The Works of the Devil! Have you ever heard about that? I was asked, “if the devil were a woman, would her name be Ann, Pearl, Sarah, Margaret, Sally? I don’t know. Who knows? Who can answer a question like that?
I think the inquirer was only trying to be funny, anyway. But, the devil isn’t funny and what he/she does and promotes throughout the world is no joke either.
The works of the devil affect humanity morally, physically, intellectually, and spiritually. Morally, the devil entices people to sin, making evil seem appealing so that people choose evil over obedience to God (James 1:14). Physically, the devil can inflict disease, and he seeks to use physical trials to cause people to curse God (Job 2:4–5; Luke 13:11). Intellectually, the devil seduces people into error, teaching false doctrines (1 Timothy 4:1). He casts doubt and keeps unbelievers intellectually blinded to spiritual truth and the gospel (2 Corinthians 4:3–4). He arranges distractions and promotes confusion that cause people to act hastily, irrationally, and foolishly. Spiritually, he takes every opportunity to snatch away the Word of God sown in a person’s heart (Matthew 13:19).
The devil desires to attack believers, too (Luke 22:31–32). He will try to cause believers to not follow Christ so as to keep them from their primary purpose of bringing glory to God and furthering His purposes and plans. If Satan can cause our love for Christ to cool (Revelation 2:4) or cause us to stop loving each other (John 13:34–35), then we lose our testimony before the world and displease our heavenly Father. If Satan can entice us into addictions such as entertainment, sex, or porn, then he entraps us in bondage to sin so that we cannot commune with God.
In summary, the works of the devil are to counter the work of God. As a murderer, Satan works against God, who is Life. As a liar, Satan works against God, who is Truth. In the lives of unbelievers, the work of the devil is to keep them from coming to saving faith in Christ, with the result that they experience the second death (Revelation 20:14 –15). In the lives of believers, the work of the devil is to tempt them to sin and thus blunt their effectiveness for Christ in this world.