Lesson video

Hi, my name's Miss Minton.

And welcome to this lesson on the devil as a cause of evil.

Now, by the end of this lesson, you'll be able to explain Christian beliefs and teachings about the devil as a cause of evil.

Now, we'll be drawing upon knowledge of the God of classical theism and the problem of evil, but there'll also be lots of new learning today.

Please don't worry though because I'm here to guide you through each step of our lesson, and I'm confident that by the end, you will achieve this outcome.

So let's get started and take a look at our key words for today.

We have evil, temptation, and the devil.

Now, evil is the opposite of good and a cause of suffering.

Temptation refers to the desire to do something, especially something that's wrong or unwise.

And the devil is a rebellious spiritual being who opposes God and seeks to tempt humanity to sin.

Now, our lesson today will have two parts.

We'll start by looking at Christian teachings about the devil, and we'll then move on to look at the devil and the existence of evil.

So let's get started and take a look at Christian teachings about the devil.

Now, for many Christians, the devil is a rebellious spiritual being who opposes God.

And many Christians believe that the devil was actually originally an angel who fell from heaven.

Now, this means that the devil rebelled against God, so went against God, and lost his place in heaven and was cast out from God's presence as a result of his actions.

Now, the Bible doesn't contain one explicit story about the devil falling from heaven, but there are several passages in the Old Testament that contain symbolism of this belief.

So for example, Isaiah 14:12-15 is about the fall of a proud earthly ruler.

But the symbolic language that's used within this passage has led many Christians to interpreting the passage as referring to the spiritual fall of the devil.

So for example, Isaiah 14:12 says, "How you have fallen from heaven.

." And many Christians interpret this as being symbolic language referring to the devil's fall.

Another example is Ezekiel 28:12-17, which is also about the fall of an earthly ruler.

And it also uses symbolic language that many Christians have interpreted as referring to the devil.

So for example, verse 13 says, "You were in Eden, the garden of God.

." And then verse 15 goes on to say, "You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created till wickedness was found in you." And many Christians see this as symbolic language that's referring to the devil, and the devil's fall from heaven.

So let's now check your understanding.

True or false? Passages in the Old Testament suggest that the devil was once an angel who fell from heaven because of wickedness.

Fantastic.

That statement is true, but why is that statement true? How do we know that this is true? Well, it's because symbolism found in the books of Isaiah and Ezekiel suggest that the devil is a fallen angel.

The book of Ezekiel can be interpreted as suggesting that the devil was once in the garden of Eden before wickedness was found within him.

So well done for identifying that that statement is true and for identifying the reason why.

Now, as well as the Old Testament containing symbolism and reference to the devil as a fallen angel, the New Testament also references the devil as a fallen angel.

For example, Luke 10:18 says this: "He replied, 'I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.

'" Now, this passage recalls Jesus' words after sending 72 of his followers out to preach, heal, and cast out demons.

And some Christians interpret Jesus's words here as referring to the original fall of the devil, or Satan as he's referred to in this passage, as well as referring to the work of the 72 followers.

Now, the final book of the New Testament, Revelation, also refers to the fall of the devil.

And we see this in Revelation 12:9, which says this: "The great dragon was hurled down, that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray." Now, I'd like you to pause the video and either talk to a partner, talk to me, or have a think to yourself, how might Christians interpret this passage as referring to the fall of the devil? Off you go.

So many Christians interpret this passage as referring to the devil being thrown out of heaven, so hurled down from heaven.

And it also describes the devil's character as somebody who encourages wrongdoing by leading the world astray.

So let's now check your understanding.

Which of the following is another name that's used for the devil? A, Isaiah, B, Gabriel, C, Satan, or D, Ezekiel? Fantastic.

The correct answer is C.

Satan is another name that's used for the devil, and we see this name Satan in Bible passages.

So well done identifying that the correct answer is C.

So now we've looked at some teachings from the Old and New Testament about the devil.

How do you think that Christians might describe the devil? So what do you think Christians might say the devil is like? Pause the video and either talk to a partner, talk to me, or have a think to yourself.

Off you go.

Okay, so as part of your thinking time or your discussion, you may have said that Christians might describe the devil as a fallen angel, or a being who is wicked and evil, or a being that encourages sin.

You may have also said that Christians might describe the devil as being an enemy of God and rebellious, so a being that goes against God.

Now, although the words and phrases that we've just identified are common ways of describing the devil within Christianity, there are actually differing beliefs within Christianity about whether the devil is a real being or a symbol of evil and wickedness.

