Chapter 2
Mystery of Angels and Evil
Spirits
COULD ANYTHING be more mysterious than the question of the unseen spirit
world? Angelic
beings have always been a mystery to people on the earth. Do angels actually
exist? Is
there, in fact, a Satan the devil? Is Satan a literal immortal being? Did God
create a
devil?
Some religions worship gods they believe to be evil spirits. Some of the great
cathedrals
of the Christian religion are embellished on their exterior with gargoyles,
ugly and
grotesque carved faces, which are supposed to frighten evil spirits away.
All the evils and troubles in the world are caused by minds clashing with
minds. But what
is the real cause of clashing of minds? Is there any connection between
contentious
attitudes and the unseen spirit world? It is a mystery to almost everybody,
but the Bible
reveals a very real but invisible world -- another dimension, as some choose
to call it --
existing along with our own, absolutely indiscernible to our five senses. It
is the spirit
world.
In the first chapter of Hebrews, we read of angels serving as God's secret
messengers,
sent forth to minister to those God has called to salvation and eternal life.
In Ephesians 6 it is stated that our contentions and strivings are in fact not
with other
human people, but against "principalities, against powers, against the
rulers of the
darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness [evil spirits] in high
places."
How can this be? Why is the world filled with such clashings and contentions
between human
minds?
In Ephesians 2:2, humans have been walking "according to the course of
this world,
according to the prince of the power of the air [Satan], the spirit that now
worketh in
the children of disobedience." People simply do not realize that there is
an
invisible spirit power injecting into their minds these hostile attitudes.
Even to professing Christians, these scriptures have been a mystery. Why?
This invisible spirit world (Col. 1:15-16) is very real but because it is
invisible it has
been a mystery. The fact that holy angels and evil spirits are invisible does
not negate
their existence. In truth the invisible spirit world is more real than the
material and
the visible. In fact, most people do not know what electricity is but are well
aware of
its reality. The Bible explains: "If our gospel be hid, it is hid to them
that are
lost: in whom the god of this world [Satan] hath blinded the minds of them
which believe
not" (II Cor. 4:3-4). Satan is the god of this world.
The time of UNDERSTANDING has come.
The Supreme Invisible Power
It was made clear in chapter 1 that God from eternity has been a family,
originally
composed of two members, God and the Word who almost 2,000 years ago became
Jesus Christ.
God is invisible -- the supreme all powerful Spirit Being. We saw that God
lives. He acts!
What does he do? He is the creating family. Perhaps few realize, the very
first thing God
created was not the earth, suns other planets -- the universe. Before all
these he created
the angelic beings -- a spirit world of myriads of angelic beings.
The Great God through the Word first designed and created these SPIRIT BEINGS
-- angels,
each individually created -- millions or perhaps even billions of them! Angels
are actual
personal spirit beings, each having a mind of greater capacity and ability
than human
minds, capable of attitudes, purposes and intentions. It is stated that even
Jesus as a
human was made "a little lower than the angels" (Heb. 2:7). They are
composed
wholly of spirit. They were given self-containing life -- life inherent --
immortality.
They have no blood circulating in veins and do not need the breath of air to
sustain life,
but have self-containing inherent life.
Angels are, because created by God, called sons of God (Job 1:6), but they
were not
begotten and born sons of God.
Why the creation of Angels?
Why were invisible spirit-composed angels created before all else? Why were
they created
even prior to the creation of physical matter and the physical universe? Why
were they
created at all?
Jesus Christ said, "I work and my Father works" (John 5:17). In John
1:1-5 it is
revealed that God and the Word (the God family) live. In the preceding chapter
we noted
how they lived -- in mutual love, total agreement and perfect harmony. But if
they lived,
what did they do? They created. One might say that by profession they were in
the creating
business. To aid them in the work of creating, governing and managing what was
to be
created, they first of all created other spirit beings on a lower plane than
the God
family. Angels were created to be ministers, agents, helpers in God's
creation. They were
created as servants of the living God.
From eternity God was supreme, which to our human minds means God sat on the
throne of all
that existed or was to exist. In the 25th chapter of Exodus, we find an
earthly
description of the very throne of God in heaven, in the description of the ark
built by
Moses under God's instruction. On either side of God's throne was a super
archangel, a
cherub, whose wings stretched out covering the very throne of God. This
signifies that
these superior angels were involved in the very administration of the
government of God
over all of God's creation. They were aides, ministers, servants, assisting
God.
We read about angels in the first chapter of Hebrews. This chapter first
speaks of Jesus.
"He, ... stamped with God's own character, sustains the universe with his
word of
power ... and thus he is superior to the angels, as he has inherited a Name
superior to
theirs. For to what angel did God ever say, 'Thou art my son, to-day have I
become thy
father'? Or again, 'I will be a father to him, and he shall be a son to me'?
And further,
when introducing the First-born into the world, he says, 'Let all God's angels
worship
him.' While he says of angels, 'Who turns his angels into winds [spirits], his
servants
into flames of fire,' he says of the Son, 'God is thy throne for ever and
ever, thy royal
scepter is the scepter of equity: thou hast loved justice and hated
lawlessness, therefore
God, thy God, has consecrated thee with the oil of rejoicing beyond thy
comrades' -- and,
'Thou didst found the earth at the beginning ....'
"To what angel did he ever say, 'Sit at my right hand, till I make your
enemies a
foot-stool for your feet'? Are not all angels merely spirits in the divine
service,
commissioned for the benefit of those who are to inherit salvation?"
(verses 3-10,
13-14, Moffatt translation).
Humans are created a little lower than angels, though we have the awesome
potential of
becoming far greater. This fact is expressed in the second chapter of Hebrews
and will be
treated in chapter 7 of this work.
And in chapter 3 we will show humans may be actually begotten as sons of God,
as yet
unborn.
It will come as news to most readers that angels were created before the earth
and the
physical universe were brought into existence. Job 38:1-7 shows the angels
shouted for joy
when God first created the earth. It is stated in both Genesis 1 and 2 that
the earth was
created at the same time as the entire physical universe.
Angels are invisible, immortal spirit beings with power and knowledge superior
to humans
(II Pet. 2:11). They have seen all the activities of mankind on the earth and
therefore
know more about the human mind, psychology, sociology, science and all the
arts than any
living man.
Angels serve a great function in carrying out God's purpose for humanity. They
are his
invisible agents often ministering in ways few understand to us poor humans
who are heirs
of salvation.
