“Come dunque avete ricevuto Cristo Gesù, il Signore, così camminate in lui, essendo radicati ed edificati in lui, e confermati nella fede come vi è stato insegnato, abbondando in essa con ringraziamenti.” (Colossesi 2:6,7) Meditazione giornaliera “Apri la porta del tuo cuore”. Rubrica a cura di Anna Cupertino. Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nlmg3tK4Rxo
Lesson 1.The War Behind All Wars | 1.1 War in Heaven
Lesson 1. The War Behind All Wars
The Cosmic Conflict: Origin, Impact, and Hope of Redemption
In our fast-paced and often challenging world today, it’s easy to get lost in daily worries and distractions. However, behind the visible wars, conflicts, and challenges of life lies an even greater, deeper spiritual battlefield – the eternal struggle between Good and Evil, known as the great cosmic conflict.
The first lesson of our series delves into this fascinating and central theme, which not only forms the foundation of our faith but also shapes our understanding of our own existence, purpose, and relationship with God. It is the struggle that has raged since the dawn of time in the heavens and whose effects manifest in every aspect of our world, from the personal struggles we face to the global conflicts that dominate the news.
In this lesson, we will explore the origins of this eternal conflict, analyze its impact on our world and our lives, and highlight the role and significance of Jesus Christ in this battle. We will discover how this understanding can give us hope, strength, and a deeper connection to God in our daily lives.
Prepare yourself to dive deeper into the mysteries and truths of the great cosmic conflict and recognize how these insights can shape our understanding of God, our faith, and our mission in this world.
1.1 War in Heaven
The Cosmic Conflict: Origin of Evil and Freedom in Heaven
Read Revelation 12:7-9. What does this passage reveal about the freedom that exists in heaven and the origin of evil? How could God have reacted when Lucifer rebelled?
The section Revelation 12:7-9 reveals a profound image of the cosmic battle between good and evil that occurred in heaven. It seems paradoxical that such a conflict could take place in a realm of perfect purity and harmony like heaven. This raises questions about the nature of freedom and the existence of evil.
God, as the omniscient and omnipotent Creator, certainly had the power to immediately destroy Lucifer or prevent him from rebelling. However, in His infinite wisdom and love, God granted freedom to His creatures, including the angels. This freedom allows beings to choose genuine love, loyalty, and devotion to God, but it also carries the risk of rebellion and evil.
Lucifer, once a radiant angel, became Satan due to his pride and desire to exalt himself above God. His rebellion was not the result of a demonic being created by God but a choice stemming from his own free will.
Revelation shows us that evil was not created by God but is the result of the free choice of His creatures. God could have certainly acted harshly against Lucifer, but He chose to respect his freedom and confront him with the consequences of his choice.
Overall, this section reveals not only the origin of evil but also the magnitude of God’s love and wisdom. It reminds us that true love requires freedom and that God will ultimately triumph despite the existence of evil.
Compare Ezekiel 28:12-15 and Isaiah 14:12-14. What was going on in the mind of this angel named Lucifer that led to his rebellion?
The two sections from Ezekiel 28:12-15 and Isaiah 14:12-14 offer deep insights into the mindset of Lucifer before his rebellion and transformation into Satan. These passages describe Lucifer as an angel of unparalleled beauty and wisdom but corrupted by his own pride and ambition.
In Ezekiel, Lucifer is described as the “seal of perfection,” full of wisdom and flawless beauty. Isaiah depicts his fall with the words: “How you have fallen from heaven, O morning star, son of the dawn! How you are cut down to the ground, you who laid the nations low!” These verses reveal Lucifer’s desire to exalt himself above God and be worshipped.
It seems that in Lucifer’s heart, the desire arose to be equal to or even above God. His pride and jealousy led him to challenge divine order and authority. He wanted to ascend God’s throne and claim the worship that belongs only to the Creator.
God’s creation, including the angels, was endowed with the freedom of will, a fundamental attribute that makes love and devotion authentic. Yet, this freedom also carries the risk of rebellion and disobedience. Despite the warnings and counsel of the heavenly council and the Son of God, Lucifer remained steadfast in his resistance.
God, in His infinite love and justice, could not allow Lucifer to corrupt heaven through his rebellion. Although He had long patience with him, He ultimately had to act to preserve the divine order and purity of heaven.
