IS THERE ANY HOPE FOR DELIVERANCE FROM SATAN?
After Adam & Eve sinned . . .
The Lord God said to [Satan who was in the form of] the serpent, "Because you have done this, …I will put hostility between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring. He will strike your head, and you will strike his heel."
Genesis 3:14-15 [Christian Standard Bible]
Who will strike Satan's head?
That will not become clear in the Bible for thousands of years.
But there was hope!
Think how significant this is!
God gives this ray of hope in the first pages of the 1000+ page Bible.
What did Adam & Eve deserve?
The wages of sin is death.
Romans 6:23
They deserved instant death.
Instead, what did God the Father do for them?
1. He said that they would have descendants.
To the woman he [God] said, "I will greatly increase your pains in childbearing; with pain you will give birth to children."
Genesis 3:16
In other words, he promised them a future! And with a future comes hope.
2. Then, even better, he promised them a descendant who would strike the head of their great enemy, Satan.
The Lord God said to the serpent, "…Her offspring…will strike your head."
Genesis 3:14-15
Christian Standard Bible
So from the very beginning God had already planned Satan's doom.
What does this tell us about God's intentions throughout the whole rest of the Bible?
God is love.
1 John 4:8
The whole Bible is the historical account of how God calls us back to himself.
But to do this, God must deliver us from Satan.
God's passion for us is . . .
". . . to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God . . .
Acts 26:18
". . . so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified [made clean] by faith in me."
Acts 26:18
Who is "me" in the last quote?
He is the one who would crush Satan's head.
But that would not happen for several thousand years after Adam and Eve sinned.
IN THE MEANTIME, GOD TOLD PEOPLE TO AVOID SLAVERY TO SATAN & SIN
The Lord said… "Keep all my decrees and all my laws and follow them. I am the Lord."
Leviticus 19:1, 37
[He said:] “Keep my decrees and laws, for the man who obeys them will live by them.”
Leviticus 18:5
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Complete and continuous submission to the Lord of heaven and earth:
• Keeps us from slavery to Satan and sin.
• Guarantees us eternal life.
But do we keep even the first commandment on God's list?
God spoke all these words: "…You shall have no other gods before me."
Exodus 20:1, 3
"You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God."
Exodus 20:1-5
To worship other gods is total rebellion against Creator God who made us.
What are other gods? What are idols?
[They are] made by man's design and skill.
Acts 17:29
So . . .
We know that an idol is nothing at all in the world and that there is no God but one.
1 Corinthians 8:4
If an idol is nothing more than a piece of stone, wood or metal, what is the big problem?
It may be silly to pray to a piece of stone, wood or metal – it may be silly to pray to something made by a person –
but why is it a major spiritual problem?
Why is it a big sin?
Do I mean…that an idol is anything? No, but the sacrifices of pagans [people who don't submit to Creator God] are offered to demons, not to God, and I do not want you to be participants with demons.
I Corinthians 10:19-20
To worship other gods is actually to be involved with demons.
So Creator God said to Israel . . .
"When you enter the land the Lord your God is giving you, do not learn to imitate the detestable ways of the nations there. Let no one be found among you who sacrifices his son or daughter in the fire, who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead. Anyone who does these things is detestable to the Lord, and because of these detestable practices the Lord your God will drive out those nations before you. You must be blameless before the Lord your God."
Deuteronomy 18:9-13
So have nothing to do with Satan, demons or people who rely on Satan.
Think what a great rebellion it is against Creator God to be involved with Satan and his demons on any level.
Are we trying to arouse the Lord's jealousy?
I Corinthians 10:22
God feels deeply about us.
He is very emotional about how we respond to him.
This shows that Creator God's love for us is deep and genuine.
Are we stronger than he?
I Corinthians 10:22
Are you not afraid to offend the Creator of heaven and the earth – and of you?
DID ADAM & EVE'S DESCENDANTS AVOID SATAN & SIN?
Adam & Eve had 2 sons.
Eve...became pregnant and gave birth to Cain. …Later she gave birth to his brother Abel.
Genesis 4:1-2
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One day, Cain tried to approach God.
Now…Cain worked the soil [which God had cursed]. …Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the Lord. …But on [1] Cain and [2] his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast.
Genesis 4:4
1. Cain, himself, was rejected.
2. God also rejected what Cain offered to God –
Cain had worked hard to offer this to God.
SO GOD GAVE CAIN OPTION #1.
In order to keep Cain free from slavery to sin and Satan . . .
The Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? If you do what is right will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at the door; it desires to have you, but you must master it.”
Genesis 4:7
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This is a very simple, obvious, common-sense solution!
• "Do what is right."
• "Master" sin.
This is Option #1 for defeating Satan and sin:
Do not sin!
What is the danger of sinning?
Sin…desires to have you.
Genesis 4:7
So . . .
Everyone who sins is a slave to sin.
John 8:35
For a man is a slave to whatever has mastered him.
