Evil had a beginning. It was the model of perfection, it was full of wisdom, it was beautiful, it was anointed, it was blameless, and it was a guardian. All of this describes the one created being who thought his attributes were equal to God. The unrighteousness of pride corrupted all his good characteristics, and made them sinister and dark. Going from being a guardian of beauty, to a thief, a liar, and a deceiver, was how evil was born.
The Scriptures teach us that Satan never forgot his earlier character in heaven, because he can transform into an angel of light. Evil can then look good, appear good, and say all the right words to use good in furthering evil in our world. No wonder good becomes evil, and evil becomes good. Have you thought about evil lately? I suppose it’s not good to dwell upon, but here are ten characteristics:
1. Never forgives.
2. Always aggressive, never neutral.
3. Creates confusion.
4. Always lies.
5. Always destructive, and deceptive.
6. Always questions truth.
7. Promotes pride and narcissism.
8. It is both light and darkness.
9. Hides its agenda.
10. Always betrays.
Evil is packaged today in subtle ways, and makes its introduction as being innocent and non-threatening. The main objective of evil is to be accepted in our world as normal. Evil is greatly enhanced when it can be accepted by what is known in our culture as good. For example, using a traditional idea but co-opting it with a hidden agenda. Don’t be fooled by darkness that appears as light … this is where evil gets a foothold in our society. Evil is not a great theme to talk about because we see it every night on the news, read about it on the Internet, watch it on television, and see it lived out in our cities and neighborhoods. However, we need to discern when evil is knocking at our door. We need to identify evil, so when it presents itself as normal as an everyday practice or promotion, we can prepare to resist it. James tells us that we can defeat evil by resisting it by submitting to God:
James 4:7 Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
Let’s face it, Jesus acknowledged Satan’s control of this world when He said:
John 14:30 I don’t have much more time to talk to you, because the ruler of this world approaches. He has no power over me.
Evil is ruling the minds and hearts of people in this world, and that is what Jesus was referring to by calling Satan the ruler of this world.
1 John 3:8 But when people keep on sinning, it shows that they belong to the devil, who has been sinning since the beginning. But the Son of God came to destroy the works of the devil.
I have begun to use the word evil to describe both the acts and the actor of this pervasive movement among God’s creation. Satan was at the beginning when he used the words, “You could be like God,” as he tempted Eve to disobey God and allow sin into humanity. It so happens that he continues to use that line of temptation to the women in our day, “You are the god of your body,” inferring that God has no longer a right to His creation. Evil says, “It is your right, it is your health prerogative to abort.” Evil’s objective is to divide and separate. Every cult that I am aware of uses the same tactic of keeping their converts in their control by telling them they must separate from all family and friends. This is classic evil maneuvering itself … evil works best in covert secrecy; darkness, and grows best in the dark. This is another reason that confession is so healthy and healing for all of us. Confession takes what was done in the darkness of secrecy and exposes it to the light. Evil is defeated every time we make confession to sinful acts and deeds.
In the end, all evil will be punished forever.
Revelation 20:10 And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.
Punishment forever may seem a little over the top, but this is what God deems necessary to keep evil from ever being a threat to His Kingdom again.
Evil keeps people in bondage … Christ frees them forever. Evil has an agenda to kill, rob, and destroy … Christ’s agenda is to give us everlasting life with God. It always comes down to a choice … it is our choice as to whom we will serve.
Challenging the Culture with Truth … Larry Kutzler