Personal Experiences
My wife and I have both experienced this in personal incidents. When our elder
daughter
was a baby, Mrs. Armstrong was sleeping with the child beside her on the
inside of the bed
against a bedroom wall. She heard a voice calling out, "Move
Beverly." She
thought it was a dream and without waking continued in sleep. She then heard
the same
voice again, a little louder. She half awakened, saw nothing, again thought it
was a
dream, turned over and was once again going to sleep, when the voice a third
time was
heard, this time loud and emphatic: "MOVE BEVERLY." Bewildered, she
moved the
child to the other side of her, and a second or two later, a heavy framed
picture that
hung on the wall immediately over where the child had been lying crashed down
on the bed.
It might have crushed the child's head or severely injured her. The only
explanation was
that God sent an angel to save Beverly's life.
In the early days of my ministry, about 1934, I was driving a car one very
stormy night in
a downpour of rain on a highway south of Eugene, Oregon. I was driving about
40 miles an
hour on a very winding road. As I approached a sharp curve in the road, the
steering wheel
of my car suddenly turned sharply to the left, as if wrenched out of my hand
by some
invisible force. Directly ahead of me was a wrecked truck. I just missed it,
passing on
its left. It was dark, and a wrecked car was standing just ahead of me. The
steering wheel
of the car was suddenly wrenched out of my hands, and the car turned sharply
toward the
right. My car passed between the northbound car and the southbound truck back
onto the
right lane, with not more than a single inch to spare between the wrecked car
and truck. I
had never experienced anything like it. The steering wheel of my car was
turned by some
force out of my control and against my hand holding it straight forward.
A previous time, late in 1927, within the first year of my conversion, I
encountered a
similar experience.
Experience of the Crooked Spine
After my wife and I had made some little progress in gaining biblical
understanding on the
subject of healing, Aimee Semple McPherson came to Portland.
She held an evangelistic campaign in the Portland Auditorium. My wife and I
attended once,
and then I went alone another time. We were "checking up" on many
religious
teachings and groups. Unable to gain entrance, because of packed attendance, I
was told by
an usher that I might be able to slip in at the rear stage door if I would
hurry around.
Walking, or running, around the block to the rear, I came upon a sorry
spectacle.
A woman and child were trying to get a terribly crippled elderly man out of a
car near the
stage entrance. I went over to help them. The man had a badly twisted spine --
whether
from arthritis, or deformity from birth, or other disease I do not now
remember. He was
utterly helpless and a pitiful sight to look upon.
We managed to get him to the stage door. Actually, I should never have been
admitted, had
I not been helping to carry this cripple in. He had come to be healed by the
famous lady
evangelist.
We were unable to gain contact with Mrs. McPherson before the service. And we
were equally
unable, after the service. I helped get the disappointed cripple back into
their car.
"If you really want to be healed," I said before they drove off,
"I would
be glad to come to your home and pray for you. Mrs. McPherson has no power
within herself
to heal anybody. I have none. Only GOD can heal. But I do know what he has
promised to do,
and I believe God will hear me just as willingly as he will Mrs. McPherson --
if only you
will BELIEVE in what GOD has promised, and put your faith in HIM and not in
the person who
prays for you."
They gave me their address, just south of Foster Road. The next day I borrowed
my brother
Russell's car and drove out.
I had learned, in studying the Bible on the subject of healing, that there are
two
conditions that God imposes: 1) we must keep his commandments and do those
things that are
pleasing in his sight (I John 3:22); and 2) we must really BELIEVE! (Matt.
9:29).
Of course I realized that many people might not have come into the
understanding about
keeping all of God's Commandments -- he does look on the heart. It is the
spirit, and
willingness to obey. And therefore some who really BELIEVE are healed, even
though they
are not strictly "commandment keepers." But once the knowledge of
the truth
comes, they must OBEY. In this case I felt sure that God wanted me to open the
minds of
these people about his Commandments, and that SIN is the transgression of
God's LAW.
Consequently, I first read the two scriptures quoted above, and then explained
what I had
been six months learning about God's law -- and particularly about God's
Sabbath. I wanted
to know whether this cripple and his wife had a spirit of WILLINGNESS to obey
God.
They did not. I found they were "Pentecostal." They attended church
for the
"good time" they had there. They talked a good deal about the
"good
time" they enjoyed at church. They scoffed and sneered about having to
obey God. I
told them that, since they were unwilling to obey God and comply with God's
written
conditions for healing, I could not pray for him.
Was This an Angel?
This case had weighed heavily on my mind. I had been touched with deep
compassion for this
poor fellow. Yet his mind was not impaired, and I knew that God does not
compromise with
SIN.
Some weeks later I had borrowed my brother's car again, and happened to be
driving out
Foster Road. Actually at the time my mind was filled with another mission, and
this
deformed cripple was not on my mind at all. I was deep in thought about
another matter.
Coming to the intersection of the street on which the cripple lived, however,
I was
reminded of him. Instantly the thought came as to whether I ought to pay them
one more
call -- but at the same instant reason ruled it out. They had made light of,
and actually
ridiculed the idea of surrendering to obey God. Immediately I put them out of
mind, and
again was deep in thought about the present mission I was on.
Then a strange thing happened. At the next intersection, the steering wheel of
the car
automatically turned to the right. I felt the wheel turning. I resisted it. It
kept
turning right. Instantly I applied all my strength to counteract it, and keep
steering
straight ahead. My strength was of no avail. Some unseen force was turning
that steering
wheel against all my strength. The car had turned to the right into the street
one block
east of the home of the cripple.
I was frightened. Never before had I experienced anything like this. I stopped
the car by
the curb. I didn't know what to make of it.
It was too late to back into traffic-heavy Foster Road. "Well," I
thought,
"I'll drive to the end of this block and turn left, and then back onto
Foster
Road."
But, a long block south on this street, it turned right only. There was no
street turning
east. In getting back onto Foster Road I was now compelled to drive past the
home of the
cripple.
"Could it possibly be that an angel forced the steering wheel to turn me
in
here?" I wondered, somewhat shaken by the experience. I decided I had
better stop in
at the cripple's home a moment, to be sure.
I found him stricken with blood poisoning. The red line was nearing his heart.
I told them what had happened. "I know, now," I said, "that God
sent an
angel to turn me in here. I believe that God wants me to pray for you -- that
he will heal
you of this blood poisoning to show you his power, and then give you one more
chance to
repent and be willing to obey him. And if you will do that, then he will
straighten out
your twisted spine and heal you completely.
"So now, if you want me to do so, I will pray for you and ask God to heal
you of this
blood poisoning. But I will not ask God to heal your spine unless and until
you repent and
show willingness to obey whatever you yourself see God commands."
They were now desperate. He probably had about 12 hours to live. They were not
joking and
jesting lightly about the "good times" at "Pentecostal
meetin'." They
wanted me to pray.
