What if Satan took over a city?

That question was brought up over half a century ago and answered by a Presbyterian Minister by the name of Donald Grey Barnhouse.

Speculating that "if Satan took over Philadelphia, all of the bars would be closed, pornography banished, and pristine streets would be filled with tidy pedestrians who smiled at each other. There would be no swearing. The Children would say, "Yes sir" and "No ma'am," and the churches would be full every Sunday... where Christ is not preached."

This illustrates to me, that it is only when we see our humanity and ultimately our sin (our very own sins) as God sees it, that we can understand what God has done in the Cross of Christ. When we don't see it for what it is, and we do not understand our own condition... then the message of the Cross, doesn't make a whole lot of sense to our human mind. And how can we be grateful for something that we think we don't really need? If we hold "sin" as not really relevant, then neither will the Life, Words, and Work of the cross of Jesus seem relevant to us. And this is exactly why we need to hear God's Word, for there He tells me all about my sin and my true condition, and knowing who God is as He has revealed Himself to us in history, and in His Word. God is Holy. Perfect. And He is Love. Perfect love. Then... Everything changes. We can then, from that place of repentance, and acknowledgement of our sin, truly see the Cross, and the work of Christ with our hearts lifted up, praising the one, who in Love, saved us. 

See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him.  – 1 John 3:1

"Who has believed our message? To whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?" - Isaiah 53:1