Can something that is lost be stolen?

The Devil has convinced us that we have to watch out for someone with horns on their head, a tail on their behind, and wearing a red suit. The Devil wants us to think his job is to try and trick or treat us into giving up our soul. All of these ideas about the Devil came hundreds of years after the last pages of the Bible were written. The real Devil looks nothing like the description most people are using to identify him. The modern version lurks around shady bars and lonely cross-roads looking to make a deal with the foolish and forlorn.

The Bible describes Satan as a powerful fallen principality who is seeking to dethrone the Creator. His main strategy is to corrupt the relationship between God and Adam and his descendants. Satan wants us to join his rebellion against the Creator.

In the garden Adam first believed a lie that broke the relationship he had with God. After that Adam was easily persuaded to break God's laws. Adam felt he was on his own and had nothing to lose. That is how the devil works. The temptation is often greatest when we feel alone with no better options.

But we must give the Devil his due. We have been told to watch out for what we have seen in horror movies or as decorations on Halloween. A lot of the scare of Halloween involves the fear of death. Jesus said it was not our mortal death we should fear. He called that the first death. There is a second death we should fear. This is why Jesus said that in this world there would be tribulation but to be of good cheer for He has overcome the world. Following Satan to prolong our life in this fallen world system will keep us from the door God has opened so we can enter His eternal kingdom.

We have been persuaded that Satan is easy to recognize. But the Bible tells us that Satan usually comes as an angel of light. We often hear people say that the road to Hell is paved with good intentions. We should pay closer attention to the original information we are given in the Bible.

But even though the Bible is one of the bestselling books in the world, it is also one of the least seriously read. The Bible does not describe Satan as the ruler of a place called Hell. Hell is actually where Satan and his followers go at the end of this age. Through his 14th-century epic poem The Divine Comedy, Dante Alighieri helped popularize the idea of Satan ruling Hell, depicting the underworld in vivid detail in the poem's first book, Inferno.

The idea of Satan stealing souls was based on the legends about Dr. Johann Georg Faust (approx. 1480-1540). Some said that he was a con man. Others said he had made a deal with the Devil. Stories about Faust persisted and were expanded upon, and were finally written about in popular books including Goethe's Faust. The term “Faustian bargain” has been used to describe persons who betray principles and values to achieve their goals. It was from these stories that the idea developed of the Devil seeking to steal or buy souls. But these ideas were not derived from any passages in the Bible.

Concerning salvation, the lie the Devil tells is that we are in complete possession of our soul, that it is ours to keep or to give away. We think that all we need is a little religion and some adjustments here and there and we are good for eternity. If it were possible for us to save ourselves God would have never sent Jesus. In truth, the Devil loves religious people as much as he loves sinners so long as neither realizes the way to escape this fallen world is the salvation that God is offering through faith in Jesus Christ.

In reality, we are all destined from birth for an eternity separated from God. It is true there are those who have gained the whole world and have lost their souls. But there are those who own far less who are no better off. It is just harder to let go of a lot of nice things than it is when we have little. This is often why many people come to faith in Christ during times of trial and tribulation. But all have fallen short of the glory of God. No one can come to the Father but by Jesus Christ.

In the Bible Satan is called the accuser (Zechariah 3:1-5, Revelation 12:10). He wants us to think our relationship with God is hopeless because we can never make ourselves perfect. Satan is often the one who keeps reminding us of our sins and failings. Satan wants us to keep looking at ourselves and not to God. God wants us to look to Jesus for forgiveness and salvation. Jesus came to forgive us of our sins and allow us to stand before our Creator clothed in His righteousness. Our own righteousness is not the issue. Our names are written in the Book of Life when we place our faith for salvation in Jesus, not when we follow religious rules. The Bible teaches that when our heart changes toward God, our actions will change toward ourselves and others. Christian faith works through love.

Once we are a child of God we can grow into the full stature of what God intends. So anyone who remains on a path to Hell along with Satan will not go there because they were born a sinner. And it will not be because they did not try to live a good life. It will be because they refused to be born again through faith in a revelation of who God intends them to become as a new creation in Jesus Christ. If we could save ourselves through our own good deeds there would have been no need for God to send His Son.

Faith in Jesus is what Satan is really trying to prevent. Our souls are already lost if we are without the salvation that Jesus offers. While we remain legalistic, and afraid of God and mortal death, Satan can easily manipulate and control us. Jesus came to set the captives free. The yoke of Jesus is easy, and His burden is light.

Every lie from a spirit that is not from God will deny that Jesus is the Son of God. No one can say that Jesus is Lord except by the Spirit of God. It is really as easy as that. We don't have to go around looking for someone in a red costume trying to trick us into selling our soul. The Devil does not have to steal our soul. He just needs to keep us from giving our heart to God.