(82) Ths Satanic Verses Part 2

Some new information on satan has been noted. In Hebrew, there is a name for satan; heylel. This is translated as "to shine as God". However this name is not a proper noun. It is more of a description in the Hebrew language. This has been translated into English and Latin as a proper noun and it probably should not have been. So the question remains , why did he lose his real name? To understand this we have to look at the history of his creation and purpose. Read Ezekiel 28:12-19.

Ezekiel says these things about him:

1. compares him to the King of Tyre
2. was a model of perfection
3. was full of wisdom and perfect in beauty
4. was in Eden
5. was created
6. was an anointed cherub
7. was blameless until wickedness set in
8. became filled with violence
9. heart became proud because of his beauty
10. wisdom became corrupted because of his splendor

Ezekiel compares satan with the king of Tyre. No one really knows who this king is but most who have studied this claim that it is talking about Hiram I. If this is the case it is an analogy that works. Tyre was a prosperous city. Hiram I allied himself with David and Solomon and even helped Israel build the Temple by supplying the cedar and pine. The city of Tyre was destroyed by Alexander the Great of Macedonia. The city came to an abrupt end. If this is supposed to be Hiram then the analogy could be that satan was allied with God but will his existence will come to an abrupt end as well.

He was a model of perfection. He was perfect in beauty and was full of wisdom. Perhaps it would have been better for him if he was full of beauty and perfect in wisdom. It was not due to his wisdom that he fell. He cherished his own beauty over his wisdom and became prideful.

He was a cherub of God, not only an angel but an anointed angel. He had a very special place in heaven. Isaiah claims he was the brightest of all stars. Job 38:4-6 gives an analogy of angels being stars. Maybe he was the highest of all angels; higher than Michael and Gabriel. Maybe he would have been considered the highest in heaven 2nd only to the Trinity of God. Maybe all of the other angels were under him in the hierarchy. He was able to bring 1/3 of the angels with him in his fall.

His beauty and pride caused him to think he could be better than God. He became prideful due to his beauty and this corrupted his wisdom. Until this happened he was blameless. His pride made him wicked. His wickedness caused him to fall from God's grace.

 

He said he could be like God and tried to exalt himself over God. His throne is here on earth. God gave him the world. He is the "god" of this world. He is the prince of this world. This is why he could offer Christ all the kingdoms of the earth if He would have bowed to him because they were his to give. But greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world. Satan wants to destroy all of those who are not of this world, those who are born into Christ.

 

He was in Eden. He roamed the earth. God allowed him in Paradise. There is a neat study that says satan may have been a feminine figure since there is so much reference to beauty. This would make sense of why he (or she in this case) went to Eve first. They would have had something in common. Of course this is not the most popular of views.

 

His fall probably would have occurred sometime between creation and the first 100 years after creation. If he was in the Garden then he was already part of this world. We don't exactly know when the fall of man happened but when it did man had to procreate to keep mankind alive. Scripture says that Adam was 130 years old when he had Seth. Seth was born to replace the son that he had lost due to Cain murdering Abel. These two were probably grown men since both of them already had a trade of their own. Speculation says then they were nearing 30. If Adam was 130 when he had Seth then he was probably somewhere around 100 when he had Cain and Abel. This means the fall of man was before this and the fall of satan was before even this event. He has been trying to get others to fall ever since.

 

But satan still has to serve God, Job 2:6. His end is near, 2 Peter 2:4, Revelation 12:9, 20:10, Matthew 25:41. He has become corrupted. He has become a liar. He has become a murderer. He has become worthless in God's eyes. His name is no more.

 

When scripture tells us that pride comes before destruction we have the greatest of examples of what happens.

 

Note :  This was Thought X on www.ideasoftimreligion.blogspot.com.  It fits better here and was added as Feb, 5, 2014.

(81) The Satanic Verses Part 1

This is not a reference to Salman Rushdie. Here is a short lesson on who satan is.

Who was satan in the beginning? To understand this we must first know what he was. 2 Corinthians 11:14 says that he is "an angel of light". Was he an angel? We get the word angel from the Greeks; angelos, meaning messenger of God. If satan was an angel then he would be some kind of messenger. Examine more evidence of what angels are. Please remember to read more of the passages than just the one verse cited.

