No 1. Satan’s
Involvement in Sickness and Disease
THE CAUSES OF SICKNESSES AND DISEASES
There are multiple c
This
study proposes to examine a further influence – that of Satan and his demon
spirits, and to suggest that they may have a far greater influence than we have
first thought.
THE ORIGIN OF SIN, SICKNESS, AND DEATH
Whatever the c
“And the LORD God commanded the man,
saying, "Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat but of the tree of
the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely
die." Gen 2:16-17.
At this point Satan entered into the
circumstances to provide an alternative choice.
“Then the serpent said to the woman,
"You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your
eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."
“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 3:4-7.
The following are some of the
consequences of Eve’ disobedience.
Because of
the fall, man lost his absolute dominion over creation, which itself became a victim of the fall, becoming prey to
Satan’s destructive influence. “For
the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but bec
4. Because of man’s
diminishing control over creation, the
earth and its created life forms have succumbed more and more to Satan’s
influence, to the end that the apostle P
5. Man lost his personal face to face relationship
with God. “Then the Lord God said, "Behold, the man
has become like one of Us, to know good and evil. And now, lest he put out his
hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever" —
therefore the Lord God sent him out of the garden of Eden to till
the ground from which he was taken. So He drove out the man; and He placed
cherubim at the east of the garden of Eden, and a flaming sword which turned
every way, to guard the way to the tree of life.” Gen 3:22-24.
Satan was the tempter, but the disobedience
was Adam’s, and as a result, sin followed by sickness and death, entered the
world. Bec
“Therefore, just as through one man sin
entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to
all men, bec
Satan manifested himself in the Garden
of Eden,
·
to
usurp God’s sovereignty over man,
·
to
gain dominion over the world,
·
to introduce
sin and death into the world,
·
to
take away man’s right to eternal life.
By comparison, Jesus came to restore
eternal life to man, and to take away Satan’s
“Inasmuch then as the children have
partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that
through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the
devil, and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime
subject to bondage.” Heb 2:14-16.
“For this purpose the Son of God was
manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil.” 1 John 3:8-9.
Can Satan
actually create Sickness and Disease?
Compared with God’s creative power
Satan’s power to create is limited. God
may determine or speak, and substance is created out of nothing. By comparison, the Scriptures suggest that Satan
can change the structure or nature of what has already been created. Let us examine some examples. The following
happenings occurred when Moses and Aaron confronted Pharaoh’s magicians, who
demonstrated Satan’s power to change the nature of substance.
Example
1.
“And Aaron cast down his rod before
Pharaoh and before his servants, and it became a serpent.
But Pharaoh also called the wise men and
the sorcerers; so the magicians of
Example
2.
“So he lifted up the rod and struck the
waters that were in the river, in the sight of Pharaoh and in the sight of his
servants. And all the waters that were in the river were turned to blood.
Then the magicians of
Example
3
“So Aaron stretched out his hand over
the waters of
And the magicians did so with their
enchantments, and brought up frogs on the
Example
4 -- Satan’s power is limited.
“Aaron stretched out his hand with his
rod and struck the dust of the earth, and it became lice on man and beast. All
the dust of the land became lice throughout all the
Now the magicians so worked with their
enchantments to bring forth lice, but they could not.” Ex
8:16-18.
Example
5. -- Satan’s
intrusion in Job’s circumstances.
The Book of Job describes Job’s
reactions to afflictions and sicknesses that God allowed Satan to afflict him
with. It is clear from the following
readings that it was Satan who afflicted Job.
When God drew Satan’s attention to
Job’s righteousness and integrity, Satan replied,
"A man will give all he has for his
own life. But stretch out your hand and strike his flesh and bones, and he will
surely curse you to your face." The LORD said to Satan, "Very
well, then, he is in your hands;
but you must spare his life." So Satan
went out from the presence of the LORD and afflicted Job with painful sores from the soles of his feet to the top of
his head.” Job 2:4-7.
It was Satan who afflicted Job with painful sores.
Satan C
1. “…a messenger came to Job and said,
"The oxen were ploughing and the donkeys feeding beside them, when the
Sabeans raided them and took them away -- indeed they have killed the servants
with the edge of the sword; and I alone have escaped to tell you!" Job 1:14-15.
God removed His hedge of protection
and relinquished Job, his substance, and his circumstances into Satan’s
hands. Satan had the capacity to direct
the minds and hearts of the Sabeans’ to pillage Job’s livestock.
2. “While he was still speaking, another also
came and said, "The fire
of God fell from heaven and
burned up the sheep and the servants, and consumed them; and I alone have
escaped to tell you!"
Job 1:16.
The “fire of God” was from Satan, who has the capacity to direct fire
on to the earth.
3. “While he was still speaking, another
also came and said, "Your sons and d
God had said to Satan, “he is in your hands.” We can conclude that Satan has the power to
change natural circumstances – in this case to direct a hurricane like wind to
destroy Job’s children.
We can observe similar circumstances
in Satan’s attempt to destroy Jesus and His disciples.
