Today’s Bible Reading: Isaiah 14-18
by Bill Hood | July 31, 2010 | In Daily Reading | Comments Off
I Will…
Isaiah 14-18
Well, once again old J. Vernon McGee said something in his commentary on today’s verses that said what I would like to say so much better. So, once again, I’ll just let him say it.
But first let’s look at the verse in question.
Isaiah 14:12-14
“How you are fallen from heaven,
O Day Star, son of Dawn!
How you are cut down to the ground,
you who laid the nations low!
You said in your heart,
‘I will ascend to heaven;
above the stars of God
I will set my throne on high;
I will sit on the mount of assembly
in the far reaches of the north;
I will ascend above the heights of the clouds;
I will make myself like the Most High.’
There seems to be some difference of opinion as to whom this two word phrase “Day Star” refers. Isaiah 14:4 makes it clear that the verses that follow refer to the king of Babylon and so I think it rather obvious that on the most basic level this is who is meant by the appellation “Day Star”. Now the King James Version doesn’t render this term as “Day Star” but “Lucifer” and, on a deeper level, I can certainly see how that would apply. I’m going to share with you what J. Vernon said about these verses but my point isn’t to get into a debate about the real target of these verses, but a discussion on the issue of sin.
McGee, J. V. (1997). Thru the Bible commentary (electronic ed.). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.
Isaiah 14:2
“Lucifer” is none other than Satan. Lucifer, according to Ezekiel 28, is the highest creature that God ever created. But he was a Judas Iscariot—he turned on God. He set his will over God’s will. In Luke 10:18 the Lord Jesus says, “… I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven.” In 1 John 3:8 we are told, “He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.” Then in Revelation 12:7–9 we are told, “And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.” This is a picture of this creature Lucifer at the very beginning.
What was the sin of this creature created higher than any other? Well, what is sin in its final analysis? I’m not speaking philosophically, but theologically—what is sin?”
Isaiah 13-14
“These are the five “I wills” of Lucifer. He was setting his will over against the will of God. This is sin in embryo. This is the evolution of evil. There is no evolution of man, but there is an evolution of sin. It began by a creature setting his will against the will of God. As a free moral agent, the creature must be allowed to do this. It is nonsense to talk about a creature who has a free moral will, who can do anything he wants to, but is restricted in his movements in a certain area. Lucifer had a free will.
This is man’s original sin: “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all” (Isa. 53:6). Murder is sin, not just because God says it is, but because it is contrary to the will and character of God. Anything that is contrary to the character and will of God is sin, regardless of what it is. I think that some people can even displease God by going to church.
Imagine little bitty puffed-up creature man, who says to God, “I won’t do what You want me to do. I am going to do it my way.” That is exactly what man is saying today. Well, friend, you are not going to do things your way, because God’s will is going to prevail in the final analysis. Therefore, the prayer of all God’s people should be, “… Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven” (Matt. 6:10). Anything contrary to His will is sin, regardless of what it is.
The sin of Satan was overweening pride. He did not go out and get drunk, and he didn’t steal anything. He went against God’s will. He was created as an angel of light; he was the “son of the morning,” a perfect being. He was given a free moral will—he could choose what he wanted. But he was lifted up—so lifted up by pride that he set his will against the will of God. It wasn’t the purpose of Satan to be different from God; he wanted to be like God. In other words, he wanted to be God. He put his will above the will of God, and any creature who does that puts himself in the place of God.
There are many men like Lucifer today. They put their wills above the will of God and take His place. That is what sin is all about in the human family. There are only two ways: God’s way and man’s way. That is what the Lord Jesus Christ meant when He said, “… I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me” (John 14:6). My friend, you live in God’s universe today. You breathe His air and enjoy His sunshine. He never sends you a bill for either one or for the life He furnishes. You are His creature. You owe Him a great deal. You are to obey Him.
In his natural state, man is unable to obey God; that is why we have to come to Him through the Lord Jesus Christ as lost sinners. Then we are given a new nature. That is what it means to be born again.”
I have said that all sin comes from the same place; self-centeredness. Self-centeredness makes us the center of the universe, of all creation. This is God’s place, not ours. When we struggle with sin we are struggling against our desire to be God. It really is that simple. That is why a sinner cannot be in God’s presence. There is only one God and you are not Him. If you can’t accept that you cannot have eternity. It isn’t Gods’ fault it is yours. Oh, the destruction we wreak in our own lives when we focus on ourselves. You want to be happy? Focus on God; there is no other truly satisfying way.
Have a selfless day!
Your brother and servant in Christ,
Bill
