The Villain in Your Story Has Already Lost
Charles Martin
9 min read ⭑
I’m in the 25th year of my writing career, having written more than 30 books published in some 35-plus countries. Eighteen novels. And four screenplays. While I don’t have a monopoly on writing and I have much to learn, my point is this: I am familiar with the idea of a protagonist and an antagonist. In our case, Jesus is the protagonist. He’s “for” us. Satan is the antagonist. He’s “against” us. I know why Jesus is for us, but why, really, is Satan against us? Was it always this way?
Let’s back up. I’ve heard it said that the first sin ever committed was committed in the garden. Adam and Eve disobeyed God and ate the forbidden fruit. Yes, that was sin, but I don’t think it was the first in this universe. There was one recorded sin that occurred before that one.
I want to look at Revelation 12, Ezekiel 28 and Isaiah 14 to get a picture of what happened. In them, we get a bit of a history lesson. Starting in Revelation, the disciple John reveals to us what happened in heaven before the Earth was created.
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And the dragon and his angels fought back, but he was defeated, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world — he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God. And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death. Therefore, rejoice, O heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to you, O earth and sea, for the devil has come down to you in great wrath, because he knows that his time is short” (Rev. 12:7-12, ESV).
A couple of things: First, there was a war. Satan lost. What were they fighting about? I’ll get to that. Second, he was thrown down. Or cast out. Did anyone witness this? Actually, yes. Of that moment, Jesus says this: “And he said to them, ‘I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven’” (Luke 10:18, ESV). Jesus was an eyewitness to this event. And Satan’s angels were thrown down with him. How many?
“His tail swept down a third of the stars of heaven and cast them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she bore her child he might devour it” (Rev. 12:4, ESV). How did Satan convince a third of the angels in heaven to leave heaven? I don’t know. According to the Book of Job, Satan can disguise himself as an angel of light, and he’s a tale-bearer, which means he’s persuasive. “Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them. The Lord said to Satan, ‘From where have you come?’ Satan answered the Lord and said, ‘From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking up and down on it.’ ”
Somehow, only God recognized Satan. The sons of God did not. This tells me he’s very sneaky. A chameleon. Much more so than any of us realize. Revelation 12 goes on to say that the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down and he accuses us day and night before the throne of God. Note: His singular communication is to accuse. Period. Jesus says this about Satan in John 8, and I quoted this earlier, but it bears repeating: “You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies” (John 8:44, ESV).
Jesus, who was an eyewitness to Satan’s fall and eviction from heaven, tells us he was and is a murderer and there is no truth in him. When he opens his mouth, the only thing that comes out — is lies. This is why he’s called the father of lies, and he’s hell-bent on your destruction. “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy” (John 10:10, ESV).
So what happened after he was cast down? Did he slither off and disappear? Nope.
And when the dragon saw that he had been thrown down to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. But the woman was given the two wings of the great eagle so that she might fly from the serpent into the wilderness, to the place where she is to be nourished for a time, and times, and half a time. The serpent poured water like a river out of his mouth after the woman, to sweep her away with a flood. But the earth came to the help of the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swal lowed the river that the dragon had poured from his mouth. Then the dragon became furious with the woman and went off to make war on the rest of her offspring, on those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus. And he stood on the sand of the sea (Rev. 12:13-17, ESV).
I don’t pretend to understand the Book of Revelation and all that it means, but I want to zero in on this: The dragon became furious and made war on the woman’s offspring — on those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the words of Jesus. This means that you are at war with him whether you like it or not and whether you admit it or not and whether you fight back or not. John Piper said life is war. That’s not all it is, but it is that. And he’s right.
Here’s the good news, and it’s one of my favorite Scriptures in all of the Bible. “They [meaning us] overcame him [meaning the devil] by the blood of the Lamb [that’s Jesus] and by the word of their testimony” (Rev. 12:11, NKJV). A testimony is a public profession. A confession. Which takes us back to Romans: “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved” (Rom. 10:9-10, ESV). Paul ends that section by quoting the prophet Joel: “For ‘everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved’ ” (Rom. 10:13, ESV).
Notice how much our words matter. The things that come out of our mouth. Confession. Calling out. Yes, the Lord knows our thoughts, but for some reason, in this universe on Planet Earth, verbal expression matters. Not only does it matter, but it secures victory over the devil. But not just any words. The words that overcome the devil are those that agree with the will of God, spoken in the name of Jesus.
“I want to ask you a difficult question. And if you’re like me, you won’t want to voice the answer out loud. Do you ever wish you had power over another? Like people would just do what you want.”
