 |
| If you prefer there is an easier to read and print READER version RIGHT HERE! |
25 Now my days are swifter than a
post: they flee away, they see no good. 26 They are passed away
as the swift ships: as the eagle that hasteth to the prey. (Job
9:25-26)
Sky King
If the mortals have a King of the Sky, it is not a legendary airplane pilot of
old time radio, but the great Eagle. He rules the skies above for his speed,
endurance, vision, and great strength. In that sense, the Eagle is a type of
the King of Heaven and King of Kings. Nothing that comes into the talons of the
Eagle will likely escape. In fact, the Eagle does not even sense the strength
of its own talons; therefore it carries its young on its back to prevent the
talons from harming the young. If the archer shoots at the Eagle, the mother
Eagle will die before the baby since the arrow must pass through her own body
first before it can pierce the baby. Well Christ died for us first that He
might become the only Begotten of the Father and the first begotten of Mankind
to rise again. God, in Christ, has borne us on eagles’ wings to show His sacrificial
love for His Elect: Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I
bare you on eagles' wings, and brought you unto myself. Now therefore, if
ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar
treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine: And ye shall be
unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation. (Ex
19:4-6)
I have written many times of the Eagle. It is a Regal and Majestic bird. The
United States has the distinction of having the Bald Eagle as its national
symbol. The reason for its adoption as the national symbol of the United States
is based on the principle that the American people, at our founding, were
industrious, self-dependent, and free – just like the Eagle. The Eagle kills
his own prey and will eat nothing that has been killed by another. Somewhere
along the way, America has lost that image and our present temperament resembles
more that of the oyster than the Eagle. The oyster neither works nor
contributes to the society around it. It simply lies on the ocean floor, opens
its shell and feeds on whatever scum and carrion falls into its shell. It is a
totally socialistic creature politically. I pray for the return of the day when
the Eagle will again be a fitting tribute to the disposition of the American
people. God, in His Bible, has many times compared the faithful believer to the
Eagle.
Like the Eagle, the believer has only one destination in mind – Heaven.
Likewise, the Eagle desires the Heavens, any day, to a land-locked existence! 5 Wilt thou set thine eyes
upon that which is not? for riches certainly make themselves wings; they fly
away as an eagle toward heaven. (Prov 23:5) Of course, we shall all fly
away to Heaven if we are found in Christ, and all earthly treasures will be
left in the wake of that flight. By the way, an Eagle has been peculiarly
equipped by his Maker to fly directly into the sun. When the archer takes aim,
the Eagle flies to the brightest Light in Heaven – the Sun - for he has a
membrane which can be commanded to cover his eye just like natural sunglasses.
The archer is blinded by the sun and cannot take aim. This is like the believer
in Christ who turns his course to the Day Star during threatening times. The
Devil cannot go there – that old Serpent cannot look into the bright Light of
the Love of Christ, and his aim therefore runs afoul.
Like the Christian, the Eagle can fly higher than its avian cousins. The Eagle
can fly above the storms, and seek security in the highest mountain rocks and
crags. During persecution or oppression, the Christian seeks solace in the high
places and rocky crevices of persevering prayer. 27 Doth the eagle mount up at
thy command, and make her nest on high? 28 She dwelleth and abideth on the
rock, upon the crag of the rock, and the strong place. 29 From thence she seeketh the
prey, and her eyes behold afar off. (Job 39:27-29) Herein are two strong points of
the Eagle:
1. She does not nest in dark and
lowly alleys of life, but builds her nest on the High Rock which, for the
Christian, is Christ! Her entire life is spent in high places and not the
scum-beds of society.
2. Like the scholarly and dedicated
Christian, the Eagle has great vision to see her prey, or danger, at great
distance. There is an old adage that says: “To be forewarned is to be
fore-armed.” God’s Word is full of wise Counsel to warn us of those things
coming upon the earth so that we should not be overwhelmed when they appear.
The false notion of a pre-tribulation rapture serves as a narcotic anesthetic
to dull the senses to reality and to disarm the believer when severe
persecution does, and surely will, arise.
Though the Eagle rises to great heights, and abides on the heights of the
mountains, it is raised there by the cajoling updrafts of the Holy Spirit!
Should we lift ourselves up on the wings of pride, our fall shall be EPIC!
(Jack+) Though thou exalt thyself as
the eagle, and though thou set thy nest among the stars, thence will I bring
thee down, saith the LORD. (Obadiah 1:4) The heights of heaven is the
rightful place of the eagle and the Christian – but the unrighteous who lift
themselves in prideful false churches shall be brought low!
The Eagle is self-sacrificing, for her own, just as Christ has suffered for His
own. Her young ones also suck up blood: and where the slain are, there is
she. (Job 39:30) If the Eagle cannot find
provender for her young, she will pierce her own flesh for the young to suck
her own blood. How like Christ is this nature of the Eagle. When storms arise,
the mother and father Eagle stand on either side of the nest and join wings to
protect the young from the elements. Because thou hast been my help,
therefore in the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice. My soul followeth hard
after thee: thy right hand upholdeth me. (Psalm
63:7-8) I
have read in nature magazines that the Eagle, when sick unto death, spreads her
wings on the high rock of the mountain facing the sun and passes into glory
beholding the sun. What an example, if so, for the Christian – to pass from
mortality into immortality beholding the Sun of Righteousness. We see our
shameful selves in His Word contrasted with that glorious appearing of the Word
Incarnate. What an unmitigated privilege, my friends and family!
There is a beautiful illustration of the Christian life found in Isaiah: 29 He giveth power to the faint;
and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. 30 Even the youths shall faint and
be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: 31 But they that wait upon the LORD
shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they
shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. (Isaiah
40:29-31) Did you
catch the enormity of these verses, Reader? The strength and vigor of the
righteous is increased even as the years may be increased. And, Reader, what
does it mean for the Christian, as the Eagle, to increase his strength? This
matter will need the explanation of the naturalist, or close observer of
nature, to understand.
The Eagle is a long-lived bird. It may live for 20 years and grow weary of
living. It then descends into a period called the “moping” period. It is
depressed, despondent, and ceases to fly. It may descend the mountain slopes
into the valley below and begin to subsist on rats, insects, or even roots of
plants. Because it ceases to fly, its wings become incapable of flight (like the
Christian who fails to practice his faith and talents.) A wax-like residue
builds up on the feathers and they are now useless to the great bird. Younger
eagles often bring food to the old eagle in moping, screeching and crying for
them to fly. But the moping eagle pays no mind until, one day, he becomes
disgusted at the depths of despair to which he has sunk. He begins to climb
back up the mountain slope. When he reaches the Rock of his nesting, he begins
to beat his beak against that rock to break away the calcium deposits that have
rendered his beak good for nothing but eating the lowliest of life. He then
pulls every wax-ridden feather from his body and is naked of all. Make thee
bald, and poll thee for thy delicate children; enlarge thy baldness as the eagle;
for they are gone into captivity from thee. (Micah
1:16)
The old Eagle now begins to grow beautiful new feathers and appears once more
as a young Eagle. He then flies off to double the age of his earthly existence.
Until the Christian realizes he is naked in his sins before God, he cannot
renew his strength. But God has given us a means to accomplish this event by
faith and knowledge in His Word.
One last characteristic of the Eagle: They mate for life. There has never been a
recorded mating of two male, or female, Eagles. They have forever followed the
commandment of God in His creating one male and one female for each.
We can learn a lot from the Bible perspective of the Eagle. Is it possible that
there exist in the animal kingdom a state of righteousness that excels our own.
Yes, but only if we neglect to observe the Counsel of nature and of Nature’s
God.
If you can find a copy, there is a wonderful story of the Eagle in Appleton’s
5th Grade Reader (1937) entitled, “Hatteras
Joe.” If you cannot find, let me know and I will send you a copy. In the
meantime, may the Holy Spirit provide all of the wind and lift for your
Eagle-Flight!
