He didn’t LOOK like a Satanist. Okay, I admit I had some preconceived ideas
involving 666 tattoos, strange body piercings and studded black leather filled
with symbols of the occult. Joe, the guy
I talked with at the gas pump, had none of these characteristics but seemed
friendly and easy-going. Yet he told me
he is very interested in Satanism, despite his background growing up attending
a Presbyterian church.
Why Satanism? I
understand people often reject the Christian faith they’ve grown up in, but it seems
like quite a radical leap in the wrong direction to so fully embrace a being so
vile as Satan. I’d come to believe that
people who go so far as to openly worship Satan must have done so gradually as
their hearts became hardened and calloused by sin and painful personal
experiences, but Joe didn’t seem to fit in that category.
Satan, whose name means “adversary”, usually doesn’t operate
in the open. More often, he or his
minions are hiding in plain site As the
fallen angel Lucifer, he usually has to trick people to follow him by
pretending to be godly, by “masquerading as an angel of light” as we read in 2
Corinthians 11:14. Common sense alone
should tell us not to follow a sworn enemy of the God of the Universe.
So why would someone like Joe, who appeared to be a reasonable
young man, be willing to follow a religion that so blatantly rebels against
God? I believe there is some reverse-psychology
involved. Joe was quick to tell me that
his brand of “Satanism” really doesn’t believe in Satan at all. They just like the freedom and individuality they
believe Satan represents. I looked it up
on Wikipedia and sure enough, there is a modern branch of Satanism whose
founder, author of “the Satanic Bible” “praised the human ego for encouraging
an individual's pride, self-respect, and self-realization and accordingly
believed in satisfying the ego's desires”.
So its not so much an acceptance of Satan but a rejection of
the perceived limitations imposed on Christians that attracts people like Joe
to a belief like Satanism. Unfortunately,
this will become even more common as society turns against Christianity.
In the same way, I’ve often wondered what would ever drive
people to literally have the number “666” inscribed on the foreheads as
described in Revelation 13? With the
rapid pace of change in our global society, its not inconceivable that the
entire world turn almost overnight against Christians, maybe due to some sort blame
for a calamity like a pandemic or climate change. It’s happened before as Christians were
persecuted and martyred after being blamed for the burning of Rome.
And what sign would non-believers turn to in order to prove
they are not secret Christians? Why, get
666 tattooed on their foreheads of course!
It wouldn’t be that they believe in everything 666 represents, but they
could very easily reject all that being a Christian represents, especially as
both true and false converts continue to act in ways that misrepresent the
person and message of Jesus.
I don’t like to be an alarmist, and I don’t believe in
giving the devil attention or credit he doesn’t deserve, but he can only
operate in the shadows and we need to be aware of his activities. Jesus said “I am sending you out like sheep
among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.” (Matt.
10) Let’s keep our focus on Jesus, but let’s
not be so naïve that we aren’t aware of the activities of the enemy out of the
corner of our eyes.
Thanks, Joe, for an honest conversation! Don’t get fooled by the true enemy of your
soul! Our conversation can be seen HERE at
https://youtu.be/ZJ0YZpGLTVI
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