Revelation 12
7
There was war
in the sky [heaven]. Michael
and his angels made war
on the dragon. The dragon and his angels made war.
There
was war
in the sky/heaven
This is where we enter the
very core of this entire book where the most crucial
information and revelations are laid out that unveils the back
story needed to make sense of everything else. Here we find
listed the two main protagonists along with their
sympathizers, where the war began, who initiated it, and the
immediate after-effects.
In most people's minds,
heaven and war are not usually thought about together.
In fact the idea of such negative activity in heaven seems
like an oxymoron. Yet we find stated plainly that heaven
is where the mother of all wars began, and much to many
people's astonishment it was not Satan who initiated the war
but rather God's representative Michael. Key to appreciating
this is the fact that before this time there had never been
any kind of conflict or anything similar. This kind of activity
and animosity was foreign and strange and bewildering
in a universe created in love and that had always and only
thrived on selfless love and joyful, humble service to
others by everyone.
To understand why and how
this war began and what the contest is over is understood by
assembling clues from all over Scripture and from the entire
span of history from which we discern repeating patterns that
hint at what likely transpired in heaven as things went sour.
One thing is for certain though – the positive ID of the enemy
whose subtle and seemingly innocuous activities required push-back
by Michael is spelled out explicitly in this passage.
Keep in mind that the
word translated here as war is different from how we are
used to thinking of what happens in war. This word war comes
from the Greek word polemos from which we get polemics
– words used in politics, verbal abuse and debate. This war
involves deception. It subverts truth and exploits trust.
This cosmic war is not a contest over who is physically
powerful, but rather who should be trusted to be our
leader. Satan lusts for power rather than trusting in love,
humility and joy in serving others. This is the root of this war
and feeds into everything we are studying.
A mouth speaking great
things and blasphemy was given to him. Authority
to make war for forty-two months was given to him. He
opened his mouth for blasphemy against God, to
blaspheme his name, and his dwelling,
those who dwell in heaven. It was given
to him to make war with the saints, and to overcome
them. Authority over every tribe,
people, language, and nation was given to him. (Revelation
13:5-7)
He deceives my own
people who dwell on the earth because of the
signs he was granted to do in front of the beast; saying
to those who dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to
the beast who had the sword wound and lived. (Revelation 13:14)
I saw coming
out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth
of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false
prophet, three unclean spirits, something like
frogs; for they are spirits of demons,
performing signs; which go forth to the kings of
the whole inhabited earth, to gather them together for the
war of that great day of God, the Almighty.
(Revelation 16:13-14)
Contrast this with the
way the Hero of heaven conducts war as spelled out explicitly
later on.
I saw the heaven opened,
and behold, a white horse, and he who sat on it is called Faithful
and True. In righteousness
he judges and makes war. (Revelation 19:11)
Michael
and his angels
made war on the dragon
It is vital that we
appreciate the true nature of this war. The choice of
weapons are the key issue as they are very different on
the two sides. This war that began in heaven is as much over
the choice and use of weaponry as it is over who will gain our
trust and allegiance. We must be settled in our thinking and in our
heart that the methods, motives and means of winning relied on
exclusively by those loyal to God are in fact able to
achieve victory in this war. This involves our perception of what
victory looks like as well, for victory means very different
things to different people depending on what they believe they
are fighting to accomplish. This is where a great deal of
confusion comes in, for so long as we remain infected by
the inferences and doubts about God's integrity that is at the
very root of sin, we will fail to understand or appreciate the
wisdom or value of the way the Son of God pursues a singular
path toward God's intended outcome in this war. This is even
more relevant right now.
This is why it is so
important to appreciate the nature of life and social design
before the war ever began. Without this perspective it is very
easy to be confused about how God works toward victory,
because we have been so conditioned to view victory as subjugating
those who oppose us. This is never God's disposition, for His
only purpose is the restoration of all creation to His original
design while faithfully maintaining the core principles of love
and freedom for each created being to choose whether or not they will
live in joyful fellowship with their Creator or pull away from Him
who is the only Source of all life. Freedom is actually one of
the key issues in this war. Lucifer has actually waffled on
this point by first insisting that there was no need for
law because angels were created perfect, therefore they
should be free to follow their own desires. Later he asserted that
freedom is too risky and there needed to be artificial
safeguards of fear to protect the common good.
The reason Michael
initiated this war was because it was necessary to
challenge openly Lucifer's subtle insinuations and deceptions
that were infecting the disposition of myriads of angels,
undermining their trust in God's integrity. It has always been
the divine One who alone knows God's heart more intimately
than any other being in the universe, and it is He who has been at
the forefront of this war throughout all of its stages. This is
why He is identified as Michael at this point in history when
there were no human beings in existence. God's nature
remains the same no matter where one looks in the flow of time at
how He deals with challenges against His design of creation.
