How would you like to see a seven-foot-tall monument to Satan permanently displayed in your state's capitol? This could happen for residents of Oklahoma if a Satanic group gets its way. The Satanic Temple of New York has made an application to the oversight panel of the state's Capitol grounds for the right to erect a statue of Satan in Oklahoma City. The statue would depict Satan as the mythical character Baphomet, which has a man's body with the head of a goat, long horns, a long beard, and wings. In the planned monument, Satan would be sitting on a throne marked with a pentagram, and he would have children looking up at him with smiles on their faces.
The Satanists' interest in this monument is a reaction to a monument of the Ten Commandments that was built at the door of the State Legislature with private funds. The Ten Commandments monument was completed in 2012, and it has caused outrage among Satanists, atheists, and others, including the American Civil Liberties Union, which has sued the state to have the monument removed. Since the Ten Commandments monument was completed, private entities other than the Satanic Temple of New York have also applied for the right to build their own monuments in Oklahoma City, including a Hindu man from Nevada, an animal rights group, and the "Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster" (no kidding!).
The notion of a prominent monument to Satan may appear to be ridiculous at first, but it is actually emblematic of the current state of affairs in the United States of America. From the beginning of this nation, the Declaration of Independence correctly recognized that "all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." This principle explicitly states that liberty comes from our Creator, "for in Him we live and move and exist" (Acts 17:28). However, many souls have turned away from the Creator in pursuit of their own definition of liberty. In doing so, they have turned to Satan and his empty promises of humanistic self-determination. To this end, the website of the Satanic Temple says, "Satan stands as the ultimate icon for the selfless revolt against tyranny, free & rational inquiry, and the responsible pursuit of happiness."
The old lie of Satan continues to be repeated, and many souls fall for it every day. Ever since the serpent in the garden of Eden told Eve, "You surely shall not die!" (Gen. 3:4), he has been peddling his deceit. Satan's concept of the "responsible pursuit of happiness" is that "you will be like God, knowing good and evil" (Gen. 3:5), and therefore you will be able to guide your own steps to the satisfaction of your own pleasure. According to Satan, liberty is freedom from God's law, and happiness is indulgence of the lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh, and the boastful pride of life (1John 2:16). He promises this with no consequences, for he convinces the sinner that there is no eternal destruction of the soul.
While Satan continues to make his promises, his victims continue to suffer. Although he often delivers the immediate gratification of indulgent pleasure, he also leads sinners into long-term misery. The consequences of sin in this life are providentially severe (Prov. 3:33; 10:3, 24-25; 11:21, 27; 14:22; 17:13; 19:29; 21:16; 22:8), but they are nothing when compared to the eternal consequences. Unrepentant, unforgiven sinners will enter into an eternity of anguish and punishment with no hope of relief (Matt. 25:46; Rom. 6:23a; 2Thess. 1:9; Rev. 21:8). Satan will be there, too (Matt. 25:41; Rev. 20:10). Does anyone really want to make a monument to him?
Sadly, monuments to Satan already adorn this nation and this world. Wherever men have built structures or organizations for the purpose of pursuing Satan's versions of liberty and happiness, a monument to Satan has been erected. Every liquor store, beer joint, casino, brothel, and so-called "adult" bookstore as well as every other place dedicated to sinful indulgence is a monument to Satan. Likewise, every false religious institution that promotes the teachings of man as the doctrines of God is a monument to Satan. Even the governmental institutions that forbid any mention of God or His will in the conduct of their business put up monuments to Satan with every literally godless policy.
Meanwhile, the word of God still stands and sounds out the warning. Denying God and worshiping Satan and self will not allow one to escape accountability before Him. "Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap" (Gal. 6:7). God will allow us to pretend that He does not exist for a time, but in the end, "at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and...every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father" (Phil. 2:10-11). At that time, "we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad" (2Cor. 5:10). How will those be recompensed who have participated in monuments to Satan? What will be the end of their Satan-directed pursuit of happiness?
Stacey E. Durham