MID-WEEK MANNA FROM PASTOR NAT’S DESK:
March 15, 2023
God’s Saving Enmity
Part 11
MYSTERY OF SATAN’S ENMITY IN HEAVEN IS IN THE MYSTERY OF INIQUITY
“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 anymore 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 [of heaven] into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.” Rev. 12: 7-9., 3, 4; cf. Jude 6; 2 Pet. 2:4, KJV.
Michael is Christ’s title and office as Commander-in-Chief of heaven’s army of angels; hence, “Michael the ArchAngel.
God’s messenger wrote:
“To countless minds, the origin of sin and the reason for its existence are a source of great perplexity. They see the work of evil, with its terrible results of woe and desolation [the curse of sin], and they question how all these can exist under the sovereignty of One who is Infinite in WISDOM, in POWER, and in LOVE.
“Here is a mystery of which, they find no explanation. And in their uncertainty and doubt they are BLINDED TO TRUTHS plainly revealed in God’s word, and ESSENTIAL to salvation [Biblical salvation means deliverance from bondage to Satan and slavery to sin].
“There are those who in their inquiries concerning the EXISTENCE of sin, endeavor to search into that which GOD has never revealed [see Deut. 29:29]; hence they find NO SOLUTION of their difficulties; and such as are actuated by a disposition to DOUBT and CAVIL, seize upon this as an EXCUSE for rejecting the words of the Holy Writ. Others, however, fail of a satisfactory understanding of the great problem of evil from the fact that TRADITION AND MISINTERPRETATION have obscured the teachings of the Bible concerning [1] the character of God [2] the nature of His government, and [3] the principles of His dealing with sin.
“It is IMPOSSIBLE to explain the origin of sin so as to give it a REASON of existence. Yet ENOUGH may be understood concerning both the ORIGIN and the FINAL DISPOSITION of sin [its alpha and omega, beginning and end], to make fully manifest the JUSTICE AND BENEVOLENCE of God in all His DEALINGS with evil.
“Nothing is more plainly taught in Scriptures that God was in NO WISE RESPONSIBLE for sin; that there was NO ARBITRARY withdrawal of divine grace, NO DEFICIENCY in the divine government, that gave occasion to the uprising of REBELLION [resulting from the pride, envy, jealousy, and enmity of Lucifer towards Christ].
“Sin is an INTRUDER, for whose presence no reason can be given. It is MYSTERIOUS, UNEXPLAINABLE; TO EXCUSE IT IS TO DEFEND IT. Could excuse for it be found, or CAUSE be shown for its existence, it would CEASE to be sin.
“Our ONLY definition of sin is that given in the word of God [not by any religion, church, or denomination]; it is ‘the transgression of the law’[1 John 3:4]; it is the outworking of a PRINCIPLE AT WAR WITH THE GREAT LAW OF LOVE which is the foundation of the divine government.” -E. G. White, The Great Controversy, 1911 ed., pp. 492-3, Pacific Press Publishing Asso. (all emphasis and words in brackets mine).To be continued next MWM, God willing. Bless all, NMF.