God has no Equal
Martin Luther (1483-1546) once said, “Even the devil is God’s devil.” Think about that. Satan is not all-powerful or all-knowing. He is immortal, but so am I; the Lord created us both. Scripture also clearly shows God using the devil to fulfill His sovereign plan for humanity. The clearest example? Our Savior dying on the cross. The devil had no idea that Christ’s crucifixion would redeem humanity. If Satan had foreseen that outcome, he would have worked overtime to guarantee Jesus would die of a peaceful old age.
Satan, the leader or dictator of devils, is the opposite, not of God, but of Michael. (C.S. Lewis)
Satan’s True Opposite
Michael, like Lucifer, is one of only three angels we know by name. The third is Gabriel. My belief? These three angels are named in the Bible because they are important. Michael is a warrior angel. Gabriel explains the prophetic visions Daniel sees and tells Mary she will be the mother of the Messiah. Lucifer becomes Satan, the Father of Lies and rules over the demonic realm.
When Satan rebelled against God, the Archangel Michael opposed him.
7 Then war broke out in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. 8 But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. 9 The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him. (Revelation 12:7-9 NIV)
The Archangel Michael is Satan’s opposite, not God.
My Spiritual Point
Jesus had both a divine and human nature when he walked the earth. But His outward appearance didn’t fool the demons. They knew He was God. Anytime He glanced their way they panicked and begged for mercy. Satan was unable to stop the Lord from healing diseases, expelling demons or teaching about the true nature of God. The devil could lie, tempt and deceive people, but he had no control over Christ. In the end, Christ chose the cross, opening Heaven’s gates to believers everywhere.
And Satan unwittingly helped.
Resources:
Isaiah 14:12-15 talks about the angel Lucifer rebelling against God, Since the name “Lucifer” only appears in Latin, many translations from the Greek insert “morning star” into Isaiah 14:12 instead.
While researching Martin Luther’s quote I came across God’s Devil: The incredible Story of How Satan’s Rebellion Serves God’s Purposes by Erwin W. Lutzer. I now own the kindle version.