I was not an ordained minister, so I did not anoint with oil. I had never yet
in my life
prayed aloud before others. I explained this to them, and said I would simply
lay hands on
the man and pray silently, as I did not want any self-consciousness of praying
aloud for
the first time to interfere with real earnestness and faith. I did have
absolute faith he
would be healed of the blood poisoning. He was.
I returned the next day. The blood poisoning had left him immediately when I
prayed. But,
to my very great sorrow and disappointment, they were once again filled with
levity, and
sarcasm about God's law. Again they were jestingly talking about having a
"good
time" at "Pentecostal" meetings.
There was no more I could do. It was one of the great disappointments of my
life. I never
saw or heard from any of them again.
God's Invisible Agents
God has had angels specifically assigned to supervise and protect his Church
throughout
all of its history (Rev. 1:4,16, 20; 2:1, 8, 12,18; 3:1, 7,14). He has angels
who
continually walk through the earth to observe and report back to him the
overall
conditions on earth (Rev. 5:6; Zech. 4:10; II Chron. 16:9).
And God has angels specifically assigned to look after his begotten human
children (Acts
12:15; Matt. 18:10). God promises: "For he shall give his angels charge
over thee, to
keep thee in all thy ways" (Ps. 91:11).
Twelve of God's angels will be the gatekeepers in the new city of Jerusalem
(Rev. 21:12),
one for each tribe of Israel. These 12 may be assisting the archangel Michael
now.
Angels are messengers. They appeared to Abraham, Lot, Hagar, Moses, Manoah,
Gideon, Elijah
and many of the prophets and apostles.
When these angels manifest themselves to human beings, they generally do so in
the form of
men.
The Bible mentions three angels of high rank: Lucifer (Isa. 14:12), now Satan
the devil;
Gabriel, who appeared to Daniel on two occasions (Dan. 8:16; 9:21), to
Zacharias, the
father of John the Baptist (Luke 1:19), and later Mary, the mother of Jesus
(Luke 1:26);
and third, Michael, called one of the chief princes (Dan. 10:13), and whom
Jude identifies
as an archangel (Jude 9). Michael is the archangel specifically assigned to
protect and
minister to the 12 tribes of Israel (Dan. 12:1; 10:2-13, 21) and to the true
Church of God
today (Rev. 12:7).
The Supreme Creative Accomplishment
God assigns angels responsibilities, but God created within them MINDS -- WITH
POWER TO
THINK, TO REASON, TO MAKE CHOICES AND DECISIONS!
But there was one super-important quality that even God's creative powers
could not create
instantly by fiat -- the same perfect, holy, righteous CHARACTER inherent in
both God and
the Word!
This kind of character must be DEVELOPED, by the CHOICE and the INTENT of the
one in whom
it comes to exist.
So mark well this super-vital truism -- that perfect, holy and righteous
character is the
supreme feat of accomplishment possible for Almighty God the Creator -- it is
also the
means to his ultimate supreme PURPOSE! His final objective! But How?
I repeat, such perfect character must be developed. It requires the free
choice and
decision of the separate entity in whom it is to be created. But, further,
even then it
must be instilled by and from the Holy God who, only, has such righteous
character to
endow.
But what do we mean by righteous character? Perfect, holy and righteous
character is the
ability in such separate entity to come to discern the true and right way from
the false,
to make voluntarily a full and unconditional surrender to God and his perfect
way -- to
yield to be conquered by God -- to determine even against temptation or self-
desire, to
live and to do the right. And even then such holy character is the gift of
God. It comes
by yielding to God to instill HIS LAW (God's right way of life) within the
entity who so
decides and wills.
Actually, this perfect character comes only from God, as instilled within the
entity of
his creation, upon voluntary acquiescence, even after severe trial and test.
I have devoted a few paragraphs to this point because it is the supreme
pinnacle means in
God's overall PURPOSE!
Now as to the prehistoric angels: God 1) created them with minds capable of
thinking,
reasoning, making choices and decisions with self-will; and 2) revealed
plainly to them
HIS TRUE AND RIGHTEOUS WAY. But God of necessity allowed them free moral
agency in
accepting God's right way, or turning to contrary ways of their own devising.
What was God's ULTIMATE OBJECTIVE for the angels? Beyond question it is that
which, now,
because of angelic rebellion, has become the transcendent potential of humans!
As the testing ground, and opportunity for positive and active creative
accomplishment,
God created -- brought into existence -- the entire vast material universe.
First of all, God had created angels. After that, and for angels and for
humans who were
to be created later God formed and brought into existence the earth and the
entire
universe.
God now created not only matter, but with and in it energy and such laws as
man has
discovered in the fields of physics and chemistry. God formed matter to be
present in both
the organic and the inorganic states.
And so we come now to that which is revealed in Genesis 1:1: "In the
beginning [of
the physical universe] God created the heavens and the earth." These are
material and
physical.
As previously stated, in the Authorized Version will be found the word heaven
in the
singular. But this originally was written by Moses in Hebrew. And in the
Hebrew the word
is in the plural -- heavens -- thus including not only our earth, but the
entire material
UNIVERSE.
It is therefore indicated that at that time -- after the creation of angels --
the entire
universe was brought into existence at the same time as the creation of our
earth. I find
strong indication of this in other biblical internal evidence, and also it is
definitely
stated in Genesis 2:4.
The Perfect creation
The original Hebrew words (the words written by Moses) imply a perfect
creation. God
reveals himself as creator of perfection, light and beauty. Every reference in
the Bible
describes the condition of any completed phase of God's creation as "very
good"
perfect.
This first verse of the Bible actually speaks of the original PHYSICAL
creation in its
entirety -- the universe -- including the earth, perhaps millions of years ago
-- as a
perfect creation, beautiful and perfect as far as its creation was a finished,
completed
work. God is a perfectionist!
In Job 38:4, 7, God is speaking specifically of the creation of this earth. He
said all
the angels (created "sons of God") shouted for joy at the creation
of the earth.
This reveals that angels were created before the creation of the earth -- and
probably
before the material universe. The suns, planets and astral bodies are material
substance.
Angels are individually created spirit beings, composed solely of spirit.
It will come as a surprise to many to learn that angels inhabited this earth
BEFORE the
creation of man. This passage from Job implies it.
Angels on Earth Sinned
Other passages place angels on earth prior to man. Notice II Peter 2:4-6.
First in time
order "angels that sinned." Next in time sequence, the antediluvian
world
beginning with Adam, carrying through to the Flood. After that, Sodom and
Gomorrah.
This book of books, containing the revealed knowledge of the Creator God,
tells us that
God created angels as composed of spirit. But can you imagine angels becoming
sinning
angels? Angels were created with power of thought, of decision and of choice,
else they
have no individuality of character. Since sin is the transgression of God's
law, these
angels rebelled against God's law, the basis of God's government. But how and
when did the
angels sin?
