Who is the Devil? Understanding the Adversary and Our Power Over Him

Have you ever wondered who the devil really is? We read about him in the Bible, hear preachers talk about him, and maybe even feel his influence in our lives. But what does the Bible actually say? Let’s unpack that today! We’ll look at Scripture, especially 1 Peter 5:6-9, to understand who the devil is and how we can stand strong against him. It’s about recognizing the increasing power God gives us, learning to tell the difference between good and evil, and knowing that we absolutely have power over the enemy.

Setting the Stage: A Series of Powerful Messages

Before diving in, it’s important to understand the foundation that’s already been laid. Recently, there’s been a series of messages from our Impact Youth Conference that all connect. First, there was Gabriel Swaggart preaching on “Not One Hoof Left Behind.”

Then, Beth Johnson delivered a powerful message called “I Need the Holy Ghost,” explaining exactly why we need that power.

Following that, Greg Atkins preached about “These Are They That Turned the World Upside Down,” talking about the kind of “trouble” believers bring—healing, revival, and good news!

And most recently, Melvin Sanchez spoke about the power of prayer and how it helps us overcome opposition, and that we shouldn’t be surprised by the opposition of the devil.

These messages all have a common thread: spiritual warfare. There’s a battle going on, and we need to be equipped. You can find all of these messages and more on the Community Family Church website, or YouTube channel.

The Law of Cause and Effect: Understanding Good and Evil

Ever heard of the law of cause and effect? It’s a basic principle in science. Everything that happens has a cause. Think about it. An atomic bomb goes off because something caused it to go off. Rain falls from the sky because something caused it to fall. It’s the same in the spiritual world. Love, joy, and peace? They don’t just pop up out of nowhere. Neither do hate, murder, and strife. There’s a cause behind every effect.

So, where does love come from? What about affection and peace? And on the flip side, where does hatred come from? Where does murder originate? What’s the source of covetousness and suicide? To understand these things, we need to be able to discern, and to do that, we need to look to the Bible.

The Bible as Our Foundation: Avoiding Extraneous Sources

The Bible is our guidebook. It’s the foundation for everything we believe. If we stray from it, we’re going to get lost and confused. That’s why it’s so important to stick to what the Scriptures actually say. Have you ever had someone try to tell you something based on some other book or source?

It’s tempting to explore other ideas, but we need to be careful. Some will say, “Have you read the Book of Enoch?” And while it might be interesting, we can’t base our faith on it because it’s not in the Scriptures. It’s not part of the Canon. Groups like the Jehovah’s Witnesses have their Watchtower Society because they think people don’t have enough sense to read the Bible themselves! And then they try to tell you that Jesus was an archangel and that he and Lucifer were brothers! That’s not in the Bible!

And what about the Mormons? They have other books that try to mess with your mind, telling you that God had a wife and they had babies in Heaven! Again, that’s not Biblical.

It’s important not to get so open-minded that your brains fall out. It’s like the lady who came up and wanted to talk about the “seven auras” of your being. When I said I didn’t know anything about that, she mentioned it was from “Eastern thought.” Well, if it’s not in the Bible, I don’t want to hear it! I don’t want to know what yoga’s got to say, or what a palm reader or a fortune teller says. If it’s not in the Bible, I don’t want to hear it!

Fanaticism for God: A Defense of Biblical Absolutes

Some people might call that fanaticism. And you know what? Maybe it is. I take my direction from the Holy Ghost and the Word of God. I’m not about to open up a fortune cookie, get some extra calories, and then get goosebumps because the fortune says I’m going to run into some money!

We have something better than a fortune cookie! The Bible says, “Give, and it shall be given unto you, pressed down, shaken together, and running over.” It says if we give 10%, He’s going to pour out a blessing we can’t even contain! I don’t need this world’s system.

So, you can take all your Eastern cults, your Eastern religions, your gurus, and all that “Confucius say” stuff. I don’t want to know what Confucius has to say! I’m not even curious what Buddha has to say. And as for the Quran? It says Jesus didn’t die on the cross! That’s enough for me to throw that thing as far as the east is from the west! It’s because of the cross that I’m alive. It’s because of the Blood of Jesus that I’ve been born again.

