We aren’t given many details about the origin of the devil. We infer from scripture that at some point he rebelled against God making himself and the angels who were with him enemies of the Almighty. In doing so, he became an adversary of mankind as well. Now, Satan isn’t particularly interested in the human race, except that through hurting people and causing their rebellion against God, he can bring heartache and trouble to the Lord Almighty. After all, it was man who was made in the image of God and given a special place in God’s creation, having dominion over all the earth.
If the devil could get the Man to disobey God, then he would gain more adherents and strengthen his own position against the Lord.
So how does the devil get Man to listen to him and disobey God? (Consider Genesis 2 & 3.) Man is living in a beautiful garden with all of his needs taken care of having fellowship with God Himself. It is a paradise. Satan has nothing to offer the man and the woman, so he must lie to them so they will listen to him. So he throws doubt on the veracity of God’s words about the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. He tells them that they won’t die if they eat of it but become “like God, knowing good and evil.” Thus, by his lie he entices the woman to disobey God, and the man follows along. As a result, death comes upon the human family. For his part in doing this, Jesus calls the devil a “murderer from the beginning.”
Lies and deception are arguably Satan’s greatest weapons. He promises humanity things he cannot deliver and casts doubt upon God regarding what He is more than able and wants to give to mankind! He has become the master of deception. Jesus called him the “father of lies” in whom “there is no truth.” I take this to mean that Satan couldn’t tell you the truth if he wanted to!!
This should cause us all to be more aware that lies permeate our world and to nurture a love for the truth of God. It should move us to search the scriptures lest we also become deceived.