It breaks my heart to have to post this from time to time. But, when I hear Christians talking with a "BIG Devil theology" I feel the need to speak up. Here are some past blog posts on the topic.
Random Devil Thoughts
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 17, 2008
random
devil thoughts
A few random devil thoughts today. Does your talk about
the devil accurately depict his level in creation or have you made him an equal
with God? The devil is a created being, he was Lucifer, an arch angel. If you
must compare him to someone, he is an equal to Michael and Gabriel, other
archangels.
The devil is not everywhere. This is not Biblical theology. God is, and only
God is omni-present. To speak of the devil as if he is an equal with God is not
only not true, but what we end up doing is spending our time glorifying evil
instead of glorifying God.
If you are depressed, it is probably not because you are being oppressed by the
devil. Humans get depressed sometimes. If your home really has demons in it,
you could not live there. It would be like the Amityville Horror.
We get into the habit of speaking of evil in ways that are not Biblical. The
result is that we spend too much time fighting enemies imagined instead of
glorifying God. Is your home a place where God is King and Jesus is Lord, or is
your home a place where the devil and his helpers reside. You must decide what
you believe.
I will probably write more about this in the days to come. Your comments and
questions are welcome of course. I just wanted to get you started thinking
today about whose world it is. It is God's world, we are his children and the
sheep of his pasture. Lets not cower in darkness, but let us live in the light
of his glory and presence.
It is God's world, and it is a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the
good.
POSTED BY PASTOR JEFF BRINKMAN AT 8:58 AM
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 27, 2014
the
devil
I have to bring this up
from time to time. Some people talk like the devil [little d devil] is
the opposite of God.
What ever we think about the devil, he is not the opposite of
God. He is a created being. He has a beginning. He is not
eternal. He was an archangel just like Michael and Gabriel.
What do we think about Gabriel? Do we think Gabriel knows
everything? Do we think he is everywhere all at the same time? No
we don't. We think he is an angel. So is the devil, he is a fallen
angel. He can't be at everyone's house, tempting all of us at the same
time. We are usually tempted by our own lusts and we need to take
responsibility for that and stop blaming a big D Devil. Some people just
like to have someone else to blame.
We have to decide whether we live in a world dominated by an evil spirit or
whether we live in a world that still belongs to God. Let's stop talking
about angels, good or evil, and focus on God. As for me, this is my
Father's world!! The fight with the devil was won on the cross. We
have the right and the opportunity now to live our lives focused on God and his
love.
It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.
POSTED BY PASTOR JEFF BRINKMAN AT 5:30 AM
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 6, 2018
The
devil has a plan
I was talking to a friend the other day and they told me
that God had a plan for everyone and so did the devil.
Let's think about that for a moment.
God can have a plan for us because God is infinite, all knowing and all
present.
The devil has a plan for us?
That implies that the devil who is a finite created being somehow knows every
single person on the earth. And boom, we have made him the opposite of
God.
It sounds interesting to say that the devil has a plan, but there is no way
that a limited creation of God can know and have a plan for everyone in the
world.
We have made the devil way too big.
Whatever he is, he is not the opposite of God.
God has a plan. Bank on that.
It's a beautiful day in God's world be sure to see the good.
Send replies to jsbrink57@gmail.com
- - - - - - - - -
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 17, 2010
A
Christian Theology of evil
I may have posted this before, but it comes up so often I
feel the need to get it out there again..........
A Christian Theology of Evil
An Outline
The basics.
Many Christians speak of God and speak of the devil but do not know who they
are. They act as if we live in a dualistic world where two equal powers
struggle for control. No question, there is struggle in the world, and there is
sin and evil in the world, but God and Satan are not opposites.
Qualities of God:
All Knowing, All Present, All Powerful, Eternal
Qualities of Satan [the devil] and demons
Not all knowing, not all present, not all powerful, created.
What does this mean?
This means that God is in control. Remember Satan is a created being, an angel
that fell from heaven. He is not from the beginning, God is. He is not
everywhere in the world….God is. Satan is probably not at your house, he is
probably working on Ussama Ben Laden. He cannot be in both places at the same
time.
Prov 16:4 The LORD hath made all things for himself: yea, even the wicked for
the day of evil.
Isa 45:7 I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil:
I the LORD do all these things.
Jn 1:3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that
was made.
Col 1:16 For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are
in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or
principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him:
Only God deserves the attributes of a god. Satan is not equal to God and he is
not the opposite of God. God made him and has allowed him to do his work for a
short time. He does not deserve the attention that God does. He is operating in
this world for a short time and will receive judgment in the end..
Gen 3:14-15 And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done
this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field;
upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life:
And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her
seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.
Isa 14:12-15 How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning!
how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou
hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne
above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in
the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will
be like the most High. Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of
the pit.
2 Pet 2:4 For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to
hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment;
Jude 1:6 And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own
habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the
judgment of the great day.
The limited created evil beings in the world are fighting a losing battle
against the almighty power of God that works in the world through the Holy
Spirit and those who call upon the name of the Lord.