Overall, these Bible passages reveal the tragic transformation of a once radiant angel due to his own pride and rebellion. They remind us of the power and dangers of pride and jealousy and underscore the necessity of humility, obedience, and devotion to God.
What can you learn about God’s character through His dealings with evil?
Through God’s dealings with evil, we can recognize several important aspects of His character:
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Love and Mercy: Despite the rebellion of Lucifer and other fallen angels, God displays boundless love and mercy. He has been patient, warning multiple times and attempting to lead them to repentance before taking action.
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Justice and Holiness: God is perfectly just and holy. He cannot ignore or tolerate evil as it contradicts His nature and essence. His justice demands that sin and rebellion have consequences.
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Wisdom and Sovereignty: God’s actions reveal His unparalleled wisdom and sovereignty. He knows how to deal with evil to ultimately achieve His divine purpose without compromising His love and mercy.
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Patience and Long-suffering: God’s patience and long-suffering are astonishing. He gives creatures, including fallen angels and humans, ample time and opportunity for repentance and atonement before taking final measures.
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Power and Authority: Despite the existence of evil, God remains omnipotent and sovereign over all. Evil cannot thwart His plans and intentions. He has the power and authority to overcome evil and ultimately triumph.
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Faithfulness and Constancy: God’s character is marked by His unwavering faithfulness and constancy. He remains true to His promises, His word, and His creation, even when these promises are challenged by rebellion and sin.
In summary, through God’s dealings with evil, we can recognize Him as a God of love, mercy, justice, wisdom, sovereignty, patience, power, authority, faithfulness, and constancy. These attributes shape His essence and guide His actions concerning evil and the entire creation. They also invite us to reflect these qualities in our own lives and strive to emulate them.
The above reflections on God’s character and His dealings with evil have direct applications and connections to our daily lives and faith. Here are some ways these biblical insights can influence our everyday life:
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Freedom and Responsibility: Just as God has given His creatures freedom, He also grants us humans freedom. This freedom allows us to make choices but also comes with consequences. We are called to use this freedom responsibly and bear the consequences of our decisions.
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Humility and Obedience: The story of Lucifer reminds us of the dangers of pride and rebellion. We should practice humility and obedience towards God rather than elevating ourselves excessively or rebelling against God’s commandments.
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God’s Love and Mercy: In our daily lives, we should reflect God’s love and mercy by being loving and merciful towards others, even when they make mistakes or wrong us.
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Justice and Holiness: We should strive to live justly and holily by doing what is right and avoiding evil. Justice and holiness are fundamental principles important to God and should also be central in our lives.
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Wisdom and Sovereignty: We can acknowledge God’s wisdom and sovereignty in our lives by entrusting ourselves to Him, trusting Him, and seeking His guidance in our lives.
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Patience and Long-suffering: We should show patience and long-suffering in our interactions with others, as God does with us. This means forgiving others’ mistakes, giving them a second chance, and patiently waiting for changes.
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Power and Authority: We should recognize that God has ultimate power and authority over our lives and the world. This should give us peace and confidence even in challenging times.
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Faithfulness and Constancy: Our relationship with God and others should be characterized by faithfulness and constancy. We should keep our promises, remain loyal to our loved ones, and support each other in good and bad times.
In conclusion, insights into God’s character and His dealings with evil can guide, inspire, and encourage us to lead a life that honors God, serves others, and makes us better individuals. They remind us that our faith should not only be theoretical but should also have practical implications for our daily lives.
Source: https://fulfilleddesire.net/lesson-1-the-war-behind-all-wars-1-1-war-in-heaven/
Hands Toward Heaven
I will therefore that men pray every where, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting. 1 Timothy 2:8.
Because of Israel’s disobedience and departure from God, they were allowed to be brought into close places and to suffer adversity; their enemies were permitted to make war with them, to humble them and lead them to seek God in their trouble and distress….
When Israel was assailed by the Amalekites, Moses gave Joshua directions to fight with their enemies.48Testimonies for the Church 2:106-108.
Moses and Aaron and Hur were stationed on a hill overlooking the battlefield. With arms outstretched toward heaven, and holding the rod of God in his right hand, Moses prayed for the success of the armies of Israel. As the battle progressed, it was observed that so long as his hands were reaching upward, Israel prevailed, but when they were lowered, the enemy was victorious. As Moses became weary, Aaron and Hur stayed up his hands until the going down of the sun, when the enemy was put to flight.
