See God {Day 24: God and His Enemy}

We all know that Satan was an arrogant angel who wanted to receive worship instead of give worship.  But, this paragraph has gotten me thinking.

"Contrary to many naive opinions, the devil is not a red monster with a pitchfork, but often a do-gooder.  His goal in life is to counterfeit the works of God.  This has been his prized ambition ever since he went into business for himself.  His first recorded intention ended with the words, 'I will be like the Most High.' (Is. 14:14)  This counterfeiting effort is his most effective ploy, for the more closely he can imitate God's work, the less likely men will be inclined to seek God or pursue His will."  Stanley Ellison

Since Lucifer is a created being, he doesn't have the brains to be anything more than Who created him.  So, he mocks him.  He twists all that is good in God, turns it around, and thinks that he will get worship this way.

 All that is evil does indeed worship him.

This all sounds true, of course, but I wanted to dig deeper into the practicalities of how this plays out.  How exactly does Satan strive to be like the Most High?  Do we recognize it?  Are we onto his schemes?

Here are a few:

 1.  Names.  Jesus is the Lion of Judah.  Satan is the roaring lion.

 2.  Triune/Fellowship.  God is Father/Son/Holy Spirit.  In Revelation, Satan is dragon/beast/false prophet.

 3.  Light.  Jesus is light.  Satan appears as an angel of light (2 Cor. 11:14)  (This area makes him very deceiving...we really have to know truth to be able to recognize the devil masquerading himself as light when in fact he is darkness.)

 4.  Word.  Jesus is the word, he cannot speak a lie.  Satan knows the word, quotes it and twists it to serve his own purposes.

 5.  Messengers.  Jesus has True Prophets while Satan has False Prophets.

 6.   Spiritual Gifts.  Those from the Holy Spirit will build up the body.  Those Satan misuses will cause confusion and discord, better known as works of the flesh.

 7.  Gospel.  Jesus is the Way, Truth, and Life.  Satan:  any religion to get people's minds off the truth (any message that tickles our ears and feeds our egos.)

 8.  Messiah.  Christ is the Messiah and the only one who can really help us.  Satan:  Antichrist will solve all problems and receive worship for a period of time.

 9.  Angels.  Both have followers and ranks in the spirit world.

 10.  City.  God's is Jerusalem.  Satan's is Babylon.

 11.  Feasts/Celebrations.  God has 7 feasts set aside for the Jewish people.  Satan has set apart dates that are used for the occult.

 12.  Marked.  God tells his people to bind teachings as a sign on their hands and foreheads. (Deut. 6:8)  Satan tells his followers they have to be marked on the right hand or forehead in Revelation 13:16.

13.  Marriage.  God says between a man and a woman.  Satan says between same sex.

14.  Titles and themes.  Revelation points to the "The Book of Life."  Satan often copies God's titles and themes, twists them, and uses them for his own agenda.  There is a creepy movie (for kids!)  coming out called "The Book of Life."

15.  Works.  God calls us to do good works in order to show off God's goodness and free grace.  Satan tells us to do good works in order to promote self or "earn" some type of false salvation.

I paid for a new pair of athletic shoes recently with a $100 bill.  The guy at the cash register held the bill up against the light to ensure that it was the real deal.  Satan wants to fool us and tell us that it is God and not him at work.  (Isn't our first instinct to blame God and not Satan for all the bad stuff we face?)  We must hold everything up in our lives to the LIGHT of the Word to see what is really true.

If we are dealing with:  hate, confusion, destruction, unbelief, or hopelessness, we must recognize that these are the exact opposites of love, peace, mercy, faith and hope, and therefore, aren't of God.

You know what is really ironic?  God knows that Satan wants a throne, to have authority, and be worshiped...because Satan wants to be like the Most High.  Guess what God is going to do?  He is going to give him exactly 42 months during the Tribulation for this to occur.  Satan will possess the Antichrist and rule over a throne in Jerusalem.  Everyone left on the earth will either be coerced into worshipping him or they will die.  BUT, after that 42 months, the adversary will be thrown into the pit.  {Can I get an amen?}

I guess I just want my eyes opened to how sneaky Satan is.  I want to expose his lies that I am believing because, after all, he is doing his best to look like the Most High.
How have you found Satan to be the Counterfeit?