Chapter 13
While Satan and his minions were still far off they saw a
bright glow shining over the horizon. As
they neared the garden they recognized the light as the glory of angelic hosts
charged with protecting mankind. They
were standing guard around the entrance to Eden.
The demonic troupe stopped and gazed quietly at their
opposition. The battle in heaven was
still fresh in their minds and their anger raged.
The angels saw their rivals for the hearts and minds of man
and came to attention prepared to protect them at all cost.
Satan stood motionless for a moment as he recollected the
words he had exchanged with God the Father.
He tilted his head slightly to the right and furrowed his brow in thought.
“Stay with me,” he said, as he renewed his march toward
paradise.
As the demons neared, the angels formed into fighting
platoons and assumed battle positions.
Confused, Satan thought once again of the words he had
spoken to God the Father in the throne room, “What would a man choose to love
if he did not choose to love God?” and
God’s enigmatic response, “What indeed?”
Could he have misunderstood the meaning behind God’s words? No, that was impossible.
He then raised one eyebrow as if considering some newly conceived
idea. Looking back at his lieutenants he said, “Wait here.”
They bowed their heads in obedience to their king and Satan
walked forward.
The angelic hosts held their ground but didn’t move.
As Satan approached the entrance to the garden, he
recognized his arch rival Michael standing firm with his feet spread shoulder
width apart. His hands were wrapped
around the hilt of his sword, the tip of which was sticking into the ground in
front of him. His eyes started directly
at his enemy.
Silently the two figures stared into each others’ eyes as
Satan continued to approach.
Michael drew his sword from the ground with his right hand and
held it at the ready as Satan continued his march.
Their eyes locked onto each other as Satan walked through
the ranks of angels unopposed. Satan
never slowed his pace; he understood that he was in no danger.
Michael turned and followed Satan through the line of angels
and the ranks closed behind them. After
a few steps Michael stopped and made no effort to oppose the author of all
lies.
As Satan continued to walk, his form began to change. In one moment he was the most beautiful of
all of God’s creations. In the next he
had assumed the form of a snake.
Michael looked on with disdain as he continued to follow his
orders, trusting that God was fully in control.
-----
Back in Heaven, the angelic hosts and their creator watched
as the timeline of the earthly realm changed dramatically.
No comments:
Post a Comment