And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, KJV — Revelation 12:7
It’s amazing to think that there could ever have been war in the perfect atmosphere of heaven. This was the beginning of sin and evil, and an understanding of what this war was about reveals the reason behind the unrest plaguing the world, as well as the human heart.
From this and other passages in the Bible (Jude 9; Daniel 10:13, 21; 12:1), we can conclude that Michael is a name attributed to none other than Christ. The dragon is Satan (Revelation 12:9), who was once Lucifer.
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. KJV — Ezekiel 28:12-15.
Everything was perfect in heaven until the day iniquity, or sin, was found in Lucifer. And what is sin? “Sin is the transgression of the law.” I John 3:4. Lucifer, who was supposed to defend the law of God, the very foundation of the government of heaven, rebelled against it. As a result, there was war in heaven. Does this mean that God created a defective being? That would be contrary to what we just read in Ezekiel 28:12-15. Even though the reason for the entrance of rebellion in heaven cannot be fully understood, what we do know is that God created Lucifer and all the other angels with free will. Unfortunately, as is so often the case, that freedom was abused. He could have created robots who could follow His every command but they would never be able to offer a service of love, which is all God requires.
Satan’s sin was that of pride and self-righteousness. 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. He argued that the law was restrictive and that free intelligent angels needed no such rule. Through flattery and deceit, he had sought to falsify the word of God and had misrepresented His plan of government, claiming that God was not just in imposing laws upon the angels; that in requiring submission and obedience from His creatures, He was seeking merely the exaltation of Himself. This argument deceived a great number of angels.
God knew that Satan bore these feelings in him and was spreading them among the other angels. He could have destroyed him there and then, but what impression would that leave on the rest of the heavenly beings? A sense of order would be restored but the angles would serve God out of fear instead of love. In great mercy, according to His divine character, God bore long with Satan. He gave it time, so all could see for themselves the destructive effects of sin. Satan had made it appear that he himself was seeking to promote the good of the universe. The true character of the usurper and his real object must be understood by all. He must have time to manifest himself by his wicked works. Finally, when Satan waged war against Christ and the angels who were not deceived, we read that he prevailed not (Revelation 12:8). The deceived angels and Satan were cast out of Heaven, along with their anti-law sentiments. The Great Controversy had begun.
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. KJV — Revelation 12:9
Just as with any earthly government, without laws there is chaos. With this insight we can better understand why the world and the human heart so often experience unrest. Satan today is a hater of the law of God, which is the foundation of God’s government. God is seeking subjects for His kingdom, but they must be willing to abide by the laws of Heaven. In future studies we shall dive deep into the laws of God and see exactly what it means to keep them, and how the death of Christ on the cross fits into all of it.
