Satan

by Lewis Sperry Chafer

Christ is the sower in both the first and second of these parables, and the sowing is continued by His messengers throughout this age. The field is the world of men, which reveals a marked change from the responsibility of the Jewish age that was then closing; and the results of the sowing are most definite: not all the good seed sown comes to fruitage; and the wheat and the tares grow together until the end of the age. This interpretation is not fanciful, for it is given by Christ Himself; and the following parables must necessarily agree with these. The third and fourth are of the mustard seed and the measure of meal. Though commonly interpreted to mean the world-wide development of the Church and the permeating influence of the Gospel, in the light of the interpretation of the previous parables they can mean only the mixture of evil with that which began as small as a mustard seed and as pure as meal. The fifth parable is of a treasure hid in a field, which pictures the earthly people in the world; while their real relation to Christ is covered until the accomplishment of that which is revealed in the sixth. Here the same man, the Lord Jesus Christ, sells all that He hath to purchase the Church, the pearl of great price, for He "loved the Church, and gave Himself for it" (Eph. 5:25); the pearl, by its formation and its power to reflect the light, being a wonderful type of the Church in her present formation and future place in glory. Both the treasure and the pearl are found in the world, but do not include all of the world. The last parable but restates the truth that the mixture of the good and the evil is to continue to the end of the age.

The highest ambition of the great missionary, Paul, was to be all things to all men that he might save some, not all. He found that his preaching was a savor of "death unto death" as well as of "life unto life" (II Cor. 2:15, 16), and he clearly states in II Tim. 3:13, "And evil men shall wax worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived." Christ also predicted that the end of this age should be marked by such sin as provoked the judgment of the flood: "But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, and knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be" (Matt. 24:37-39).

This truth is often rejected as being pessimistic and disloyal to the progress of the world: yet has not the history of the age verified the teaching? And is not the coming glory nearer and more certain when depending upon His promised return in resistless power and splendor, than when depending upon any human progress the world has ever known? One is the majestic movement of the Divine program in fulfillment of every covenant: while the other is the vain dream of the world in its ignorance and disregard of the testimony of God.

Because of the presence of these two classes in the world in this age, there are two very distinct lines of Scripture descriptive of them. One body of Scripture directly applies to and governs the "wheat" or heavenly people, and one applies to the "tares," the "children of the evil one." The marvelous revelation of the believer's relation to Christ and the heavenlies, and his deliverance from any actual identification with this age, though in it, will be the subject of another chapter. Only the relation of the unregenerate to this world and to Satan will be continued here.

As it has pleased Satan to hide himself and all his projects from the unbelieving world, that which God has revealed in all faithfulness will be received only by those who have unquestioning confidence in His Word.

According to Scripture, the relation of the unbelieving to Satan is far more vital than a mere pleasure-seeking allegiance. On two occasions Jesus spoke of the unsaved as the "children of Satan" (Matt. 13:38; Jno. 8:44), and Paul so addressed Elymas, the sorcerer, according to Acts 13:10. The same class is also twice called the "children of disobedience" (Eph. 2:2; Col. 3:6), and once it is called the "children of wrath" (Eph. 2:3).

It is evident that these are descriptions of the same class of people, since both terms are employed together in Eph. 5:6: "Let no man deceive you: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience." The exact cause of that wrath is stated in Rom. 1:18 (R.V.): "For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hinder the truth in unrighteousness;" the word "hinder" being the same as is used in II Thes. 2:7, where the Holy Spirit is said to be restraining the working of lawlessness in this age. Therefore, the willing neglect and disregard for the testimony of God by the world, has allied them with Satan, and placed them under the wrath of God, which must find its righteous execution in due time if grace is not accepted.

Again, Satan is revealed as directing and empowering the children of disobedience: "And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; wherein in times past ye walked according to the course of this age, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience" (Eph. 2:1, 2). The real force of this passage, also, is dependent upon the meaning of one word; the word "worketh" being the same as is used in Phil. 2:13, where God is said to impart His wisdom and strength to the believer: "For it is God that worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure." Additional light may be had as to the reality of this relationship from the following passages in which the same original word is used: "And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God that worketh all in all" (I Cor. 12:6); "But all these (gifts) worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will" (I Cor. 12:11); "And what is the exceeding greatness of His power to usward who believe, according to the working of His mighty power, which He wrought in Christ when He raised Him from the dead, and set Him at His own right hand in the heavenlies" (Eph. 1:19-20); "For He that wrought effectually in Peter to the apostleship of the circumcision, the same was mighty in me toward the Gentiles" (Gal. 2:8); "Whereunto I also labor, striving according to His working, which worketh in me mightily" (Col. 1:29); "Now unto Him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to his power that worketh in us" (Eph. 3:20). It is also said in regard to the energizing power of Satan, using the same original word: "For the mystery of iniquity doth already work" (II Thes. 2:7); "For when we were in the flesh, the motions of sins, which were by the law, did work in our members to bring forth fruit unto death" (Rom. 7:5). In the last two passages quoted, the meaning is, like the preceding passages, of an imparted energy, and is, therefore, most suggestive.

It may then be concluded from the testimony of Scripture that Satan imparts his wisdom and strength to the unbelieving in the same manner as the power of God is imparted to the believer by the Holy Spirit. There is, however, no revelation as to the comparative degree of strength imparted by each. It should be further noted in this connection that this impartation of energizing power from Satan is not toward a limited few who might be said, because of some strange conduct, to be possessed of a demon; but is the common condition of all who are yet unsaved, and are, therefore, still in the "power of darkness."

The relation between the unregenerate and Satan is still more vital, according to the original from which I Jno. 5:19 is translated. The Revised Version renders it, with marginal note, as follows: "We know that we are of God, and the whole world lieth in the evil one." In this passage there are two startling revelations in regard to this relationship. First: the word "in" is the same as is used everywhere of the believer when he is said to be in Christ, and in the case of the believer it signifies an organic union to Christ—as a branch is in the vine, so the believer is in Christ. Though the word, when used of the unregenerate, probably cannot mean the same degree of organic life-relationship as exists between Christ and the believer, yet it does denote a deep relationship; and Satan is the light, inspiration, and power, of all those whom he energizes.