Notice carefully what is revealed in II Peter 2:4-5: "For if God spared
not the
angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains
of
darkness, to be reserved unto judgment; and spared not the old world, but
saved Noah the
eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the
world of the
ungodly." The words "cast ... down to hell" in the above verse
is an
English expression translated from the Greek tartaroo, from tartaros, found in
no other
Bible passage. Tartaros means a place or condition of restraint.
These verses show that universal sin brings universal destruction to the
physical earth.
The antediluvian sin, culminating with the Flood, was worldwide, universal
sin. Notice:
"... the earth was filled with violence ... for all flesh had corrupted
his way upon
the earth ... for the earth is filled with violence ..." (Gen. 6:11-13).
"But
Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord .... Noah was a just man and perfect
in his
generations, and Noah walked with God" (verses 8-9). All flesh had sinned
-- over the
whole earth. But only Noah "walked with God." So, the Flood
destroyed the whole
earth -- all but Noah and his family.
The homosexual and other sins of Sodom and Gomorrah spread over the territory
of those two
cities. And physical destruction came to their entire area. The sin of the
angels was
worldwide; the destruction of the physical was worldwide. (And there is reason
to believe,
as will be explained in chapter 7, universe wide.)
The verses quoted above place the sinning of the angels prior to the
antediluvian sins
that started with Adam, prior to the creation of man. And that should be a
surprise
revealing of one phase of the mystery! Angels inhabited this earth before the
creation of
man.
It is revealed in Isaiah 14 and Ezekiel 28, that God placed the archangel
Lucifer, a
cherub, on a throne on the earth. He was placed there as a ruler over the
entire earth.
God intended him to rule the earth by administering the government of God over
the earth.
And the government of God was administered on earth until the rebellion of the
sinning
angels.
How long these angels inhabited the earth before the creation of man is not
revealed. It
might have been millions -- or even billions -- of years. More on that later.
But these
angels sinned. Sin is the transgression of God's law (I John 3:4). And God's
law is the
basis of God's government. So we know these angels, apparently a third of all
the angels
(Rev. 12:4), sinned -- rebelled against the government of God. And sin carries
penalties.
The penalty for the sin of the angels is not death, as it is for man. Angels
are immortal
spirit beings and cannot die. These spirit beings had been given dominion over
the
PHYSICAL EARTH as a possession and an abode.
The universal, worldwide sin of the angels resulted in the physical
destruction of the
face of the earth.
God Rules His Creation
God is Creator. God is also Ruler over his creation. He preserves what he
creates by his
government. What God creates, he has created for a purpose -- to be used,
improved,
developed, preserved and maintained. And this use is regulated by God's
government. When
the angels rebelled against God's government, the development and improvement
of the earth
"putting the icing on the cake" -- ceased. The preservation and
development of
the physical earth and all its original beauty and glory ceased -- and
physical
destruction to the surface of the earth resulted!
By this angelic sin, Lucifer became Satan the devil and his angels became
demons. God is
Creator, Preserver and Ruler. Satan is destroyer!
So, now we read in Jude 6-7: "And the angels which kept not their first
estate, but
left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under
darkness unto the
judgment of the great day. Even as Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities about
them in like
manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh,
are set
forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire."
Now back to Genesis 1:1-2. Verse 1, as stated above, implies a perfect
creation. God is
the author of life, of beauty, of perfection. Satan has brought only darkness,
ugliness,
imperfection, violence. Verse 1 shows the creation of a perfect, if unfinished
earth,
glorious and beautiful. Verse 2 reveals the result of the sin of the angels.
"And the earth was [became] without form, and void." The words
"without
form, and void" are translated from the Hebrew "tohu and bohu."
A better
translation is "waste and empty" or "chaotic, in confusion and
in a state
of decay." The word was is elsewhere in Genesis also translated became,
as in Genesis
19:26. In other words, the earth, originally created perfect and beautiful,
had now become
chaotic, waste and empty, like our moon, except earth's surface was covered
with water.
David was inspired to reveal how God renewed the face of the earth: "Thou
sendest
forth thy spirit, they are created: and thou renewest the face of the
earth" (Ps.
104:30).
A Surprising Truth
Now another surprise for most readers. Here is another bit of the missing
dimension in
knowledge, actually revealed in the Bible, but unrecognized by religion, by
science and by
higher education.
From verse 2 of Genesis 1 on, the remainder of this first chapter of the Bible
is not
describing the original creation of the earth. But it is describing a renewing
of the face
of the earth, after it had become waste and empty as a result of the sin of
the angels.
What is described from verse 2 on, in the supposed creation chapter of the
Bible, did
occur, according to the Bible, approximately 6,000 years ago. But that could
have been
millions or trillions of years after the actual creation of the earth
described in verse
1!
I will comment later on the length of time it might have taken before all
earth's angels
turned to rebellion.
The earth had become waste and empty. God did not create it waste and empty,
or in a state
of decay. God is not the author of confusion (I Cor. 14:33). This same Hebrew
word -- tohu
-- meaning waste and empty, was inspired in Isaiah 45:18, where it is
translated "in
vain." Using the original Hebrew word, as originally inspired, it reads:
"For
thus saith the Lord that created the heavens; God himself that formed the
earth and made
it; he hath established it, he created it not in vain [tohu], he formed it to
be
inhabited."
Continue now with the remainder of verse 2 of Genesis 1 (the earth had become
chaotic,
waste and empty): "And darkness was upon the face of the deep [the ocean
or fluid
surface of the earth]. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the
waters. And God
said, Let there be light: and there was light. And God saw the light, that it
was good:
and God divided the light from the darkness" (verses 2-4).
Satan is the author of darkness. The rebellion of the angels had caused the
darkness. God
is the author of light and truth. Light displays and enhances beauty, and also
exposes
evil. Darkness hides both.
The verses that follow in this first chapter of the Bible describe the
renewing of the
face of the earth, yielding beautiful lawns, trees, shrubs, flowers,
vegetation -- then
the creation of fish and fowl, animal life, and finally man.
The Great Lucifer
But first, before coming to man, we need to fill in the prehistory portion.
How did this
sin of the angels come to take place? How did it start?
Remember, God the Creator preserves, improves and enhances what he creates by
his
government. What he creates is created to be used. This earth was to be
inhabited and used
by angels, originally.
When God placed angels -- apparently a third of all (Rev. 12:4) -- on the
newly created,
perfect, beautiful and glorious earth, he set over them, on a throne, to
administer the
government of God, an archangel -- the great cherub Lucifer. There were only
two other
beings of this extremely high rank of cherub, Michael and Gabriel.
