Is the devil God's nemesis?

Thanks to Marvel comics, everyone knows that heroes have villains. Not only that, but if he is a really great hero, he needs a really great villain, or a nemesis. The idea behind the nemesis is that in this enemy, the hero has met his match. Yea, yea, we all know that the hero will still save the day in the end. But this is the kind of villain that is his polar opposite. He is equal in power, strength and craftiness. But he is opposite in intentions. He may even have a edge over the hero in some way. As a result, the nemesis is able to deal serious damage. He has the power to change the trajectory of the story line. He is a threat to all humanity.

So, you know, Superman had Lex Luthor; Spiderman had the Green Goblin; Batman had the Joker; Austin Powers had Dr. Evil; Charlie Sheen had Charlie Sheen…the list goes on. All of these archenemies changed the plot of the story. They really interrupted the flow of things. They gave the hero a boatload of grief.

Is the devil God's nemesis?

Nope. Note even close.

The power of God verses the evil of the devil is not a sort of dualistic Yin/Yang thing. The Bible describes God in unequalled terms. His power is unmatched. He is limitless. His essence is infinite. He has no beginning; he has no end. The devil can’t touch him. Like in the book of Job, when the devil wants to do a thing, he has to go and ask God for permission. What kind of wimpy nemesis asks for permission?

I love this part in the end of THE story. In the book of Revelation it tells of how the devil will be thrown into the Abyss. The interesting thing is, God doesn’t even do it himself. It says that God sends an angel to do it for him (Rev. 20:1-2). God doesn’t even get his hands dirty. At most, the devil is the nemesis of an angel, but not of God. He can’t interfere with God’s plan. He does not have the power to change the story line. Heck, there’s not even much tension in the story about who is going to win out in the end.

I’m not suggesting that the devil is weak (relative to humans), or that we should take his evil work lightly (we shouldn’t), or that we shouldn’t be on guard against evil forces. But isn’t it great that we can follow a Hero who is infinitely more powerful than the worst force known on earth? The next time you are feeling fearful, anxious, or oppressed, call out to the Hero—he will save you!

I’m also guest posting today over at @thelazychristian…Check it out!