Let's Become a Believer Who Catches Snakes
Bible passage: Mark 16:16~18
“16. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. 17. And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; 18. they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well. "
The sermon title is “Let’s Become a Believer Who Catches Snakes.”
More precisely, it is “Let us not become those who get bitten by snakes, but become those who catch snakes.” When we say “Let us become those who catch snakes,” people say “snake catchers,” as you may know, there are those who make a profession out of catching snakes, but I am not saying to become such snake catchers. Here, the snake signifies Satan. In Genesis Chapter 3, a snake appears.
The Bible calls this the old serpent, and in the Garden of Eden, the snake, having received the instigation of Satan - the thought of Lucifer and the dragon - tempted Eve, causing her to commit the sin of eating the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, Revelation 20:2 says, “He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil, or Satan, and bound him for a thousand years.” Thus, over the past two Sundays, we have studied Lucifer and the dragon. Today, we will explore what Satan is, and how Satan brings trials and tribulations to the saints. I hope that you will become ones who, to the great strength of your souls, catch and defeat Satan - that is, the snake. They do not have God, but we have God, so we can win in the spiritual war.
1. Let us examine who is Satan, and what kind of being is he.
Satan can be briefly described as the heart and thoughts of Lucifer, the head of the evil spirits. Satan is a spiritual entity that holds the same heart and mind as Lucifer; fundamentally one with Lucifer, but still distinguishable as another entity. Satan possesses the dark power that Lucifer has and leads people to have evil thoughts and hearts, driving them to commit wicked deeds. However, the practical power that causes people to live in darkness comes from the dragons who hold the power in the air.
Therefore, Satan can also be said to be the mind and thoughts of the dragon. Since the dragons also have Lucifer’s thoughts and mind planted within them, we can ultimately say that "Satan is the mind and thoughts of Lucifer and the dragon." Job 1:6-7 says, [6] Now there was a day when the Sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came among them. [7] The LORD said to Satan, “From where do you come?” Then Satan answered the LORD and said, “From roaming about on the earth and walking around on it.” In both Job Chapter 1 and Chapter 2, there is an appearance of Satan speaking with God.
So how is it possible for Satan and God to talk? How could such a thing happen? Satan and God can converse because both the Holy Spirit and Satan are equal in rank. The Holy Spirit and Satan function oppositely; the Holy Spirit represents righteousness, while Satan represents wickedness, forming an opposite pair. Understanding this will clear up any doubts regarding these verses. Satan’s prompting of the snake can also be understood in the same light. How could Satan incite the snake? The Garden of Eden, as recorded in Genesis 2:15, was being guarded by Adam at the time. While Eve and the snake were in the Garden, Lucifer and the dragon were outside.
However, the thoughts of Satan, as the influence of Lucifer and the dragon, reached the Garden via transmission, and Satan used the snake to tempt Eve. Even if people are far apart, they can communicate over the phone or radio by matching frequencies. Nowadays, with cell phones, people can easily communicate with others in different cities or even countries. Lucifer, desiring Eve to eat the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and rebel against God, knew that she couldn’t enter the Garden but used the medium of thought - the transmission, namely Satan - to plant hers and the dragon's thoughts into the snake, which was next to Eve.
But why did God permit the existence of such evil beings as Satan? In order to become true children of God through human cultivation, one must experience untruths that are contrary to the truth and, through them, come to realize the true truth. One must know evil that opposes goodness, hatred that opposes love, betrayal, and injustice that opposes righteousness in order to truly understand from the depths of one’s heart how precious the truth is and become a child with an unchanging true heart. For this reason, God knew that there must be beings who govern untruths, and within His plan, He allowed the existence of the world of evil spirits and granted them the authority of darkness.
