Both Friend and Polemic

09.07.11

Revelation 12.7 Then war broke out in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. NIV

Not even heaven is immune from disruption. For war to break out in the midst of God’s presence is mind-boggling to me. Heaven is supposed to be a place of eternal serenity and harmony but even there things went south – at least for a time.

Such is the condition of the heart – things may fare well for a while, but this of heaven there is always the reality of confusion and disappointment. Why did Satan fall? Why does anybody for that matter? The fall of Satan was directly resulting from the condition of his heart which at one point was deeply and irrevocably poisoned with pride, jealously, and unspeakable pettiness.

I contend that God has ordained His own law to which He Himself is subject. Now don’t drive the bus off the cliff. God appears to operate within a legal system of some sort which He honors because He made it, and He doesn’t change the rules. If God changes the rules at His whim then we’re all in trouble because we won’t know what to expect from Someone who says, I am God. The question for me is why; why would God have rules, boundaries, limits?

If God operates under the rule of Law then it goes that we, His creatures, too must operate under the same rule. What’s good for the Creator is good for the created. I suspect that there are those who look at God operating under His own rules and suspicion that there is something hinky and who mistrust that what God says is what He really does.

The bad part of law especially the supposed awkwardness of God submitting Himself to His own law, is that if He does it, then we ought to as well. That just seems like a lot to ask for some folk. It is better in the eyes of some if God simply does whatever He wants to do because then we creaturely ones may follow suit. But God is far too smart for that and far too honorable. God cannot be tempted; His creatures can, but He Himself cannot. For God to be tempted is for God to turn upon Himself – another thing that God cannot do…

What really is war in heaven anyway? I mean, what could it possibly be? To be sure, I just don’t know, but I do know that the Author of the Bible chooses His words carefully and there is no misstatement in the word war. Whatever heaven’s war was it was a lost cause for those who sought to overthrow the King. Maybe war in heaven was a war of words over God’s choice of law and however He purposed to administrate it. Bottom line: Satan lost. My advice is: never sit down with God to play chess – you’ll lose.

And never set out to declare war on Heaven – you’ll lose there as well. The good news is, one day in the truly sweet by and by we will know our God better and see more clearly His purposes for us who at this moment remain a little lower than the angels. Who knows other than God why God does what He does? Again the good news: He does whatever He does in love and that ought to be enough for anyone – both friend and polemic.