Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe as you hold out the word of life.
—Philippians 2:14-16
The following prayer, sent to over 3,000 believers as part of their daily devotional via email:
Almighty God, the incredible expanse of your universe, with its billions of stars, exceeds my limited comprehension. But I thank you for calling me to be a place of light in the dark world around me and I pledge to shine your light today in the lives of all those I might. Through the name of the Bright and Morning Star I pray. Amen.
A concerned recipient of that prayer responded: “Wasn’t Lucifer called the morning star?”
Sure enough, I checked the Bible Dictionary: “MORNING STAR (see Lucifer).”
“Whoa! What’s the deal. That can’t be right! Surely I didn’t have all the folks praying in Lucifer’s name?” My blood ran cold at the very thought.
It has been a year since I first composed that prayer I searched my mind and thought: “I know I got that title for Jesus from Scripture, but where?”
Suddenly a phrase popped into my head: “He’s the Lilly of the Valley, the Bright and Morning Star... he’s the fairest of ten thousand to my soul.”
“That’s not Scripture! That’s an old song you grew up singing. I didn’t just use it just because it was in an old song did I? Surely it’s in the Bible!?”
“But what if it’s not? What if I just parroted it without checking Scripture?”
“Oh no! Surely, surely, please dear God, surely I didn’t cause thousands to blaspheme!”
I settled myself down and did a little Bible study. Hallelujah! The truth is more glorious than I had remembered or could have even imagined.
The King of Babylon had ruled over the nations, including Israel, without mercy. He held himself up to be a god. He designated himself the Morning Star. But he was only a self-promoting pretender. Powerful in human terms? Absolutely. God-like or divine? No way!
God cast him down from his pretended throne and delivered Israel from this pretender’s oppression. He never really was a heavenly prince. He just arrogantly acted like he was divine and exalted. But the true King of Heaven, the Lord God Almighty, cast him down and brought salvation for his people (Isaiah 14). This false star becomes the symbol of any being, heavenly or human, who tries to usurp the place of God.
But still, doesn’t that mean the title “Morning Star” is bad?
Well, for us as Christians, the answer to that question is an unequivocal “NO!”
The truth is glorious. The time is coming, and Christians are to anticipate its arrival, when the true Bright Morning Star, the Branch of David, will come for us with ultimate deliverance and victory (Revelation 22:16). Just as his birth was announced as the dawning of light for all people (Luke 1:76-79), the Morning Star can dawn in our hearts if we will follow his word (2 Peter 1:19). We await the day when he comes and gives us the gift of a morning star from Lord himself (Revelation 2:28). Far from being a bad term, Morning Star captures the great redemptive truth of the Gospel. God delivers us from bondage by his Son who is our Morning Star. He will return for us in victory and take us home—not as though who are conquered, but those who have shared with Jesus in the conquest!
Stars have always been a source of constant hope for God’s people. “Your descendants will be like the stars,” God told Abraham. “When I see the stars, what is man that you are mindful of him?” David asks. The Magi from the East followed a star to Jesus. And now, we’re called to be stars: God’s points of light in the dark night sky of the universe (Philippians 2:14-16). So let’s make today a day where our light shines God’s glory to a dark world around us to give others hope in the true, bright Morning Star who is coming to banish all darkness and to bring us to the light of God’s eternal presence.
O glorious and triumphant Morning Star, we bid you come and shine!