“Now when He got into a boat, His
disciples followed Him. And suddenly a
great tempest arose on the sea, so that the boat was covered with the
waves. But He was asleep. Then His
disciples came to Him and awoke Him, saying, "Lord, save us! We are
perishing!" But He said to them, "Why are you fearful, O you of
little faith?" Then He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there
was a great calm.” Matt 8:23-27.
Jesus rebuked the wind bec
The Scriptures Confirm Satan’s Involvement
in Sickness, Infirmity, and Diseases
The gospels disclose that a good
portion of Christ’s ministry on earth was devoted to healing sicknesses that
were regarded as an oppression from Satan.
“God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the
Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil,
for God was with Him.” Acts 10:38-39.
“And behold, there was a woman who had a
spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bent over and could in no way raise
herself up. But when Jesus saw her, He
called her to Him and said to her, "Woman, you are loosed from your
infirmity." And He laid His hands on her, and immediately
she was made straight, and glorified God. Replying to critics, He said, "Hypocrite! Does not each one of you on the Sabbath loose his ox
or donkey from the stall, and lead it away to water it? So ought not this woman, being a d
“Now it happened on the next day, when
they had come down from the mountain, that a great multitude met Him. Suddenly a man from the multitude cried out,
saying, "Teacher, I implore You, look on my son, for he is my only child. And behold, a spirit seizes him, and he
suddenly cries out; it convulses him so that he foams at the mouth; and it
departs from him with great difficulty, bruising him. 40 So I implored Your
disciples to cast it out, but they could not…
And as he was still coming, the demon threw him down and convulsed him.
Then Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit, healed the child, and gave him back to
his father." Luke
9:37-42.
“Now He arose from the synagogue and
entered Simon's house. But Simon's wife's mother was sick with a high fever,
and they made request of Him concerning her. So He stood over her and rebuked
the fever, and it left her. And immediately she arose and served them.” Luke 4:38-39. Jesus rebuked the fever bec
In
Healing, Jesus was Doing God’s Work
In healing the sick Jesus was doing
God’s will by manifesting His name of Jehovah Rapha, “He who heals you.” Healing expresses God’s desire for man’s
wellbeing.
"If you diligently heed the voice
of the LORD your God and do what is right in His sight, give ear to His
commandments and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you
which I have brought on the Egyptians. For
I am the LORD who heals you." Ex 15:25-26.
Psalm 103 states,
“Bless
the LORD, O my soul,
And
forget not all His benefits:
Who
forgives all your iniquities,
Who
heals all your diseases…” Ps 103:2-3.
Jesus came to undo the work of Satan,
who came to kill and destroy.
“the Son of God was manifested, that
He might destroy the works of the devil.” 1 John 3:8-9.
WAYS IN WHICH GOD OVERCOMES SATAN’S
POWER OF SIN AND DEATH
God provided atonement for us that we are delivered from
Satan’s right to afflict our bodies with sickness.
“…who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree [cross], that we, having died to
sins, might live for righteousness — by whose stripes you were healed.” 1 Peter
2:24.
Jesus bore the consequences of our
sins – sickness, pains, infirmities and death.
Not only has God provided the
spiritual basis for our healing, He has also provided physical methods of
healing. Ultimately all healing is a
provision from God, and all are valid – all of equal importance. Here are some
examples.
1. Medical Science and Practice. Jesus validated the practice of
physical medicine when He equated His own ministry with that of a physician. Both ministries were directed at those
tormented by Satan. Both are from God
and are subject to His blessing.
“When Jesus heard it, He said to them,
"Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.
I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance." Mark 2:17.
Luke, the
God’s
name ‘Jehovah Rapha,’ means “He who heals.” He has provided healing for all in the
world, both good and bad, through the practice of medicine. All of its
discoveries and advancements are directed to mankind by Him. This is in
accordance with His nature and faithfulness in caring for the needs of mankind.
2. Spiritual
Healing. This was demonstrated by
the healing ministry of Jesus. Although the
Medical Profession has lessened much of the need for spiritual healing, there
are many diseases, particularly those resulting from sin, that will only be
overcome by spiritual healing. Spiritual
healing is available to those who believe in the merit of Christ’s atoning
sacrifice, and are open to the ministry of the Holy Spirit. Medical healing is enhanced when it is
accompanied by spiritual prayer and testimony.
3. Continued Walking in Health. God not only provided us spiritual
healing, but also the spiritual means to walk in health. The following readings
demonstrate His desire for us.
“Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in
all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers.” 3 John 2-3.
“For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the
death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved [healed and preserved] by His life.” Rom
5:10-11.
WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO KNOW SATAN’S
INVOLVEMENT IN SICKNESS?
Jesus
stated, “…the Son of God was manifested, that He
might destroy the works of the devil,” (1Jn 3:8). His
healing ministry was typical of Him undoing the works of Satan. All Christian ministries are directed at
undoing the works of the devil. When we
engage in the healing ministry we are one with Jesus, provided that it is Jesus
who initiates and that it is He who directs and who heals. It
is not a work of the flesh.
“Therefore they stayed there a long
time, speaking boldly in the Lord, who was bearing witness to the word
of His grace, granting signs and wonders to be done by their hands.” Acts 14:2-3.
A healing ministry must be in order.
Lawless self initiated works lead to lying signs and wonders that have their
origin in Antichrist.