Genesis 3:1-5

Who is Satan? Jesus said, “He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him” (John 8:44b).

What the devil did to corrupt Eve long ago, he is doing to corrupt you. He taught Eve four spiritual flaws:

Flaw #1: Despise God’s Goodness

“Now the serpent…said to the woman, ‘Has God indeed said, “You shall not eat of every tree of the garden”?’” (Genesis 3:1) Satan wanted Eve to think of God as straight-laced and cruel. 

But actually, “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’” (Genesis 2:16-17). God loves His children. God made paradise for Adam and Eve, then said, “Help yourself.” 

“For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD will give grace and glory; no good thing will He withhold from those who walk uprightly” (Psalm 84:11).

Flaw #2: Doubt God’s Truthfulness

"And the woman said to the serpent, ‘We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, “You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.”’ Then the serpent said to the woman, ‘You will not surely die’” (Genesis 3:2-4). 

Anybody who doubts the veracity of God’s Word is doing the work of the devil. 

Modern “Substitutes” for Truth

  • Relativism—All truth is relative.

  • Subjectivism—We all have our own truth.

  • Rationalism—“Thus says the LORD,” becomes “Thus says the mind of man.”

  • Pragmatism—We don’t care if it’s true. Does it work?

  • Post-Modernism—There is no truth—and therefore, no rational basis for right and wrong. 

Flaw #3: Defy God’s Righteousness

Satan wanted Eve to think carelessly about God and judgment. (See Genesis 2:4.)

Not only is God good, but He is righteous. “In the day that you eat of it you shall surely die” (Genesis 2:17b). That was not advice. That was God’s holy law.

Satan knows that man fears death. He is still saying this—Eastern Mysticism and New Ageism teach reincarnation. You get as many chances at perfection as you need! Satan does not want people to believe there is a holy God’s judgment to face. 

Flaw #4: Debase God’s Greatness

Satan said to Eve, “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” (Genesis 3:5). 

There is one God! He is distinct from everything else. But Satan told Eve, “You can be your own little cheap, tin God!” Eastern religion and pantheism teach that we are all gods. We want to be autonomous, to be our own gods. 

Satan’s Future

In Genesis, Satan’s doom is declared. (Read Genesis 3:14-15.) In Revelation, it is carried out. “So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him” (Revelation 12:9).

15:21-22.)

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