Shining morning star, how you have fallen from the heavens! You destroyer of nations, you have been cut down to the ground. You said to yourself: “I will ascend to the heavens; I will set up my throne above the stars of God. I will sit on the mount of the gods’ assembly, in the remotest parts of the North. I will ascend above the highest clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.” Isaiah 14:12-14
My words…
Praise
These ancient words, spoken through your intrepid prophet, Isaiah, allow me a glimpse of an ancient, heavenly scene, an attempted coup gone terribly wrong. I learn so much about my enemy from this scene. He thought he could be like You. What gall! What boundless arrogance! He had his throne all picked out, among Your assembled, in the highest heavens. Too bad for him he never got to sit in it. I can’t fathom the rapturous fulfillment Your heavenly hosts enjoy by being in Your presence, yet Satan threw it all away because of his weighty pride. I am angered by the way he treated You, like a spoiled brat whose father gave him everything, but it wasn’t good enough. You created him and gave him the name Morning Star, but he reasoned the created could be just as great as the Creator. He is evil, plain and simple. And evil cannot stand against the Name of the Most High God. I praise You for the order You keep in the heavens. You hold all authority. I often wonder if Satan regrets his decision of long ago, to stand against You. Probably not – too much hubris. I see Satan’s tracks all around me, traces of where he has been. He leaves a trail of broken people, a trail of tears. It’s because of You that I know I can remove him from my presence – You did it, and I have Your Spirit living in me. I am looking forward to being with You in the place You are preparing for me – a place without Satan.