Asher is a Pentecostal Christian, and he says this: "I believe that the devil is a real spiritual enemy, who deceives people and tempts them to sin." Fergus is a Liberal Anglican, and he says this: "Personally, I see the devil as a powerful symbol of evil and temptation, and the brokenness that's in the world and ourselves." So what we can see from the example of these two Christians is that some Christians believe that the devil is a real being, whereas others believe that the devil is symbolic of evil and temptation that exists within our world.

So let's check your understanding.

Is this statement true or false? All Christians believe that the devil is a real being.

Fantastic.

That statement is false, but why is that statement false? Well, it's because there are actually differing beliefs within Christianity about whether the devil is a real being or whether the devil is a symbol of wickedness and evil.

So that would mean that not all Christians believe that the devil is a real being.

So well done for identifying that the statement is false and for identifying the reason why.

It's now time for you to have a go at a task.

Laura is explaining Christian beliefs about the devil.

Laura's explanation is missing some key details, and I would like you to help Laura by filling in the blanks.

So let's take a look at what Laura has so far.

Laura says, "For many Christians, the devil is a rebellious spiritual being who opposes blank.

Many Christians believe that the devil was originally a blank who fell from blank.

This is suggested in the Old blank in the books of Isaiah and blank.

The New Testament also addresses the devil and some Christians interpret Luke 10:18 as confirming that the devil is a fallen angel.

Some Christians believe that the devil is a real being, whereas others believe that the devil is a blank of evil." So pause the video and have a go at filling in the blanks.

Well done for your work during that task.

So Laura had been explaining Christian beliefs about the devil, but Laura's explanation was missing some key details, and I'd asked you to fill in those missing details by filling in the blanks.

Your response should look like this.

"For many Christians, the devil is a rebellious spiritual being who opposes God.

Many Christians believe that the devil was originally an angel who fell from heaven.

This is suggested in the Old Testament in the books of Isaiah and Ezekiel.

The New Testament also addresses the devil, and some Christians interpret Luke 10:18 as confirming that the devil is a fallen angel.

Some Christians believe that the devil is a real being, whereas others believe that the devil is a symbol of evil." So well done for finishing Laura's explanation by filling in the blanks.

We're now moving on to the second part of our lesson, which is to look at the devil and the existence of evil.

Now, for many Christians, the devil is one possible explanation for the existence of evil in the world.

And many Christians believe that the devil as a cause of evil and suffering actually dates back to the very beginning of the world.

The book of Genesis, which contains the accounts of creation, states that God's creation was good and God's creation included the first two humans, Adam and Eve.

Adam and Eve lived in a perfect world in the garden of Eden until they disobeyed the only command that they were given.

God had said to Adam and Eve, "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden, but you must not eat from the tree of knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it, you will certainly die." Now, Genesis 3 actually goes on to say that Adam and Eve disobeyed this command from God, and this is because they were tempted by a serpent who told them: "'You will not certainly die,' the serpent said to the woman.

'For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.

'" Now, for many Christians, these words from the serpent led to Adam and Eve disobeying God's command and eating from the tree of knowledge of good and evil.

Many Christians interpret the serpent in this account as being the devil, and that the devil tempted Adam and Eve to disobey God and commit the first ever sin.

Their disobedience, which was encouraged by the devil, resulted in sin, death, and separation from God entering the world.

This affected all of humanity and meant that all humans since then were born into a sinful world rather than a perfect world.

And many Christians believe that this event actually explains the existence of evil in the world today.

So let's check your understanding.

Is this statement true or false? Many Christians believe that the serpent who tempted Adam and Eve was God.

Fantastic.

That statement is false, but why is that statement false? Well, it's because many Christians believe that the serpent who tempted Adam and Eve was the devil, not God.

So well done for identifying that that statement is false and for identifying the reason why.

Now, as well as the devil tempting Adam and Eve, the devil is also shown as a source of suffering when Jesus was fasting in the wilderness before his crucifixion.

And the gospels of Matthew and Luke state that Jesus was tempted three times by the devil during this time.

On one of these occasions, the devil told Jesus to turn the stones into bread to satisfy his hunger.

On another occasion, the devil told Jesus to worship him in order to gain power.

And on another occasion, the devil told Jesus to jump from the temple to prove that Jesus was the son of God.

Now, all three times Jesus resisted the devil's temptation.

So this means that Jesus did not give in to what the devil wanted him to do.