As Aaron and Hur supported the hands of Moses, they showed the people their duty to sustain him in his arduous work while he should receive the word from God to speak to them. And the act of Moses also was significant, showing that God held their destiny in His hands; while they made Him their trust, He would fight for them and subdue their enemies; but when they should let go their hold upon Him, and trust in their own power, they would be even weaker than those who had not the knowledge of God, and their foes would prevail against them.
As the Hebrews triumphed when Moses was reaching his hands toward heaven and interceding in their behalf, so the Israel of God prevail when they by faith take hold upon the strength of their mighty Helper. Yet divine strength is to be combined with human effort. Moses did not believe that God would overcome their foes while Israel remained inactive. While the great leader was pleading with the Lord, Joshua and his brave followers were putting forth their utmost efforts to repulse the enemies of Israel and of God.49Patriarchs and Prophets, 299.
Conflict and Courage p. 95
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Prayer Requests
—-Please pray for the marriage of Mike and Ronda. Erik
—-We are looking at a new home tomorrow. I have a lot of anxiety about renewing our lease at the current home. Pray with me for the Lord’s will to be done and we live where he wants us to be. Jennifer
—-Please pray for healing for Barney. Thanks. Buck
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Dear Friends,
When Eileen was six, she and her cousin, Annie, often played together. One day, as they were playing, they noticed DJ, Annie’s little brother, who was two at the time eating something. They walked over to see what he had. There he was, happily eating live, wiggling worms! Eileen and Annie thought that was “yucky” and took the worms away. DJ began to cry. After talking their problem over, they decided that they would cook the worms for him. That would dry his tears.
Alabama is very hot in the summertime—hot enough that you can fry an egg on the sidewalk. So, they decided to fry the worms there. They explained to the whimpering DJ, that they were going to make the worm taste better for him. It didn’t take long before the worm was hard and stiff. They girls then picked it up and gave it to the boy. DJ ate it happily. He seemed to like fried worms much better than live ones, so they helped find him more.
A little later, I decided it was time to check on Eileen and see if she was alright. I walked around the trailer park until I found them. When I saw them putting worms on the hot sidewalk, I was shocked. As I looked around I could see many dried worms. Hating to see any animal hurt or killed, I explained that what they were doing was very wrong.
Taking Eileen by the hand and leading her into the house, I told her that she could not play outside for the rest of the day. This would help her remember to be kind to animals. Eileen was not happy. She felt that she was being treated unfairly and told me so. Finally, she was able to make me understand why they had done what they did. As I listened, I could see that in their childish reasoning that they were doing what they thought was right. I had misjudged their motives.
How often we misjudge one another. How often we “jump to conclusions” before we really know all of the circumstances. How often we condemn before understanding their motives. Our Dear Saviour said, “Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again. And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye? Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye.” Matt 7:1-5 He did not mean that we should allow wrongs to exist, but that we should “[not judge] according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment.” John 7:24
Just as it was right to stop Eileen and Annie from feeding DJ worms, so we are told that there is a time to judge. We should, however, be very careful not to shun, not to gossip, not to discourage, not to condemn. Instead, restoration should have a part with the judgment.
While it is true that when we see a wrong, we should not keep silent, we should to very careful of our own motives and work with that individual in a loving way. “Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted. Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. Gal 6:1,2
Let us ask for wisdom, that we might not misjudge another’s motives. Let us ask for the eyesalve of the Holy Spirit that we may work for the erring as Jesus did, seeking for their restoration; for if we do not approach them correctly, we will drive them further away from the right path. Let us, when corrected, study and pray to see if we truly, have strayed; and if so, step back upon the right path; but if not, stand firmly for the right.
Rose
Source: https://rosesdevotional.org/hands-toward-heaven-2.html
Students from River Plate Adventist University Participate in a Missionary Trip to the Amazon
From February 26 to March 7, 2024, students of Medicine, Nursing, Dentistry, Teaching in Physical Education, Teaching in Initial Education, and a degree in Communication from River Plate Adventist Uni…… Source: https://adventist.news/en/news/students-from-the-adventist-university-of-plata-participated-in-a-missionary-trip-to-the-amazon
The Great Controversy – Lesson 1.The War Behind All Wars | Sabbath School with Pastor Mark Finley
