Fallen Angels
When Satan rebelled against God it says that he took, what
many believe to be, a third of the angels with him. These days we refer to
those angels that rebelled as “fallen angels” or, their more common name,
“demons.” Their rebellion upset God so much that He created Hell just for them.
They have absolutely no chance at redemption or reconciliation with God. This
rebellion apparently took place thousands of years ago, but the angels that
took part in it will have an entire eternity to contemplate the ramifications
of their decision. However, there would seem to be an indication that some of
these angels, if not many of them mourn their decision and desire to be in
God’s good graces again. Unfortunately, that will never happen. “It was revealed to them that they were not
serving themselves but you, when
they spoke of the things that have now been told you by those who have preached
the gospel to you by the Holy
Spirit sent from heaven. Even
angels long to look into these things (1 Peter 1:12).” At the end of this
verse, Peter mentions that the angels “long to look into” the things of the
Gospel of Jesus Christ. The hallmarks of the Gospel message are things like
forgiveness, redemption and reconciliation. These are words that speak of being
restored to a prior position. Christians talk about being in “right standing”
with God and that Jesus Christ “bought us back” with His sacrifice. Mankind, in
Adam, rebelled against God and our destination was Hell to be with the Devil
and his angels.
However, because of God’s love we have been given a chance to
be with the Lord for eternity rather than separated from Him. For whatever
reason, the angels that rebelled with Satan were not given the same chance that
we have been given. Therefore, they are left to long for what we have freely
been offered by God if we only would accept Jesus Christ as our Savior. It is
humbling to think that God would give us a second chance, but not the angels.
Even more humbling is the thought that the angels who fell will never have the
chance we have been given. Sadly, many will not take the opportunity presented
to them and will find themselves spending eternity with those “fallen angels”
in a place God never intended for them to be. But, when you remain dead in your
sins the only thing you can do with dead things is burn them. One can only
imagine the conversation that might take place in Hell between an unbeliever
and a fallen angel, as the angel asks, “Why are you here? This place was never
meant for you.” Both the angels and the lost will have one thing in common;
they both chose to live apart from God and will have an eternity to ponder
their choice. If you have accepted Jesus Christ as your savior, rejoice and
spread the Gospel so others will not squander the opportunity that God never gave
to the angels who rebelled against Him.
If God is for us
The problems in our lives seem endless and keep piling up.
We have relationship issues, issues at work, health issues, money issues,
family issues, transportation issues, housing issues and so on. It is enough to
make us feel as though we are all alone. Even when it comes to being a
Christian, we are not immune to these things happening in our lives. We know
that God says He will never leave us or forsake us, yet why do we feel as
though He has left us and has forsaken us? I think this is because we can have
an unrealistic expectation about God and what it means to be a Christian. “What, then, shall we say in response to
these things? If God is for us, who can be against us (Romans 8:31)?”
The mistake we Christians often can make is assuming that because we are in
Christ that we are automatically protected from the problems of life or from
the sins of others perpetrated against us. Therefore, when we read, “who can be
against us?” we think to ourselves, everybody is against us! We will sit there
and almost chastise God as if to say, “Where are you?” or “Why is all of this
happening to me?” But, you see, God never said that we would be shielded from
tribulation. So, if we think that we are supposed to be exempt from problems,
we have a rude awakening in store for us when it comes to our understanding of
God. Where is that “hedge of protection” we have been told about? Who removed
the “covering” I am supposed to be under? How come somebody is “touching” God’s
anointed? Our entire faith can be shaken because of a misunderstanding of
scripture.
The truth of the matter is that when compared to all we have in
Christ, what can those who are against us truly accomplish? Nothing. When we
are experiencing God meeting the deepest desires of our heart for unconditional
love, total acceptance and meaning and purpose to life, we begin to see that
the peace and joy the world tries to take from us through tribulations and
trouble will never rob us of all the spiritual blessings we have in Christ.
Therefore, when the issues of life rear their ugly heads we will be able to
say, “I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither
angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor
depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the
love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 8:38-39).” If you are
feeling “separated” from God because of the circumstances of life, there is
nothing wrong with God, there is something wrong with your understanding of
Him. Circumstances change from moment to moment and if we are not grounded in
the love of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, we will change with them. But
“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever (Hebrews 13:8).” When
you’re trapped between a rock and a hard place, that rock is Jesus. Lean on
Him.
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