So far as is revealed, these are the supreme pinnacle of spirit-composed
beings within
God's power to create. This Lucifer was a super being of awesome, majestic
beauty,
dazzling brightness, supreme knowledge, wisdom and power -- perfect as God
created him!
(Ezek. 28:15). But remember there is one thing God cannot create automatically
and
instantly by fiat, and that is perfect righteous character. So God of
necessity created in
him the power of choice and decision, or he could not have been a being of
individuality
and character.
At this juncture a truth must be explained almost never understood. God
creates in a
principle of duality. I have compared it to a woman baking a cake. When she
takes the cake
out of the oven, it is not yet a finished production until she puts the icing
on the cake.
When God created the earth and other planets this system of duality was
involved.
What had been created was perfect as far as it existed up to that point. But
it was not
yet a finished or completed creation. God intended the angels to add their own
workmanship
to the earth's surface. He intended them to work over the surface of the
earth, to improve
it, to embellish it, beautify it -- in other words "put the icing on the
cake."
The same principle of duality applies to the creation of the angels. Perfect
righteous
character cannot be automatically created by fiat. The angels themselves, of
necessity,
were required to have their part in the development of character, and their
creation could
not be actually finished until this character had been perfected.
Lucifer, Later Satan
I want you to grasp fully the supreme magnificence of this zenith of God's
created beings.
Two different biblical passages tell us of his original created state.
First, notice what is revealed in Isaiah 14. (This famous chapter begins with
the time,
shortly ahead of us now, when the Eternal God shall have intervened in this
world's
affairs. The people of Israel -- not necessarily or exclusively the Israelis
or Judah --
shall have been taken as captive slaves, and God shall intervene and bring
them back to
the original promised homeland.) "And it shall come to pass in the day
that the Lord
shall give thee rest from thy sorrow, and from thy fear, and from the hard
bondage wherein
thou wast made to serve, that thou shalt take up this proverb against the king
of Babylon,
and say, How hath the oppressor ceased! the golden city ceased! The Lord hath
broken the
staff of the wicked, and the scepter of the rulers. He who smote the people in
wrath ...
he that ruled the nations in anger, is persecuted, and none hindereth"
(verses 3-6).
This is NOT speaking of the king of ancient Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar. The time
is yet ahead
of us -- but shortly ahead. It is speaking of the modern successor of that
ancient
Nebuchadnezzar. It is speaking of the one who will be RULER of the soon-coming
resurrected
"Holy Roman Empire" -- a sort of soon-coming "United States of
Europe"
-- a union of 10 nations to rise up out of or following the Common Market of
today (Rev.
17). Britain will NOT be in that empire soon to come.
This united Europe will conquer the House of Israel -- if you know who Israel
is today,
and I do not mean Judah, known as the Israelis today. All that involves a
number of other
prophecies, which there is not room here to explain. (This is explained in our
free book
"The United States and Britain in Prophecy.")
But this "king of Babylon" shall at the time of this prophecy have
been utterly
defeated by the intervention of the living Christ in his power and glory.
Continue on:
"The whole earth is at rest, and is quiet: they break forth into singing.
Yea, the
fir trees rejoice ... and the cedars of Lebanon, saying, Since thou art laid
down, no
feller is come up against us" (verses 7-8).
(I want to interpose an interesting bit of information right here. The cedars
of Lebanon,
biblically famous, are almost totally cut down. Only one small clump of these
trees
remains, high in the mountains. I have seen and photographed them. However,
perhaps the
finest specimen of the cedars of Lebanon surviving on earth is on what was
previously our
Ambassador College campus in England. We prized it highly. It is interesting
to see that
this prophecy, written some 500 years B.C., should record the fact that these
beautiful
and stately trees would become so largely felled.)
This passage in Isaiah 14 speaks of the doom of this coming human king at the
hands of the
glorified, all-powerful Christ. It refers to him as Satan's chief political
ruler and
military destroyer, to be totally deceived by Satan in the years very shortly
ahead of us.
Satan's Earthly Throne
Then, coming to verse 12, this human earthly type of Satan the devil suddenly
transposes
to Satan himself the former archangel, Lucifer:
"How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art
thou cut
down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!" A better translation
here is:
"How art thou, who didst weaken the nations, cut down to the
ground." The RSV
translates it: "How you are cut down to the ground, you who laid the
nations
low!" This the former Lucifer did through the human political-military
leader in his
power -- spoken of in the first 11 verses.
The name Lucifer means "Shining star of the dawn," or "Bringer
of
light," as God first created him. Now continue: "For thou hast said
in thine
heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars
[angels] of
God."
Notice, Lucifer had a throne; he was a ruler. His throne was on earth, for he
was going to
ascend into heaven. Continue: "I will sit also upon the mount of the
congregation
[God's heavenly throne], in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the
heights of the
clouds; I will be like the most High" (verses 13-14). Actually, it is
plain that
Lucifer had nothing less in mind than knocking the Creator God off his throne
and becoming
supreme God himself.
Apparently he planned to put himself in place of God, over the universe!
But finally, as the context returns again to the human type: "Yet thou
shalt be
brought down to hell [Heb. sheol ], to the sides of the pit" (verse 15).
From that point, the thought returns to the human king. Lucifer was the
supreme
masterpiece of God's creative power, as an individually created being,
threatening, as a
Frankenstein monster, to destroy his own maker -- and assume all his powers to
rule the
whole universe.
Literally this prophecy is speaking of a war in heaven to occur in our present
time
described in Revelation 12:7-9: "And there was war in heaven: Michael and
his angels
fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, and prevailed
not;
neither was their place found any more in heaven. And the great dragon was
cast out, that
old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he
was cast out
into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him." And also Daniel
12:1-2:
"And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth
for the
children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never
was since
there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall
be delivered,
every one that shall be found written in the book. And many of them that sleep
in the dust
of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and
everlasting
contempt."
Satan's rebel rule was NOT a government based upon the principle of love -- of
giving, of
outgoing concern for the good of others, but based on SELF-CENTEREDNESS, on
vanity, lust
and greed, on envy, jealousy, the spirit of competition, hatred, violence and
destruction,
on darkness and error, instead of light and truth, on ugliness instead of
beauty.
Notice here, once again, the principle of duality. Isaiah 14:12-14 applies to
a time prior
to the creation of the first human, Adam. But in Revelation 12:7 and in Daniel
12:1 Satan
at the end of the 6,000 years allotted to his rule on earth's throne, tries
once again to
seize God's throne in heaven.
Lucifer a Created Being
Look now at the other biblical passage describing this supreme angelic
creation of God, in
Ezekiel 28.
