does satan actually exist?

:banghead3 honestly, i dont think satan exists. I think in the early days of Christianity, satan was conjured up from nothing as being the primordial evil because the christian leaders wanted to keep their followers in line and maintain their own power. they did a simmilar thing in the middle ages when they threatened to excommunicate world leaders who did not do as asked. what do you guys think?

Satan was originally the ancient egyption god Set (or Seth) who was god of chaos and storms.
The rest i agree with, "do what i say or you'll go to hell" kinda thing.

Heaven and Hell are states of mind. You can never escape your own conscience.

Unless anyone denies the validity of the bible, there is evidence of the existance of Satan

Lucifer was a powerful and beautiful angelic being, created by God and serving at His throne. The Bible doesn't reveal when he was created, but it was well before God created Adam and Eve. Lucifer was perfect when he was created and continued to be perfect in all his ways until he sinned by rebelling against and trying to exalt himself above God. The name Lucifer means "morning star, or light bearer." God apparently created Lucifer to serve mankind by bringing light and truth to the world. Instead, he chose to become "Satan" which means "adversary" – the enemy of God. His self-appointed purpose is to oppose God, to bring confusion and destruction to mankind and to thwart God’s plan.
Chronicles 21.1
Satan rose up against Israel and incited David to take a census of Israel.
Job 6
One day the angels [a] came to present themselves before the LORD , and Satan also came with them. 7 The LORD said to Satan, "Where have you come from?"
Satan answered the LORD , "From roaming through the earth and going back and forth in it."
Job 1:8-10
Then the LORD said to Satan, "Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil."

9 "Does Job fear God for nothing?" Satan replied. 10 "Have you not put a hedge around him and his household and everything he has? You have blessed the work of his hands, so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land.

There are more texts that I could quote; basically Job 1, Job 2

Old answer for a new thread #37

I have never met Satan, that is not to say that he doesn't exist but if he does exist, he/she would probably be as misunderstood as GOD.

Satan is fake. It's a bedtime story to scare thier children into behaving. Kinda like the legend of the boogeyman.

The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world that he didnt exist.

Altotheix said:

The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world that he didnt exist.

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For a number of us, God has pulled the same trick.

Altotheix said:

The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world that he didnt exist.

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And Keyser Soze's greatest trick was getting me to adore Verbal Kint.

I usually say 'no' to either Satan or the concept of evil, but lately I've realized that things like hatred, bigotry and intolerance cause me to rail against them as if they are evil. Maybe I just get angry at the concepts?

Satan only exists in words and in the minds of those who believe he exists. Satan is a subjective reality, not an objective one. Does evil exist? Yes, but not objectively, it only exists within our perception of those things we feel are horrible.

For those of you who don't believe in Satan, he has succeeded completely.

Please go read the "Screwtape Letters" by CS Lewis, and while it is pure fiction, you just might see how insidious Satan really is.

Satan: the ultimate scare tactic.

FeathersinHair said:

I usually say 'no' to either Satan or the concept of evil, but lately I've realized that things like hatred, bigotry and intolerance cause me to rail against them as if they are evil. Maybe I just get angry at the concepts?

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Or perhaps it's that you get angry at the misuse of the concepts?

"For those of you who don't believe in Satan, he has succeeded completely."

Sure, that is your opinion and I respect it. But it proves nothing.

md_88 said:

:banghead3 honestly, i dont think satan exists. I think in the early days of Christianity, satan was conjured up from nothing as being the primordial evil because the christian leaders wanted to keep their followers in line and maintain their own power. they did a simmilar thing in the middle ages when they threatened to excommunicate world leaders who did not do as asked. what do you guys think?

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"satan" and "devil" are title descriptions and not names.

bibles are all screwed up compared to the original scriptures because people have changed the meanings of certain passages so the term 'satan' only appears in the spots they want them in.

look up the definition of the word and forget about the biblical references the dictionaries give because they are only going by what bible translators have in their bibles.

as for whether he, this fallen angel and adversary of God, the scriptures say he's real. if you don't believe the scriptures then there is no point wondering whether or not he's real or not because the realities spelled out in the scriptures pertain to believers only. but that is another story and off-topic here as many other threads have and will address them on their own terms.

do I believe he exists?

yes, because I believe in the scriptures.

but as my own thread sugggests the enemy of God is the ruler of this world as it states in the scriptures that he is misleading the entire world which implies that God is gone and the world with all it's struggling for even the most mundane thing proves that this world is the proverbial hell and the enemy of God who is both devil and satan is in control of our lives.

Sure, that is your opinion and I respect it. But it proves nothing.

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I would contend that it proves just as much as your statement, but your statement shows little respect.

Satan is the Father of lies. His goal is to get everyone to think of him (and God) as mere fairy tales. Then nothing really matters. For most people he has done his work well.

It always amazes me when otherwise reasonable people believe incredibly absurd things.

And I would contest that the idea of satan is a lie And since there is no "proof" for the existence of satan than in the bible, (Which logically proves nothing since it is circular logic) than saying that satan is the father of lies is simply only opinion. And I believe it is some people goal to believe satan is more than a mere fairy tale to convert people to think as they do and not as individuals. And unlike your claim, I don't believe those who think differently than me are damned to hell. This is where my respect lies.

Like I said: He's done an incredibly good job. I doubt your destiny is determined by your belief in Satan. But by your definition, the man yelling fire in a burning building shows great direspect to those wishing to disbelieve the fire. Go figure.