I’ve always asked this question especially when I was new to my relationship with God. I’ve always thought: “Why, if God is so merciful, can’t He forgive Satan with what he’s done?” It only makes sense that an all-merciful God can forgive an all-evil person. But why isn’t it so? Why is Satan, as early as the first century, judged as doomed to hell already?
The three chief angels
There are three chief angels (as far as I know) in heaven who serves God: the angel Gabriel, who is God’s chief messenger, the angel Michael, who is God’s chief prince in battle or God’s general if you would put it so, and there was the angel Lucifer, who was God’s chief of worship. Of the three, who do you think has seen God’s full glory? That’s right – it was Lucifer.
He was in charge of giving glory to God in heaven – the chief of worship. That’s why of all the three He was, in turn, the most glorified by God. But he rebelled against God and wanted to BE God. Imagine, what could possibly ever bring you back to God if YOU HAVE ALREADY SEEN HIS FULL GLORY and yet YOU REBEL AGAINST HIM? Nothing.
Even if God would have forgiven Satan, I doubt that he would repent and turn back.
Now, on to the topic at hand, why does Satan keep doing what he’s doing?
Men are created in the image and likeness of God. That is what is written. God’s full joy is to glorify Himself and our full joy as human beings can only be accomplished when we glorify God. Now, Satan is determined to take away that joy from God and from us.
Every time that Satan tempts us to sin and we fall, it’s like God seeing Himself in us – sinning and ravishing His glory. It’s a slap to the face of God whenever we fall into sin. And Satan’s purpose today is the exact opposite of his purpose when he was in heaven. His main goal is now to shame God and to take away His glory or even just to desecrate it – and he can only do it through us who were created in the image and likeness of God.
Think about it.
You are created in God’s image and likeness and we are so fortunate that God allowed us to be able to be just like Him even if it’s just in our appearance and our traits. Always think hard about what you are to do with this gift of our likeness to Him. Every time you sin, it’s like you’re slapping God in the face, because after all, Satan is only half responsible for tempting us – in the end, it’s us ourselves who make the final decision if we’re going to fall for it or not.
Make a decision today. You don’t need to be perfect – but as long as you know you’re trying, it makes all the difference.
PS: Special thanks to pastor Dime and pastor Jesse Dedel my wisdom in this came from them.
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