And most of the present-day books? I can’t even stand them. They’re so full of humanism. It’s all about me, me, me! That’s why so many are as carnal as a frog on a log. You can’t get a touch of Heaven because you’re reading a bunch of me-me-me stuff. But when you open up this book, it’s HIM, HIM, HIM! In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was God. He’s God in the beginning, He’s God now, and He’ll be God tomorrow. He’s yesterday, today, and forever. He is one God!

A Testimony in Israel: Standing Firm on Creation

I remember being in Israel with a group from Great Britain. They asked all sorts of polite questions about what I did.

“Oh, how lovely! And what are you affiliated with?”

They wanted to figure out what “box” to put me in. I explained that I pastor Community Family Church.

“Oh, how lovely! Community Family Church! Isn’t that such a lovely name? Room for everyone!”

I said, “Well, we’re Pentecostal by experience.”

And the response? “What?! You don’t mean you’re one of those fundamentalists?!”

They asked, “You certainly don’t believe that God created the earth in six natural, 24-hour days, do you?”

I told them, “When the Holy Ghost got done with me, if God said He did it in six seconds, that’s good enough! Time is nothing with Him!”

The man looked at his wife and the three other couples with them and said, “Let’s get away from these people. They’re crazy!”

Well, I might be crazy, but I know in whom I have believed. And I am persuaded that He is able to keep everything I’ve committed unto Him until that day. Do you know who I’m talking about?

Ezekiel 28: Satan’s Original State

Now, if you try to find out who Satan is from the Watchtower Society, the Book of Mormon, or other religions, you’re going to hear the weirdest things you’ve ever heard. But the Bible tells us that God created angels before He created us. Ezekiel 28 tells us that He created an angel who was the most beautiful and musical.

Beautiful and musical. Those are the two things that Satan distorts. He distorts beauty, and he distorts music.

Satan’s Distortion of Beauty

When Satan gets done with you, it might look like a night on the town. You might be kicking your heels on the dance floor, with a drink in one hand, and just loving your 22-year-old self. But, let me tell you something: Satan will never be satisfied until you look like… well, until your beauty is completely gone.

That beautiful hair? Messed up. That skin? Looking like an old piece of leathered cowhide. You may dance on that dance floor and shake your little body, acting like you’re having a good time. And maybe, to your flesh, you are. But when Satan gets done with you, he wants to take the beauty of your natural holiness, the beauty of your natural body. When he gets done with you, the Wicked Witch of the West can’t even compare to what you’ll look like!

He’ll take your beauty away. He’ll make you look like a ragged old hag. He’ll knock your teeth out. He’ll cause your hair to fall out. He’ll cause your skin to look like leather. You’ll walk in here like some zombie. You ought to go to a drug rehab sometime and see what that alcohol will do, see what those drugs will do to you.

Satan has one thing in mind: to take away your beauty. That’s why God said, “Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness.”

Satan’s Distortion of Music: From Praise to Chaos

Satan was the most beautiful and musical. He was created with pipes in him. You know, this piano has 88 keys. It’s made of octaves. People watching online might not know it, but in between it’s called octave, because it’s do, re, mi, fa, so, la, ti, do. But did you notice that “do” and “do” are the same word? They’re the same sound because they are the same sound.

There are seven different sounds, which is God’s complete number. Did you know there are seven colors on the color scale? The colors are red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet. There are seven colors that match the seven sounds of the music. Scientists know there’s a connection between color and music. They can’t find the missing link because it’s spiritual. A microscope can’t see it, a stethoscope can’t hear it.

In Ezekiel 28, it tells us that Satan was created in perfection. He had music in him. He was the most beautiful, and he took every octave of every note. Everything every sound you hear the Indian sound, the Native American is between do and do. The African sound is between do and do. The Middle Eastern sound is between do and do. Even the Asian sounds.

