Lucifer, Son of the Morning

How are you fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, 

son of the morning!

Isaiah 14:12

The entrance of evil - sin - came long before the decision of Adam in the garden to go his own way.  The above passage in Isaiah 14, as well as verses in Ezekiel 28 tell the story of a powerful angel in heaven, created by God to fill the roll of a covering cherub - one of the highest positions among the angels.  Exekiel proclaims this angel to be the perfection of God's creation:  You were the signet of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.  Lucifer was not created "evil" or sinful:  You were blameless in your ways from the day that you were created, until iniquity was found in you.

The meaning of the Hebrew word translated "iniquity" in Ezekiel 28 is evil.  So within the heart of this perfect angel is found "evil."  It wasn't in his heart when he was created - he was "perfect" and "blameless."  So how, exactly, did it get there?  Ezekiel 28 proclaims, Your heart was proud because of your beauty; you corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor.  Isaiah 14 is even more implicit:   You said in your heart, “I will ascend to the heavens; I will raise my throne above the stars of God... I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.”

Here is this perfect angel - one of the two covering cherubs, who begins to believe that he is not as high up as he should be.  He wants a throne - a place of power - over the rest of his fellow angels.  More than that, he wants to be God.  He who is created wants the power and position of the Creator.  God has created this angel for companionship and for service.  He wants only equal billing and status. At some point, Lucifer rejected God's plan and purpose for his life and determined to go his own way - be his own god.  That choice separated him from the Creator God, and gave birth to sin = evil.

In the same manner, Adam was faced with a choice in the garden.  His beautiful wife had already eaten of the fruit of the tree.  What to do?  What do I do?  Do I trust in my Creator, the One who has walked and talked with me every single day since I came into being?  Do I believe that even though my wife has disobeyed, my friend God will work things out?  Do I look at Eve, who is standing there in perfect health, and tell myself that God obviously lied about dying, so what else has He lied about?  Do I decide that since Eve has suffered no harm from her snack, that God obviously doesn't know what He is talking about?  Whatever his thoughts were, Adam's final choice was to rely on his own wisdom, seek his own way - be his own god.  That choice blossomed forth as sin = evil. 

Better to reign in hell than serve in heaven.

-John Milton, Paradise Lost