There is a term called the "Catfish Effect." It is the theory that when there is a powerful competitor in a group, the other members in the group also awaken and improve their abilities together. The origin of the "Catfish Effect" comes from a long time ago when a Norwegian fisherman put a catfish into the aquarium used to transport sardines. At that time, fishermen would catch sardines in the open sea and transport them back to the harbor in tanks, but because the journey was so long, most of the sardines would die, resulting in significant losses.
However, one particular fisherman managed to bring his sardines to the harbor alive each time and made a great fortune. Everyone was curious about his secret, but he never revealed it. After he passed away, the secret was finally discovered - it was that he placed a single catfish in the tank with the sardines. Fearing being eaten by the catfish, the sardines continuously moved until they reached the harbor, which kept them fresh and alive. Likewise, the enemy devil and Satan may seem like a harmful being that we might wish did not exist, but because Satan exists, we experience relativity in this world, undergo human cultivation properly, and emerge as fully matured, fruitful grains. Thus, Lucifer, the dragon, Satan, and the devil serve roles similar to catfish in human cultivation. Therefore, by properly understanding their identity and equipping yourself with God’s word and fiery prayer, defeating Satan may you all emerge as God’s good fruit.
2. How does Satan work in people?
He works in various ways, but today I will share just three. (1) Satan Works Through People’s Thoughts Satan is the mind and thoughts of Lucifer and the dragons, as previously mentioned. Because of this, Satan sneaks through people’s thoughts, polluting the hearts of believers with untruth, which ultimately brings trials and suffering to their faith. Your thoughts become the very pathway through which Satan comes and goes, working within you. This means that depending on what kind of thoughts you have, Satan can operate. Satan is like countless radio wave signal waves spread throughout the air, as Lucifer and the dragons continuously spread their dark thoughts and minds, as well as their power to commit evil, throughout the air.
These dark thoughts and minds of Lucifer and the dragons that fill the air are what we call Satan. Just as a radio or TV immediately connects when it matches the frequency of a wave in the air, spiritually, when a person’s thoughts align with the evil thoughts that Satan has spread in the air, they instantly connect. At that moment, Satan forcefully breathes his dark power into that person’s thoughts. The stronger the darkness in one’s heart, the more power it gains, and it begins to act. This is what we call being influenced by Satan or hearing Satan’s voice. There are various types of people in the church.
Some feel jealousy and envy when they see someone dressed better than them or in better circumstances. If that person has a slightly different way of thinking or behaves differently, they dislike and criticize them. Yet, if someone harbors the sin of jealousy within, their thoughts align with Satan’s, and Satan’s influence strengthens that sin, which then manifests outwardly as jealousy and envy. If I hate someone, it is not because they did something evil, but because the sin of hatred exists within me. If someone commits evil, we should not hate them but feel compassion and pray for them instead. It is not a matter of hate.
However, if hatred arises, it means there is untruth called “hatred” within me. When I see that person, thoughts of hatred arise, aligning with Satan’s thoughts in the air, and by receiving Satan’s power, hatred flares up like a fire. Here is an interesting story that illustrates how Satan operates: One day, Satan displayed his tools on a shop counter and advertised that he was selling them at a discount through an auction. Many people gathered, intrigued by this unusual and fascinating sale. Among the many tools, there was one oddly shaped tool marked “Not for Sale.” A gentleman, curious about this, asked Satan: “Satan, What is this tool used for?
And why does it have a ‘Not for Sale’ sign?” Satan replied: “Oh, this one is very precious. It’s the most valuable tool I have. While I can sell all the other tools, this one is off-limits. This is the most useful weapon in my arsenals.” Then he continued his explanation: “This tool is called ‘Despair.’ With it, I can penetrate any human heart - even those I cannot access through other means. The moment I place this in a person’s heart, I can control them however I want.” Hearing this explanation, the gentleman nodded in agreement, realizing its validity.