Before there ever were sounds from the nations of the world, they were already up in Heaven. Lucifer knows when he hears that sound, when he hears that music, it’s a reminder to him that he’s no longer employed in the celestial city. That he has been fired. Now, there’s a group of people that have been hired, purchased, blood-bought, and redeemed. They’re called anointed and appointed to give praise to God.

Heaven’s Sound: Percussion and Praise

When we talk about Heaven, this is what you get. If you’re going to say, “This little boy had a dream of Heaven,” you hear these mellow minor keys. Someone says, “Oh, when you do that, I feel angels.” You don’t even know it, but while we’re doing this in the supernatural, there’s colors! These are the blue purples, the violets and indigo.

When we talk about Heaven, we talk about that tranquil feel. But I want you to know something about Lucifer. He not only had the organ, not only had the strings, he not only had the pipes, but Lucifer had timberals! That’s another word for tambourines! He had symbols in his body!

These instruments, they’re percussion instruments. I’m telling you, in Heaven, it wasn’t some gothic, dark ages sound. It was a sound of percussion! It was a sound of hand clapping! It was a sound of shouting! Some people are going to get surprised because when we get on the other side it wasn’t all dull and melancholy. Lucifer could do that with his body! When Lucifer would begin to worship and begin to praise, the entire celestial city got caught up in a hallelujah, in praise, in glory, and honor. I was glad when they said unto me, “Let us go into the house of the Lord!”

Isaiah 14: The Seeds of Rebellion

He had iniquity in his heart. He wasn’t smoking a joint. He was in a habitat he couldn’t get out of. A habitat’s like a turtle that lays her eggs in a certain place every year. It’s like a stork that flies the same direction. The stork has choices about what to eat, but it doesn’t have a choice about its habitat. Lucifer was in this habitat, and he said, “I can’t get out of it.” This is Isaiah 14. He said, “If I could get disconnected from this Word, from Him, He won’t let me get disconnected.”

So, he was doing all that with those thoughts in his head. The Bible said he would walk among the stones of fire. Angels were about to pass out, and then he’d start dancing in coals of fire.

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The Fall of Satan: Lightning from Heaven

Jesus, sitting on the throne, said, “I beheld Satan fall as lightning from Heaven!” He looked at him and said, “Enough is enough. You are fired!” That’s not exactly what he said, but it’ll help you remember it.

He cast him out of Heaven. He fell like lightning from heaven. And when he did, some of the angels went, “Oh, not Lucifer! Oh, look how valuable he is to the celestial city! What are we going to do without Lucifer?”

And Jesus said, “If any of the rest of you all want to go, you can go.” And one-third of the angels walked out of the celestial city.

From Angel to Disembodied Spirit: The Nature of Demons

When they walked out, their beauty—which every child would see as peaceful if an angel appeared in their room—turned. Now, instead of faces of peace and love that reflected God, they’re walking out of the celestial city. Satan has been removed from his body. He’s now a disembodied spirit. He will never have a body again until the book of Revelation.

We say people are possessed with the devil. They’re possessed with demons because the devil is a disembodied spirit. But one day, he’s allowed to have a body again. He’s going to be placed inside of a human man, and everybody thinks it’s just a man. But it’s Satan in the man, controlling the world, called the Antichrist.

So, Satan, being a disembodied spirit, has his body that was created. I don’t know if it just sat there, because there would never be one person with that kind of power. It would now be distributed to a widow living in a shack, to poor people in Haiti who have experienced an earthquake. Yet with no house, no home, no food, and disease. I watched them on CNN news as they took their tambourines and they began to sing in Creole how good the Lord was. That body that Satan has had has been replaced with flesh and blood mortal humans that say hallelujah!

Those demons that those angels that were so beautiful, they start walking out of celestial city. Now their beauty begins to turn into hideous figures that Hollywood cannot even produce. You think that those horrible creatures that Hollywood produces is what a demon looks like? Oh, no! Because the demon carries the spirit of rebellion! It carries the spirit of murder! It carries the spirit of hatred! They left the celestial city.

The Reality of Demonic Encounters: A Personal Testimony

In the 1970s, during that big revival, a little two-year-old boy, my cousin’s firstborn, said, “Daddy, they came to my room last night.”

