From the beginning, yes, the very beginning, Satan has tried to stop the plan of God for salvation. The Bible tells us story after story about evil plans and attempts to destroy the lineage that Christ would arrive through. If Satan could cut down the lineage, he could stop the Messiah. Many attempts are seen in the Old Testament. Genesis 4, Cain killed Abel. God would raise up Seth in his place, but the attempt by Satan failed. Genesis 6, the attempt to corrupt the godly line of Seth by fallen angels. Genesis 12 & 20, the attempted rapes of Sarah. Fail. Genesis 26, the attempted rape of Rebekah. Exodus 1, the killing of all the boys in Egypt. I Samuel 8, David is sought by Saul seeking to murder him. Several other attempts on David’s life also failed. II Chronicles 22, a royal grandmother named Athaliah killed her family and the line of Messiah was reduced to one little infant boy named Joash. He was hidden for six years. Satan’s attempt failed. Esther 3-9, Haman, a demonic man in Persia, sought to have all the Jews exterminated by hanging. Haman, along with the power of Satan behind him, failed. He died on the gallows he had built to kill God’s people. The line of Christ was always protected by God.
When we arrive at the New Testament we see Satan still hasn’t given up. This brings us to Christmas. Matthew 2:16, “Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under…” The Lord, of course, knew this murdering spree would be coming and warned Joseph in a dream to flee into Egypt. God won again. Satan failed again. The absolute greatest failure of Satan was when Jesus was grown. He had lived an impeccable life, never once sinning. He became the “once for all sacrifice” dying on the cross. Satan thought he’d finally won. He hadn’t. Jesus rose again that third day. The resurrection was a declaration from God he’d accepted the sacrifice for the sins of anyone that would accept the Lord Jesus Christ.
Let me make another statement about Satan and his tenacity. He still hasn’t quit. If he can’t snatch the souls from the people of God, he’ll try to snatch their lives from being dedicated and effective. He has a desire to destroy Christians. He’ll lie, steal, cheat, murder, anything to cause damage. Peter tells us he is “like a roaring lion walking about seeking whom he may devour.” A huge part of our existence as Christians is being vigilant, alert, to what could happen if we don’t pay attention to our walk. Satan would love nothing more than to ruin your testimony. He’s subtle. He can be transformed into an angel of light. Be careful, walk circumspectly, always looking around.
As I come to a close with this blog there is another group of God’s people that are constantly attacked. The nation of Israel, the Jews, have always had a target on their backs. It wasn’t just in the Old Testament, it was also in the last two thousand years. The Roman Emperor Hadrian was vicious in the killing of Jews. He hated them so much he decreed the name of Israel would be changed on all maps. It would be called Palestine, that being a reference to Philistines from over a thousand years earlier. The Catholic church developed teachings blaming the Jews for killing Christ. They were accused of “blood libel.” The claim was made that the Jews would steal Christian children and sacrifice them by shedding their blood. The Middle Ages would bring on “Pogroms”. These were riots against Jews. They were accused of starting the Black Plague in Europe in which millions died. It is no wonder that this hatred is called “The Longest Hatred.” We all know about France making them wear gold stars and Germany putting coned hats on them. Revelation 12 describes Satan chasing the woman (Israel) because she gave birth to the Christ. All through history this hatred against God and his plan have been futile. When you think about or hear someone read in the Bible about Herod the Great trying to kill the baby Jesus, just remember murdering has been on Satan’s “to do list” for thousands of years. He has failed over and over.
You as a child of God, a Christian, are always on the winning team.