Rising Darkness (43 page)

“The Child is about to be born,” Gabriel announced. “Glory to God!”

The angels in and around the stable began to proclaim praises to the Lord as Mary, the betrothed of Joseph, became Mary, the mother of Jesus. The Child was delivered. Joseph cut the cord that was attached to the baby and picked him up. He held the boy up in his hands and shook Him gently so that He started to cry, taking His first breath—Heaven’s own Son breathing the very air He had created.

Michael and Gabriel stood together, looking at mother and Child. The baby, now wrapped in a swaddling cloth, was still beside his mother. She smiled at her husband, Joseph, who was giving thanks to the Lord for bringing the baby into the world. Mary could not help but remember all the events that had led up to this moment—and now it had come. But she didn’t want to think about her son’s future right now—she only wanted to enjoy Him.

“Gabriel, go and announce to the shepherds,” said Michael. “It is time!”

The archangel looked at the Child once more and disappeared into the night sky. He came over to where the angels had encamped around Bethlehem and told the news to them. A great shout went up over Bethlehem as the Host cheered the news that the Savior had been born!

Gabriel looked down at the little group of shepherds. He had always loved the shepherds of Israel—ever since the time of David. Now he was going to deliver to them the greatest news a shepherd would ever hear.

Eli was about to lie down for the night. The long conversation had ended and the few men who were still awake awaited their time in the fields with the sheep. Only Daniel remained intensely alert, for he had been praying ever since Eli had stopped. He stood up, looked toward Bethlehem…and began to pray.

“Most High God of my fathers,” he said. “For several generations my family has not served You as they should. I am a Levite and yet I have been shunning my priestly duties, as did my fathers before me. Yet I know, O Lord, that You are a God who hears a contrite and sincere prayer. I have heard the stories of Your deliverance of Daniel; the defeat of Goliath; how You built up a nation of priests and even in its rebellion, You destroyed it while giving it a hope and a future.

“Now, O Lord, I see that I have allowed the bitterness of the past and the shame of my family to separate me from Your will. I ask, O Lord, that You will allow me to enter once more into Your service; to serve You as a Levite; to do honor to Your name all the days of my life until the Messiah should come and I serve Him as well.”

As Daniel concluded his prayer, he began weeping. Bakka walked over to him and placed his hand upon him, comforting him. He then spoke so that Daniel might hear him:

“Daniel, behold, the Lord will hear your prayer!”

Daniel felt himself being turned in the direction of the camp. He saw a man dressed in white, with a gold belt, entering the open area where the shepherds lay. Daniel looked around to see who had spoken or who had turned him—but saw nobody. He hurried to the camp, rousing the men.

Eli and the others looked up and saw the angel Gabriel standing before them. The glory of the Lord was all around them. The two boys jumped back in fear, their heads filled with the stories of the evening. Was this Goliath back from the dead?

Suddenly the angel spoke, and the men became still and no longer afraid.

“Do not be afraid, shepherds of Israel. I bring you good news of great joy that shall be for all the people. Today, in the city of David, a Savior has been born to you; He is Christ the Lord!”

“Messiah,” whispered Eli aloud.

“And this shall be a sign to you. You will find the baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”

Suddenly it was as if the very heavens opened up and thousands of angels appeared in the sky above the shepherds. They could not believe their eyes. It was like the stars themselves had descended to earth! Everywhere were angels! The angels began to cry out in a great chorus:

“Glory to God in the highest!
And on earth peace,
And good will to men!”

Then just as suddenly the angels vanished and all was dark and still again. The shepherds looked at each other. Had Eli’s stories gotten into their minds? Or did they truly witness this spectacle?

Daniel understood immediately.

“Messiah has come!” he said. “He is there—in Bethlehem!”

“Indeed it is the Messiah!” said Eli. “Just as He promised our nation through the centuries! He has come! The King has come!”

Eli danced about the fire with a vigor he hadn’t shown in years. The other shepherds joined him, and the men celebrated and praised God for His visitation. Only Daniel held back from the others. He sought the Lord alone—in prayer.

“Thank You, Most High Lord,” he said, weeping, “for allowing me to be a part of this life. I shall never forget the night that You pulled me back from my darkness and into the light of Your Messiah. I will ever serve You!”

The shepherds decided to leave the sheep and go to town where they might have a look at the Child. As they hurried down the gently sloping hill, Joshua tugged on his father’s cloak.

“Yes, my son,” said Elron.

“But Father, why should a king be born here in Bethlehem in a stable? I thought kings were born in palaces.”

