The Purpose of Demons
The Prince of Demons
To further our study in demonology this week, we will of course be addressing what the purpose of these creatures are. As seen earlier in this study, we know that demons, like angels, are spiritual beings that have intellect, emotion, and will, yet, these beings separate themselves by using these attributes to glorify themselves and Satan rather than God. We will see today just how they do that as we dive into what scripture tells us about their purpose in this day and age. When discussing the activity of Satan and demons, Dr. Wayne Grudem lists out 2 main activities and purposes for which these creatures exist. These 2 purposes are to originate sin and to oppose and destroy the good works of God. Multiple activities committed by Satan and his demons are listed all throughout scripture, yet all of these activities and acts are used to destroy the good works of God through the power of sin as Dr. Grudem notes. Before we start, however, we must first see that Satan himself is the head of all demons, so when we see what the goal of Satan is, we can clearly discern and accurately assume that demons will be used similarly to achieve these said goals. Demons are similar to Satan as angels are to God. This is why Satan isn’t just referred to as ‘Satan’ or the ‘Devil’ in scripture, but also as the ‘Prince of Demons’. With that in mind, let’s dive in.
The Originator of Sin
To start, we see that Dr. Grudem says that Satan is the originator of sin. John 8:44 verifies this when Jesus says, “44…He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies.” With Satan being the originator of sin, we can see why his demons will attempt to lead all others down a sinful road. Sin is the very thing that separates us from our Lord, and Satan isn’t just known for sin, it’s quite literally his title. The ‘Father of Lies’ shows us that no one is better at separating himself from our God quite like Satan and his demons. Just as God is the Father of Truth, Satan is the Father of Lies. Angles will be used by God to lead His people to the truth, and demons will be used by Satan to try and lead people to lies and separation from God. This goal and purpose of Satan and his demons originate all the way back in the Garden of Eden when Satan became the first being to ever sin. It’s very easy to read Genesis and only walk away with the knowledge of the first human being sinner, but we must be aware of who the first being to ever sin really was. Dr. Grudem on this issue notes, “Satan sinned before any human beings did so, as is evident from the fact that he (in the form of the serpent) tempted Eve.” The Prince of Demons and the very originator of sin itself has one primary goal for himself and his demons, and that is to lead as many people as he can into sin to oppose God and His good works.
Oppose & Destroy
Speaking of opposing God’s good works, let’s see how demons are involved in this aspect as well. Demons do not just seek to destroy us and our relationship with God, but they seek to do the same to as many people as they can by destroying the works of God. There is perhaps no greater example of this than when Satan attempts to tempt Jesus. Matthew 4:3 tells us, “3…the tempter came and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.” If Satan led Jesus to sin, he would destroyed the plan of redemption set forth by God and therefore would have eliminated the good news of the gospel for all of eternity. Thank God that didn’t work! Nevertheless, we can see that it is not just the goal of demons to affect one person at a time by leading them to sin but to affect and separate as many people as they can from God through just one act of sin. Opposing our Lord and attempting to destroy His works is such a huge task that Satan and his demons will try and get the most bang for their buck wherever they can get it. This is why the schemes and ways in which Satan will attempt to oppose and destroy God’s works are so vast. On this exact topic, Dr. Grudem mentions, “The tactics of Satan and his demons are to use lies (John 8:44), deception (Rev. 12:9), murder (Ps. 106:37), and every other kind of destructive activity to attempt to cause people to turn away from God and destroy themselves.”
Through whatever means necessary, demons will try and try to oppose and destroy the works of our Lord by drowning this world in sin. Dr. John MacArthur even lists out the ‘4 strategies’ he sees in scripture that Satan and his demons will use to accomplish their tasks. These strategies are, 1. Distorting or denying the truth of God’s Word, 2. Discredit the testimony of God’s people, 3. Depress or destroy the believers’s enthusiasm for God’s work, and 4. Dilute the effectiveness of God’s people. 2 Corinthians 4:4 has probably the clearest view and ultimate goal of all of the schemes. It states, “4…the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.” It is undeniably clear that the overall goal of opposing and destroying the works of God through sin is to lead others away from the gospel. When Satan and his demons can accomplish this, they lead others to do exactly what they have done, deny the truth of God, and define truth for themselves by living for themselves. Again, just as I said in my previous post, I wish there were some type of algorithm or formula that we could use to know for sure whether a particular act is affected by demons or not, but God did not find that necessary for us to know. What we do know, is that regardless of whether a certain situation involves the use of angels or demons, we know exactly what their goal is, and we also know that God still reigns. We know this because God’s Word is clear that even though these beings are powerful, they do not match the power of our Lord. Still, just how powerful are these spiritual beings? That question is what we will address next week.
Sources
[1] “Access Your Bible from Anywhere.” BibleGateway.Com: A Searchable Online Bible in over 150 Versions and 50 Languages., www.biblegateway.com/. Accessed 2023.
[2] Grudem, W. (1994). Systematic Theology : An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine. https://ci.nii.ac.jp/ncid/BA79455700
[3] MacArthur, John & Mayhue, Richard. A Systemic Summary of Bible Truth: Biblical Doctrine. Wheaton, Crossway, 2017
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