This teaches us that the most effective weapon Satan uses to bring down humanity is to first attack people's thoughts and emotions. Therefore, it is extremely important to abandon evil in the heart and focus on spiritual thoughts rather than fleshly thoughts. Romans 8:6-7 says, “The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so.” When we engage in fleshly thoughts, it is like saying, "Mr. Satan, Come and torment me," opening the way for Satan to work. and 1 Thessalonians 5:22, “Avoid every kind of evil.” Above all, to prevent Satan from working in us, we must remove the dark, untruthful thoughts from our hearts.
This is because the more untruthful thoughts a person has, the easier it is for Satan to operate. Only when we thoroughly destroy our sinful nature and stand firmly in the truth can we experience complete freedom. John 8:32 says, “Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (2) The second was Satan works is this. Satan Accuses the Believers Before God, Bringing Trials and Suffering Satan accuses the believers before God, filing charges against them. In the Bible, we see a scene where Satan accuses Job. Job 1:9-10 says, [9] Then Satan answered the LORD, “Does Job fear God for nothing? [10] Have You not made a hedge about him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. Satan claims, “Job fears God and gives Him glory only because God has blessed him with material wealth.”
In response, God allows Satan’s accusation and grants him permission to test Job. Although Job ultimately triumphed through faith, he endured an immense trial - losing all his children and possessions. Why does God allow Satan’s accusations and trials upon His children? God wanted to demonstrate that human cultivation is conducted with justice and righteousness. Additionally, through trials and refinement, God allows people to recognize and overcome their shortcomings, just as Job ultimately became a greater vessel of faith and received even greater blessings. Since higher-dimensional beings can govern lower-dimensional ones, evil spirits can perceive the justice of the first heaven. Thus, when people of the flesh violate the justice of the first heaven, the evil spirits of the second heaven immediately recognize it and bring accusations before God. However, Jesus, who possesses dominion over the entire fourth heaven, can easily destroy the strongholds of Satan and his forces in the second heaven.
How Can We Overcome Satan’s Accusations? If we completely forsake the sin and evil of the first heaven and enter into the spirit through goodness and love, we become believers of the third heaven, gaining the authority to overcome all the evil spirits of the second heaven. I believe that today, the divine power of the third and fourth dimensions will manifest, breaking all the schemes of the enemy Satan in the second dimension, healing every disease, and answering every difficult problem! (3) Satan appears in various forms of evil spirits and works in many different ways. The Bible lists various types of sins and evils, and it informs us that behind all these evils, there are evil spirits controlling them. For example, some people simply drink alcohol, but once they are drunk, they become extremely violent, breaking things and attacking people.
These actions go beyond human reasoning and indicate the work of evil spirits behind them. Satan works in people who have darkness in their hearts. He works as a lying spirit in those who frequently lie, as a divisive spirit in those who enjoy causing division, and as an unclean spirit in those who delight in immoral acts. For example, the deceiving spirit mainly works through false prophets, leading them to teach falsehoods and misguide entire groups. Deception often appears in a convincing and seemingly righteous form, making it easy for people to be misled. For example, false claims about the Second Coming of the Lord have led many believers astray.
These false teachings, influenced by evil spirits, seemed truthful and reasonable but ultimately brought disgrace to God’s name and caused many to stumble. If someone claims to be a prophet or even calls themselves God, we must be cautious and not be deceived. 1 Timothy 4:1-2 says, “The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron.” The spirit of deception primarily works through false prophets, causing them to teach falsehoods and mislead groups of people, whereas the lying spirit influences individuals to deceive others for personal gain.
The lying spirit mostly affects those filled with pride and vanity, leading them to deceive others to elevate themselves. For example, in one church, a woman was possessed by a lying spirit. Although she outwardly acted holy and righteous, she harbored great evil in her heart. When pride took hold of her, the lying spirit entered, and she began spreading falsehoods, deceiving believers, and causing confusion in the church. Unclean spirit is that For instance, a man who commits a crime of violating a woman has already committed evil. However, if he engages in perverse and depraved acts during the crime, performing unspeakable filthiness, that is not just evil - it is the work of an unclean spirit. These unclean spirits can operate at the national level, in organizations, in families, and in individual lives. When war breaks out between nations, the victorious country often kills, rapes, and plunders the defeated nation. In the past, many people were taken as prisoners and enslaved.