He said, “Who came?”

He said, “They came in my room. They took my toys and threw them on the ground. They scared me, Daddy!”

His dad said, “There wasn’t anybody there.”

The boy insisted, “Yes, there was, Daddy!”

So, his parents put his toys on top of the bunk bed. Two nights later, he screams, “They came, Daddy! They came! They came, Daddy!”

They ran into the bedroom. They heard him screaming. They heard the toys hitting the wall, hitting the ground. Every toy on top of that bunk bed had been thrown and hit the wall!

He said, “They scare me, Daddy! They’re ugly! They scare me!”

That’s demons!

So, they called us to come over. I was just a teenager. We were all under the power of the Holy Spirit. My mom’s first cousin, Lenora, had just been saved and filled with the Holy Ghost. Jim Filer was with us. My sister Vicki, and others were there. We began to pray over that house that night. We walked into a room that wasn’t anyone’s bedroom.

They had those sticky fly catchers hanging from the ceiling. All at once, a wind began to blow. It wasn’t God’s wind. It was a wind of terror. It was a wind of frightening fear! And those sticky fly catchers began to blow in the wind. There was no fan in there! The spirit of the evil one grabbed hold of Lenora and threw her on the bed. She says, “He’s choking me!” And then she says, “Oh no, Satan, you won’t choke me! I’m covered by the Blood!” Even in her infancy of being born again, she stood to her feet, and that night, we cast the devil out.

Casting Out Devils: A Modern-Day Example

I get a call from Pam. She says something’s happened to Don, her husband. Don is one of the neatest people you’ll ever meet. Everything is always in perfect place. But he called her and said, “I’m not coming home. I don’t want to be married. I don’t want to be with my children. I’m just going to live my life in solitude by myself.”

He went to Newport, Kentucky, and got himself a little efficiency room with just a toilet and a wash basin. No shower, no bathtub, anything. And there he is, sitting in that depressed state. Pam was saying, “I don’t know what’s happened! I don’t know what’s happened!” She was young, probably 19 or 20. I was young, and I was praying.

About that time, the Spirit of God moved on me. God can move on you as a young person. And the Holy Ghost moved on me. I spoke in other tongues. The interpretation came and said, “This is the work of witches. This is the work of sorcerers. This is the work of the supernatural power of Satan.”

We went to Pam’s house. We made a big circle. We all began to pray. As we began to pray, the woman’s face appeared to me. It was a woman where he worked. He had to walk away from a very high-paying job. That woman’s face appeared, and I said, “There she is! The witch is in this circle!”

I said, “I curse you in the name of Jesus! You have no power! I curse you in the name of Jesus. You have no power over Don! I command you right now in the name of Jesus, you take your sorcery, you take your witchcraft, you take your power, you take it off of him!” As I began to pray that prayer, all of us began to move under the Spirit. The power of God began to fall.

Immediately, Don called. He said, “I’m coming home! I don’t know what happened to me, but it just lifted off of me!” You’ve got power! You’ve got power over the devil! Pam ended up marrying him and became the very first one to record our services on cassette because the devil was put in submission. Demons put in submission!

Satan cannot possess you because you’re covered with the blood. But oppression and depression are his ways to manipulate and aggravate. And you don’t have to be any of those, either, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Understanding Spiritual Warfare: Beyond Mental Imagery

All of these messages, when we say “I had to fight the devil,” we’re not talking about mental imagery. We’re not talking about some made-up thing. Just as Jesus is Lord, Satan is defeated, with limited access. He controlled the earth. With limited access, he controlled the lives of people.

Spiritual Warfare Easily Attacking Our Children – Matthew 18:6

But when Jesus hung on that cross, when He shed His blood, as the blood came running down from the top of His head to the soles of His feet, He cried and said, “It is finished!” And He crushed the serpent’s head. Upon this rock, He said, “I’m going to build My church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it!” If you want revival, then you better get ready to take authority over the devil.