I am aware that with many
there is serious question as to the identity of Michael, and I
respect each person's need to be convinced for themselves of whatever
they choose to believe. For me it is not an issue, for after years of
contemplating the underlying principles of design that reflects God's
heart in creation, it is plain that the Godhead has always
provided one of Them as the faithful Witness to be directly
involved in the lives of Their creatures in a form through
which they can relate. After humanity was created to reveal
God's hidden side more than any other race of beings, God had His
Son later take on the form of a human for the purpose of
reflecting to the universe the truth about God's
character from that unique perspective. And while many believe
that Jesus was God incarnate, what is far less appreciated is the
pattern this reveals, for this was not the first time God
'incarnated' Himself into the form of created beings so they
could appreciate His invisible attributes. That is why I am
convinced that in the beginning of creation, before Lucifer
invented sin by twisting truth and exploiting God's design intent of
vulnerability, God incarnated Himself through the Son by
taking on the form of the angel who was known as Michael which
literally means, Who is Like God.
To me, the very least of
all saints, was this grace given, to preach to the Gentiles the
unsearchable riches of Christ, and to make all
men see what is the administration of the
mystery which for ages has been hidden in God,
who created all things through Jesus Christ;
(Ephesians 3:8-9)
who is the image
of the invisible God, the firstborn of all
creation. For by him all things were created, in the
heavens and on the earth, things visible and things invisible,
whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers; all things
have been created through him, and for him. (Colossians 1:15-16)
For the
invisible things of him since the creation of the world
are clearly seen, being perceived through the things that
are made, even his everlasting power
and divinity; that they may be without excuse.
Because, knowing God, they didn't glorify him as God, neither gave
thanks, but became vain in their reasoning, and their senseless heart
was darkened. (Romans 1:20-21)
While this passage
clearly refers to our world and our situation, it is
paralleled by an earlier version when this war over who to
believe about God and His character gripped the rest of the
universe causing a massive rift and polarization among the
angels in heaven as described in what we are studying right
now. Yet the same principles and patterns are active in
each stage of the war and the similar accusations are used
or recycled in a new form with the intent to deceive and
mislead as many as possible to embrace the lies of God's
archenemy who denies the very existence of agape love. In that
earlier battle, God's agent who stood as God's faithful
Witness was Michael, while in the rerun of the war here on earth
God's faithful Witness is the human, but same Son of God,
Jesus. Yet in all cases the Son has always been the Godhead's
representative to display Their disposition, character and hidden
attributes, Their expression of the very essence of what God is
really like.
In the beginning was
the Word, and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God. The same was in the
beginning with God. All things were made through him. Without him was
not anything made that has been made. In him was life,
and the life was the light of men. (John 1:1-4)
The very core of this war
is over whose testimony will be trusted relating to the
invisible, unapproachable (light and power too intense to get close
enough to perceive or understand well) God who is the source of all
life, all power and everything that exists. This is the issue in
chapters 4 and 5.
"[Trust]Worthy
are you, our Lord and God, the Holy One, to receive
the glory, the honor, and the power, for you created all
things, and because of your desire they existed, and were created!"
(Revelation 4:11)
saying with a loud voice,
"[Trust]Worthy is the Lamb who has been
killed to receive the power, wealth, wisdom, strength,
honor, glory, and blessing!" I heard every created
thing which is in heaven, on the earth, under the earth, on the sea,
and everything in them, saying, "To him who sits on the throne,
and to the Lamb be the blessing, the honor, the glory, and the
dominion, forever and ever! Amen!" (Revelation
5:12-13)
This war is primarily
over God's reputation and what everyone comes to believe about
His character. The controversy is about who we will believe is
telling the truth about God, whether Michael or Lucifer, God's
Christ or Satan's assertions. What we are seeing here is a peek
into the origin of this war that started in heaven long before
our world came into existence, caused by a betrayal of God's crowning
specimen of creation Lucifer who was intended to convey the
most light of truth about Him to the angels, but who turned
traitor by asserting that his accusations are the standard of
truth about God, not Michael's version.
You said in your heart,
"I will ascend into heaven! I will exalt my throne
above the stars of God! I will sit on the mountain of
assembly, in the far north! I will ascend above the
heights of the clouds! I will make myself like
the Most High!" (Isaiah 14:13-14)
Shall the throne
of iniquity, which devises evil by law,
Have fellowship with You? (Psalms 94:20
NKJV)
This war came to involve two
major fronts, the the first as being who should be viewed
as the legitimate representative of God's will and character,
and then after the creation of our world it expanded to
who should represent God's reflector beings on earth in the
assembly of the sons of God in heaven. The Son of God in His
earlier form as Michael initiated the first battle in heaven to
unmask the insidious inroads of doubt that was spreading like
a fast replicating virus throughout the vulnerable created beings of
the universe. This involved subtle insinuations, inferences
and suggestions about God's character of perfect love as supposedly
being balanced by a hidden darker side to God. Later after
Satan successfully captured the dominion of this planet from Adam, he
insisted on occupying the seat designed for Adam in the
assembly of representatives for all the inhabited worlds that
sits on the mountain of God, whatever that symbolizes. Thus
the war expanded to include both aspects – representing
God directly and then representing God's reflectors. Both
fronts have been and continue to be contested by the Son of God
over time though from two different forms.
