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Lord's Day Liturgy

Lauded by Angels

Traditionally, we believe that Lucifer was an angel among the highest and most beautiful of the heavenly beings. Based on passages such as Isaiah 14 and Ezekiel 28 that seem to describe a creature greater than merely the king of Babylon (or the king of Tyre), we associate such proud behavior with Satan. He was puffed up in his glory. He knew he was great and rebelled against His maker, taking with him other angels who apparently also thought they could get glory a better way than by submitting to Yahweh (Revelation 12:9).

But, of course, there is no one greater than Yahweh, and Yahweh incarnate in the Son. The Son will rule per the Father’s plan. The Son will have the name above every other name (Philippians 2:9-11). The Son will be glorified, but remember how it happened.

But we see him who for a little while was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus, crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone. (Hebrews 2:9)

Glory and honor follow sacrifice. There is not just correlation, there is cause and effect. Jesus deserves worship because of His suffering of death. He is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, and it was His humiliation, even taking on flesh and being “lower than the angels” for a while, that results in His universal lauding by the angels and all creation (Revelation 5:9-10).