Now, for many Christians, this account shows that the devil causes evil and suffering by tempting people into sin and attacking them when they're weak and trying to separate them from God.

However, Jesus' victory over the devil when he was in the wilderness shows that the devil's power can be overcome and resisted through trusting in God.

So let's check your understanding.

According to the gospels of Matthew and Luke, how many times did the devil try to tempt Jesus? A once, B, three times C, five times, or D seven times? Fantastic.

The correct answer is B.

The gospels of Matthew and Luke say that the devil tried to tempt Jesus three times.

Well done.

Now, earlier we met Asher and Fergus who were discussing their beliefs about the devil as a real being and the devil as a symbolic being.

Asher had said that he believes that the devil is a real spiritual being, and Fergus had said he believes that the devil is symbolic of evil and wickedness in the world.

Now, Asher and Fergus are here again discussing their beliefs about the devil as a cause of evil.

Asher says, "I believe that when we are tempted by the devil, we can resist this through prayer, the Bible, and the Holy Spirit." And Fergus says, "Although I believe that the devil is a symbol of evil, I still think that we must strive to overcome temptation and sin through love and justice." So what we can see here is that regardless of whether a Christian believes that the devil is a real or a spiritual being, most Christians can agree that temptation and sin can be overcome.

Now, as well as this, Asher and Fergus also discuss what their beliefs about the devil as a cause of suffering means for their beliefs about God.

Asher says this: "I believe that the devil is one reason why evil and suffering exists in the world.

This means that God is not to blame for evil and suffering, and therefore, evil does not contradict God's characteristics.

The devil as a cause of suffering shows that God is not the cause of suffering, and is still omni benevolent.

God is also still omnipotent, even though the devil has power to create temptation, this power is limited and defeated through Jesus' death and resurrection." And Fergus says, "Because I believe the devil is symbolic of evil and temptation, I still believe that God is omnibenevolent and omnipotent.

God gives us the strength to overcome temptation because he loves us, and sent his one and only son Jesus to save humanity from sin." So what we can see from Fergus and Asher's discussion is that both of them believe that God is still omnibenevolent and still omnipotent, despite the devil as a cause of evil and suffering.

So let's now check your understanding.

Is this statement true or false? The devil as a cause of evil proves that God is not omnibenevolent and omnipotent.

Fantastic.

That statement is false, but how do we know that that statement is false? Well, it's because God's love is demonstrated in human strength to overcome temptation.

But as well as this, God is not to blame for evil, and God is still all powerful because Jesus' death and resurrection defeated the power of the devil and the devil's temptation.

So well done for identifying that that statement is false, and for identifying the reason why.

It's now time for your final task of the lesson.

I would like you to write a paragraph explaining the belief that the devil is a cause of evil and suffering within Christianity.

Now, in your paragraph, you must use the lesson key words in your answer.

So just to remind you, these are evil, temptation, and the devil.

So pause the video and have a go.

Well done for your work during that task.

So you were ask to write a paragraph explaining the belief that the devil is a cause of evil and suffering within Christianity, and you were also ask to include the lesson keywords: evil, temptation, and the devil.

And your response might be similar to this.

Many Christians believe that evil entered the world because the devil appeared as a serpent and tempted Adam and Eve.

This caused Adam and Eve to disobey God and commit the first ever sin, which resulted in evil entering the world.

Since then, many Christians believe that the devil has continued to cause evil and suffering by tempting humans, for example, the devil tempted Jesus when he was fasting in the wilderness.

Many Christians believe that just like Jesus overcame this temptation, humans can too through prayer, the Bible, and love.

So a huge well done for your work on that task, particularly for making sure that you included the words, evil, temptation, and the devil.

We've now reached the end of our lesson, but before we finish, let's take a look at some of the key things that we've learned today.

So we've learned that in Christianity, the devil is believed to be a rebellious and spiritual being who opposes God and promotes wrongdoing.

We've also seen that there are several passages in the Bible that Christians have interpreted as suggesting that the devil is also a fallen angel.

Some Christians see the devil as a real being, whereas others see the devil as a symbol of evil and temptation.

We've also seen that many Christians believe that the devil tempted Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden and later tempted Jesus in the wilderness.

We've seen that Christians believe that the devil still tempts people today, but that temptation can be resisted through prayer, the Bible, and love.

And finally, we saw how many Christians believe that the devil's existence does not contradict God's omnipotence and omnibenevolence.

So God is still all powerful and still all loving.

So a huge well done for all of your work today.

It's been wonderful learning with you.