Acts such as annihilating an enemy nation or leading a nation into various forms of debauchery can be referred to as the workings of political unclean spirits. The Bible specifically mentions unclean acts. Leviticus 18:6 says, “No one is to approach any close relative to have sexual relations. I am the LORD.” It also states that a man should not lie with another man as with a woman, calling it detestable. This clearly prohibits homosexuality, declaring it unclean and abominable. Furthermore, it prohibits bestiality, saying, “Do not have sexual relations with an animal and defile yourself with it.” Leviticus 19:31 states, “Do not turn to mediums or seek out spiritists, for you will be defiled by them. I am the LORD your God.” We need to know this, someone who rejects order and discipline, lives recklessly, indulges in promiscuous behavior, and enjoys deviating from normal life is an easy target for unclean spirits.
How Can One Remove the Influence of Unclean Spirits? If there is even the slightest opening within us that could allow unclean spirits to work, what should we do? Our Lord did not come to call the righteous but to call sinners to repentance. If you recognize these influences in your heart, you must engage in fasting prayers, dedicated prayers, and all-night prayers to completely remove such uncleanness from within. Since our hearts and bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit, if we defile them, we cannot enter the kingdom of heaven. After David committed the unclean sin of adultery with Bathsheba, the prophet Nathan rebuked him harshly.
David fell to his knees in repentance, crying out in Psalm 51:10 confessing, “Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” May you also seek to be pure and clean in spirit, breaking Satan’s evil schemes, and always living in victory.
Conclusion
Today’s scripture says, “And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well.” As Jesus said, believers can cast out demons and pick up snakes, meaning that we should not be those who are bitten by snakes, but those who catch and crush the head of the serpent.
When we break the strongholds of the evil spirits - Lucifer, the dragon, Satan, the devil, and demons - all curses will be removed. Even if we drink poison, it will not harm us; diseases and sicknesses will be cast out, poverty and problems will flee, and only healing and blessings will remain. There was a small church in a village, and a woman who attended that church became possessed by a demon. The church elders and deacons attempted to enter her room and pray for her, but she would scream, attack them, and drive them away. One day, a young girl from the Sunday school said, “I will go in and pray for her.”
The adults stopped her, saying, “Even grown-ups cannot handle her. What can you do? You will get hurt! Don’t go in.” But the girl confidently replied, “Do not worry! Jesus is with me!” and entered the room. The adults stood outside, trembling with fear, worried about the child. Suddenly, there was a loud crash - then the door burst open, and the oncepossessed woman came out gently, led by the little girl, as meek as a lamb. The demon had left her completely after the little girl prayed. When asked about what had happened, the healed woman explained: “When the church elders and deacons came in and pointed their fingers at me, shouting, ‘In Jesus’ name, come out, demon!’ it only felt like they were holding thin twigs in their hands. It was not frightening at all, and their actions even seemed laughable. But when the little girl entered and prayed, saying, ‘In the name of Jesus Christ, come out, demon!’, I saw a flaming sword in her hands, and it terrified me.
The demon inside me became so afraid that it immediately fled, and I returned to my senses." Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, We have been given the authority in the name of Jesus Christ to cast out Lucifer, the dragon, Satan, demons, and all evil spirits. We have been given the holy gospel of sanctification, and we have been given the power of fervent prayer. Especially through today’s message, may you understand how Satan operates through untruthful thoughts and accuses us before God.
May you always think positively, hold onto the heart of the Spirit, and continually confess your faith to destroy the schemes of Satan, who spreads evil thoughts in the air. I bless you in the name of the Lord that you will always triumph in the name of Jesus Christ! - END -
