The many guises of the evil one

Revelation 20:1-3 NKJV

Then I saw an angel coming down from Heaven, having the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. [2] He laid hold of the dragon, that serpent of old, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years; [3] and he cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal on him, so that he should deceive the nations no more till the thousand years were finished. But after these things he must be released for a little while.

It's fascinating to me how many names appear in the second verse for the evil one - the serpent, the dragon, the Devil and Satan - many faces - one enemy.

In Isaiah 14 he's revealed as Lucifer:

Isaiah 14:12-15 NKJV

"How you are fallen from Heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How you are cut down to the ground, You who weakened the nations! [13] For you have said in your heart: 'I will ascend into Heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will also sit on the mount of the congregation On the farthest sides of the north; [14] I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High.' [15] Yet you shall be brought down to Sheol, To the lowest depths of the Pit.

He's the root cause of deception (Revelation 12:9), the father of lies (John 8:44), a thief and a robber (John 10:1).

He's the accuser of believers (Revelation 12:10), always wanting to condemn and bring us down (see Job).

He's the orginator of temptation - holding out tasty morsels that are full of poison which lead to degradation and ultimate death (Genesis 3).

Perhaps the most insidious disguise of Satan is when he appears as "an angel of light" -

2 Corinthians 11:14 NKJV

And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light.

A spy can do more damage than many bombs.

He can conjure up something that looks so good and godly as he was once among the angels of Heaven, before his pride got the better of him and he was thrown out.

He longs to be worshipped as God. Indeed, there exists Luciferianism which promotes satanic worship.

Look at how he promised Jesus all the kingdoms of the world if Jesus would worship him:

Luke 4:6-7 NKJV

And the devil said to Him, "All this authority I will give You, and their glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I wish. [7] Therefore, if You will worship before me, all will be Yours."

Believers must know their enemy in order to spot an attack.

Feel condemned, depressed, full of fear and dread? Are you lured into accusations and hatred towards someone? Have you been tempted to deceive to achieve? All these are hallmarks of the evil one's infiltration.

Know your enemy, yes, but more than that, know your Saviour and take up yourweaponry!

Jesus fought Satan by a right handling of the Word of God (Luke 4).

We now have this to overcome the evil one:

Revelation 12:11 NKJV

And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.

Store up God's Word daily in your heart so that the Holy Spirit can bring it to mind at just the right moment and be daily covered by Jesus' precious blood, ready to give testimony about Him. Satan has no answer to that defence.