Confronting the Enemy in God's StrengthSample

Denying Dualism

The Devil-as-myth view is Satan's right-hand punch. If that one doesn't get you, then watch out for his left hook. The left-hand attack moves the disinformation to the opposite extreme. If Satan can't get you to ignore him by denying his very existence, he will cunningly lead you to attribute power to him far beyond what he actually possesses. He will seek to persuade you that he is virtually equal to God.

Dualism, as a philosophy and a religion, has vied with Christianity from the beginning. Dualism affirms that the universe is the staging area, the combat zone, for two equal and opposite beings who struggle with each other eternally.

Satan is falsely described in terms of omniscience, omnipresence, and the power to do actual, not merely counterfeit, miracles. He is given attributes orthodox Christianity labels as the incommunicable attributes of God and he is assigned power over nature that rivals the Creator's.

The Bible teaches that Satan is a finite spiritual being. He is temporal and created. In a word, he is a creature. He is more powerful that we, but he is not omnipotent. He is not immutable, as God is. Indeed, Satan's mutability is profound. His most obvious mutation is his fall. He was created a good angel. He fell from his original righteousness and is now totally malevolent.

Coram deo: Living before the face of God

Have you been attributing power to Satan beyond what the Bible indicates he possesses?