Why did God give the enemy power to tempt us and possess people?

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mystdancer50

Senior Member
Feb 26, 2012
2,522
50
48
#21
1 Thessalonians 2:9 The coming [of the lawless one, the antichrist] is through the activity and working of Satan and will be attended by great power and with all sorts of [pretended] miracles and signs and delusive marvels—[all of them] lying wonders—
10 And by unlimited seduction to evil and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing (going to perdition) because they did not welcome the Truth but refused to love it that they might be saved.
11 Therefore God sends upon them a misleading influence, a working of error and a strong delusion to make them believe what is false,
12 In order that all may be judged and condemned who did not believe in [who refused to adhere to, trust in, and rely on] the Truth, but [instead] took pleasure in unrighteousness.

Read more at https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2+Thessalonians+2&version=AMP#oWyXvGDCGRJOybsL.99

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We see, in the very word of God, that satan will, in fact, do false miracles...and does so already. The 'satan casts out satan' is in reference to demonic possession and Jesus casting the demon out, not in regards to the verse above.

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Pulpit Commentary

Verse 9. - The apostle resumes his description of the man of sin. Even him; not in the original, but necessary for the sense. Whose coming.The use of the same term, parousia, employed to denote the coming of Christ exhibits the counterpart of the man of sin. Is after the working - according to the energy - of Satan. Satan is the agent who works in the man of sin; he being the organ or instrument of Satan. With all power and signs and lying wonders. The adjective "lying" ought to be rendered as a substantive, and applied to all three: "With all powers and signs and wonders of falsehood;" whose origin, nature, and purpose is falsehood. Here, also, the counterpart to Christ is manifest; for the same terms - "powers," "signs," and "wonders," are employed to denote his miracles (Acts 2:22; Hebrews 2:4). The miracles of Christ were miracles of truth; the miracles of the man of sin would be miracles of falsehood. There does not seem to be any essential difference between powers, signs, and wonders; but the words are employed as a mere rhetorical enumeration. It is not to be supposed that the man of sin will be enabled to perform real miracles; they are the wonders of falsehood; but still by them his followers will be deceived (comp.Matthew 24:24). (source:
2 Thessalonians 2:9 The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with how Satan works. He will use all sorts of displays of power through signs and wonders that serve the lie,)

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Matthew 12:22 Then a blind and dumb man under the power of a demon was brought to Jesus, and He cured him, so that the blind and dumb man both spoke and saw.23 And all the [crowds of] people were stunned with bewildered wonder and said, This cannot be the Son of David, can it?
24 But the Pharisees, hearing it, said, This [i]Man drives out demons only by and with the help of Beelzebub, the prince of demons.
25 And knowing their thoughts, He said to them, Any kingdom that is divided against itself is being brought to desolation and laid waste, and no city or house divided against itself will last or continue to stand.
26 And if Satan drives out Satan, he has become divided against himself and disunified; how then will his kingdom last or continue to stand?
27 And if I drive out the demons by [help of] Beelzebub, by whose [help] do your sons drive them out? [j]For this reason they shall be your judges.
28 But if it is by the Spirit of God that I drive out the demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you [[k]before you expected it].

Read more at https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+12&version=AMP#L2gs5PoHpEWqcdJj.99
 
Jul 22, 2014
10,350
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#22
And where did he get that power? Is it just power of a sinning spirit? Why did God give the enemy power to possess people and where is that power coming from?
Important Note so that there is no confusion:

God is light in Him is no darkness at all (1 John 1:5). God is Holy and is not capable of directly creating evil, or doing evil, or taking any kind of pleasure in evil. God is the very embodiment of all that is good and loving. God created all things in the beginning for His good pleasure. The Lord our God merely allowed for the existence of evil to come into the universe thru free willed beings so as to give Him the glory, honor, and power.​




Everything Glorifies God and He Created All Things
For His Good Pleasure:



Justification:
(Jesus was manifested to destroy the devil's works):
Jesus is our Savior and the Love of our Life:
For evil (i.e. the devil's kingdom) only exists because God wanted true love or beings who would choose to love Him of their own free will.



  • (a) Jesus is the author of our faith when we respond to the drawing of His grace; So Christ (God) saves us from our iniquity or wicked ways when we repent of our sins and accept Him; Being saved not on the basis of our righteousness but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost.


  • (b) Jesus destroys the works of the devil in our old life by translating us from the dark kingdom of the devil into the glorious good kingdom of God.


  • (c) We are no longer a slave to sin and we are born again spiritually and are given a new heart by God with new desires to please the Lord.


  • (d) For where we once loved ourselves and sin, we now love Jesus and His good ways because He loved us so much to die in our place for our sins upon the cross. He had risen from the grave to give us a new love focused filled life in Him.



Sanctification:
(Jesus was manifested to destroy the devil's works):
Jesus is our Helper and Friend:
For evil (i.e. the devil's kingdom) might trip up a believer on occasion with sin; However, the Lord is merciful and good and helps a believer to get back up and to walk in His good ways. He is a friend and will listen to them and their struggle with desiring to overcoming sin.



  • (a) Jesus is also the perfecter of our faith whereby we allow Him to do the good work within us. We are not saved by works in and of themselves but true faith (or a good tree) will always prove itself to be true by allowing Spirit directed works (or good fruit) to flow within our life.


