Story of a Lifetime: Part 2, Satan

INITIAL CONFLICT
Today, we're going to take a look at Satan, or a.k.a. Lucifer. Believe it or not we can learn a lesson from him...yes really. I hope I remember to tell you.
I don't know the exact time Satan was cast out of heaven, whether is was after God had created, or before...I don't know. But the main point is that Satan got to big for his britches and turned against God; He became discontent in his position that God created him for. Ezekiel 28:12-19 describes Satan as this:
"You had everything going for you.
You were in Eden, God's garden.
You were dressed in splendor,
your robe studded with jewels:
Carnelian, peridot, and moonstone,
beryl, onyx, and jasper,
Sapphire, turquoise, and emerald,
all in settings of engraved gold.
A robe was prepared for you
the same day you were created.
You were the anointed cherub.
I placed you on the mountain of God.
You strolled in magnificence
among the stones of fire.
From the day of your creation
you were sheer perfection...
and then imperfection—evil!—was detected in you.
In much buying and selling
you turned violent, you sinned!
I threw you, disgraced, off the mountain of God.
I threw you out—you, the anointed angel-cherub.
No more strolling among the gems of fire for you!
Your beauty went to your head.
You corrupted wisdom
by using it to get worldly fame.
I threw you to the ground,
sent you sprawling before an audience of kings
and let them gloat over your demise.
By sin after sin after sin,
by your corrupt ways of doing business,
you defiled your holy places of worship.
So I set a fire around and within you.
It burned you up. I reduced you to ashes.

Satan is this beautiful Angel, he's not this little red guy running around with a stick and horns sticking out his head. Why would he become discontent? This is where we learn a lesson from Satan (I remembered). Can this sound like us sometimes? I can sound like this sometimes. Become discontent with all that I have and get mad at God for not giving me more, or what I want. We pretty much tell God how it is.
So this is kinda what Satan has done, He's decided he can't be in Heaven anymore unless everyone worships him. He let to much go to his head. In Isaiah 14:13-15 notice all the "I will's" Satan says about himself:
"You said to yourself,
"I'll climb to heaven.
I'll set my throne
over the stars of God.
I'll run the assembly of angels
that meets on sacred Mount Zaphon.
I'll climb to the top of the clouds.
I'll take over as King of the Universe!"

Well, Satan's plan doesn't exactly work out for him. However, he kinda revised his plan to take over the world and started messing with man or WO-man I guess thinking if he can outsmart us he will have control of something and get back at God. Satan's plan consists of 5 D's.

Doubt- Making you question God's Word, and his goodness.
Discouragement- looking at your problems under a magnifying glass, rather than God.
Diversion- the wrong things look attractive, making you want them more than the right things.
Defeat- you feel like a failure so you won't even try.
Delay- makes you put off doing something, so it never gets done.

Satan likes it when we don't look to God and fail. Well what did Satan do in the garden? He tempted Eve, using doubt, and diversion until he convinced her to eat the fruit. She did it, and thus the fall of man occurs. Satan is still at it today too. He even had the guts to tempt Jesus!!
The Climax of Satan I believe is at the same time indicated in the first part of this. Jesus' Resurrection. The Bible doesn't clearly paint a picture of what happened the 3 days Jesus was in Hell or Hades: place of the dead, but the whole power of the Resurrection was that death had been defeated, and a new life has begun. Just has we had read in 1 Corinthians 15:21-22 we all die because we're related to Adam, the first man. But all who are related to Christ, the other man, will be given new life. So that's bad news for Satan. So in the Focusing conflict of the story which is now until the church is raptured, Satan is going to do everything he can to distract and delay people accepting Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior, and allow Him to do a work in them. He will discourage both believer and non-believer. You want to know why we need to be rock solid in Jesus and on the Bible, because Satan will try to tell you otherwise. Just like he did with Eve, "Sure you can eat of this fruit, God just doesn't want you to be like him." DUH! It was only God's ground to know the difference between good and evil. The world was good. Take a look at 2 Corinthians 4:4;11:14 "Satan, the god of this evil world, has blinded the minds of those who don't believe, so they are unable to see the glorious light of the Good News that is shining on them...However, even Satan can even disguise himself as an Angel of light." So, stay planted on the truth know it like the back of your hand, even Satan knows scripture.
In the end though, Satan doesn't have an happy ending. As I have said a few times, Satan is thrown into the Lake of Fire, then all of Jesus' people have a huge party and sing. Whoo hoo!!!! I've already RSVP'd. Thats a smackdown I don't want to miss. I will not go into much depth about Revelation because it's A LOT to talk about, and A LOT to understand, and my understanding isn't well developed yet toward Revelation. Hopefully soon I'll be able to do a post on it.