Background
God created Satan as Lucifer, the highest ranking angel of all. Lucifer, however, wasn’t content to worship and serve his Creator. Full of pride, he rebelled, leading a third of the angels. Unable to match the Almighty God, Lucifer was cast to the earth where he has operated as the devil ever since.
The biblical passages of Job, Isaiah 14:12-15, Matthew 4:3-10, and Revelation 12:7-12 provide a glimpse of Satan’s history and character.
God did not create Lucifer as evil but allowed the potential for sin. While God cannot commit sin, He doesn’t take it away from those who do. When Lucifer chose to rebel, he instantly became the author of sin. Evil is the result of a free-will choice by Lucifer.
Satan and sin don’t foil God’s divine purposes
Evil in stark contrast to good, shows God’s mercy to whom He chooses to provide salvation. God uses evil and demons for His divine purposes.
1 Samuel 16
15 And Saul’s servants said unto him, Behold now, an evil spirit from God troubleth thee.
16 Let our lord now command thy servants, which are before thee, to seek out a man, who is a cunning player on an harp: and it shall come to pass, when the evil spirit from God is upon thee, that he shall play with his hand, and thou shalt be well.
Satan Fears God
Satan fears God’s predestined plan: salvation, new heaven, and new earth for His chosen people who are made holy, perfectly moral, and volitionally loving. He will prove that He is victorious over evil and evil beings who follow Satan’s ways. Personal peace of mind about Satan and evil comes from being God-centered. God rules forever!
Nothing Happens That God Does Not Allow
Tony Evans tells this story: “Our God is sovereign. That means there’s no such thing as luck. Anything that happens to you, good or bad, must pass through His fingers first. There are no accidents with God. I like the story of the cowboy who applied for health insurance. The agent routinely asked him, ‘Have you ever had any accidents?’ The cowboy replied, ‘Well no, I’ve not had any accidents. I was bitten by a rattlesnake once, and a horse did kick me in the ribs. That laid me up for a while, but I haven’t had any accidents.’ The agent said, ‘Wait a minute. I’m confused. A rattlesnake bit you, and a horse kicked you, Weren’t those accidents?’ ‘No, they did that on purpose.”
There are no accidents with God
God’s sovereignty is his complete and absolute rule, control, and power over all things. God has decreed all that has ever happened and ever will happen and ultimately brings about all things he has purposed.
He has total control of all things past, present and future. Nothing happens that is out of His knowledge and control. All things are either caused by Him or allowed by Him for His own purposes and through His perfect will and timing…. He is the only absolute and omnipotent ruler of the universe and is sovereign in creation, providence and redemption.
There are no accidents with God. And he has a perfect timing for everything he does.
Remember the former things of old; for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose,’ Isaiah 46:9–10
Have you ever felt like you were in the middle of a perfect storm? How did I get here? How did this happen? Wherever we find ourselves and whatever we have to deal with we can know that God in his infinite wisdom has designed it for our good and to make us like Christ and bring him glory.
It’s no accident you are where you are. Even if you got there because of an accident. God has a perfect plan and there are no accidents with him. The family you were born into was no accident. The country you live in, the language you speak, the friends you have, your weaknesses, mistakes you have made, poor decisions—none of them are accidents to God. Failures with your spouse and children, things you wish you had done differently, painful experiences—none of them are accidents to God.
Joseph’s brothers intended to harm him, but later in life Joseph saw that it was God’s intent to bless him through the sinful actions of his brothers. They meant it for evil; God meant it for good.
Do you regret certain decisions you’ve made? Did things not turn out the way you had hoped? Do you feel stuck now? Do you wish you had done things differently? There are no accidents with God.
God in his sovereignty even overrides our sins. Maybe you really blew it. You feel like your sin has wrecked your life. Maybe you are suffering long-term consequences for a bad mistake. Remember there are no accidents with God. God is not the author of sin, and he doesn’t tempt us to sin. But even when we sin and bring consequences into our lives, God in his sovereignty can even work our failures and sins for our good.
Romans 8:28
“And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.”