Actually, the entire concept in Ezekiel 26 speaks of the ancient great
commercial city of
Tyre. It was the commercial metropolis of the ancient world, even as Babylon
was the
political capital. Tyre was the New York, the London, the Tokyo, or the Paris
of the
ancient world. The ancient Tyre, port of the world's shippers and merchants,
gloried
herself in her beauty, even as Paris in our time.
Chapter 27 carries on with comparisons to passages in the 18th chapter of the
book of
Revelation referring to a politico-religious leader to come (verses 9-19).
But coming to chapter 28, the theme comes more completely to the time just now
ahead of
us, the same time depicted in Isaiah 14. Ezekiel 28 speaks of the prince of
Tyre, an
earthly ruler, of whom the ancient king of Tyre was a type. God says to the
prophet
Ezekiel: "Son of man, say unto the prince of Tyrus [actually referring to
a powerful
religious leader to arise SOON, in our time], Thus saith the Lord God; Because
thine heart
is lifted up, and thou hast said, I am a God, I sit in the seat of God, in the
midst of
the seas; yet thou art a man, and not God, though thou set thine heart as the
heart of
God: Behold, thou art wiser than Daniel; there is no secret that they can hide
from thee:
with thy wisdom and with thine understanding thou hast gotten thee riches, and
hast gotten
gold and silver into thy treasures [or "treasuries" -- RSV] ... and
thine heart
is lifted up because of thy riches: therefore thus saith the Lord God; Because
thou hast
set thine heart as the heart of God; behold therefore I will bring strangers
upon thee,
the terrible of the nations ... they shall bring thee down to the pit, and
thou shalt die
the deaths of them that are slain in the midst of the seas" (Ezek. 28:2-
8). (Compare
with II Thessalonians 2:3-4, speaking of "that man of sin ... who
opposeth and
exalteth himself above all that is called God ... so that he as God sitteth in
the temple
of God, shewing himself that he is God.") What a Super Being!
But at this point, as in Isaiah 14, the lesser human anti type lifts to a
greater spirit
being. Instead of the prince of Tyre -- a human man -- it now speaks of the
KING of Tyre.
This is the same Lucifer.
Ezekiel the prophet continues:
"Moreover the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, Son of man, take up
a
lamentation upon the KING of Tyrus, and say unto him, Thus saith the Lord God;
Thou
sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty" (verses 11-
12).
Please read that again! God would never say anything like that of a human man.
This superb
spirit being filled up the sum total of wisdom, perfection and beauty. He was
the supreme
pinnacle, the masterpiece, of God's creation, as an individually created
being, the
greatest one in the almighty power of God to create! The tragic thing is that
he rebelled
against his Maker!
"Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God" (verse 13). He had
inhabited this
earth. His throne was here. "Every precious stone was thy covering ...
the
workmanship of thy tabrets and of thy pipes was prepared in thee in the day
that thou wast
created" (verse 13). He was a created being -- not born human. He was a
spirit being
-- not human flesh. Great genius and skill in music was created in him. Now
that he has
become perverted in all thinking, acting and being, he is the real author of
modern
perverted music and the modern rock beat -- of discordant moans, squawks,
shrieks, wails
-- physically and emotionally excitable beats -- unhappy, discouraged moods.
Think of all
the supreme talent, ability and potential in a being created with such
capacities. And all
perverted! All gone sour -- all dissipated, turned to hatred, destruction,
hopelessness!
Yet, take courage. The awesome human potential, if we care enough about it to
resist
Satan's wiles and evils and discouragements and to persevere in God's way, is
infinitely
superior and higher than Lucifer's -- even as created, before he turned to
rebellion and
iniquity!
But continuing the particular revelation of this crucially important missing
dimension in
knowledge: "Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set
thee so,"
says God of this Lucifer. This takes us back to the 25th chapter of Exodus,
where God gave
Moses the pattern for the ark of the covenant. The description begins with
verse 10, and
verses 18-20 show, in the material pattern, the two cherubs who were stationed
at each end
of the very throne of God in heaven -- the throne of the government of God
over the entire
universe. The wings of the two cherubs covered the throne of God.
Trained at Universe Headquarters
This Lucifer, then, had been stationed at the very throne of God. He was
trained and
experienced in the administration of the government of God. God chose such a
being,
well-experienced and trained, to be the king ruling the government of God over
the angels
who inhabited the whole earth.
Continue: "... thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked
up and down
in the midst of the stones of fire." This is not talking about any human
being. But
continue: "Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast
created, till
iniquity [lawlessness] was found in thee" (Ezek. 28:15). He had complete
knowledge,
understanding and wisdom. But he also was given full powers of reasoning,
thinking, making
decisions, making his choice. And, with all this foreknowledge -- even of
results and
consequences this superb being, the highest that even God could create by
fiat, turned to
rebellion against his Maker -- against the way that produces every good. He
turned to
lawlessness. He had been trained in the administration of perfect law and
order. As long
as Lucifer continued in this perfect way, there was happiness and joy
unspeakable over the
whole earth. There was glorious peace -- beautiful harmony, perfect love,
cooperation. The
government of God produced a wonderfully happy state -- as long as Lucifer was
loyal in
the conduct of God's government.
What Caused the Angels' Sin?
What caused the angels on earth to sin, to turn to lawlessness? Certainly the
ordinary
angels did not persuade this great super being to turn traitor. No, it was in
him that
iniquity was found. But, after how long? We don't know. God does not reveal
that! It could
have been any number of years from one or less to millions times millions.
And then, even after Lucifer himself made the decision to rebel and try to
invade God's
heaven to take over the universe, it is not revealed how long it took him to
persuade all
of the angels under him to turn traitor and follow him.
I know well the method he used. He uses the same method still today in leading
deceived
humans into disloyalty, rebellion, and self-centered opposition against God's
government.
First, he turns one or two to envy, jealousy and resentment over an imagined
injustice --
then into disloyalty. Then he uses that one or two, like a rotten apple in a
crate, to
stir up resentment, feelings of self-pity, disloyalty and rebellion in others
next to
them. And, as each rotten apple rots those next to it until the whole crate is
rotten, so
Satan proceeds.
If, in the government of God on earth today, the "rotten apples" are
not thrown
out early enough, they would destroy the whole government. But, once thrown
out of the
crate, they cannot do any more damage to those in the crate.
But think how long it must have taken the soured and embittered Lucifer to
turn millions
of holy angels into resentment, bitterness, disloyalty, and finally open and
vicious
rebellion. It could have taken hundreds, thousands or millions of years. This
was all
before the first human was created.
All this happened after the original creation of the earth, described in verse
1 of
Genesis 1. Verse 2 of this creation chapter describes a condition resulting
from this sin
of the angels. The events described in verse 2, therefore, may have occurred
millions of
years after the original creation of the earth.
