The Gospel of John Lesson 24 INTRODUCTION: 1. Many people do not believe
there is a real person named Satan.
They consider Satan nothing more than the personification of evil; they
do not consider him a real being.
2. But if one accepts the Bible
as the infallible Word of God, then the reality of Satan cannot be denied. We are introduced to Satan in the Garden
of Eden way back in Genesis 3. 3. And from the earliest pages
of Genesis to the final pages in the Book of Revelation we read about Satan
(Rev. 20:10). 4. “Every writer of the New
Testament affirms Satan’s existence and activity” – Charles C. Ryrie, Basic
Theology. 5. In Matthew 4 (also recorded
in Mark 1 and Luke 4) our Lord was tempted by Satan. If Satan does not exist then who in the
world was our Lord talking to?
And who was He talking about in John 8:44? It is impossible to believe
the Bible and deny the personality of Satan. 6. Harry Ironside said the
devil is “a foul, malevolent spirit who actuates and moves upon those who do not
acknowledge the authority of God.” I.
THE DEVIL & HIS
FOLLOWERS HAVE A MURDEROUS HATRED FOR THE LORD JESUS CHRIST (8:37, 40,
44). II.
THE DEVIL & HIS
FOLLOWERS DENY THE VIRGIN BIRTH, DEITY OF CHRIST & OTHER FUNDAMENTAL
DOCTRINES (8:41, 56-59). III.
THE DEVIL & HIS
FOLLOWERS ARE LIARS (8:44, 55). I.
THE DEVIL & HIS
FOLLOWERS HAVE A MURDEROUS HATRED FOR THE LORD JESUS CHRIST (8:37, 40,
44). 1. I should point out that when I refer to Satan’s “followers” I am not speaking only of Satan-worshippers. I am not referring to these strange individuals who wear robes with hoods and sacrifice animals to the devil. 2. I remember back in 1996 my family and I decided to sell our house in Queens and move to Nassau County. We were looking at one house and the broker brought us up to the attic where there was a huge pentagram drawn on the floor. 3. When Jesus said, “Ye are of your father the devil…” (8:44), He was speaking to the Pharisees, the religious leaders of Israel, not to pagan devil-worshippers (cf. John 8:13). 4. These men were Satan’s followers because they were ready to do his bidding in killing the Lord Jesus Christ (cf. John 13:2, 27). 5. Consider what the Bible says
in I John 3:11-15. Cain may not
have actually worshipped the devil but he was certainly influenced by the
devil. Satan instigated the murder
of Abel and he has instigated the death of millions of others since
then. 6. Ephesians 4:26, 27 is a
warning to professed Christians.
Our Lord said Satan “was a murderer from the beginning” (John
8:44). 7. If we look carefully at what
our Lord is saying, we can see how people can be easily used as instruments of
Satan. First, notice the
unregenerate (and even certain backslidden Christians) are in bondage to sin
(8:34). This makes them
susceptible to
attack from the
devil. 8. Secondly, there is a disdain
for the Word of God (John 8:37).
First they will not hear, then they cannot hear (8:43). II.
THE DEVIL & HIS
FOLLOWERS DENY THE VIRGIN BIRTH, DEITY OF CHRIST & OTHER FUNDAMENTAL
DOCTRINES (8:41, 56-59). 1. Their implication in John 8:41 is that our Lord was born of fornication; that He was the illegitimate son of Mary. These Pharisees did not accept the virgin birth. 2. This slander is bad enough
coming from the hypocritical Pharisees who had our Lord crucified. But it is far worse coming from men who
profess to be ministers of Jesus Christ.
In fact, they are ministers of Satan (cf. II Cor.
11:13-15). 3. Up until about 100 years
ago, it was unheard of that a Christian minister could deny the virgin
birth. If a preacher dared to
say such a thing he would be kicked out of the ministry.
4. But Satan took over the big
universities and seminaries. Then
he took over the denominations and most of their churches. Now the majority of ministers in America
are as liberal as the devil himself. 5. I read an article about a
conservative United Methodist that has started a group in opposition to their
apostasy. He is trying to
fight all of the liberalism and homosexuality in the United Methodist
denomination. In my opinion he is
wasting his time. The devil has had
that group for a long time now. 6. Of all biblical doctrines, the doctrine of Christ's virgin birth seems to be the #1
target for denial and attack. 7.
