ignorant of the existence and devices of the superhuman foe who has brought so much grief to mankind. It shows how we can get out from under his control.
From where did Satan come?
All of Jehovah’s works are perfect; he is not the author of unrighteousness; so he did not create anyone wicked. (Deut. 32:4; Ps. 5:4) The one who became Satan was originally a perfect spirit son of God. When saying that the Devil “did not stand fast in the truth,” Jesus indicated that at one time that one was “in the truth.” (John 8:44) But, as is true of all of God’s intelligent creatures, this spirit son was endowed with free will. He abused his freedom of choice, allowed feelings of self-importance to develop in his heart, began to crave worship that belonged only to God, and so enticed Adam and Eve to listen to him rather than obey God. Thus by his course of action he made himself Satan, which means “adversary.”—Jas. 1:14, 15;
2007-10-23 03:22:30 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
Well put...Satan is nothing more than a symbol for human urges that religious establishments don't want us to have. It lessens their controll if we indulge ourselves and actually begin to enjoy life.
2007-10-23 02:49:38 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 4⤋