The earth, therefore, may have been created millions of years ago. But
continue this
passage in Ezekiel 28: "By the multitude of thy merchandise they have
filled the
midst of thee with violence, and thou hast sinned: therefore I will cast thee
as profane
out of the mountain of God: and I will destroy [remove] thee, O covering
cherub, from the
midst of the stones of fire. Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty,
thou hast
corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness: I will cast thee to the
ground ..."
(verses 16-17). At this point the context returns to the soon-to-appear,
human,
religious-political ruler -- of whom the prince of ancient Tyre was a
forerunner.
Earlier in this chapter, I showed you how physical destruction, ugliness and
darkness had
covered the face of the earth, as the result of the sin of Lucifer (who is now
the devil)
and these "angels that sinned" (now demons), and how in six days God
had renewed
the face of the earth (Gen. 1:2-25).
Why the Creation of MAN?
But why did God create man on the earth (Gen. 1:26)? Look at this situation as
God does.
God has given us humans minds, like the mind of God, only inferior and
limited. God made
us in his image, after his likeness (form and shape), only composed of matter
instead of
spirit. But God says, "Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ
Jesus"
(Phil. 2:5). We can, to some degree, think even as God thinks. How must God
have looked at
the situation, as he started renewing the face of the earth -- after the
colossal debacle
of the angels!
He had created a beautiful, perfect creation in the earth. He populated it
with holy
angels -- probably millions of them. He put over them, as king, on an earthly
throne, the
archangel -- the cherub Lucifer. Lucifer was the supreme masterpiece of God's
creative
power as a single separately created spirit being. He was the most perfect in
beauty,
power, mind, knowledge, intellect, wisdom, within the almighty power of God to
create. God
can create nothing higher or more perfect, by instantaneous fiat.
Yet this great being, knowledgeable, trained and experienced at God's own
throne in heaven
over the universe and the administration of the government of God, had
rejected that
government, corrupted his way, rebelled against administering or even obeying
it. He had
led all his angels astray and into the sin of rebellion.
Now consider further. Apparently the entire universe had been created also at
the time of
the earth's creation. There is no evidence either in God's revealed Word, nor
in science,
that any of the planets in endless outer space had been inhabited with any
form of life.
But God does nothing in vain. He always has a purpose.
Apparently all such planets in the entire universe NOW are waste and empty --
decayed
(tohu and bohu) -- like the earth was, as described in Genesis 1:2. But God
did not create
them in such conditions of decay -- like our moon. Decay is not an original
created
condition -- it is a condition resulting from a process of deterioration.
Evidently if the
now fallen angels had maintained the earth in its original beautiful
condition, improved
it, carried out God's instructions, and obeyed his government, they would have
been
offered the awesome potential of populating and carrying out a tremendous
creative program
throughout the entire universe. When they turned traitor on earth, their sin
must have
also brought simultaneously physical destruction to the other planets
throughout the
universe, which were potentially and conditionally put in subjection to them.
Earth to Become Universe Headquarters
It will be explained in chapter 7 of this work that God's purpose is to make
this earth,
ultimately, the headquarters of the entire universe.
Remember, this earth, originally, was intended to be the abode of a third of
all the
angels. The angels, beholding the earth at its creation, found it so beautiful
and perfect
they shouted spontaneously for JOY (Job 38:4-7). It was to provide a glorious
opportunity
for them. They were to work it, produce from it, and preserve and increase its
beauty.
And at this point, it is well to understand the nature of God's original
creation: It is
like the unfinished furniture available in some stores. This furniture is
"in the
raw" -- it is finished all but for the final varnish, polish or paint.
Some can save
money by doing this finishing themselves -- provided they have the skill to do
so. This
furniture may be of fine and superb quality -- yet lacking the final
beautifying
completion.
So it is with God's creation. It is perfect, but subject to a beautifying
finish that God
intended angels to accomplish. The original "unfinished" creation
was produced
by God alone. But he intended angels, prehistorically, and MAN, now, to
utilize creative
power -- to finish this part in God's creation -- of adding the final
beautifying and
utilitarian phases of what shall be the FINAL COMPLETED creation!
And whether or not it had been revealed to the angels, it was a supreme TRIAL
AND TEST. It
was to be the PROVING GROUND of obedience to God's GOVERNMENT and their
fitness to develop
into final finished creation the millions of other planets in the vast
universe. For what
is revealed in God's Word indicates that God had created the entire PHYSICAL
universe at
the same time he created the earth. The seventh word in Genesis 1:1 should be
translated
"heavens." This word includes the vast universe, not just this
earth's
atmosphere.
Radioactive elements and the law of radioactivity prove that there was a time
when MATTER
did not exist. GOD is a spirit. God is composed of spirit. God was before ALL
ELSE -- the
CREATOR of all. Angels were created prior to the earth. What God reveals
strongly implies
that matter had never existed before the original creation of the earth --
that the entire
physical universe was brought into being at that time.
God's Purpose for Angels
So the angel potential was to take over the entire universe -- to improve and
finish the
billions of physical planets surrounding the uncountable stars, many of which
are SUNS.
The sun in our solar system is merely an average-size sun. Some that we see as
stars are
actually many, many times larger than our sun. Our solar system, vast beyond
the
imagination of most minds, is only a part of our galaxy, and there are many
galaxies! In
other words, the physical UNIVERSE that the mighty God created is vast beyond
imagination!
How GREAT is the GREAT GOD!
He intended angels to have a vital part in the final creation of the endless
universe!
(But God may not have then fully revealed this awesome potential to the
angels, for one
third of them set out to take it from him by force, without first qualifying.)
For this far-reaching purpose, God established his GOVERNMENT on earth over
them. The
administration of the GOVERNMENT OF GOD over this globe was delegated to the
super
archangel -- the great cherub Lucifer.
Bear in mind that even the holy angels and archangels -- including this super
cherub
Lucifer -- of necessity were endowed with ability to think, to reason, to form
attitudes,
and to make choices and decisions.
As explained previously, God started this Lucifer out with everything going
for him. He
sealed up the sum of wisdom, beauty and perfection. He was PERFECT in all his
ways from
the instant he was created UNTIL INIQUITY -- rebellion, lawlessness -- was
found in him
(Ezek. 28:15).
He had been trained and was thoroughly experienced in administration of the
GOVERNMENT OF
GOD at the very throne of the endless UNIVERSE! He was one of the two cherubs
whose wings
covered the throne of God the MOST high (Ezek. 28:14; Ex. 25:20).
How Sin Entered
He was created gloriously beautiful -- perfect in beauty, but he allowed
vanity to seize
him. Then he turned to erroneous reasoning. God's law -- the basis of God's
government --
is the way of LOVE -- outgoing concern for the good and welfare of others,
love toward God
in obedience, humility and worship -- the way of giving, sharing, helping,
cooperating. He
reasoned that competition would be better than cooperation. It would be an
incentive to
excel, to try harder, to accomplish. There would be more pleasure in serving
SELF and more
enjoyment.
