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By Dan Mielke

Grace Baptist Church

Does God love Satan?  This simple question was originally asked me by a 5 year old, yet it has huge ramifications.  What would you say to the question, “Does God love Satan?”  Suppose we turn the question around and look at it from another angle, “Does God hate Satan?”

If God did hate Satan, why would he hate Satan?  One might quickly run to the fact that Satan is God’s enemy.  In fact, the name Satan means the adversary.  If we conclude that God hates Satan because he is God’s enemy, we have a huge problem. The Bible says that all people start out as God’s enemy, “For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life!” Romans 5:10.

You might think that Satan is deserving of God’s hatred because he is so wicked.  Yet once again we have to reconcile the fact that according to the Bible, you and I are wicked and God still loves us. “But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8.

You might think that Satan is deserving of God’s hatred because he crucified Jesus.  God’s wrath against sin was what killed the Savior, yet Satan was happily involved in the logistics of Jesus’ death.  Yet here again if we conclude that God hates Satan because of the death of Christ, the Bible again has something to say in regard to humanity’s part in Jesus’ death.  Jesus died to remove the sin of the world, “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 6:23.

In looking at the question, it appears that humanity is just as guilty as Satan of violating God’s law.  So does God love us?  Does God hate humanity (or Satan) because of crucifying Christ, because of our wickedness, or because of our position of enemy?  If God doesn’t hate us because of our position or actions, is it fair to conclude that God doesn’t hate Satan?

What about punishment for all Satan (or humanity) has done?  Herein lies the rub, I John 4:8 tells us that God is love.  Therefore, every action God does is not reactionary but based on the very nature of God.  Therefore, if God loved people (or Satan) because of their actions, He would be responding and not truly acting in love.  Secondly, if God loved based on people’s actions, He would be controlled by something He created, and therefore not worthy of being a self-sufficient God.

Since the Bible describes God as a loving God, how do we reconcile that thought with the Biblical truth that God will banish Satan and all who reject Him to an eternal lake of fire?  “And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.” (Rev 20:15)  Does God simply love people too much to punish them?

The answer to the question of punishment is only four letters long, LOVE.  You see, first off, because God loves that which is pure, He must punish that which destroys what He loves.  In the same way, a loving policeman wears a gun to protect the people and the justice he loves.  God is perfectly loving and just to protect the purity of His creation.  Secondly, Satan and those who reject Jesus Christ are choosing to live without love.  God in love already poured out sin’s punishment on Jesus Christ, so those who reject Jesus Christ are rejecting God’s love and the source of love, GOD Himself.

Since God is love, how does love respond when it is rejected?  In the same way that a government protects its law abiding citizens through imprisonment of criminals, God’s love simultaneously protects those who choose Him and punishes those who would rather live without God.  Love doesn’t go away, it simply is the butler who welcomes the guests or turns them away at the door (Mt 25:46).

So does God love Satan?  Maybe part of the answer is found in the question, “What does Love require when it is rejected?”

Pastor Dan Mielke pastors Grace Baptist Church and will be speaking on this topic and others Sundays at the Hobby Lobby Parking lot at 1 p.m.  His messages and service will also be broadcasted at 1 p.m. through KAUS 1480.