One
hundred years ago, Albert Schweitzer wrote a book called The Quest of the Historical
Jesus. Schweitzer was a great hero to many
people but Albert Schweitzer’s “historical Jesus” is not the Jesus of the
Bible. Albert Schweitzer denied the virgin birth
and the deity of Christ. 8.
Another
influential liberal was Rudolf Bultmann, often considered the most influential
New Testament scholar of the 20th century. Bultmann argued that the New
Testament presents a mythological worldview that modern men and women simply
cannot accept as real. 9.
Bultmann
attacked the virgin birth as well as all of the supernatural elements in the
Bible. If you remove the
supernatural from the Bible you have no Bible. The Bible is a supernatural book.
10.The
Bible is full of miracles. The
Bible tells us that Christ was born to a virgin, that He lived a sinless life,
and that He died a vicarious death.
11.The
Bible teaches that Christ rose from the dead and that He is coming back. The devil’s crowd does not believe any
of this. They also do not believe
in hell but they are heading there whether they believe it or not. 12.In
America, the open denial of the virgin birth can be traced to the emergence of
Protestant liberalism in the early 20th century. 13.Harry
Emerson Fosdick was the most prominent liberal in America. He preached from the pulpit of the First
Presbyterian Church as well as the infamous Riverside Church right here in New
York City. 14.In
his famous sermon, “Shall the Fundamentalists Win?” Fosdick referred to what he
called “the vexed and mooted question of the virgin birth.” 15.Episcopal
Bishop John (“Right Reverend Doctor”) Shelby Spong has gained a large following
by attacking the virgin birth and other fundamental doctrines. 16.Unfortunately
these days there are many apostates writing books, teaching in prestigious
schools, and preaching from influential pulpits. Indeed it is a sign of the times (II
Peter 2:1). 17.The
question is often asked – can a true Christian deny the virgin birth? The answer
to that question must be a decisive “No.” Those who deny the virgin birth
reject the authority of Scripture, deny the supernatural birth of the
Savior, undermine the very foundations of the Gospel, and attack
the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ. 18.“This assault
on the doctrine of the Virgin Birth is, however, but one phase of a great battle
to evacuate the supernatural from Christianity and to reduce it to the plane of
natural religion. These naturalists in religion are out to destroy supernatural
Christianity. They go through the Bible and tell us there is no supernatural
revelation there; they go through the Birth of Christ and tell us there is no
supernatural incarnation there; they go through the Person of Christ and tell us
there is no supernatural deity there... they go through the Works of Christ an
tell us there are no supernatural miracles there; they go through the Words of
Christ and tell us there is no supernatural wisdom there; they go through the
Death of Christ and tell us there is no supernatural atonement there; they go
through the Blood of Christ and tell us there is no supernatural cleansing
there; and they go through the Tomb of Christ and tell us there is no
supernatural resurrection there. Having jettisoned the supernatural from the
Gospel Ship they have reduced her to an old hulk of man's manufacturing, a mere
plaything for the storms of unbelief and the reefs of infidelity” (Ian
Paisley) 19.The devil is
behind all false doctrine (cf. I Timothy 4:1). III.
THE DEVIL
& HIS FOLLOWERS ARE LIARS (8:44,
55). 1. There was a
time when the devil was not what he is now. Our Lord said he “abode not in the
truth” (8:44). He was the anointed
cherub known as Lucifer, but he rebelled against God and became Satan
(“Adversary”). 2. He became “the
devil” (“Slanderer”). And his
followers have been slandering Jesus all throughout history (John
8:48). 3. Satan’s fall is recorded in
Isaiah 14 and Ezekiel 28. 4. After his fall, he slipped
into the Garden of Eden in the form of a serpent, and he lied to
Eve. He told her, “Ye shall not
surely die: For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes
shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil” (Gen.
3:4, 5). 5. Our Lord said
the devil “and
abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a
lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it”
(8:44). The devil lied to Eve and
he has been lying and deceiving ever since. CONCLUSION: 1. Nearly five hundred years
ago Martin Luther wrote these
famous words: “For still our ancient foe doth seek
to work us woe; 2. But do not be
frightened. Remember the first two
lines of that great hymn! 3.
“A mighty fortress is our God, a bulwark
never failing; 4. And remember the words of
James 4:7, “Resist the devil, and he will flee from
you.” |