He was in Eden, the Garden of God. Who else was in the Garden? Timbrels and pipes? Wasn't Lucifer the worship leader? Could this be speaking of musical instruments built into this angelic being? Was Lucifer in the Garden in his perfect created state? Was he there to minister to Adam and Eve?

Is it possible that the transgression against God happened after the creation of man?

1:26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the heavens, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. 1:27 And God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. 1:28 And God blessed them: and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the heavens, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.

As we see in these verses God granted great authority to mankind. We were created to be the gods of this world:

82:6 I have said, Ye are gods; and all of you are children of the most High.

Isn't it possible that Lucifer became jealous of man? Did he see this as an opportunity to finally gain the power and recognition that he had always wanted? Angelic power is a designated power. In other words, God could remove that power anytime he saw fit. But the power and authority He gave to man was irrevocable. He gave mankind dominion over this earthly realm and He would not go back on that promise. It became a law of God. (That's why Jesus had to come as a man by the way) Because man had authority over this earth it took a human body to house God's spirit and regain control. But that's another blog.

Is it possible that Lucifer saw the innocence of Adam and Eve and recognized their vulnerability and it was at this point that he rebelled against God?

And if this is so, could it not be said that because man fell for his deception that at this point we turned over our earthly authority to him unknowingly and, because of this it was actually man that made Satan?

Satan is operating on human authority only. He has no supernatural powers. The only power Satan has is that which we allow him. He cannot do anything without our cooperation. The old saying "the devil made me do it" is nothing but a cop-out.

Wow! Look at Moses in verse 12 asking God to repent. And then look at verse 14, And the Lord repented!
I would have to say that Moses did a pretty good job of mediating, wouldn't you?

That was pretty bold of Abraham to keep on pushing the limit, would't you say? Now we all know from further on in the story that not even ten righteous people could be found and God ended up destroying Sodom and Gomorrah and only one person escaped that destruction, and that was Lot. This is my opinion, and it's the only opinion I have, is that Abraham could have negotiated and got God down to one. I believe God would have agreed to save that city if even one righteous person could be found. But Abraham did a very good job of mediating, don't you agree?

Jesus is the mediator of the new covenant. He is the greatest mediator of all times! He is the link between us and God!

I hear people speak about how God is going to judge America. That God is about to pour out His wrath on us because we have drifted so far away from Him. While I completely agree that we have drifted away, and that we are self-destructing, I disagree that God's judgement and His wrath are about to be poured out on us.

Jesus, I thank you and praise you for what you have done, are doing, and will continue to do for me. Thank you for not giving us what we deserve. You are my King!

Amen!

How many of you grew up being told “don’t get your hopes up”? You had been planning, asking, and or hoping for something you really wanted. Maybe it was a trip to summer camp, or a new bicycle. Maybe you wanted to go to a Christian school or play in the band. Maybe you just wanted to have more time with your dad. How often, after expressing your desire for things such as these, were you told, “don’t get your hopes up”?

I was. I was told that many, many times. I believe that these negations proved to play a major role in some of the problems I faced as a young adult. Why do I believe that? It’s because all that I had been dreaming of or hoping for had been smudged out, instantly.

Late in my early thirties, after being married for ten years, having three children, and owning my own business, my life took a serious turn for the worse. I found myself poured into a mold that did not line up with what I had hoped for in life. My life had been deferred down the broad and common road.

Divorce, alcoholism, loss of business, cocaine addiction, crack addiction, homelessness and hopelessness led me straight into an eight month Christian rehab. Christ changed my life during those eight months, and I praise him for that. But that’s not exactly what I am here to talk about today. What I want to talk about are the effects I witnessed as a result of hopes deferred. Mine were quite obvious.

During these eight months I lived in a huge Victorian home with thirty other addicts, victims of abuse, drunkards, criminals, and the like. Sounds like a rough bunch, I know. Many times they would not stay through the entire program and others would come in their place. For many, the call of the world was too great for them to endure. But many others did endure. During this period I got to know, personally, many different types of people, from many different walks of life. And you know what I discovered? Each and every one of them had hidden gifts and talents. They were not addicts. They were people. They were people who's hopes had been deferred.

As I got to know each of them better, and eventually did some one-on-one counseling, I was able to glimpse into a portion of their childhood and recognize a hope once had. That hope, tragically, had been buried deep with layers upon layers of rejection, disappointment, and resentment. Hope deferred.

But as with myself, once these people sat under the Word long enough to realize the amazing love God has for them, and once they understood who they were in Christ, a majority of those childhood hopes were brought back into a foreseeable vision. Hope restored.

In preparing for this little lesson, I searched through the New Living Translation and found 189 verses which contain the word hope. Certainly I am not going to list all of those here. But I have got to tell you how encouraging it was reading through those verses. If you have found some pain buried deep within your heart, perhaps it is directly related to some lost hope. I exhort you to look up some verses that pertain to hope. God’s Word is health and healing to our souls.

I could not list each and every verse that spoke to me this morning, but here are a few that I really want to share:

I love you brothers and sisters,

Michael