The Devil’s Limitations: Not Omniscient, But Experienced

The devil is not omniscient. He does not know what’s going to happen tomorrow. Angels aren’t omniscient, either. Even though he has the ability, just like me, to come by you and start humming those sounds that are connected with colors, you’ll get a feeling, even if you don’t understand it. That’s how he messes with your mind. He can put thoughts in your mind, but he never knows you take them until you say, “Man, I feel like everybody hates me!” Then he goes, “He’s got it! He’s got my thought! I feel like no one wants me!” Now he’s got you. He knows you’re sniffing at the bait. Now he knows you’re getting ready to be taken in.

He’s not omniscient. Don’t give him any more power than he has. But he’s not ignorant, either. He’s been working on the human race since Adam. You are no match for him. That’s why greater is He that is within you.

Power Over the Enemy: “Greater is He That is Within You”

Repeat this after me: “Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them!” You are children, and have overcome every demon power because greater is He that is within you than he that is in the world! Satan is defeated, but he will squat. He will take territory that belongs to you as long as you don’t push him back. Learn more about how to effectively engage in spiritual warfare here.

You have to push him back!

Altar Call: A Call to Repentance and Rededication

There’s somebody here that’s away from God. You’re not where you ought to be with God. You’re in dangerous territory. The enemy has traps all around you. I’m going to count to 10. When I count to 10, I want you to be interceding until that person meets me at this altar and says, “I’m ready to sell out 100%!” We need some prayer warriors all over this place.

Experiencing Freedom: Testimonies of Deliverance

Let’s fill these altars. It’s happening all over. Restore, renew, revive! Restore, renew, revive! God’s held back the tornadoes. He’s held back the vicious storms. He spared our electricity in order for us to put our foot on the serpent’s head. Call upon Him!

Daryl said it’s gone! What I came in with is gone! He said, “I felt it leave!”

Equipping for Battle: A Word to the Youth

Now, I’m going to warn you something, young people. You’ve stepped into the enemy’s territory. It’s really not his territory. He’s just been dwelling on territory that doesn’t belong to him. You have now stirred up demons. That’s why I preached this message. I want you to know who the devil is. But I want you to know who Jesus is. And I want you to know you have power. If you’re going back to school in the morning, let the power of God stir you and strengthen you, because there is a task ahead of you like no generation has ever experienced before. Satan doesn’t want to turn this generation loose. But you have the key.

A Prophetic Word: Power to Cast Out Devils

I know almost totally nothing about you, but I’m standing up there and the Holy Ghost spoke to me. He said, “I have given you power to cast the devil out.” Have you ever seen the devil cast out before? He said, “I’ve given you power to do it. I did it in the past.” But He said, “You’re getting ready to step into another dimension, because what I did in the past, the power’s never left you, and the gift has never left you. Satan’s got your name.” Remember when the sons of Sceva said, “Paul I know, and Jesus I know, because they’re on a list, but these other boys, I don’t know who they are?”

The Lord wants you to know your name’s on that list, too. Satan knows who you are. You’ve cast him out in the past, and he doesn’t want you to get stirred. You’ve got the gift of faith to cast out the devil that controls drugs and illicit sexual activity. God’s given you that gift to operate.

Pam’s Spiritual Warfare: A Mother’s Powerful Prayers

These are the words I hear in the spirit. You tell Pam all of those prayers she’s prayed for her family and her husband, they were not just prayers! These were prayers with military warfare! Sharpen the sword of the spirit! Get ready, because you’re going into dark places, and you’re going to pull them off of your family, your cousins, your cousins, your family! You’ve got what you got by spiritual warfare. And you’re going to get a greater harvest by spiritual warfare.

Melissa’s Freedom: Leaving the Heaviness at the Altar

Melissa said, “It’s gone! The heaviness is gone!” She left it here at the altar!

Mike’s Chains: A Symbol of Freedom for All

Mike said it happened to me. The chains fell off tonight! I believe you can also learn more by exploring messages.

Closing Song and Departure

We’re going to close with this song. I’ve got to go home and pack. I haven’t even fed my chickens or gathered eggs yet! But I’m going to jump on that airplane full of the Holy Ghost. I’m going to sleep all the way to North Carolina and wake up with the fire of God, ready to attack hell one more time!