Section 5: Scripturally Discerning The Devil
The Word Of God Vs. The Lady Of Fatima's Words
Section 5: Scripturally Discerning The Devil
The Word Of God Vs. The Lady Of Fatima's Words
A study of Scripture shows Satan to be a much different sort of creature than the ugly clawed monster the Fatima children feared. Surely he's ugly, but its a spiritual ugliness. He can appear in many forms, and on occasion, may have chosen to look ugly. But according to the word of God, the devil will manifest himself in the appearance which best suits his purpose. He is the Deceiver, and Paul warns us, "even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light" (2 Corinthians 11:14, NAB).
If he always appeared as an ugly demon, stinking of sulfur and babbling horrid noises, we wouldn't need the gift of discernment of spirits. Through the whole of Scripture, God teaches us to know who the enemy is, to have good recognition of his weapons, and how to pinpoint his lies. Without these abilities, we can easily be among those who are deceived. We see in Scripture that Satan is a spiritual being and works in a spiritual way; he often speaks spiritual words. For this reason, it's vital for Christians to comprehend the complete separation between God and Satan, between Good and Evil, between Truth and Lie. There can be no mixture of the two. Religious phrases and even verses of Scripture, in themselves, are no guarantee of truth. They must be measured by the whole word of God. A half-truth is also a half-lie, and each tiny variation or distortion of Scripture, for example, is immediately grasped and set to work by the father of lies. Satan isn't even a gentleman; nothing is beneath him, nothing is too sacred for him to use in his losing battle. He fights dirty, and the Church can't afford to be hurt, or shocked, or unbelieving that he will stoop to using Mary's name. It's our sentimental identification with her which blinds us, but we must remember that he uses even the name of Jesus in his false teaching. Many cults and false religions are based on deceptive interpretations of Scripture and the use of Jesus' name to propagate them. Jesus gave us, the Church, these words to hold onto: "Be on guard! Don't be deceived!" He did so because He knew Satan's manifestations would be planned and polished and bright. This is the reason John wrote,
"Beloved, do not trust every spirit, but put the spirits to a test to see if they belong to God, because many false prophets have appeared in the world" (1 John 4:1, NAB).
Another of the Fatima children's false assumptions was that the devil is in Hell, when in fact he is not there at all:
"Woe to you, earth and sea, for the devil has come down upon you [not Hell]! His fury knows no limits, for he knows his time is short" (Revelation 12:21, NAB).
According to Peter, our "opponent the devil is prowling like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, solid in your faith" (1 Peter 5:8-9, NAB). Like Peter, we see it's important to know the devil is on earth, and furious. We must discern him and resist him, for his priority now is to spread spiritual blindness by keeping men away from the word of God, even those men who are members of the body of Christ. In "Demons in the World Today, Merrill F. Unger states:
"If 'the god of this world' [Satan] cannot totally blind the unbeliever's mind and thus completely hide the gospel from him (2 Corinthians 4:4), he will seduce the believer to the best of his ability. To keep the believer from the simplicity and purity of the gospel of grace, he will encourage all sorts of errors. This is Satan's attempt to retain some degree of control over those who come to a saving knowledge of Christ. Doctrinal error obscures revelation and gives Satan and demonic forces a toehold. Evil powers can confuse man in his attempt to interpret truth, but they cannot penetrate the sure defense of God's infallible word. The Holy Bible, God's revealed word, points us to Christ's victory over Satan at the cross. He alone can deliver us from evil and from the evil one"(1).
St. Paul constantly spoke out against those traditions which added to the simplicity of the gospel. To the church at Colossae, which was confused by traditions concerning false asceticism and superstitious festivals, he wrote: "See to it that no one deceives you through any empty, seductive philosophy that follows mere human traditions, a philosophy based on cosmic powers rather than on Christ" (Colossians 2:8, NAB).
Paul knew that salvation was through Christ alone, and he knew, too, the infinite variety of human traditions which could be used to supplant that salvation. He warned against the "cutters," who believed circumcision was as necessary to salvation as faith in Jesus (Philippians 3:2-4). To the Galatians, he wrote, "You even go so far as to keep the ceremonial observance of days and months, seasons and years!" (Galatians 4:10, NAB).
He warned Timothy and Titus to avoid arguments about geneologies, which some emphasized, and instead to depend on the fact of salvation in Jesus (1 Timothy 1:3-4; Titus 3:9). These traditions of the first century were different from those of today, but their threat to the purity of the gospel remains the same. Paul wasn't against tradition, but he certainly spoke out against it when it interfered with the truth.
In matters of discernment, we must be careful not to set aside God's commandments in the interests of keeping our traditions (Mark 7:9). Each of us is individually called and will be individually judged; each is also responsible for his or her own religious and spiritual beliefs. The apparitions of the Lady of Fatima, being supernatural, spiritual manifestations, must be discerned like any other spiritual occurrence, even when traditions are at stake.
We know that the Holy Spirit of God is not afraid to be discerned in what He says. Rather, He welcomes discernment, for He is the giver of this gift (1 Corinthians 12:10), and God's words have been given by Him. As Jesus is the truth, the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth, and will always witness to the personal truth of Jesus.
(1) Merrill F. Unger, "Demons in the World Today: A Study of Occultism in the Light of God's Word," (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers; London: Coverdale House Publishers, 1971), pp. 147-148.
