The many names for Satan are instructive of who he is and what he does: the evil one, the wicked one, the accuser, the destroyer, liar, perdition, dragon, murderer, Lucifer, enemy, and adversary. These are the roles he plays in our lives when we succumb to his influence.
Wicked -- Satan is against all that is good, being morally wrong with intention to hurt or destroy. There is no goodness at all; he will never lead anyone towards God. He will always lead people away from light, truth, and God.
Destroyer -- To destroy is to lose what you have. Destruction can only happen to a building that is already constructed. There are those who come to God through Jesus Christ, building up their spiritual lives, but are destroyed by a single temptation. As the heel of Achilles proved his downfall, the Destroyer will seek our weakness to bring down all that we have built up.
Perdition -- Our home is with our Father in Heaven, and when we cannot find our way Home, we are lost. Perdition literally means lost or wasted. Satan himself was lost to God when he rebelled, and works to bring all others with him so they become lost to God as well.
Murderer -- All of God's children have the potential for Eternal Life. It is the end result of reaching our full potential. Satan seeks to take that life away from us, and taking away life is murder.
Liar -- Everything Satan says is a lie. Even the truth is a lie because it is told with the intent to deceive. He told Eve that she would not die, but rather should be as God. This was true, she did not immediately die, physically, and she did begin to know good and evil by her own experience -- as God. However, it was all a lie because she did die spiritually, and eventually physically, and she could not be as God because she was cast out of Heaven. The lies of Satan are very subtle and almost always seem to be true.
Slanderer -- Slander is "bearing false witness" or speaking evil of others. Satan enlarges every little doubt into fear and loathing. Every child of God has infinite potential, but Satan makes us believe that we, and others, do not qualify because of our weaknesses. He uses slander to bring down the children of God to a lower level. Moreover, he slanders the name of Jesus Christ saying that God doesn't have the power to save us.
Accuser -- Satan is the one pointing the finger at us because he was cast out. He was a "Son of the Morning," even "Lucifer," a child of the light. However, when he sought to take the throne of God by force he was cast out for his rebellion. To be just, God must also cast out all others who rebel against Him -- they must have the same fate as Satan. Therefore, he accuses all those who are disobedient to the will of God, requiring justice be served on them.
Possessed by and evil spirit
Having an evil spirit in our heart produces in us the same qualities of Satan. However, the outward signs that we manifest are only symptoms of the spirit that possesses us. A bad mood happens because we are possessed by that spirit; liars are possessed by a lying spirit, the guilty are possessed by an accusing spirit and so forth. The symptoms of fear, hopelessness, doubt, unhappiness, accusing, slandering or lying only indicate what we are inside. When we feel any of these things it is an indication to us that we have an evil spirit.
The way to cast out evil spirits is not by pointing the evil out and focusing on it any more than focusing on pain gets rid of arthritis. We can relieve the symptoms by trying not to be "negative," but that doesn't change who we are inside. Only by having the evil spirit cast out can we get rid of the evil spirits that plague us and receive the Spirit of the Lord. All of us require a "mighty change of heart" in order to cast out the evil spirit and receive the spirit of the Lord. We do this by turning to the Lord.
The Comforter
The Spirit of God cannot dwell in unholy temples so we must cast out the evil spirits in order to receive the Holy Ghost. Every week as we listen to the Sacrament prayers we are taught the pattern to follow: "That they may witness... that they do always remember him, that they may have his Spirit to be with them." (D&C 20:79) We take the bread and water in witness of our willingness to follow Christ, and always remember Him. If we do always remember Him then we will have His Spirit to be with us.
In other words, we become possessed by evil spirits when we fail to remember the body and blood, or the sufferings and death, of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. When we remember Him, we remember that He saves us from our sins, from death and hell. This is not some pie-in-the-sky salvation, we are saved in the very moment from Satan's grasp by casting out the evil spirits that possess us. We are also freed from fear and depression, receiving instead the spirit of faith, hope, and charity.
Receiving the Holy Ghost brings peace. Just like the ordinance of the gift of the Holy Ghost, Jesus counseled his disciples in the command form: "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." (John 14:27) By remembering His grace at all times we can cast out the evil spirits that plague us, receive the Holy Ghost, and overcome the Destroyer of peace, love, happiness, and Eternal Life.
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