If you were Satan....

[Athetotheist]

I remember a TV preacher once asking his broadcast audience, "If you were Satan....." I don't remember the rest of the question, but I seem to remember that he was talking about prophecy and arguing that Satan was up to some diabolical mischief ("If you were Satan, isn't that what you would do?").

A lot of detail in Christian scripture about what is to happen before Jesus returns is tied to the activity of "Satan". The appearance of the "antichrist", in particular, is supposed to be part of Satan's last gambit before he goes down to utter defeat.

Since it was asked of me how I would react if I were Satan, I think it's fair for me to answer. I know that "Satan" is supposed to be a being of superhuman intelligence, but I can't help thinking that if such a being actually existed and if I were that being, I could do a lot better.

If I were "Satan", I would scrap the antichrist plan. If it's all laid out in the Bible, then everyone knows what to expect and you've lost the element of surprise. With that one simple deviation from the prophetic scenario, the whole thing would be gummed up. No antichrist, no mark of the beast, no abomination of desolation, no anything I was supposed to do as Satan to set the stage for the return of Jesus. And without those prophetic components in place, Jesus couldn't return to fulfill prophecy. And how could anyone stop me? I wouldn't be taking some action which could be prevented; I would be defeating prophecy by not taking action.

So let me pass the preacher's question on to you. If you were "Satan", what would you do----or not do----to thwart prophecy?

[William]

[Replying to The Nice Centurion in post #109]

So even that it is all 'laid out in the bible' it is way open to differing interpretations. Which positively means it is not really laid out in any manner which is non-abstruse...difficult to thwart...

[The Nice Centurion]

[Replying to William in post #111]
Exactly my point ! Thanks !

[Athetotheist]

My point is that if "Satan" were to sit back and not do anything, there would be nothing to interpret one way or another.

[Athetotheist]

[Replying to The Nice Centurion in post #110

But you have to take into account that Satan is already clarified as a Marvel character in the prominent series "Daimon Hellstrom Son of Satan".
It might not be the same biblical demon, though.

This is also my point. You can't even pretend to challenge my argument without replacing the Christian biblical "Satan" with a comic book Satan.

[The Nice Centurion]

My point is that if "Satan" were to sit back and not do anything, there would be nothing to interpret one way or another.

But even going with your good willed Satan-Substitution; Not doing nothing, but doing the exact opposite of what is prophecied would make prophecy even more thwarted.
So what if Satan instead of sending antichrist made a church for Christ on earth?
The real Christ would fall into a coma if he saw Satan do that!
Perhaps already happened.
What if the Christ who visited the american Nephites was really Satan in disguise?
In Nephi III "Christ" gives the order to name their church after him.
The second greatest Mormon denomination is called "The Church of Christ".
If this was Satans doing, he really did the unexpected.

[Replying to The Nice Centurion in post #110

But you have to take into account that Satan is already clarified as a Marvel character in the prominent series "Daimon Hellstrom Son of Satan".
It might not be the same biblical demon, though.

This is also my point. You can't even pretend to challenge my argument without replacing the Christian biblical "Satan" with a comic book Satan.

While you do your worst to replace the biblical active Satan with a "Sit back and do nothing Satan".
That sounds like Gus Goose, bot not like Satan.
Well, Gus Goose doesnt intend to win armageddon . . .

[Hawkins]

The argument itself is moot. If Satan is with superhuman intelligence, then how can people with normal human intelligence think that they can do better than Satan?

The other assumption that may be utterly wrong is that an insane person is predictable. At some point, Satan may have turned insane, whatever you can come up with on a sane being may not work.

It may go like this,
Satan with his pride all the time looked for a chance to win God, at all costs. Satan's best bet is to screw up God's plan of bringing humans to Heaven under the building (that is the future Heaven described as New Earth and New Heaven in the book of Revelation). So his first deed is to turn the very first lineage of humans to criminals, such that the Law of the current heaven won't allow them to stay. They, the very first lineage of humans, have to live in a realm outside God's current dwelling place. Then Satan is confident that once humans are outside of God's realm, he can keep everyone captive such that Law will judge and put every single human to death. Not a single human can be brought to the future Heaven, as Scripture said, "no one is righteous, not even one".

So Earth has to be destroyed by a flood in Noah's days, as humans as a whole have no hope to pass the Judgment of Law and the purpose of earth's very existence is defeated. However, God has Jesus such that humans (believers) are no longer under Law. They will be judged alternatively by means of a series of covenants signed off by the blood of Jesus Christ. As Jesus Himself said, He came to fulfill the Law. This means it's completely lawful for Jesus to come on earth to have His job done such that humans (believers as God's sheep) are saved legitimately.

The confident Satan, after knowing this, has been utterly defeated. Satan thus turned insane. Now he's desperately trying to keep as many human souls as possible with him using his full power and intelligence, as a mad man though. You can't possibly persuade a mad person with superhuman intelligence to stop and accept that you have a better plan. You only hurt his pride as he all the time considered that he's the second to God in all aspects. Satan can only be more desperate and act more persistently in a more insane manner.

I can also tell that Satan's mistake is not that he's not familiar with Law, it's rather a misjudgment due to his own pride.

[The Nice Centurion]

[Replying to Hawkins in post #116]
Dude, Satans superhuman intelligence is not biblical, but rather preacher propaganda. Not even Athotheist contradicted me in this.

Satan being insane is not biblical nor probable either. I read in a horror novel that demons cant even get nervous.

Gods on the other hand can get mad ! Example: Azag Thoth !

Your whole following theory is therefore very fallible.

Athotheist is right that we should try to answer his special question; "What would Satan do if he were to thwart prophecy?"

I did that in my last post by proposing that he rather would contradict prophecy by doing the exact reverse.
(Descending from a cloud to the Nephites in middle america 2000 years back, disguised as Jesus and establishing a church for Christ)

I thrust, this is an answer Athotheist will finally like !!!

[Hawkins]

[Replying to The Nice Centurion in post #117]

Whatever you can come up with about what Satan is, is not biblical either. As Bible is not about the deeds of Satan, rather it is about the deeds of God.

[The Nice Centurion]

[Replying to Hawkins in post #118]
Not a logical argument! Sorry!
Why would what we can learn about Satan from the bible be not biblical?

And now I recognize that Satan is suspiciously absent from the Book of Mormon . . .

[Hawkins]

[Replying to The Nice Centurion in post #119]

How do you know that Satan is not insane right now, while the Bible is not a book written today? The Bible is not even a book about the mental status of Satan.

So all left is a logical explanation of what's going on!

That's why I said whatever you can come up with, whether Satan is sane or insane, can hardly be supported by the Bible as the Bible is not written to serve this purpose.

That said, More likely, someone lost his logical argument and thus complain that "it's not biblical" as a dodge. lol. Glad that you have to do so, and no more "if i were satan" sticking to the topic.