Colossians 1:16 says that angels are created beings.
Luke 1:19, 1:28, 2:10 give examples of angels bringing messages to people on the earth.
Luke 2:13-14, 15:10, 22:43, Revelation 5:12 are some scriptures that show angels worshiping God and rejoicing in His presence.
Hebrews 1:14 says that angels minister to God's people.
Acts 12:23 shows how angels are to carry out God's wrath upon the earth.

If satan was an angel he was supposed to be from the time he was created, a being who brought messages of hope, praised and worshiped God, ministered to the rest of creation and would one day help carry out God's wrath. However, the last one was only due to his own doing.

Maybe he was an angel, but why was he called satan then? The angels that we have in scripture (canon and non-canon) all have angelic names ending with the name of God. MichaEL. GabriEL. RaphaEL. UriEL. RemiEL. RaguEL. SariEL. Why if satan was an angel is his name different?

IT'S NOT HIS NAME! No where in the Bible is his name actually mentioned. The word satan comes the Hebrew word meaning "accuser". "Lucifer" as in the KJV in Isaiah 14:12 means "light bearer", or "morning star", i.e. Venus, the brightest of stars. Stars is a biblical analogy of angels in Revelation. "Devil" means slanderer. The Serpent, the Dragon, Beelzebub (lord of the flies) and Belial (worthless) are other names used for satan.

So working on these items, satan if he was an angel was the brightest of them all. He may have been the leader of all the angels as Isaiah put it (also Matthew 25:41). But somehow he lost his namesake. God somewhere wiped his name from existence. His name became worthless. He became no better than lord of the flies.

The greatest thing about this part of the story is he still has to serve God! Job 1:6, 2:1 say that satan comes before God and has to present himself. His authority is not his own. It is from God and God alone.

The question remains: Why did he lose his name?

Note:  This was Thought IX on www.ideasoftimreligion.blogspot.com.  It fits better here and was added as Feb. 4, 2014.  The comment section was also moved in case discussion needed it.

(42) Kingdoms at His Feet

"The devil made me do it".  This is an age-old excuse of why  we act the way we do.  And many still think it may be accurate to explain their lives.  But it is another form of rationalization by insincere humanity trying to feel better about their own insecurities and failures.  The devil didn't do anything but tempt you.  You are the cause of all your problems.  Read Luke chapter 4:1-13:

• 1 Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, left the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness,
• 2 where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing during those days, and at the end of them he was hungry.
• 3 The devil said to him, "If you are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread.”
• 4 Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone.’”
• 5 The devil led him up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world.
• 6 And he said to him, “I will give you all their authority and splendor; it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to.
• 7 If you worship me, it will all be yours.”
• 8 Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.’”
• 9 The devil led him to Jerusalem and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down from here.
• 10 For it is written: “‘He will command his angels concerning you to guard you carefully;
• 11 they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’”
• 12 Jesus answered, “It is said: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’"
• 13 When the devil had finished all this tempting, he left him until an opportune time.

Satan has no control over you.  There are three things he tried to do here with Christ.  He tried to tempt Him when He was at His weakest.  It failed.  He tried to get Him to doubt His authority by saying "if you are".  It failed.  And He tried to get Him to do something that He knew was wrong.  It also failed.

Why did it fail?  Why didn't he get Him to fall into temptation and take these things? 

1. Many would say it was because Jesus is divine and had no way of failing.  Well, yes, He was divine, but He made Himself lower than the angels and surrounded by flesh to be able to sin.  The flesh is was is corruptible and he clothed Himself with it to prove that sin is not the master of your flesh.
2. Many would say its because Jesus was perfect.  True.  But this is not why it failed.
3. Many would say He was protected.  Maybe so, but if He was protected to the end then sinning was not an option thereby negating all He did.

No the reason why it all failed is because what satan was offering were things he couldn't give anyway.  He lied!  He said he could give Him the world.  It wasn't his to give away.  Jesus knew this.  Satan tried to lay a kingdom at His feet but it was His kingdom already.

All satan can do is pass on temptation.  He has no power over you.  The only power he has is what you give him.  When temptation hits our lives we have to remember that most of it is a lie.  The grass is always greener kind of thing.  The lust within the heart can be turned away unless you hunger for it and feed it.  The hate within your heart can be soothed unless all you do is focus on the thoughts that made you hate and feed that hunger.   The hunger you crave is from above.  You feel empty inside because you have not filled with the things from above.  You have tried to fill it with worldly things and they just aren't good enoug.  If you are hungry and thirsty Jesus said He will give food and drink.  Do not listen to the lies of the world.  Satan thinks he owns it but it's not his to give.  Greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world.