“Because, Joshua, He is not like an earthly king to be born in the splendor of wealth,” came a voice from behind. “He needs no human palaces or cities of gold in which to establish His throne. He needs only the hearts of men. A heart like yours—tender, innocent, hopeful…and open.”

Joshua turned to see who had spoken these words. It was Daniel.

The evening passed and morning came. And the first day of the new life of the new Savior came and went. In Jerusalem, on the roof of the new temple being constructed by Herod, Lucifer met with his Council. He looked at the angels who had thrown in with him: Kara, Pellecus, and Rugio—as well as Tinius, Nathan, Berenius, and the others.

Once more they looked to him with hope. Once more they hung on his words, looking for an answer—believing that as always Lucifer would have another tactic, another ploy, another way to keep the war going. Lucifer spread his arms out wide, indicating the city below them.

“Jerusalem, my brothers. Jerusalem. Look at it. It isn’t large by human standards. It is of no commercial consequence. Joshua, Egypt, Babylon, Persia, the Greeks, the Ptolemies, Antiochus, the Maccabbees, and now the Romans—all have held this city and others shall in the future. A city of little consequence and yet the city in which the final battle of this war must occur.”

He looked over the high point of the temple to the streets below and turned back to the demons.

“We have seen through the years, from Abraham down through Moses and the prophets—that all roads of destiny have led to this place. We fought a good fight but we failed to prevent the Seed’s arrival. And now He is here. And we will one day bloodily contend with Him as well.

“We have never been able to make peace in this city—nobody has. And I believe that will be to our advantage. These people never have respected a prophet sent to them. This Messiah must make peace with Jerusalem—and I prophesy that it shall never happen! But I realize something else…that this war has taken on a new dimension. Once more, and as always, the Lord leaves a door open for us to take advantage of!”

The demons muttered among themselves.

“A new dimension?” asked Pellecus. “And what is that?”

“Think of it, Pellecus,” continued Lucifer. “Our enemy for all these years has been safely hidden among the people. He has always been talk, speculation, a dream tucked away in a future womb of someone of the house of David. We have never been able to defeat Him, because we could never find Him. Well, now He is out in the open where He can be destroyed.”

“But He is too well covered,” said Kara. “We shall never get to Him.”

“True, Kara,” said Lucifer. “But I am gambling on these petty, proud humans to do what we might never be able to do.”

He looked at the demons, his eyes inflamed.

“I am gambling that these people will destroy their own Savior!”

The demons began to reason among themselves for a bit.

“Think about it,” Lucifer said. “They hold nothing sacred. They respect nothing of the Lord, be he priest or prophet. They kill prophets, you know…and with some suggestion on my part, I believe they will kill this one as well.”

“Your part, my prince?” asked Rugio.

“Yes, Rugio,” said Lucifer. “That is the other part of this new war. It occurs to me that before the Seed was here, He and I could do battle by proxy—through Israel. Now that He has arrived, I shall move against Him personally.”

Lucifer cupped his hands and held them in a contemplative manner, resting his mouth upon his clasped fists. He then continued.

“I see no other way. It will come down to Christ the Anointed and Lucifer the satan. It will be classic, my dear brothers. And it shall be bloody. I will approach Him with every vile thought and temptation possible. We will inflict diseases upon His people as never before; we shall cause men to go insane and women to have barren wombs. All that the demons assigned to you can do to wreak havoc around this Man—you shall do.

“And when it comes to the final battle, I shall see this Man dead and bleeding. I promise you this. This Christ shall die a humiliating and bloody death—one that all the world shall be ashamed of. This Man—this Seed—this Messiah—shall pay the price of this war that began in Eden with His own blood!”

He stared off into the sky and repeated the words under his breath.

“With Your own blood!”

  BOOK ONE: CHRONICLES OF THE HOST

Lucifer, the Anointed Cherub, whose ministry in Heaven is devoted to the worship of the Most High God, has become pessimistic about his prospects in Heaven. Ambition inflamed, he looks to the soon-to-be-created Earth as a place where he can see his destiny realized. With a willing crew of equally ambitious angels, Lucifer creates a fifth column of malcontents under the very throne of God. Hot on their heels, however, is a group of loyalists, led by Michael and Gabriel, who are suspicious of Lucifer’s true motives. In detective-style fashion, they slowly start to unmask the true nature of Lucifer’s sordid plot.
Chronicles of the Host
is a fantastic novel of the beginning of all things. Follow Lucifer’s deceptive plans to rule over Earth and his inevitable fall from grace.

ISBN 0-7684-2099-7

  BOOK TWO: UNHOLY EMPIRE