Tuesday: The Origin of the Controversy in Heaven
Daily Lesson for Tuesday 25th of February 2025
Genesis 1:1-31; Genesis 2:1-25; Genesis 3:1-24 alone shows that evil existed before the fall of Adam and Eve. Even if evil was not a concrete reality in Eden, conceptually, “evil” has already appeared, in the name of “the tree of the knowledge of good and evil” (Genesis 2:9,17). Then the serpent accuses God of lying when, in fact, he, the serpent, is the one lying. The existence of the serpent (Revelation 12:9), along with his lying, shows the reality of evil there. Thus, even in Eden before the Fall, the presence of evil is manifest.
Read Ezekiel 28:12-19 in light of Exodus 25:19-20. What is the nature of this being’s fall?
According to this passage, the origin of evil and the cosmic conflict began in heaven.
Image © Steve Creitz at Goodsalt.com
Before he fell, the being who became known as Satan was a covering cherub. Beyond being identified as this cherub, he was “ ‘the seal of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty’ ” and was “ ‘in Eden, the garden of God’ ” (Ezekiel 28:12-13, NKJV). Neither of these things could be said of the human king of Tyre (or any other human). Hence, we know that we have been given here a glimpse into the fall of Lucifer.
Read Isaiah 14:12-15. What additional light does this shed on the origin of the great controversy?
According to Isaiah 14:1-32, Lucifer decided to exalt himself and make himself like God. This verse complements what we saw in Ezekiel 28:1-26, that his “heart was lifted up” because of his “beauty” (Ezekiel 28:17), which should have brought him to glorify the God who made him beautiful. Instead, he became proud. Worse, in this pride, he set out to take God’s place and to slander Him. The Hebrew term for “trading” in Ezekiel 28:16 also means “slander,” an indication of how Satan will operate against God and against us, as well.
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How do we understand the fact that Lucifer, who fell, was originally “perfect . . . from the day” he was created “till iniquity was found” in him (Ezekiel 28:15)? How could a perfect being fall unless being “perfect” included true moral freedom? |
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Lucifer’s fall teaches us that moral freedom is an essential part of God’s perfect creation. It warns us of the dangers of pride and self-exaltation and highlights the importance of choosing to remain loyal to God. Ultimately, God’s justice and love will be fully vindicated in the final eradication of sin and restoration of righteousness.
The Bible highlights pride as the first sin, not in action but in thought and intention (Isaiah 14:12-14). The Bible says Lucifer (morning star) was the "seal of perfection," full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty. He had the highest privileges amongst the created beings (Isaiah 14:11). His perfection and exalted position created an environment where self-admiration overtook him. Instead of giving God the glory, he started to worship himself (self-exaltation). "I will ascend to heaven; I will exalt my throne above the stars of God... I will make myself like the Most High" (Isaiah 14:13-14). Pride is deadly!
What is pride? This is a feeling of excessive self-importance and arrogance, an inflated personal view of one's abilities, achievements, or status. This will often lead to looking down on others and self-deception. Pride is an internal disposition that manifests before action. It is an evil attitude, desire, and a heart problem (Ezekiel 28:17). This heinous attitude is very destructive (Revelation 12:7-9, Proverbs 16:18), discontented, and rebellious.
Pride inhabits many sins, arrogance, self-righteousness, rebellion, and disobedience. It often precedes other evils:
- Greed: "I am entitled more than others”
- Lust: "I should have what I desire”
- Envy: "What they have should be mine”
- Anger: "I am superior to them!”
- Rebellion: "I do not need God’s counsel”
We are strongly advised to guard our hearts where pride resides. “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it" (Proverbs 4:23). Pride attacks our hearts in very subtle ways. We ought to examine ourselves for humility and gratitude (1 Corinthians 10:12). Pride always strains relationships and leads to failure due to self-righteousness. Self-exaltation is self-worship which is a sin. At all times we should emulate Christ who exemplified the pride of Lucifer through humility unto death on the cross (Philippians 2:5-8). Pride is a challenge to God’s sovereignty which ultimately led to cosmic conflict.
Modern history has a graphic testimony of the deadly nature of pride through Adolf Hitler who was possessed by the supremacy of the Aryan race. The outcome was the Second World War Two with the death of millions, including the Holocaust. Pride starts in a subtle way leaving behind a trail of misery.
“Pride goes before destruction, and haughtiness before a fall” – Proverbs 16:18
As most of our readers know, I was diagnosed with colon cancer last year. By the time it was discovered the growth was as big as a walnut. The interesting thing was that I did not even know it was there. It had probably been growing for some years, but there was no pain and my digestive system was working quite normally. That is one of the issues with a lot of cancers — they grow where they do not produce the usual indicators such as pain — and they can become quite large before there are any visual signs of it.
We don't know how long sin existed in heaven, hidden away in the heart. Yes, I understand that God knows everything, but for the rest of heaven's populace, it was out of sight as it grew in the heart of Lucifer.
The big takeaway from this is that sin still operates the same way. It grows and is nurtured in the heart, out of sight and with no visual symptoms before it erupts into pride, self-centredness and disdain for others. To take the medical metaphor a step further we need a spiritual colonoscopy by the Holy Spirit to check our true condition. And just like medical checks, some of us keep putting them off because we are afraid of what they will discover.
The Psalmist knew all about the need for spiritual colonoscopies:
[And for those who don't know my colon cancer story, I had successful colon surgery and do not need radiation or chemotherapy. I have 3 monthly checkups though. There is a spiritual lesson in that too!]