Before we address this question, we need to identify who Satan is, and what does Scripture record about him. The Bible says that sometime after creation, Satan and his followers rebelled against God. They fought God’s angels for control of heaven but were defeated (Rev. 12:7-12). As a result, Satan and his followers were “thrown down to earth” where they have been busy deceiving the world ever since. (Rev. 12:9).
Satan not only opposes God, but the Bible says that he practices sin and has done this from the beginning (1 Jn. 3:8). Even if we consider the beginning from the time of creation, that would be an extensive amount of time to practice and perfect his craft. Scripture even gives warning to his abilities. Revelation 2:24 states that Satan’s wickedness is vast and his ability to deceive is hidden deep within him which makes him most effective at deception. The apostle Peter wrote to the Christians warning them to be alert because “the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour” (1 Pet. 5:8).
So how did Satan become so powerful in the world? His grip on mankind began in the Garden. God gave Adam and Eve one rule to obey. “From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die” (Gen. 2:16-17). The payment for disobedience is spiritual death, meaning separation from God for all eternity (Rom. 6:23). When Satan succeeded in tempting Adam and Eve to disobey God, he gained the power of death (Heb. 2:14). I have no doubt that he celebrated his victory, which increased his pride. But God had a plan.
Satan knew through observation that to keep the power of death, He had one more challenge to overcome—the Messiah. He read in Scripture of God’s plan for salvation as well as watched it unfold through history (Gen. 3:15). During the period of the Old Testament, he listened to the prophets prophesizing about the coming of the Messiah, who would make a way for man to once again have a relationship with God. So, Satan stayed on his guard, watching and waiting for His appearance.
The challenge for Satan was that just as God’s plan for salvation had been veiled from the Old Testament prophets, so was the plan for the Messiah veiled from him. His only recourse was to keep Jesus’s from fulfilling whatever God had in store for Him. Since he could not tempt Jesus to turn from God in the desert (Matt. >>>), he sought to destroy Him. He tried to accomplish this by deceiving Judas to have Jesus arrested, which eventually led Christ to the cross (Lk. 22:3; Jn. 13:27). But Satan did not realize he had played right into God’s plan for salvation. When God’s Son died on the cross, Satan must have thought for a moment he had defeated the Messiah and held death in his hands. But three days later, when Jesus rose from the grave, he knew without a doubt that he himself had been defeated.
Even though Satan had been on high alert to destroy God’s plan, the defeat of salvation slipped through his grasp. But did he claim defeat and give up? Absolutely not. To this day he continues to roam the earth deceiving as many as he can before his time is up. The Bible says that Jesus will one day throw Satan and his followers into the bottomless pit, and “they will be tormented day and night forever and ever” (Rev. 20:10). This reality has fueled his hatred for God. He is like a lion falling into a pit, desperately grabbing for anyone to take with him (1 Pet. 5:8-9). Those who have not chosen Jesus as their Savior are within his grasp. But for the ones that have chosen the gift of salvation, they are safe (Jn. 10:27-30). Still, Satan is determined to cause havoc for even the believers (Acts 13:10). He wants to oppress Christians and discourage their commitment to God where they are unable to lead others to Christ. James warns us to “submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you” (4:7).
So, can Satan read our minds? We find the answer in the words of King Solomon. When dedicating the Temple to God, he prayed, “O LORD, the God of Israel, there is no God like You in heaven above or on earth beneath… then hear in heaven Your dwelling place, and forgive and act and render to each according to all his ways, whose heart You know, for You alone know the hearts of all the sons of men, that they may fear You all the days that they live in the land which You have given to our fathers” (I Kgs 8:23, 39-40). Only God knows our hearts and thoughts. But through our speech and actions, Satan can learn a great deal about us. He sees our weaknesses and tries to use them to turn our hearts away from God. To counter his attacks, we need to pray out-loud for God’s protection and strength. Not only are we reminding Satan who we belong to, but we are reminding ourselves that we need God. Satan’s influence weakens when we are under God’s protection. It is our greatest line of defense. But we also need to walk in obedience to God’s Word, preventing Satan from any opportunity of deceit (Eph. 4:27).