2002-01-01
Good Morning Faithful Ones,
This morning, I am led to continue discussing EZK 28: 11-19, which I will cite again to make it easy for you to follow this message. Remember that our Lord loves us so much that He wants us to endure through the spiritual warfare which challenges our faith equipped with every bit of "combat intelligence" about the adversary so we go on to victory against him in Christ's name. EZK 28: 11-19, "The Lord spoke to me again, 'Mortal man," He said, 'grieve for the fate that is waiting for the king of Tyre. Tell him what I, the Sovereign Lord, am saying: 'You were once an example of perfection. How wise and handsome you were! You lived in Eden, the garden of God, and wore gems of every kind: rubies and diamonds; topaz, beryl, carnelian, and jasper; sapphires, emeralds, and garnets. You had ornaments of gold. They were made for you on the day you were created. I put a terrifying angel there to guard you. You lived on My holy mountain, and walked among sparkling gems. Your conduct was perfect from the day you were created until you began to do evil. You were busy buying and selling, and this led you to violence and sin. So I forced you to leave My holy mountain, and the angel who guarded you drove you away from the sparkling gems. You were proud of being handsome, and your fame made you act like a fool. Because of this I hurled you to the ground and left you as a warning to other kings. You did such evil in buying and selling that your places of worship were corrupted. So I set fire to the city and burned it to the ground. All who look at you now see you reduced to ashes. You are gone, gone forever, and all the nations that had come to know you are terrified, afraid that they will share your fate.'"
Remember that Lucifer had been God's chief angel in charge of worship in heaven, and was loved enormously by Him. Imagine the disappointment and pain, Lucifer's evil-doing brought to the Deity! I made the case for why the king of Tyre in (11-19) is Satan yesterday. Today, we need to look at another argument for this, the fact that (12) makes the point that "this cherub was a model of perfection" [NIV]. We know that human beings are not created as "models of perfection" from PS 51: 5, "I have been evil from the time I was born; from the day of my birth I have been sinful." This being, this cherub or "king of Tyre" was born perfect in heaven, not as a sinner on earth. Other than Adam and Eve, there is no record of any other humans in the garden of Eden. Yet, (13) tells us," You were in Eden the garden of God..." [NIV]. We must bear in mind that "combat intelligence" is not superfluous, it allows us to recognize the devil when he is in our midst, to know his traits, and thus, to know how to battle against him.
A number of years ago, I did a study on the mention of the gems listed in this passage. The Jewish high priest's bejeweled breastplate called the ephod was mentioned in EX 39: 8-14 as containing the same list of sparkling gems that occur in EZK 28: 13. Once again, some of these gems are mentioned in REV 4: 3 in the description of God. A reliable commentary suggested that jasper (which is translucent) symbolizes holiness, carnelian (sometimes called sardis) is red and suggests wrath, and emerald symbolizes mercy. All of these reflect attributes of God's personality that are revealed in the Scriptures. The very description of the new Jerusalem that is at the heart of God's Kingdom to be established in our future contains a description of these same gemstones in REV 21: 18-21. All of this lends more credence to the idea that we are discussing Lucifer, an originally heavenly being, here-albeit one who has brought our Abba who created him in love great disappointment and pain. There is still more information that we can mine out of EZK 28: 11-19, so I hope you will bear with me while we continue to examine it tomorrow.
We must not loose sight of God's purpose for us, which is to put His Son at the foundation of our lives. MT 6: 33, "Instead, be concerned above everything else with the Kingdom of God and with what He requires of you, and He will provide you with all these other things [material needs]." Our personhood must be firmly established in the principles Christ taught in the sermon on the Mount [MT 5: 1-12]. Remarkably, there is nothing in these verses that conflicts with God's full armor of EPH 6: 10-20 that we have been asked to don in preparation for spiritual warfare. Knowing that God is our covenant Partner Who has extraordinary compassion for us, we should relate to the pain that He has suffered at Satan's hand and in the need to sacrifice His only Son for us. It's a pressing motivation for us to take on spiritual warfare against the enemy with our heads held high, our faith strong, our willingness to make whatever sacrifices necessary intact, and in confidence that we do not fight this battle without significant help from our loving Abba.
PRAYER: O Lord, You brought it to our attention that You do not want us to worry with Christ's words in MT 6: 34, "So do not worry about tomorrow; it will have enough worries of its own. There is no need to add to the troubles each day brings." You caused David to write about the destiny of the wicked and the good in PS 37: 1-4, demonstrating the consistency of Your messages to us. "Do not be worried on account of the wicked; do not be jealous of those who do wrong. They will soon disappear like grass that dries up; they will die like plants that wither. Trust in the Lord and do good; live in the land and be safe. Seek your happiness in the Lord, and He will give you your heart's desire." In PS 73: 18-20, you give us comfort in knowing Your justice will come to the wicked, just as it will come to their leader, the devil. "You will put them in slippery places and make them fall to destruction! They are instantly destroyed; they go down to a horrible end. They are like a dream that goes away in the morning; when you rouse yourself, O Lord, they disappear." In JN 15: 7, Christ has told us, "If you remain in Me and My words remain in You, then you will ask for anything you wish, and you shall have it." We do come before You today, to ask that You will give us Your perspective, courage, wisdom, strength, and endurance in our battles with the devil, no matter what form or in what context they take place. We dedicate ourselves to taking the "combat intelligence" You give us in the Scriptures on the enemy and to keeping a open channel of prayer with You active in waging these battles. We are eager for Your commands and willing to follow them. We are Your soldiers in Christ and we offer You our adoration, worship, obedience, trust, glory, honor, praise, and thanksgiving. In Christ's name, we pray. Amen.
There is even more "combat intelligence" in EZK 28: 11-19 for us to discover together. That will be the subject of tomorrow's message. As a Messianic Jew, I can look at the contrast between the way I was raised and the way God wants us to be. I was raised to worry about every little thing and the guilt trips laid on me by well-meaning but misinformed parents were many. The root of the problem was the traditional Jewish propensity for studying commentaries on the Scriptures rather than the Scriptures themselves. I'm sure you know of other religions that share this problem. By allowing Christ into our hearts and answering God's invitation to join Him in His work, we are being blessed to know that we don't have to worry as long as we endure in faithful obedience to Him. The comfort He gives us in this respect is just one more example of the profound love He has for each of us. Peter and I send you our love too.
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn