"God is
love." 1 John 4:16. His nature, His law, is love. It ever has been; it
ever will be. "The high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity,"
whose "ways are everlasting," changeth not. With Him "is no
variableness, neither shadow of turning." Isaiah 57:15; Habakkuk 3:6;
James 1:17.
Every manifestation of
creative power is an expression of infinite love. The sovereignty of God
involves fullness of blessing to all created beings. The psalmist says:
"Strong is Thy hand, and high is Thy right hand. Righteousness and
judgment are the foundation of Thy throne: Mercy and truth go before Thy face.
Blessed is the people that know the joyful sound: They walk, O Lord, in the
light of Thy countenance. In Thy name do they rejoice all the day: And in Thy
righteousness are they exalted. For Thou art the glory of their strength: . . .
For
our shield belongeth unto Jehovah, And our king to the Holy One."
NOTE: Psalm 89:13-18,
R.V. [ IN THIS TEXT AND IN SOME OTHER BIBLE QUOTATIONS USED IN THIS BOOK THE
WORD "JEHOVAH" IS EMPLOYED INSTEAD OF "LORD," AS RENDERED
IN THE AMERICAN SUPPLEMENT TO THE REVISED VERSION.]
The history of the
great conflict between good and evil, from the time it first began in heaven to
the final overthrow of rebellion and the total eradication of sin, is also a
demonstration of God's unchanging love. 34
The Sovereign of the
universe was not alone in His work of beneficence. He had an associate--a
co-worker who could appreciate His purposes, and could share His joy in giving
happiness to created beings. "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word
was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with
God." John 1:1, 2. Christ, the Word, the only begotten of God, was one
with the eternal Father--one in nature, in character, in purpose--the only
being that could enter into all the counsels and purposes of God. "His
name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting
Father, The Prince of Peace." Isaiah 9:6. His "goings forth have been
from of old, from everlasting." Micah 5:2. And the Son of God declares
concerning Himself: "The Lord possessed Me in the beginning of His way,
before His works of old. I was set up from everlasting. . . . When He appointed
the foundations of the earth: then I was by Him, as one brought up with Him:
and I was daily His delight, rejoicing always before Him." Proverbs
8:22-30.
The Father wrought by
His Son in the creation of all heavenly beings. "By Him were all things
created, . . . whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or
powers: all things were created by Him, and for Him." Colossians 1:16.
Angels are God's ministers, radiant with the light ever flowing from His
presence and speeding on rapid wing to execute His will. But the Son, the
anointed of God, the "express image of His person," "the
brightness of His glory," "upholding all things by the word of His
power," holds supremacy over them all. Hebrews 1:3. "A glorious high
throne from the beginning," was the place of His sanctuary (Jeremiah
17:12); "a scepter of righteousness," the scepter of His kingdom.
Hebrews 1:8. "Honor and majesty are before Him: strength and beauty are in
His sanctuary." Psalm 96:6. Mercy and truth go before His face. Psalm
89:14.
The law of love being
the foundation of the government of God, the happiness of all intelligent
beings depends upon their perfect accord with its great principles of
righteousness. God desires from all His creatures the service of love--service that
springs from an appreciation of His character. He takes no pleasure in a forced
obedience; and to all He grants freedom of will, that they may render Him
voluntary service. 35
So long as all created
beings acknowledged the allegiance of love, there was perfect harmony
throughout the universe of God. It was the joy of the heavenly host to
fulfill
the purpose of their Creator. They delighted in reflecting His glory and
showing forth His praise. And while love to God was supreme, love for one
another was confiding and unselfish. There was no note of discord to mar the
celestial harmonies. But a change came over this happy state. There was one who
perverted the freedom that God had granted to His creatures. Sin originated
with him who, next to Christ, had been most honored of God and was highest in
power and glory among the inhabitants of heaven. Lucifer, "son of the
morning," was first of the covering cherubs, holy and undefiled. He stood
in the presence of the great Creator, and the ceaseless beams of glory
enshrouding the eternal God rested upon him. "Thus saith the Lord God;
Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty. Thou hast been
in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone was thy covering. . . . Thou
art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon
the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the
stones of fire. Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast
created, till iniquity was found in thee." Ezekiel 28:12-15.
Little by little
Lucifer came to indulge the desire for self-exaltation. The Scripture says,
"Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted thy
wisdom by reason of thy brightness." Ezekiel 28:17. "Thou hast said
in thine heart, . . . I will exalt my throne above the stars of God. . . . I
will be like the Most High." Isaiah 14:13, 14. Though all his glory was
from God, this mighty angel came to regard it as pertaining to himself. Not
content with his position, though honored above the heavenly host, he ventured
to covet homage due alone to the Creator. Instead of seeking to make God
supreme in the affections and allegiance of all created beings, it was his
endeavor to secure their service and loyalty to himself. And coveting the glory
with which the infinite Father had invested His Son, this prince of angels
aspired to power that was the prerogative of Christ alone.
Now the perfect harmony
of heaven was broken. Lucifer's disposition to serve himself instead of his
Creator aroused a feeling of apprehension when observed by those who considered
that the 36 glory of God should be supreme. In heavenly council the angels
pleaded with Lucifer. The Son of God presented before him the greatness, the
goodness, and the justice of the Creator, and the sacred, unchanging nature of
His law. God Himself had established the order of heaven; and in departing from
it, Lucifer would dishonor his Maker and bring ruin upon himself. But the
warning, given in infinite love and mercy, only aroused a spirit of resistance.
Lucifer allowed his jealousy of Christ to prevail, and became the more
determined. To dispute the supremacy of
the Son of God, thus impeaching the wisdom and love of the Creator, had become
the purpose of this prince of angels. To this object he was about to bend the
energies of that master mind, which, next to Christ's, was first among the
hosts of God. But He who would have the will of all His creatures free, left
none unguarded to the bewildering sophistry by which rebellion would seek to
justify itself. Before the great contest should open, all were to have a clear
presentation of His will, whose wisdom and goodness were the spring of all
their joy. The King of the universe
summoned the heavenly hosts before Him, that in their presence He might set
forth the true position of His Son and show the relation He sustained to all
created beings. The Son of God shared the Father's throne, and the
glory
of the eternal, self-existent One encircled both. About the throne gathered the
holy angels, a vast, unnumbered throng--"ten thousand times ten thousand,
and thousands of thousands" (Revelation 5:11.), the most exalted angels,
as ministers and subjects, rejoicing in the light that fell upon them from the
presence of the Deity. Before the assembled inhabitants of heaven the King
declared that none but Christ, the Only Begotten of God, could fully enter into
His purposes, and to Him it was committed to execute the mighty counsels of His
will. The Son of God had wrought the Father's will in the creation of all the
hosts of heaven; and to Him, as well as to God, their homage and allegiance
were due. Christ was still to exercise divine power, in the creation of the
earth and its inhabitants. But in all this He would not seek power or
exaltation for Himself contrary to God's plan, but would exalt the Father's
glory and execute His purposes of beneficence and love. The angels joyfully acknowledged the supremacy
of Christ, and prostrating themselves before Him, poured out their love and
adoration. Lucifer bowed with them, but in his heart there was 37 a strange,
fierce conflict. Truth, justice, and loyalty were struggling against envy and
jealousy. The influence of the holy angels seemed for a time to carry him with
them. As songs of praise ascended in melodious strains, swelled by thousands of
glad voices, the spirit of evil seemed vanquished; unutterable love thrilled
his entire being; his soul went out, in harmony with the sinless worshippers,
in love to the Father and the Son. But again he was filled with pride in his
own glory. His desire for supremacy returned, and envy of Christ was once more
indulged. The high honors conferred upon Lucifer were not appreciated as God's
special gift, and therefore, called forth no gratitude to his Creator. He gloried
in his brightness and exaltation and aspired to be equal with God. He was
beloved and reverenced by the heavenly host, angels delighted to execute his
commands, and he was clothed with wisdom and glory above them all. Yet the Son
of God was exalted above him, as one in power and authority with the Father. He
shared the Father's counsels, while Lucifer did not thus enter into the
purposes of God. "Why," questioned this mighty angel, "should
Christ have the supremacy? Why is He honored above Lucifer?"
Leaving his place in
the immediate presence of the Father, Lucifer went forth to diffuse the spirit
of discontent among the angels. He worked with mysterious secrecy, and for a
time concealed his real purpose under an appearance of reverence for God. He
began to insinuate doubts concerning the laws that governed heavenly beings,
intimating that though laws might be necessary for the inhabitants of the
worlds, angels, being more exalted, needed no such restraint, for their own
wisdom was a sufficient guide. They were not beings that could bring dishonor
to God; all their thoughts were holy; it was no more possible for them than for
God Himself to err. The exaltation of the Son of God as equal with the Father
was represented as an injustice to Lucifer, who, it was claimed, was also
entitled to reverence and honor. If this prince of angels could but attain to
his true, exalted position, great good would accrue to the entire host of
heaven; for it was his object to secure freedom for all. But now even the
liberty which they had hitherto enjoyed was at an end; for an absolute Ruler
had been appointed them, and to His authority all must pay homage. Such were
the subtle deceptions that through the wiles of Lucifer were fast obtaining in
the heavenly courts.
There had been no
change in the position or authority of Christ. Lucifer's envy and
misrepresentation and his claims to equality with Christ had made necessary a
statement of the true position of the Son of God; but this had been the same
from the beginning. Many of the angels were, however, blinded by Lucifer's
deceptions.
Taking advantage of the
loving, loyal trust reposed in him by the holy beings under his command, he had
so artfully instilled into their minds his own distrust and discontent that his
agency was not discerned. Lucifer had presented the purposes of God in a false
light--misconstruing and distorting them to excite dissent and dissatisfaction.
He cunningly drew his hearers on to give utterance to their feelings; then
these expressions were repeated by him when it would serve his purpose, as
evidence that the angels were not fully in harmony with the government of God.
While claiming for himself perfect loyalty to God, he urged that changes in the
order and laws of heaven were necessary for the stability of the divine
government. Thus while working to excite opposition to the law of God and to
instill his own discontent into the minds of the angels under him, he was
ostensibly seeking to remove dissatisfaction and to reconcile disaffected
angels to the order of heaven. While secretly fomenting discord and rebellion,
he with consummate craft caused it to appear as his sole purpose to promote
loyalty and to preserve harmony and peace.
The spirit of
dissatisfaction thus kindled was doing its baleful work. While there was no
open outbreak, division of feeling imperceptibly grew up among the angels.
There were some who looked with favor upon Lucifer's insinuations against the
government of God. Although they had heretofore been in perfect harmony with
the order which God had established, they were now discontented and unhappy
because they could not penetrate His unsearchable counsels; they were
dissatisfied with His purpose in exalting Christ. These stood ready to second
Lucifer's demand for equal authority with the Son of God. But angels who were
loyal and true maintained the wisdom and justice of the divine decree and
endeavored to reconcile this disaffected being to the will of God. Christ was
the Son of God; He had been one with Him before the angels were called into
existence. He had ever stood at the right hand of the Father; His supremacy, so
full of blessing to all who came under its benignant control, had not
heretofore 39 been questioned. The harmony of heaven had never been
interrupted; wherefore should there now be discord? The loyal angels could see
only terrible consequences from this dissension, and with earnest entreaty they
counseled the disaffected ones to renounce their purpose and prove themselves
loyal to God by fidelity to His government.
In great mercy, according to His divine character, God bore long with
Lucifer. The spirit of discontent and disaffection had never before been known
in heaven. It was a new element, strange, mysterious, unaccountable. Lucifer
himself had not at first been acquainted with the real nature of his feelings;
for a time he had feared to express the workings and imaginings of his mind;
yet he did not dismiss them. He did not see whither he was drifting. But such
efforts as infinite love and wisdom only could devise, were made to convince
him of his error. His disaffection was proved to be without cause, and he was
made to see what would be the result of persisting in revolt. Lucifer was
convinced that he was in the wrong. He saw that "the Lord is righteous in
all His
ways,
and holy in all His works" (Psalm 145:17); that the divine statutes are
just, and that he ought to acknowledge them as such before all heaven. Had he
done this, he might have saved himself and many angels. He had not at that time
fully cast off his allegiance to God. Though he had left his position as
covering cherub, yet if he had been willing to return to God, acknowledging the
Creator's wisdom, and satisfied to fill the place appointed him in God's great
plan, he would have been reinstated in his office. The time had come for a
final decision; he must fully yield to the divine sovereignty or place himself
in open rebellion. He nearly reached the decision to return, but pride forbade
him. It was too great a sacrifice for one who had been so highly honored to
confess that he had been in error, that his imaginings were false, and to yield
to the authority which he had been working to prove unjust. A compassionate
Creator, in yearning pity for Lucifer and his followers, was seeking to draw
them back from the abyss of ruin into which they were about to plunge. But His
mercy was misinterpreted. Lucifer pointed to the long-suffering of God as an
evidence of his own superiority, an indication that the King of the universe
would yet accede to his terms. If the angels would stand firmly with him, he
declared, they could yet gain all that 40 they desired. He persistently
defended his own course, and fully committed himself to the great controversy
against his Maker. Thus it was that Lucifer, "the light bearer," the
sharer of God's glory, the attendant of His throne, by transgression became
Satan, "the adversary" of God and holy beings and the destroyer of
those whom Heaven hadcommitted to his guidance and guardianship. Rejecting with
disdain the arguments and entreaties of the loyal angels, he denounced them as
deluded slaves. The preference shown to Christ he declared an act of injustice
both to himself and to all the heavenly host, and announced that he would no
longer submit to this invasion of his rights and theirs. He would never again
acknowledge the supremacy of Christ. He had determined to claim the honor which
should have been given him, and take command of all who would become his
followers; and he promised those who would enter his ranks a new and better
government, under which all would enjoy freedom. Great numbers of the angels
signified their purpose to accept him as their leader. Flattered by the favor
with which his advances were received, he hoped to win all the angels to his
side, to become equal with God Himself, and to be obeyed by the entire host of
heaven. Still the loyal angels urged him and his sympathizers to submit to God;
and they set before them the inevitable result should they refuse: He who had
created them could overthrow their power and signally punish their rebellious
daring. No angel could successfully oppose the law of God, which was as sacred
as Himself. They warned all to close their ears against Lucifer's deceptive
reasoning, and urged him and his followers to seek the presence of God without
delay and confess the error of questioning His wisdom and authority. Many were
disposed to heed this counsel, to repent of their disaffection, and seek to be
again received into favor with the Father and His Son. But Lucifer had another
deception ready. The mighty revolter now declared that the angels who had
united with him had gone too far to return; that he was acquainted with the
divine law, and knew that God would not forgive. He declared that all who
should submit to the authority of Heaven would be stripped of their honor,
degraded from their position. For himself, he
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