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I grew up in a tradition in which I do not remember any acknowledgement of the devil as an actual person. It seems that there was a talking snake in a garden once upon a time and then, well then I guess snakes stopped talking. And that was the end of it. The more I think about it, the more I wonder how much that has effected not just my tendency to disregard the idea of spiritual warfare, but also how "hypothetical" or "philosophical" my ideas about the reality of God's personality and character are. If Satan is just a concept, which I think effectively is what I was being taught in the silence of our tradition that surrounded all the passages in scripture, then who is to say that God isn't just a concept too, a good way of explaining and dealing with the challenges of life. And talking snakes are the things of mythology, which are stories created to help explain and deal with the tough to handle questions of meaning and reality. And if the story of the garden is mythology then what does that say about the rest of the Bible? Is that what was going on underneath it all? Or were devil stories just too scary and inappropriate to tell to kids? 

In seventh grade I was invited to a friend's youth group where he played in the rock band. It was really cool. I had never seen a youth band before. I had never been to a youth group before (we just had Sunday school). And I had never heard someone talk about the devil like that before! A Devouring Lion! The Father of Lies! Deceiver! An Angel of Light! The Great Dragon! Bent on my destruction! Devoted to derailing my life! Dedicated to dragging me down with him! I don't remember hearing much at all about Jesus. He might have been mentioned but I was too distracted by the guarantee that if I tried to pray, or read scripture that Satan would launch a full scale attack of haunting distraction and disruption. I didn't sleep much that night, spent most of the wee hours of the morning on my knees "praying" while staring at the stereo expecting it to turn itself on with a broadcast straight from hell.

"There are two equal and opposite errors into which our race can fall about the devils. One is to disbelieve in their existence. The other is to believe, and to feel an excessive and unhealthy interest in them. They themselves are equally pleased by both errors and hail a materialist or a magician with the same delight." -C.S. Lewis in the preface to the Screwtape Letters

Do I believe in Satan?

If not, what about God? Jesus? Scripture? and the need for Salvation?

The Bible believes in Satan: starts and ends with God's colossal dealings with the evil, the devil and his distortion of creation, humanity and truth (Gen 3, Rev 20). Jesus believed in Satan. Talked to him face to face. Effectively began and ended his ministry by saying: "Get behind me Satan!" (Matt 4:1-11, 16:21-23, 26, 36-46) Paul believed in Satan, he gave him many of those names I mentioned earlier (1 Cor 11:14, 1 Peter 5:8).

Do I believe in Satan?

The Bible believes that Satan does nothing but what he has been allowed to do by God's design to save and refine his people. (Job) Jesus' mission completed to routing and defeating of Satan and his dominion (Matt 12:29, James 4:7, 1 Pet 5:9-10, Rev 20:10) Paul's writing is a believer's field guide for dealing with a dangerous nuisance, not a mortal enemy (Eph 6:10-13).

Do you believe in Satan?