2 Peter 2:19
And what is the final result?
You will die in your sin.
John 8:21
Who we belong to makes all the difference.
He who belongs to God hears what God says. The reason you do not hear is that you do not belong to God.
John 8:47
You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father's desire.
John 8:44
There are 2 reasons Cain experienced the shame of rejection:
1. Do not be like Cain, who belonged to the Evil One [Satan].
I John 3:12
2. [Cain's] actions were evil.
I John 3:12
At the beginning, man experienced the glory of being made in God's image.
But Cain fell into bondage to Satan.
If that is true, how does Option #1 make us free?
To be free from slavery to sin and Satan, God told Cain:
• "Do what is right."
• "Master" sin.
But, if we don't do that, we are under Satan's control
He who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning.
1 John 3:8
What about Abel, Cain's brother?
Now Abel kept flocks. ...Abel brought fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The Lord looked with favor on [1] Abel and [2] his offering.
Genesis 4:2, 4
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Why did God accept Abel?
This is a very important question.
We will find out this important answer later.
Then what did Cain do?
Cain said to his brother Abel, "Let's go out to the field?" And while they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him.
Genesis 4:8
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Why did Cain do it?
Cain…belonged to the Evil One [Satan].
1 John 3:12
And why did he murder him? Because his own actions were evil and his brother's were righteous [good].
1 John 3:12
But we might think: I don't murder.
It is not primarily what we do that shows who we belong to – it is shown by our hearts.
Man looks at the outward appearance, but God looks on the heart.
1 Samuel 16:7
It is the condition of our hearts that matters most.
We should love one another. …Anyone who does not love remains in [spiritual] death. Anyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life in him.
1 John 3:11, 14-15
Hate and murder come from the same heart – from a heart that belongs to Satan.
Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.
1 John 4:8
What was the consequence of Cain's sin?
The Lord said to Cain, "…Now you are cursed from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother's blood. …When you work the ground, it will no longer yield its crops for you…"
Genesis 4:9, 11 New American Standard
Genesis 4:12 New International Version
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1. Cain was taken captive by a curse.
2. He lost his way of making a living.
The Lord said to Cain, "…You will be a restless wanderer on the earth."
Genesis 4:12
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3. Cain could find no peace within himself.
4. He could find no permanent home.
Cain said to the Lord, "…I will be hidden from your presence …"
Genesis 4:13, 14
5. Cain was separated from God the Father.
Cain said to the Lord, "…whoever finds me will kill me."
Genesis 4:14
6. And he was separated from people.
He certainly deserved to die immediately – just as he feared.
Did God give Cain what he deserved?
But the Lord said to him, "Not so; if anyone kills Cain, he will suffer vengeance seven times over." Then God put a mark on Cain so that no one who found him would kill him."
Genesis 4:15
God was very gracious to Cain.
God did not give Cain what he immediately deserved.
Question:
Do you want to instantly get what you deserve for rejecting Creator God and relying on Satan and his power?
Or do you want God's mercy?
DID THE PEOPLE AFTER CAIN FOLLOW OPTION #1?
Did they "do what is right?"
Did they "master" sin?
Some centuries after Cain, Option #1 had already become a failure.
The Lord saw how great man's wickedness on the earth had become.
Genesis 6:5
How did man's rebellion make Creator God feel?
The Lord was grieved that he had made man on the earth, and his heart was filled with pain.
Genesis 6:6
Question:
How do you feel when people you love betray you?
If you have deep feelings, don't you think that the Heavenly Father has far deeper feelings?
God had waited centuries for them to repent.
He waited centuries for them to "master sin" and "do what is right."
The Lord…is patient…, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.
2 Peter 3:9
But, finally, what did God decide to do?
God decided to start over with Noah.
So the Lord said, "I will wipe mankind, whom I have created, from the face of the earth … for I am grieved that I have made them."
Genesis 6:7
But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord.
Genesis 6:8
Why did God accept Noah?
This is a very important question.
We will find out the answer to this question later.
What happened to all mankind? And what about Noah?
Noah and his sons, …together with his wife and the wives of his three sons, entered the ark. …For forty days the flood kept coming on the earth. …The waters rose and covered the mountains… Every living thing on the face of the earth was wiped out. …Only Noah was left, and those with him in the ark.
Genesis 7:13, 17, 20, 23
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DID THIS GREAT PUNISHMENT CHANGE MAN'S HEART?
No!
That is why, right after the Flood, Creator God said about man:
Every inclination of his heart is evil from childhood.
Genesis 8:21
Nothing had changed!
People did not have the basic desire to "do what was right" and "master sin."
There is no one righteous [good], not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. All have turned away.
Romans 3:10-12
People did not follow God's simple, obvious, common-sense solution!
They did not follow Option #1:
• They did not "do what is right."
• They did not "master" sin.
So, to save us, God needed to do something greater about our rebellion and sin.
This happened centuries later.
CREATOR GOD GREATLY EXPANDED OPTION #1