Sins of Satan (#1)

 

If I asked you - "what are the sins of Satan," what would you say? The above text says that Satan, or the Devil, has been sinning from the beginning. What were his original sins? What have been his sins since he first sinned?

By "from the beginning" is no doubt a reference to the beginning of the human race and his sins against God and our race in the Garden of Eden when he tempted Eve and caused her to sin, and indirectly to the sin of her husband Adam, although it would also be true "from the beginning" of his first sin as an angel of God, though not true of him from the beginning of his creation by God as a holy angel. Satan's sins began in heaven, sometime after his creation. That sin chiefly was pride, and such pride as led to his rebellion against God and the monarchy of heaven. We have several Bible passages that reveal this to us.

Sin #1 - Pride

When writing to Timothy about the qualifications of elders and deacons, Paul wrote: "not a novice, lest being puffed up with pride he fall into the same condemnation as the devil." (I Tim. 3: 6 nkjv) By this he does not mean that your being or acting in pride will bring upon you the denunciations of the Devil, for Satan rather exults in seeing people sin against God and his law. Rather, Paul means that ordaining a novice increases the likelihood that the novice will be lifted up with pride and fall as did Satan. The following words are applicable to Satan (or "Lucifer"): “Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty; You corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor..." (Eze. 28: 17 nkjv) His pride, or hubris, involved his narcissism, his love for and idolizing of self, his haughty spirit, and his egotism. In his fall through pride we see the truth of these words of the wise king Solomon: "Pride goes before destruction, And a haughty spirit before a fall." (Prov. 16: 18 nkjv) When people are proud, egotistic, or narcissistic, they are imitating the Devil. That should not surprise us in view of what the scriptures reveal to us. For instance, Paul wrote:

"And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others." (Eph. 10: 1-3 nkjv)

By "prince of the power of the air," or "the spirit that now works in" those who are dead in sin, is the Devil. He inspires people to sin and to follow their lusts. That is what is meant by people walking "according to" both "the course of this world" and "the prince." These are two sources from which inducements to sin originate. That is not to exclude the depravity of the flesh, for the apostle also says that while dead in sin people "conduct" themselves "in the lusts of our flesh," and follow the "desires of the flesh and of the mind." But, it is to this inner depravity to which both Satan and the world appeal when they entice to sin. In inspiring men to sin, we may well say that the Devil has been sinning from the beginning.

Satan is the best example of pride and of the destruction that such pride brings. In the text the Greek word for "sins" comes from the word "hamartia." In Greek tragedy, hamartia is a character's tragic flaw, error in judgment, or moral failing that leads to his downfall. This flaw can be a personality trait like hubris (excessive pride), or it can be a specific poor decision, or immoral activity or choice. The tragic hero is personally responsible for his fate through his hamartia. The character's hamartia is often the cause of his peripeteia (a sudden reversal of fortune) and his anagnorisis (a moment of critical discovery).

Jesus said to those who refused to believe in him:

"You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do." (John 8: 44 nkjv)

And of the first murderer the apostle John wrote:

"Not as Cain who was of the wicked one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his works were evil and his brother’s righteous." (I John 3: 12 nkjv)

So, all of us who walk according to the prince of the power of the air are children of the Devil. It is not until we have believed in Christ and turned from sin and Satan that we become children of God. Once inspired by Satan we are now inspired by the Lord Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit.

In the chapters following we will look at other sins that Satan has been committing since the beginning.