“There are two equal and opposite errors into which our race can fall about the devils. One is to disbelieve in their existence….[R]emember that the devil is a liar” (IX of Screwtape Letters, C.S. Lewis)
In Challies’, The Discipline of Spiritual Discernment, he points to the evil White Witch in Narnia who “could make things look like they aren’t.” She is unable to create and relies on imitation. The winter in Narnia is a perversion of real winter, and the food she gives Edmund is a perversion of ordinary food. Narnia provides insight as to how evil functions in our world. The result is “a counterfeit, exactly like the real thing but a cheat. … Evil can only parody goodness, it cannot invent new forms of real beauty and joy. That is why in fairy tales you have to beware of attractive disguises—nice old crones selling apples in the forest, say, or angels of light” (Devin Brown, Inside Narnia). Satan cannot create, and because of this he is limited to counterfeiting what is already created. He twists and perverts what is meant to be true.
Satan can pervert anything that God has created. Lewis drives home this point in Letter 9 of Screwtape Letters as Screwtape advises his devil apprentice on how to lead humans astray:
“Never forget that when we (demons) are dealing with any pleasure in its healthy and normal and satisfying form, we are, in a sense, on the Enemy’s (God’s) ground. I know we have won many a soul through pleasure. All the same, it is His (God’s) invention, not ours. He (God) made the pleasures, yet all our research has not enabled us to produce even one. All we can do is to encourage humans to take the pleasures which our Enemy (God) has produced and indulge them in ways which He has forbidden. We always try to work away from the natural condition of any pleasure to that in which it is least natural, least mindful of its Maker, and least pleasurable. An ever-increasing craving for an ever-diminishing pleasure is the formula. It is more certain; and it’s better style.”
Satan is not stupid: he is subtle and crafty, and he knows our weaknesses; he and his army of fallen angels cause chaos and seek to lead us astray. We must be humble enough to recognize that we are in the midst of a spiritual battle (Ephesians 6:12) and use the armor of God (Ephesians 6:13) as our defense.
We have no business entertaining Satan, in any form he may take. Ghosts, Ouija Boards, and the like—why are we so ignorant that we fail to recognize that these are some of the most obvious devices of the devil? There is no such thing as a “good ghost” and nowhere does God tell us that he will speak through material objects. Simply put: if it doesn’t have a body, it is bad. On earth we have bodies that “are a temple of the Holy Spirit” (1 Cor. 6:19). And in heaven, we are promised new bodies that “bear the likeness of the Man from heaven” (1 Cor. 15: 49). The Bible never states that we will be body-less. Satan and his demons are wholly spirit; they have never had nor will ever be able to have a body. We will never be caught in limbo. “We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed – in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet.”(1 Cor. 15:51) If it is of God, it will have a body; if it doesn’t you have no business with it.
Do not entertain the devil. Satan is not stupid, and he is out to get you.
Oh Roshni! You have no idea how badly I need to hear that, battle-scarred that I am.
As the passage quoted above states, “there are TWO equal and opposite errors….” the continuation of which reads “the other is to believe and to feel an excessive and unhealthy interest in them. They themselves are equally pleased by both errors…”
I’m not suggesting closing your eyes to evil, but I wonder if feeling that “Satan is out to get you” might not lead to a “spirit of fear” and an unhealthy mindset. It has too often led to an unfortunate set of behaviors in Christians over the centuries…what is it about a once healthy vigilance and caution that shortly forgets God’s promises to “not leave or forsake” us? When does phobia become a prison which blinds us even to the love of God?
good stuff. thanks for writing. there was a lot of good in there, so i hesitate to bring this up… but i was with you ’til the last paragraph. everything was well reasoned until you started claiming things i’ve never seen in scripture:
“There is no such thing as a ‘good ghost’”
“Simply put: if it doesn’t have a body, it is bad.”
“Satan and his demons are wholly spirit; they have never had nor will ever be able to have a body.”
” If it is of God, it will have a body; if it doesn’t you have no business with it.”
i wouldn’t even mind all that much that you make these assumptions, but you:
- state them as if they are fact and founded in scripture, even surrounding them with scriptures (that say nothing of the sort).
- put them right in the middle of you saying things like “nowhere does God tell us that…” and “The Bible never states that…” you obviously see some value in being silent where the Bible is silent, but you don’t employ such with those ideas that would help you make your point.
i actually really enjoyed the article, was thinking it was one of the better articles i’ve read lately. it was just that last paragraph that got me. i just didn’t understand your reasoning for it, in the first place. is satan’s temptation for us to enjoy pleasures in distorted ways coming often these days in the form of ghosts and spirits without bodies? are ouija boards making a comeback? it seems the rest of your essay addressed the ways in which many (most) of us come in contact with the evil spiritual realm. i say evil, because i do believe there are beings without bodies who are not evil. i’d start with the Holy Ghost, just to name one.
Of course Satan is not stupid. Assuming for the sake of argument that Satan is a “he”, “he” is very much alive and operating through this blog.
JamesBrett, my intent was not to make my opinions sound like scripture. I was trying to say that Satan uses material things (like Ouija boards, idols, etc) to speak through, and we cannot be ignorant of this. There are many people who think that these things are just spoofs and are powerless (and yes, in the presence of God they are powerless), but Satan is out there using these things. I’m not saying that his temptation is for us to enjoy distorted pleasures; I am saying that sometimes we fail to recognize the devices Satan uses. Any by ghost, I mean the casper-like ghosts; I am not referring to the Holy Spirit- and I do not think that the Holy Spirit travels verbally advising people through the appearance of a body-like character. But you are correct; this is my opinion, and I apologize for making it sound like fact.
Michael, yes, I did not touch on the second point. I am not saying we should live in fear, but we should be vigilant, aware, and discerning. Just because you are vigilant does not imply that you have forgotten God’s promise to “not leave or forsake us.” Rather we should take comfort in this promise, and our vigilance should affirm our need for God’s protection. When you are aware of evil, you recognize that God is the only one who has authority over evil, and it is HIS power, not our own, that protects us. Without God, we are powerless .I am not suggesting phobia, I am suggesting that we arm ourselves (Eph. 6:13) with the tools God has given us.
One picture is worth thousands of words. I felt the design of the artist to convey his love for Jesus came through each picture really deeply. I appreciated the fact that the pictures and my love for Jesus caused me to wish to look deeper, even beyond the beauty of the pictures, and into the core of the artist.