What is low, raise and support;
That to the height of this great Argument
I may assert the Eternal Providence,
And justify the ways of God to men.
-Paradise Lost, John Milton
We live in a world of arguments. We are faced each day with situations and scenarios that tug on our faith with intentions to collapse our foundation. It happens within us. The voices start to go off in our heads, telling us we aren't smart enough, or we will never accomplish our dreams, or we will never find a job, or that we are always going to be lonely. And it sounds so convincing and we give in to such thoughts and soon find ourselves believing the lies.
When you hear these voices rise in your mind, recognize the warning sign right away. It's the devil talking. He is the enemy, and he wants us to feel dejected, inadequate, and hopeless. Once we are ensnared in lies we are much more apt to fall prey to his devices to bring us down.
As I read Paradise Lost I feel like I am getting the inside scoop on how Satan thinks and what happened at the beginning of creation. Satan and his legion of followers are kicked out of heaven and they want more than anything to have their revenge on God. Yet, the gates to Heaven are shut, and Satan knows there is no way to breach those gates.
Rumor reaches Satan's ears that God is going to create a being on a place called Earth. God was going to give man free will, and it is here that Satan saw his opportunity to have his revenge on God. It would come in the devised plan to ruin the newly created man and woman. Satan patted himself on the back for such a clever plan. If he couldn't get to God directly, he could at least cause the man and woman to defy God and fall.
Little did Satan know that God already knew the scheme. He saw it, and yet He still allowed free will because love is not true if it is forced. God already had plans in the works to send His one beloved Son to earth...
I love the perspectives of this epic poem. The reader gets to hear the devils speaking, planning, and the debating that goes on in hell. Then, the reader gets to hear the talks in Heaven, where God speaks to the angels and sends them to earth to keep watch over Adam and Eve. The imagery in the lines of poetry brings you into the supernatural realm where the battle for man is just beginning.
When you hear these voices rise in your mind, recognize the warning sign right away. It's the devil talking. He is the enemy, and he wants us to feel dejected, inadequate, and hopeless. Once we are ensnared in lies we are much more apt to fall prey to his devices to bring us down.
As I read Paradise Lost I feel like I am getting the inside scoop on how Satan thinks and what happened at the beginning of creation. Satan and his legion of followers are kicked out of heaven and they want more than anything to have their revenge on God. Yet, the gates to Heaven are shut, and Satan knows there is no way to breach those gates.
Rumor reaches Satan's ears that God is going to create a being on a place called Earth. God was going to give man free will, and it is here that Satan saw his opportunity to have his revenge on God. It would come in the devised plan to ruin the newly created man and woman. Satan patted himself on the back for such a clever plan. If he couldn't get to God directly, he could at least cause the man and woman to defy God and fall.
Little did Satan know that God already knew the scheme. He saw it, and yet He still allowed free will because love is not true if it is forced. God already had plans in the works to send His one beloved Son to earth...
I love the perspectives of this epic poem. The reader gets to hear the devils speaking, planning, and the debating that goes on in hell. Then, the reader gets to hear the talks in Heaven, where God speaks to the angels and sends them to earth to keep watch over Adam and Eve. The imagery in the lines of poetry brings you into the supernatural realm where the battle for man is just beginning.
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