One member of the eternal Godhead came to earth as a man.  The Apostle John wrote about Him in the first four verses of his gospel: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with (a) God and the Word was (a) God.  The Word was in the beginning with (the other) God.  All things were made by Him (the Word), and without Him was not anything made that was made.  In Him was life, and the life was light of men.”  John added in verse 14:  “And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory of the only begotten of the Father (at that time), full of grace and Truth.”  On the Day of Pentecost 31 A.D. approximately 120 others would be begotten of (by) the Father.  Since that day many others have been begotten (converted), received the Holy Spirit and became part of God’s church.  Some retained their conversions by strict obedience to His Law.  Others continued to obey Him for a while, then left Him.  Some of those who left remained in the church, others did not.  This is known as the “apostasy”–the “falling away” (2 Thes. 2:3).  Over the past 1900 years or so most of those who claim to have been begotten have not been truly converted, but have simply joined Satan’s Catholic/Protestant Church System and followed his heathen doctrines and practiced his customs.  The apostles spent their ministries warning Truth seekers about this great false church system.  During the final days of this age this system will become globally powerful.  She is referred to in Revelation 17:1-5 as the Great Whore, Mystery, Babylon (Catholicism) and her Harlot daughters (Protestantism).  Together with the “Beast,” they will rule the inhabitants of the earth with an iron fist during the coming Great Tribulation and Day of the Lord.  The return of Jesus Christ will bring it all to an end.  Now back to the work of the Word–the God Who became Jesus Christ.

The Holy Scriptures tell us that God made the universe through the Word Who later came to the earth as a man.  As the Creator of the earth He had absolute control over it and everything that happened on it.  But something happened that changed that power structure–sin.  First, Lucifer sinned, taking 1/3 of the Lord’s angels with him.  Later, Adam sinned, thereby turning the earth and everything on it over to Satan.  By the time the Word came to earth as a man named Jesus of Nazareth Satan had been in control for many centuries.  For proof that Satan was in control of the earth and the world that inhabited it, let us turn to Luke 4:6.

We pick up the narrative with Jesus, having just completed a 40 day fast, is being confronted by Satan, whose world He had entered uninvited.  At this point the battle for the souls of the world’s peoples began.  Satan knew that if he could entice Jesus to sin he (Satan) would rule the world (the civilizations inhabiting the earth) forever.  Note that Jesus did not argue with him when he said, “All this power (kingdoms) and the glory of them I will give to you, for they have been delivered unto me (by Adam), and I can give them to whomsoever I want to have them.”  Jesus knew that Satan had won the world and its glory from Adam by enticing him to do what He (Jesus) refused to do–bow down to him (Satan) by obeying him.  He knew that Satan could indeed give the world to whomever he desired.

Satan knew that Jesus was sent to take control of the earth and its world system from him at a later date.  He knew that if he could entice Jesus to sin, he (Satan) would own the earth and its civilizations forever.  The future of mankind hang in the balance as the battle of the ages raged on for the next 3 1/2 years.  Incredibly, few people know that such a monumental battle took place.  Even fewer know that many such battles continue to rage in the lives of God’s true saints who do battle with Satan and his demons every waking moment.  The devil knows that if he can entice God’s people to sin they will lose the power God has given them.  This power, in the form of the Holy Spirit, is given to true converts at the moment of conversion.  It is this power that they use to overcome him (Satan) by warding off his “fiery darts” of temptation (Eph. 6:16).  This they must do if they are to sit with Christ on His throne in the coming Kingdom of God (Rev. 3:21).  They must “… overcome even as I (Christ) overcame (Satan) ….” in order to join Him on His throne.

“God is a spirit” (Jn. 4:24).  “You (mankind) have not seen God at any time, nor heard His voice” (Jn. 5:37).  International polls have shown that most of the world’s people believe that there is a God, though not one of them have ever seen Him or heard Him.  Many of these people also believe in angels–spirit beings that were created by God.  But many of those same people reject the idea that other spirits exist.  The idea that other spirits, including Satan himself, exist is the stuff of fiction.  The irony is that the entertainment world is fascinated with the concept of spirit beings possessing other-worldly powers.  More and more, popular movies, television shows, books and other types of entertainment feature demonism, mysticism and the occult, including psychics, vampires and witches.  The Harry Potter series of books and movies took the world by storm a few years ago.  Heathen holidays (Christmas, Easter, St. Valentine’s Day, Halloween) help to keep occult and witchcraft beliefs and customs alive and in demand.

Many people, including many church people, do not believe that there is a spirit world that operates along with the physical world.  And among those who do believe, there are differing concepts of exactly what constitutes that world.  A serious look at the condition of this world reveals that there is something going on in the minds of people that cause them to do totally insane things.  Warfare, terrorism, road rage killings, rioting, torture, starvation, hatred, corruption, materialism, sexual perversion, etc. continue to run rampant within many of the world’s nations.  For example, a recent report revealed that in 2021, 16 of the largest cities in the United States recorded their highest homicide rates in 25 years.  Some have never recorded such high rates.  Is there a spirit behind these actions?  Do demon spirits play a part in man’s mindless actions?  Those who believe the Bible know that the answer is yes.

In spite of their power and influence over the affairs of men, many people do not know that Satan and his fallen angels (“devils”) are part of their lives.  In most cases they are the dominant forces in their (the people’s) lives.  In the case of true saints, they continuously try to be.  Sin separates them (saints) from their God (Isa. 59:2).  If demonic spirits can entice them away from their power source they can be seduced into Satan’s religious camp.  The Apostle Paul revealed the reason why Satan and his helpers have remained a mystery to so many for so long: “But if our gospel is hidden, it is hidden to those who are lost.  THE GOD OF THIS WORLD HAS BLINDED THE MINDS OF THOSE WHO DO NOT BELIEVE so that the light of the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ, Who is the image of God, cannot shine on them” (2 Cor. 4:3,4).  Without the light of the true Gospel, the will remain in the darkness of sin.

Notice that “the god of this world” has blinded those who do not believe the Holy Bible.  Who is this world-ruling god?  It is not the Biblical God Who created the universe, Who would not blind mankind to the Gospel of Christ.  This vile god is called “the prince of this world” in John 12:31 and 14:30.  He is Satan, the devil–the enemy of the Biblical God.  We are all living in a world dominated by Satan.  The only exceptions to his rulership is God’s true church–His Very Elect saints to whom He gave “… power over all the power of the enemy” (Lk. 10:19).  Second Corinthians 4:4 says that the devil has blinded most of mankind to the fact that the spiritual world is as real as the world which we see, feel, smell, etc.  That unseen world is dominated by the devil and his angels.  As noted, most people do not believe this.  In actuality, they have convinced much of mankind that the spirit world does not even exist.  L.J.