SATAN’S ASSAULT ON THE FAMILY (Part Two)

By Bob Myhan

hen we speak of Satan assaulting the family, we do not mean that, in doing so, he does not attack individu­als. We simply mean that he exploits family relationships in order to manipulate the family members to sin. This is why Jesus said, "Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword. For I have come to 'set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.' And 'a man's foes will be those of his own household.' He who loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me. And he who loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me" (Matt. 10:34-37). Family ties need to be strong, but they need not (in fact, should not) be stronger than our ties to God. Let us ever be on our guard! Satan knows how to use these family relationships against us. Sadly, we do not always recognize when such is taking place.

atan began his assault on the human race with the first pair. Not surprisingly, Satan (in the form of a serpent) appealed to Eve’s basic desires, in tempting her to sin. While there was no written word of God for Satan to quote and misapply (as he later did with Jesus, and often does with us), he did call into question both what God had said and His motive for saying it. First, Satan asked, "’Has God indeed said, 'You shall not eat of every tree in the garden'?" In asking this, he was implying that God's prohibition was much broader than it actually was. Second, he told her she would "not surely die," which was not only a lie, but also an accusation that God was the one lying. Third, he accused God of having an improper motive in forbidding them to eat of the fruit of this one tree. In doing this, he was cleverly implying that the knowledge of good and evil was a blessing, rather than a curse, and that God simply did not want them to have it.

hus, Satan fixed the woman's attention to the forbidden fruit. "So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate" (Gen. 3:6). Here we see that "the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life," which constitutes "all that is in the world" (1 John 2:15-17), was all involved in the first temptation and the first sin.

hile this was a direct attack on the woman, it was also an indirect attack on the man, who, rather than Eve, was Satan's primary target. Though Eve sinned first Paul writes, "through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned" (Rom. 5:12). That is, "all sinned" in Adam; as he was the first human created, he contained the entire human race in his loins, “Even as Levi, who receives tithes, paid tithes through Abraham, so to speak, for he was still in the loins of his father when Melchisedek met him" (Heb. 7:9,10). No man dies spiritually, of course, until he himself sins against God. Paul is not teaching that man is born alienated from God but that man is born subject to physical death, having been separated from the tree of life “in Adam.”

atan knew that, if he could somehow manipulate Adam into sinning, the entire human race would suffer the effects. He also knew that, if he could entice Eve into sinning first, he had a better chance of getting Adam to sin through her influence. As Eve's moral and spiritual leader, Adam ought to have rebuked her, rather than sinning with her. As mentioned earlier, to have authority is to have responsibility. Adam should have been watching for Eve's soul.

nother example of Satan's assault on the family front is his attempts to cause Job, an extremely wealthy man with a wife and ten children, to curse God. After assuring the reader that Job was, indeed, a righteous man, the inspired writer tells us that Satan, as he presented himself to the Lord, among "the sons of God" (1:6), charged that Job was serving God for material, rather than spiritual gain. God said to Satan, "Behold, all that he has is in your power; only lay not a hand on his person" (1:12), thus permitting Satan to put Job to the test. Of course, God placed a limit on what Satan could do, for He "will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able" (1 Cor. 10:12).

atan then took away from Job all his earthly possessions, even killing Job's ten children. But, "in all this Job did not sin nor charge God with wrong" (1:22). Receiving further permission from God, yet commanded to "spare his life" (2:1-6), Satan then "Struck Job with painful boils from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head." Job was so miserable, even his wife encouraged him to "curse God and die." But, "in all this Job did not sin with his lips" (2:7-10).

atan then used three "friends" of Job to accuse Job of atrocious sins, for which he must repent if he wants to recover (2:11-13; 4:1-21; 5:1-27; 8:1-22; 11:1-20; 15:1-35; 18:1-21; 20:1-29; 22:1-30; 25:1-6).

hile Job said some things of which he later repented, he maintained both his integrity and fidelity through it all (42:1-6). "And the Lord restored Job's losses when he prayed for his friends. Indeed the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before" (42:10). It is no wonder, therefore, the inspired record says, "You have heard of the perseverance of Job and seen the end intended by the Lord—that the Lord is very compassionate and merciful" (James 5:11). &

ATTITUDES AND MOTIVES

By Earl Fly

e sometimes write articles on controversial subjects, using plain language. There is nothing personal involved, even when we identify a teacher or a doctrine. We have no malice or ill will toward anyone or group on earth. There is absolutely no bitterness or envy in our hearts. Neither do we have a contentious heart, a belligerent attitude or a quarrelsome a belliger­ent attitude disposition. We have no "chip on the shoulder," and we are not looking for a fuss or wrangle. What then is our motive in writing articles which plainly identify sins, false doctrines and those who teach and practice such, whether in or out of the church?

e realize that error condemns the soul (2 Thess. 2) and that false doctrine condemns the preachers (Gal. 1:6-9; 2 John 9; Rev. 20:10). “Knowing the terror of the Lord we persuade men" with "great plainness of speech” (2 Cor. 5:11; 3:12). We have a sincere love and concern for all men everywhere, and hence we kindly strive to expose error and present truth. We always try to be kind, fair, honest and Christ-like in earnestly contending for the faith (Jude 3).

t is not our desire or purpose to ever offend anyone. We regret that it sometimes becomes necessary to identify individuals who mislead people (1 Tim. 1:19-20; 2 Tim. 2:17-18) but our love for the lost will not allow us to sit idly by while false teachers lead them to torment (Matt. 15:14). We are obligated to "fight the good fight of faith" (1 Tim 6:12) by disrobing the wolves in sheep's clothing (Matt. 7:15) and exposing Satan's ministers who are disguised as God's (2 Cor. 11:13-15). We must preach the word in season and out of season, rebuking and exhorting (2 Tim. 4:2). "Am I therefore become your enemy because I tell you the truth" (Galatians 4:16)? & [Via Drew Park Bulletin; July 21, 1974]