What happened before Satan convinced a third of the angels to join up with him? This is the prophet Ezekiel, 600 years before Jesus: “Son of man, raise a lamentation over the king of Tyre, and say to him, Thus says the Lord God: ‘You were the signet of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty’ ” (Ezek. 28:12-13, ESV). We know that from the beginning, he was perfect, wise and beautiful. “You were in Eden, the garden of God”; he was also in Eden. “Every precious stone was your covering, sardius, topaz, and diamond, beryl, onyx, and jasper, sapphire, emerald, and carbuncle; and crafted in gold were your settings and your engravings.” he was covered in the most precious and radiant stones imaginable. And notice, stones are only radiant when they reflect. If they don’t reflect light, then they’re just dull. But for some reason, which we’ll see in a moment, Lucifer — who becomes Satan — was covered in stones that reflect light.
Also, the NKJV translates this passage this way: “You were in Eden, the garden of God; Every precious stone was your covering: The sardius, topaz, and diamond, beryl, onyx, and jasper, sapphire, turquoise, and emerald with gold. The workmanship of your timbrels and pipes was prepared for you on the day you were created” (Ezek. 28:13, NKJV). Timbrels and pipes have to do with sound. Music. God created Lucifer to make music. And all of music in heaven is for one purpose — to worship the King. Who is Jesus. So, it’s a bit of a stretch, but it is possible that Lucifer led worship in heaven. I tend to think he did, and what’s more, I tend to think he got tired of doing it.
Let’s keep going: “On the day that you were created they were prepared” (Ezek. 28:13, ESV). This is important — Satan was created by God. he’s not God. he did not exist out of time. He is not omnipotent. Not omnipresent. Not all-powerful. He’s a created being. Now, he does have a measure of power and authority given him by God Most High, but it was given to him. “You were an anointed guardian cherub. I placed you; you were on the holy mountain of God; in the midst of the stones of fire you walked” (Ezek. 28:14, ESV). I take this to mean he had a special place in God’s kingdom. Part of the inner circle. He was anointed — by God — and he guarded — for God. Who did he guard? It’s my opinion he was an archangel who guarded Jesus. “You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created, till unrighteousness was found in you” (Ezek. 28:15, ESV). He went from blameless, or righteous, to unrighteous. So, something happened. What was that thing that happened? “In the abundance of your trade you were filled with violence in your midst, and you sinned” (Ezek. 28:16, ESV). I think Satan had a role in heaven that allowed him to constantly see something he wanted. This did not please God. “So I cast you as a profane thing from the mountain of God, and I destroyed you, O guardian cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire. Your heart was proud because of your beauty” (Ezek. 28:16, ESV). See that phrase, “your heart was proud”? This matters a lot. Put a bookmark here. “You corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor” (Ezek. 28:17, ESV). Splendor. This is very important. All of heaven makes a big deal about one person and one person alone, and his name is Jesus. It is his splendor that all of heaven is continually singing about. It does not please God when someone tries to steal that splendor. Lucifer got tired of being looked through and wanted to be looked at. He got tired of reflecting, and wanted to absorb. This did not work well for him, and it never works well for us.
As a result, God says: “I cast you to the ground; I exposed you before kings, to feast their eyes on you. By the multitude of your iniquities” (Ezek. 28:17, ESV). This is revealing. This word, iniquity, means rebellion. It’s rooted in pride. So, there it is. There’s the first sin. Pride. Which manifests itself as rebellion. Which, ultimately, is a desire to be independent of God. Or, to be God. God continues, “In the unrighteousness of your trade you profaned your sanctuaries; so I brought fire out from your midst; it consumed you, and I turned you to ashes on the earth in the sight of all who saw you. All who know you among the peoples are appalled at you; you have come to a dreadful end and shall be no more forever” (Ezek. 28:18-19, ESV).
I want to ask you a difficult question. And if you’re like me, you won’t want to voice the answer out loud. Do you ever wish you had power over another? Like people would just do what you want. No questions. Further, do you ever wish you wielded the power held by another? Let the question settle. Don’t answer too quickly.
That desire for power not given and entrusted to you ... is Satanic. Straight from the pit of hell. Now, contrast that with the Cross. Jesus, God incarnate, who made all things, who could have summoned 100 billion angels at a whisper, who lived a sinless life, was unjustly accused and grossly crucified, did possess, does possess and will always possess all power over all things for all eternity. God the Father gave it to him. Bestowed it upon him. Entrusted him with it. And he had it on the Cross.
Charles Martin is a New York Times bestselling author of 16 previous novels, including his most recent, The Record Keeper. His work is available in more than 35 languages. He lives in Jacksonville, Florida with his wife and their three sons.
Taken from “The Reason for Jesus” by Charles Martin. Copyright © 2026. Used by permission of Thomas Nelson.