  • (b) We are happy to continue to live out our faith. For we know that without faith it is impossible to please Him; And whatever is not of faith is sin.


  • (c) If we slip up into sin (on occasion), we have an advocate named Jesus Christ whereby we can confess our sins and be cleansed of all unrighteousness.


  • (d) We are being perfected in being conformed to the image of Christ. We are glorifying God's righteousness thru our lives. For man was created in God's image and we are to conform to Christ's image, who is God.



Glorification:
(Jesus was manifested to destroy the devil's works):
Jesus is our Sovereign Lord and Conquering King:
For evil (i.e. the devil's kingdom) is put under His feet and crushed once and for all. All evil will be eradicated and destroyed. It will be conquered.



  • (a) Jesus is finally the finisher of our faith and He will deliver us from this body of death in the resurrection (And by taking us to an incorruptible Kingdom of God).


  • (b) Jesus will deliver us from this sinful world (By taking us to an incorruptible Kingdom of God).


  • (c) Jesus will destroy all forms of darkness and sin (i.e. the devil's kingdom) whereby we will no longer be tempted. Good will win over evil in the End and God will be glorified in being the Victor. For one cannot be the Victor or a Conquerer without an enemy to be conquered. Now, does this mean that God created an adversary who would be greater than Him so as to be a true threat to Him personally? No, most certainly not. For God is sovereign over all His creation. What this means is that God allowed an adversary to exist so as to test or purify His people by faith; Whereby they would trust in Him to be their Victor and Conquerer. Only in this way did God create an enemy for Himself. An enemy that would try His people (i.e. His prized possession) so that they would trust in Him for all forms of Victory within their lives.





So what are the reason(s) for the existence of evil? (or):
How does evil glorify God?




  • (a) True love exists because of it.


  • (b) God's creation (Man) can truly value the Light by contrasting it with the Dark by how the Light (God) has helped them to overcome their darkness or sin.


  • (c) God and His goodness is able to conquer over that which is evil once and for all (Being the Lord and Victor over all things). God created an adversary so as to test His people so that they would trust in Him for all forms of victory within their lives.



Genesis 50:20
"But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive."


Romans 8:28
"And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose."
 
P

Pottyone

Guest
#23
And where did he get that power? Is it just power of a sinning spirit? Why did God give the enemy power to possess people and where is that power coming from?
Great posting Danielle and very thought provoking thread....never really thought about the topic of Satan's "power" or authority before, well not in this light. "Fallen humankind has its own role in the creation and maintenance of wickedness, too. We cannot claim as comedian Flip Wilson did years ago, "The devil made [us] do it"! There is an expression "to be in league with the devil," which encapsulates quite well how both Satan (or the devil) and humankind each assumes a degree of culpability, though Satan assumes more, since he instigated the rebellion against God and exerts more influence than we do within the spiritual realm (see Matthew 18:7). Satan is our enemy and we are to fear him, but we are also to resist him and even on occasions rebuke him in the name of Jesus (see 1 Pe 5:8,9; Jas 4:7; Jude 9)." Great answers by fellow posters. Good food for a wee Sunday afternoon study. Thanks guys
 
Jul 22, 2014
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#24
Satan is our enemy and we are to fear him,
I am going to have to disagree with you on this one, my friend.
While, it is true that the devil should not be underestimated for we are to be ever watchful against his schemes; That does not mean we are to fear him. For we are only to fear God and nothing else in this world. For if you resist the devil, he will flee from you. If you put on the full armor of God, you will be able to stand against him. For if God be for us, who can be against us? In other words, stay focused on the things of God. Stay in the strength of our Lord Savior Jesus Christ and His good ways (According to His Word) and you will have the protection and victory (That naturally comes from being with God).
 
Last edited:
Jul 22, 2014
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#25
"For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind."
(2 Timothy 1:7).
 
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Pottyone

Guest
#26
I am going to have to disagree with you on this one, my friend.
While, it is true that the devil should not be underestimated for we are to be ever watchful against his schemes; That does not mean we are to fear him. For we are only to fear God and nothing else in this world. For if you resist the devil, he will flee from you. If you put on the full armor of God, you will be able to stand against him. For if God be for us, who can be against us? In other words, stay focused on the things of God. Stay in the strength of our Lord Savior Jesus Christ and His good ways (According to His Word) and you will have the protection and victory (That naturally comes from being with God).
Hi Jason, actually I completely agree with you....the word fear was inappropriate, I really meant be wary....bad choice of word, sorry.
 
2

2Thewaters

Guest
#27
And where did he get that power? Is it just power of a sinning spirit? Why did God give the enemy power to possess people and where is that power coming from?
you give satan that power when you refuse to believe and do the whole bible

if you believe and do the whole bible satan cant touch you
its your fault.
 
2

2Thewaters

Guest
#28
same with eve
she chose to believe the snake instead of God who lived her and who cannot lie

yet eve called god a liar and believed the snake

eves fault
 
2

2Thewaters

Guest
#29
God says keep the commandments, and you believe a shyster trying to grow a huge money making church and he says you dont have to keep the commandments
you believe that liar, its your fault.
 

DiscipleDave

Senior Member
Sep 4, 2012
3,095
69
48
#30
And where did he get that power? Is it just power of a sinning spirit? Why did God give the enemy power to possess people and where is that power coming from?
If you Truly want to know the Answer to this question, which the Lord my God has told me, then read the following article

The Meaning of Life

^i^