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For many years YM has promoted the doctrine of Satan’s self-existence. Although this false doctrine may seem harmless, it is an affront to the God we worship. The teaching that Satan is self-existent is not found in the Bible. In fact, its implications contradict the revelation of God’s word. It is the most fundamental of YM’s errors, from which his other false teachings developed.
1. Denies that God is the One and Only Self-Existing God
The Bible declares that God is one (Deut 6:4; Zech 14:9; Mk 12:29) and that He is the only God (Jn 5:44; 17:3; Rom 16:27; 1 Tim 1:17, 6:16; Jude 4, 25). Furthermore, God Himself declared: “I am He. Before Me there was no God formed, nor shall there be after Me” (Isa 43:10); “I am the LORD, and there is no other; there is no God besides Me” (Isa 45:5, 6, 14, 18, 21, 22; cf. Isa 40:25; 44:6; 46:9).
If Satan is self-existent, then it means he did not need to be created by any other source. If he does not depend on another source to exist, then it also means no other source can make him cease from existence. If this were true, then Satan would be made relative to God, such that God would no longer be the only absolute and supreme being. This false doctrine is in its essence a form of polytheism. To say that Satan is self-existent is to indirectly say that he is comparable to God, which contradicts the truth that God is the only God. If we deny this truth, then we not only deny the word of God but God Himself.
YM insists that Satan is self-existing but not everlasting (i.e. he can be destroyed by God). But no such characteristic is found in the Bible. The misconception is based on the Chinese Union Version of the Bible, which translates the self-revelation of God, “I AM WHO I AM” into “I am self-existing and everlasting” (Ex 3:14). But this term cannot be divided because it refers to only one condition in the original Hebrew. In other words, this description of God’s unique and absolute existence cannot be separated and is reserved for Him alone. To claim that Satan is self-existing is to claim that he, like God, is also “I AM WHO I AM”. This proposition would contradict God’s revelation that He is God and there is no other. [Back to top]
2. Contradicts that God Created All Things
The Bible clearly teaches that God created all things (Jn 1:3; Eph 3:9; Heb 3:4; Neh 9:6; Isa 44, 45; Jer 10:12; Rev 4:11). The Bible also emphasizes that God “saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good” (Gen 1:31).
All things include both physical and spiritual beings, as it is written: “For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him” (Col 1:16). However, some of the “principalities” and “powers” that God created became the evil spiritual forces which we now wrestle against (Eph 6:12).
Likewise, Satan is a fallen creature among the spiritual beings that God created. This is clear to us because Jesus revealed that He “saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven” (Lk 10:18). This verse shows that Satan originally belonged to the kingdom of God (Rev 12:7-9; cf. Ezek 28:16). And the reason for his downfall is because he was puffed up with pride (1 Tim 3:6; cf. lsa 14:13-15; Ezek 28:12-17). Therefore, it is impossible to say that Satan is self-existent without contradicting the truth that God created all things. [Back to top]
3. Challenges God’s Omniscience
YM’s belief in Satan’s self-existence led him to deduce that Satan operates outside the realm of God’s foreknowledge. In an effort to defend God’s goodness, YM argues that God did not foresee that man would succumb to Satan’s temptation and sin against God. This supposed ignorance on God’s part would absolve Him of any responsibility in the existence of evil and in man’s choice to sin. Along the same lines of open theism, YM further suggests that God does not know with certainty all that will happen in the future. However, rather than preserve God’s goodness, this teaching only undermines God’s omniscience.
Not only does God know everything, He knows everything before it happens. This foreknowledge of God is backed by many references in the Bible (Ps 139:4; Isa 42:9, 44:7, 46:10, 48:3-7; Acts 2:23). The reason God proclaims something to man before it comes to pass is specifically so that no one can say, “My idol has done them” (Isa 48:5) or “Of course I knew them” (Isa 48:7).
Before Adam was created, God foreknew he would commit sin, and therefore planned to save people by His flesh which was from the Word (Eph 1:4-5; 2 Tim 1:9). That is also why it says that Adam is a type of Him who was to come (Rom 5:14). For God to know that His creatures would sin, does not in any way diminish His goodness. [Back to top]
4. Challenges God’s Omnipotence
YM argues that the reason why Satan has the power to oppose God’s will and tempt man to sin is because he is self-existent and autonomous. In other words, he uses the existence of evil to demonstrate that many things are not under God’s control.
However, it is not that God has no control over Satan, but that He gives Satan permission to act. For example, when Satan tempted Job, he had to obey God’s command (Job 1:12-19, 2:6-9). And when Satan tempted Jesus, he said that the authority and glory of the kingdoms of the world had been “delivered” to him (Lk 4:6), which means that they were not his in the first place. Therefore, God’s power is not limited by Satan at all. But rather than exercise control over rebellious men and angels who sin, God simply gives them over to their uncleanness, vile passions, and debased minds (Rom 1:24, 26, 28).
To say that Satan is self-existent is to indirectly say that there is one who can stand against God and limit His power. But in the Bible, God never struggles with Satan. Rather, it tells us that none can withstand God (2 Chr 20:6; Ps 33:10-11), that He can do all things (Job 42:2; Jer 14:22), and that nothing is too hard (Gen 18:14; Jer 32:17, 27) or impossible for Him (Mt 19:26; Lk 1:37). Since Satan is the one who is limited by God and will eventually be destroyed by God, he is by no means self-existent.
The Bible reveals that Satan sinned (Jn 8:44; 1 Jn 3:8) and that he has already been condemned (Isa 14:12-15; Mt 25:41; Rom 16:20; 1 Tim 3:6; Rev 20:10). Since sin is known and imputed through God’s law (Rom 3:20, 5:13; 7:7), it can only mean that Satan is subject to God’s law. This is no different from the angels who sinned (2 Pet 2:4; Jude 6). God is sovereign and so is His law. If Satan cannot escape the condemnation of sin, then he cannot be self-existent. To insist that Satan is self-existent is to contradict the teachings of the Bible about Satan’s place under the all-powerful God. [Back to top]