THE DEVIL MADE ME DO IT!

How often have you heard it? Or worse even, said it yourself? Trying to excuse your behaviour by blaming it on the devil. Or sometimes trying to excuse the behaviour of others by saying “Do not be so harsh on him/her. Remember, it wasn’t really him/her doing that/treating you bad, it was really the devil! He made him/her do it!”

Well, first off, the devil, Satan, call him what you will, is a created being! He is NOT all-powerful, omniscient nor omnipresent! Only God is! Thus, Satan has probably not been close to you himself. His minions are all around us, yes, but he can only be in one place at a time! That said, let’s look past your error about the being called Satan. You probably then meant, his influence through his demons, they are to blame for your sinful behaviour!

Wrong! Since the fall of Adam, we have inherited this refusal to take responsibility for our own deeds and blaming it on someone or something else. As Adam said: “"The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate." And then Eve’s excuse: “The serpent deceived me, and I ate." But God (yes I know He punished the serpent as well for his sin) punished both Adam and Eve for their own sins. Their excuses did not help them. Just as our excuses will not be of any effect when we stand in front of the judgment throne. Should God ask you “Why did you do that?”, your answer “He/she made me do it” will not suffice. God would say to you: “I am not asking you about his/her conduct, I am asking you about your own!” You see, every wrong, every sin we commit, is a choice we make ourselves. “You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink” Just the same, you can be tempted by a demon, another person, even Satan himself, but to act on the temptation is your own decision, no one else’s!

So, since then, we have never needed any goading by Satan or his minions (although they often do tempt us), we are doing just fine through our own sinful nature! By blaming Satan, we give him undeserved glory, we ascribe powers to him he does not possess, and we compound our sin even more. Sin begets sin, you understand? See what James says in his epistle, in the first chapter and verses 14-15: “But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.”

So brothers and sisters, stop shifting the blame, stop glorifying Satan. Take responsibility for your own deeds, and hold others accountable for theirs without excusing their behaviour as being Satan’s doing. Accept responsibility, confess, repent, and receive God’s forgiveness! It’s really that easy.

Gospel blessings

Your brother in Christ.