Is the Devil Real?

The short answer: Yes. Jesus spoke about Satan as a real, personal enemy, not just a symbol for the bad in the world. But the devil is not God’s equal opposite. He is a created being who rebelled, he was defeated at the cross, and if you belong to Jesus you don’t need to be afraid of him.

To a lot of people, the devil sounds like something from a cartoon: red skin, horns, a pitchfork, a pointy tail. And if that’s what the devil is, it’s easy to laugh him off.

But that cartoon isn’t the Bible’s picture at all. C. S. Lewis once pointed out that people make two opposite mistakes about devils: one is not believing in them; the other is being unhealthily fascinated by them. The Bible avoids both.

Jesus took him seriously

Jesus didn’t treat Satan as a figure of speech. In the wilderness He was tempted by him, and answered, “Away from Me, Satan!” (Matthew 4:10). He described the devil as “a murderer from the beginning” and “a liar and the father of lies” (John 8:44). If Jesus is who He said He is, His view counts for more than ours.

And the world itself gives us reason to think there’s more going on than human weakness. Some evil seems organised, deliberate and strangely intelligent. Paul says, “our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but... against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” (Ephesians 6:12).

What he is, and what he isn’t

The devil is not a dark god who has always existed alongside the good God. Only God is eternal and uncreated. Satan is a created being, traditionally understood as an angel who rebelled. The Bible doesn’t satisfy our curiosity about the details, but it calls him “that ancient serpent called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world” (Revelation 12:9).

So the battle isn’t evenly matched. It’s not light versus dark with the result in doubt. It’s a rebel against his Creator.

How he works

Mostly, the devil doesn’t work through spooky special effects. He works through lies. His very first words in the Bible are a question designed to make God look stingy: “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden?’” (Genesis 3:1). He still whispers that God is holding out on you.

He’s also called “the accuser of our brothers” (Revelation 12:10). He loves to tell Christians they’re worthless, too far gone, beyond forgiveness. And he’s a master of disguise: “Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light” (2 Corinthians 11:14). Evil rarely looks evil at first.

But don’t blame him for everything. James says, “each one is tempted when by his own evil desires he is lured away and enticed” (James 1:14). “The devil made me do it” isn’t a Christian excuse.

How to stand against him

You don’t fight the devil with special rituals or by shouting at him. You fight him the way Jesus did: with God’s Word. Every time Jesus was tempted, He answered from Scripture.

“Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you” (James 4:7). Notice the order: first submit to God, then resist. Peter adds, “Resist him, standing firm in your faith” (1 Peter 5:9). And Paul writes, “Put on the full armor of God, so that you can make your stand against the devil’s schemes” (Ephesians 6:11). That armour is truth, righteousness, faith, the gospel, prayer and the Word of God.

A defeated enemy

Here’s the best news. Jesus came “to destroy the works of the devil” (1 John 3:8). By dying and rising, He broke the power of “him who holds the power of death, that is, the devil” (Hebrews 2:14). The devil is still dangerous, like a beaten army that keeps fighting, but the war is decided.

So if you belong to Jesus, you don’t need to live in fear. John writes that “greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world” (1 John 4:4).

If you ever feel frightened, by something you’ve seen, something you’ve been drawn into, or dark thoughts that won’t leave you alone, talk to a parent or a trusted Christian adult. Frightening thoughts can also be a sign of anxiety, which a doctor can help with. You don’t have to face any of it alone.

Think about it: Which of the devil’s tactics, lying, accusing or disguising evil as something good, do you think you’re most open to?

Go deeper: The Key Teachings of Martin Luther — Luther was sure the devil is real and that his main target is not our good behaviour but our faith, yet he taught that we fight him with the Word of God and may even laugh at him, because he is a defeated foe. Start with chapter 20, “The Old Evil Foe”.