Being led by the Holy Spirit and being possessed or oppressed by demons.
How does one become a Christian?
You choose to ask Jesus to come in.
How does one become possessed or oppressed by evil?
You choose to ask it to come in.
What does this mean?
It means that evil cannot come in and control you without you having opened the
door. He/they cannot just sneak up on you and suddenly inhabit your life. You
let in Jesus if you want to and you let in demons if you want to. Let me be
clear, there is not room in the soul of a Christian for the Holy Spirit and
demons. If you have accepted Jesus, you are infilled with the Holy Spirit. You
cannot then be filled with the demonic. One or the other, never both.
Psa 91:9-11 Because thou hast made the LORD, which is my refuge, even the most
High, thy habitation; There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague
come nigh thy dwelling. For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep
thee in all thy ways.
1 John 5:18 We know that whosoever is born of God sinneth not; but he that is
begotten of God keepeth himself, and that wicked one toucheth him not.
Mat 16:18 And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I
will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
So is the devil real?
Yes the devil is real, but he is not the opposite of God. See above
description. People can be possessed by him or by his demons. These are
horribly frightening people. If you have ever met someone who was in such a
state it would make a tremendous impression on you. Many people will live their
entire lives and never see or meet someone who is possessed. Believe me, you
don’t want to meet such people.
Mark 5:1-20
1They went across the lake to the region of the Gerasenes.[a] 2When Jesus got
out of the boat, a man with an evil[b] spirit came from the tombs to meet him.
3This man lived in the tombs, and no one could bind him any more, not even with
a chain. 4For he had often been chained hand and foot, but he tore the chains
apart and broke the irons on his feet. No one was strong enough to subdue him.
5Night and day among the tombs and in the hills he would cry out and cut
himself with stones. 6When he saw Jesus from a distance, he ran and fell on his
knees in front of him. 7He shouted at the top of his voice, “What do you want
with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? Swear to God that you won’t torture
me!” 8For Jesus had said to him, “Come out of this man, you evil spirit!” 9Then
Jesus asked him, “What is your name?” “My name is Legion,” he replied, “for we
are many.” 10And he begged Jesus again and again not to send them out of the
area. 11A large herd of pigs was feeding on the nearby hillside. 12The demons
begged Jesus, “Send us among the pigs; allow us to go into them.” 13He gave
them permission, and the evil spirits came out and went into the pigs. The
herd, about two thousand in number, rushed down the steep bank into the lake
and were drowned. 14Those tending the pigs ran off and reported this in the
town and countryside, and the people went out to see what had happened. 15When
they came to Jesus, they saw the man who had been possessed by the legion of
demons, sitting there, dressed and in his right mind; and they were afraid.
16Those who had seen it told the people what had happened to the demon
possessed man–and told about the pigs as well. 17Then the people began to plead
with Jesus to leave their region. 18As Jesus was getting into the boat, the man
who had been demon possessed begged to go with him. 19Jesus did not let him,
but said, “Go home to your family and tell them how much the Lord has done for
you, and how he has had mercy on you.” 20So the man went away and began to tell
in the Decapolis[c]how much Jesus had done for him. And all the people were
amazed.
Are there other sources of evil? Yes! Other sources of evil include: other
people, yourself, and the world.
• People can choose to do evil things. They are responsible for their choices
and usually they are not possessed when they choose evil. The human spirit is
capable of evil choices without the benefit of or help of the demonic.
• Flip Wilson used to say “the devil made me do it.” He was wrong. He chose to
do evil himself. All of us make bad choices and choose to do evil things. That
is what sin is. It doesn’t mean that you are demon possessed. It means that you
are human.
• The world has evil in it. Tornadoes, Hurricanes, earthquakes, disease. These
things are common to human existence and are not the work of demons or the
vengeful acts of God. The rain falls on the just and the unjust. The flu is the
flu and a cold is a cold. It is not the oppression of the devil.
Does our language and our prayer life glorify God or Satan?
This is the real question.
CS Lewis once said that “the best thing that the Devil can do is to convince
the world that he doesn’t exist.” Probably the second best thing for the Devil
to do would be to get us to overemphasize his role or involvement in our lives,
bringing him glory instead of God.
As believers we are called to lift up the name of Jesus and bring people to
him. Most Christians will never see a demon possessed person in their life and
would not necessary be prepared to deal with it if they did.
When our prayers refer to Jesus, he is lifted up. When our prayers refer to the
devil and evil, they are exalted and fear is injected into the believers
thought process.
If you are trusting in Jesus, you don’t have to be afraid of such evil. You are
walking with the King. Many Christians unintentionally glorify Satan by
including him in all of their prayers and daily chatter and banter. You can do
that if you wish. Talking about evil fills people with worry. Talking about
Jesus fills people with joy. I want to choose to lift up the name of Jesus.
What about you?
It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.
POSTED BY PASTOR JEFF BRINKMAN AT 7:04 AM