He turned against God's law of LOVE. He became jealous of God, envious, and
resentful
against God. He allowed lust and greed to fill him, and he became bitter. This
inspired a
spirit of violence! He deliberately became his Maker's adversary and enemy.
That was his
choice, not God's -- yet allowed by God!
God changed the adversary's NAME to what he became, SATAN the DEVIL -- Satan
means
adversary, competitor, enemy.
Satan directed his supernatural powers henceforth to EVIL. He became bitter
not only
against God, but against God's law. He used his subtile wiles of deception to
lead the
angels under him into disloyalty, rebellion and revolt against the Creator and
finally
into a WAR of aggression and violence to attempt to depose God and seize the
throne of the
UNIVERSE.
As long as Lucifer remained loyal and administered the GOVERNMENT OF GOD
faithfully, this
earth was filled with wonderful and perfect PEACE. The angels were vigorously
HAPPY to the
extent of JOY! The law of God's government is THE WAY OF LIFE that CAUSES and
produces
peace, happiness, prosperity and well-being. Sin is the WAY OF LIFE that has
caused all
existing EVILS.
The penalty of sin by the angels was not death -- for God had made them
immortal spirit
beings who cannot die. What God gave them was THIS EARTH as their abode and
opportunity to
qualify to possess and beautify the entire UNIVERSE.
Their penalty (they are still awaiting final judgment up to now) was
disqualification --
forfeiture of their grand opportunity, perversion of mind, and a colossal
earthwide
CATACLYSM of destruction wreaked upon this earth.
As a result, the earth came to the condition briefly described in Genesis 1:2.
Lucifer was
created a perfect bringer of LIGHT. Now he became author of DARKNESS, error,
confusion and
evil.
So the rebellion of the angels that sinned (II Pet. 2:4-6; Jude 6-7; Isa.
14:12-15; Ezek.
28:12-17) brought this extreme cataclysm to the earth.
How must God have looked at this situation after the colossal debacle of
Lucifer and the
angels that sinned?
LUCIFER was created the most perfect in beauty, mentality, knowledge, power,
intellect and
wisdom within the almighty power of God to create in a being, with power to
think, reason,
make choices and decisions on his own. God knew that no higher, more perfect
being could
be created as an initial creation.
Origin of Demons
Yet this superior being, trained and experienced at the very throne of the
GOVERNMENT OF
GOD over the universe, had resorted to wrong reasoning and made a diabolical
perverted
decision. He worked on the angels under him until he turned their minds to
rebellion also.
This, incidentally, might have taken Lucifer millions of years. In all
probability he had
to begin perverting the minds of his angels one at a time, at first. He had to
cause them
to feel dissatisfied, wronged by God, and inject into them resentment and
bitterness.
When Lucifer allowed thoughts of vanity, jealousy, envy, lust and greed, then
resentment
and rebellion, to enter and occupy his mind, SOMETHING HAPPENED TO HIS MIND!
His mind
became perverted, distorted, twisted! His thinking became warped. God gave him
and the
angels control over their own minds. They can never straighten them out --
never again
think rationally, honestly, rightly.
I have had a number of personal experiences with demons through a few demon-
possessed
people. I have cast out demons through the name of Christ and power of the
Holy Spirit.
Some demons are silly, like spoiled children. Some are crafty, sharp, shrewd,
subtile.
Some are belligerent, some are sassy, some are sullen and morose. But all are
perverted,
warped, twisted.
Do Satan and his demons affect and even influence humans and even governments
today? Do
evil spirits affect even your own life? These questions will be answered in
chapter 4 of
this book.
As God surveyed this cataclysmic tragedy, he must have realized that since the
highest,
most perfect being within his almighty power to create, had turned to
rebellion, it left
God himself as the only being who would not and cannot sin.
And God is the Father of the divine God family or kingdom. Notice John 1:1-5.
The Word who
was "made flesh" (verse 14) has existed always -- from eternity --
with the
Father. God the Father has created all things -- the entire universe -- by him
who became
Jesus Christ (Eph. 3:9; Col. 1:16-17).
When Jesus was on earth, he prayed to God, his Father in heaven. The Father
spoke of Jesus
as "my beloved son, in whom I am well pleased." Jesus lived on earth
as a human,
tempted in all points as we are, yet without sin.
The fourth word in the English Bible is "God" (Gen. 1:1). And the
original
Hebrew word is "Elohim", a noun plural in form, like the English
word family,
church or group. The divine family is God. There is one God -- the one family,
consisting
of more than one Person.
God saw that no being less than God, in the God family, could be certainly
relied on never
to sin -- to be like God -- who cannot sin. To fulfill his purpose for the
entire vast
universe, God saw that nothing less than himself (as the God family) could be
absolutely
relied upon to carry out that supreme purpose in the entire universe.
Why Humans Succeed Fallen Angels
God then purposed to reproduce himself, through humans, made in his image and
likeness,
but made first from material flesh and blood, subject to death if there is sin
unrepented
of -- yet with the possibility of being born into the divine family begotten
by God the
Father. God saw how this could be done through Christ, who gave himself for
that purpose.
And that is why God put man on the earth! That is what caused God to do this
most
colossal, tremendous thing ever undertaken by the supreme, almighty God -- to
reproduce
himself! The following chapter will make this undeniably clear.
One last important comment before ending this chapter. God's supreme overall
purpose is to
create, even to the extent of reproducing himself, and also that God must
reign supreme
over all his creation. Apparently God has chosen this earth to become his
universe
headquarters, and the seat of even the supreme throne of God. (See I
Corinthians 15:24.)
But Satan had overthrown the government of God on the earth. Now God purposed
to restore
his government over the earth through man, created in the image of God and
finally to
become part of the God family. We should heed Paul's admonition not to be
ignorant of
Satan's existence, or of his devices, nor let him get an advantage of us (II
Cor. 2:11).
Our supremely important purpose will be made clear in following chapters.
Good News
You have heard the saying about "good news and bad news." The latter
part of
this chapter has given you the bad news. The good news is God's purpose
through mankind
and the fact that the two thirds of the angels who are holy and righteous
outnumber the
demons and remain as God's invisible agents to minister to and help in the
righteous
character development of the myriad of humans who shall yet become the sons
and heirs of
the Supreme God and members of the great God family.
[Mystery of the Ages Index]
[Chapter 1]
[Chapter 2]
[Chapter 3]
[Chapter 4]
[Chapter 5]
[Chapter 6]
[Chapter 7]