Friday, March 18, 2011

Satan and Jesus Reaped What They Sowed

You have said in your heart, “I will ascend into heaven;
I will exalt my throne above the stars of God;
and I will sit on the mount of congregation, on the far north side.
I will ascend above the heights of the clouds.
I will be like the Most High.”
But you will go down to the lowest pit of hell.
Isaiah 14:13-15


God highly exalted him and bestowed on him a name

that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus

should bow every knee of heavenly beings,

and of earthly beings,

and of those under the earth, and that every tongue

should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,

to the glory of God the Father.

Philippians 2:9-11


Paul warned us that we will all certainly reap whatever we sow in this life, whether good or evil (Gal. 6:7; 2Cor. 5:10). When we consider God’s judgment of Satan, we can see how true this is. In Isaiah 14:13, we are told that Satan’s secret scheme was to sit with God on His throne, which was on the farthest north side of the mountain where the “sons of God” met. He wanted to be the closest one to the reins of power, and he believed himself to be the one most worthy of that honor. But in verse 15, we learn that God will reward him for his wickedness by consigning him to the farthest recesses of torment, a place that is furthest from God.

On the other hand, Jesus, who humbled himself lower than anyone had ever humbled himself and “made himself of no reputation”, was later raised up by the power of God and “made higher than the heavens” (Heb. 7:26). Moreover, we learn in Revelation 2 that Jesus was granted the place that Satan coveted. It says in Revelation 3:21 that Jesus is now sitting on the throne with his Father, and that those who humble themselves as he did will be exalted to sit on the throne with him.