Oddbean

“Then Satan entered Judas, called Iscariot...” https://ref.ly/Lk22.3 via the Logos #Bible Android app. It's interesting to contemplate Satan entering a person. I wonder how often he does that and if you or I have ever seen someone inhabited by Satan? As a spirit, he can do that, but unlike God, he is not omnipresent. He has to be in one place at a time, like you or I, although certainly he is networked, like you and I. In this age of television and video it is possible we may have seen someone inhabited by Satan on screen. Do any candidates come to mind? Since Satan cannot be everywhere at all times (though perhaps there are demons or other devils in various places and possibly in various people), he probably prioritizes his time and who he deals with. He deals with the powerful and important, I would think. He entered Judas because Judas was close to Jesus, who was God now come to Earth bodily. There was no more important place for Satan to be while Jesus walked throughout Judea, I'd wager, even though he had emperors and kings and other warlords in distant places wreaking havoc throughout the world. Since Jesus could see things spiritually that merely natural human eyes could not, perhaps He often saw Satan lurking among the crowds that came to hear Him preach, or even in smaller, more intimate settings, when it was just Him and His disciples. Once, when His disciple Peter rebuked Jesus (!) for telling them that He was going to be killed Jesus snapped back “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me because you’re not thinking about God’s concerns but human concerns” (Matthew 16:23). Was that an instance where Satan had also entered Peter? Or had he just given Peter those words to say and Jesus was simply addressing the evil entity behind them? I have to run, but just wanted to share these reflections and questions. What do you think? Perhaps you don't even believe that Satan exists. It has been said that one of the most important things Satan would like to do is to get people to believe he doesn't exist. Ever since the Garden of Eden Satan has been on mission to get humans to disbelieve, contradict, and disobey what God has said... #DailyWord

“Simon, Simon [a.k.a. Peter], look out. Satan has asked to sift you like wheat. But I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And you, when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.” https://ref.ly/Lk22.31-32 via the Logos Bible Android app.

Satan means "the adversary," and is also used as a proper name. He is also called the devil, and Beelzebub/Baalzebul, the prince of demons, whom Israel's neighbors, the Philistines worshiped; they worshiped Satan. The apostle Paul said that worshipers of the Greco-Roman gods were worshiping demons, not God. Satan is also called a liar and a murderer from the beginning. He is also called the ruler of this world (John 14:30, 31) and that "the whole world lies in the power of the evil one" (1 John 5:19). Satan is even called the god of this world (2 Corinthians 4:4). 👀 "You've got several scriptural passages that seem to suggest that he [Satan] is in control here, that he's controlling how things are going. Now of course, this is only within the overall providence of God. But it would make more intelligible why there is so much evil and horror in this world. We are living in a world that is in the control of this malevolent being that is opposed to God and His purposes." "Job does illustrate how God gives Satan scope to do these evil, horrible things to Job, but only within the limits set by God. Remember our lessons on Divine Providence, how, especially on a molinist view, everything that happens is either by God's direct will or permission. "So ultimately, God is in control but he allows this renegade demon to wreak havoc throughout the earth, upon humanity, but only insofar as will redound ultimately to God's saving purposes for establishing His kingdom. So please don't misunderstand me to think that I'm saying God isn't in control." "Satan is presented as this powerful and evil adversary of the work of God and the kingdom of God, with whom we have to contend."

Right before going back to college, my son and I were talking. I believe many (all?) religions other than Christianity and Judaism are instigated by demons or Satan. Paul says, "8But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed! 9As we have said before, so I say again now, if any man is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, he is to be accursed!" (Galatians 1:8-9) In Islam, I believe Mohamed was approached by an angel. In Mormonism, Joseph Smith was approached by an angel that gave him new revelation. Paul warned us that we couldn't trust anyone, not even an angel, if they gave us a new gospel. He said they were to be accursed. I do find it interesting that the two were misled in the same way even though the two are so different. Islam is the face of hate and Mormons are some of the nicest people you will ever meet, but they are both misled by fallen angels contrary to the Word of God. I've also wondered (speculation, not certainty) how every nation in the world could react simultaneously in such a harmful and tyrannical fashion to the covid "pandemic". If most of the world's leaders were controlled by demons, it would explain a lot. I don't know if it is true, but it would explain something that didn't make sense to me.

I don't believe that modern Jews are followers of the ancient religion (nor generally their descendants) If you want a demonic religion, Talmudic Judaism is certainly a candidate. They interpret everything to mean something other than what it plainly means. For example the 10 commandments are meant to be punishable by death, so they conclude "don't steal" means "don't kidnap a Jew" (since theft or kidnapping a gentile would not be punishable by death) As the above makes obvious, they believe a different moral code holds with regard to the treatment of Jews and the treatment of gentiles, with Jews being favored above the "beasts with human faces" Prohibitions on rape and adultery get interpreted as prohibitions on vaginal intercourse only, and anal rape of gentiles is considered acceptable (as the recent military incidents make clear) As a funny meme I saw recently said, all of Jewish history is the Jews technically not violating God's laws and God technically not smiting them

I agree with you that Talmudic Judaism or Talmudism is not of God. God decisively brought an end to the Old Covenant when He destroyed the Temple in 70 A.D., putting a stop to the sacrifices and offerings there ( https://ref.ly/Da9.27 ). But, nostr:nprofile1qqs0td2lddzt3xtm9dhgg6dx54lc60em9me8qg65x3zugrkwcjz7ueqprpmhxue69uhkummnw3ezuendwsh8w6t69e3xj730zxswhh, do you love your brothers and sisters, the Jews?

I've heard that at times Muhammad was unsure whether an angel or a demon ("jinn" in Arabic) was speaking to him as he was writing the Quran. https://www.perplexity.ai/search/was-muhammad-ever-confused-abo-xJVSwabSTo.pRyHNbLtfFA#0 I'm sure you're familiar with Ephesians 6:12: “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this darkness, against evil, spiritual forces in the heavens.” https://ref.ly/Eph6.12 via the Logos ,#Bible Android app. I'm still grappling with the idea I've recently become acquainted with that God set up a divine council, composed of the "sons of God", who also are called angels in Scripture, and that He divided up the nations among them and allowed them to rule, until He took away their rulership for abusing it, and also took away their immortality (see Psalm 82). There are various passages in the Bible used to support this interpretation, although it's not clearly laid out like this. These different angels, also called princes, ruled over various territories, such as the Prince of Persia, whom the angel Gabriel had to contend with in Daniel 10:13, and Michael the archangel, who is called the Prince of the people of Israel (Daniel 12:1). I'm sure there are still evil entities (fallen angels?) working behind the scenes and perhaps even entering into certain individuals to advance the kingdom of Satan. And COVID and depopulation is probably a part of that agenda, along with war, famine, death, LGBTQ+, transgenderism, transhumanism, statism, communism, etc.

Incidentally, Dr. William Lane Craig mentions the story "Lord of the Flies" by William Golding as an example of how evil humans can be. However, a real life incident where a group of schoolboys were marooned on an island in 1965 turned out very differently... https://www.theguardian.com/books/2020/may/09/the-real-lord-of-the-flies-what-happened-when-six-boys-were-shipwrecked-for-15-months