The idea of throne
needs to be understood in the light of the real truth about how
God governs. The passage from Psalm 94 is highly significant for
appreciating the contrast between how God governs and how
Satan insists that God governs. This is why this is a powerful
exposé on the truth about Satan's counterfeit, for despite his
insistence that God relies on a system of imposed laws
like how we do here on earth, this verse clarifies that this can
never happen. There can be no fellowship, no compromise,
no collusion or cooperation between the principles
of agape love that defines God design and the system of law
enforcement that operates by fear in Satan's system.
This phrase, I will be like,
or I will make myself like, is only one word in the
original Hebrew. Thus this is not saying that Lucifer was
referring to what he intended to become, but rather that his
views and disposition and character was the more accurate
testimony about what God is like, contradicting Michael's
version. Lucifer was in essence declaring, “I AM the most
reliable source to inform you about the invisible God.” This
explains the resistance aroused when Jesus came and
used the I AM title first declared to Moses at the burning
bush. This war is not merely over who is authorized to
represent humans in the assembly of heaven, but even
more so over which being we will believe when it comes
to representing God. Both Michael [God's Christ] and
Lucifer claim the I AM title, the authoritative witness
of what God is like as well as the best way to govern
societies.
We glimpse a reference to
this war in the words of Jesus facing off against religious
leaders who reflected Satan's views of God by stoutly resisting
His clear testimony. This was the same war and similar
to the showdown to what took place in heaven long before
this world was ever created.
You are of your
father, the devil, and you want to do the desires
of your father. He was a murderer from the
beginning, and doesn't stand in the truth, because there
is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks on his own; for
he is a liar, and the father of it. (John 8:44)
The beginning
referred to by Jesus here is actually the second of
three beginnings. And each one directly involved the divine
representative of the Godhead. Let me explain further.
When we hear this phrase in
the beginning, most likely our mind goes to Genesis 1
describing the terraforming of our planet.
In the beginning God
created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was
formless and empty. Darkness was on the surface
of the deep. God's Spirit was hovering over the
surface of the waters. (Genesis 1:1-2)
While this was a very
important beginning, it was the third major
beginning involving this war. In fact, the account of the
creation of this world in Genesis is full of inferences
and references indicating that the war was in full engagement
already and what was happening here was a response from heaven
to the onslaught of deceptions that may well have brought the
universe to an apparent impasse in the war. That is why it is
noted that darkness was on the surface of the deep. This was
not just literal but even more importantly it was symbolic
of the state brought about by the myriads of lies Satan
was using to obscure the light of truth about God's nature and
disposition and to discredit and twist the truth about the
viability of God's way of governing.
There are three important
beginnings noted in this war, and the creation account was the
third beginning, not the first as we might
initially presume. The first beginning is found
in the account of John who is also the author of the book we are
studying right now and who had a better grasp of the backstory more
than anyone else, especially after God gave him this revelation to
share with us.
In the beginning was
the Word, and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God. The same was in
the beginning with God. All things were made
through him. Without him was not anything made that has
been made. In him was life, and the life was the
light of men. (John 1:1-4)
This is the
Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to
his servants the things which must happen soon, which he sent and
made known by his angel to his servant, John, who testified
to God's word, and of the testimony of Jesus
Christ, about everything that he saw. (Revelation
1:1-2)
Have this in your mind,
which was also in Christ Jesus, who, existing in the form
of God, didn't consider equality with God
a thing to be grasped. (Philippians 2:5-6)
We are going to unpack this
much more, but for now I simply want to tie this together with the
three beginnings that outline the progression of the war. The first
beginning was the reality that before anything ever existed
and long before sin was ever an issue, the Son of God
existed eternally in the Godhead whose very definition is love
and will continue to exist with that divine identity for all
eternity. This actually is the core issue that brought about
the objections Lucifer had that were used to rebel against
God's ways and government, for it was the issue of whether or
not Christ in the form of Michael was actually part of
God or not. That is when the second beginning happened,
the beginning of sin and the spirit of rebellion that has led
to all the mayhem, evil and distrust of God anywhere. God's
response to this second beginning was the third beginning,
a demonstration of the nature of His disposition and use of
power that exposed Satan's allegations as invalid
which in turn led the unfallen angels, referred to as stars in
Job, to sing together with joy at this revelation.
It is well that we take time
to explore this mysterious being identified as Michael
using the clues given. Many question why God was not more clear
about identifying Michael for us, but I believe this is partly
because for humans, the incarnated Son of God in the form of
Jesus is the main person for us to focus on given our fallen
condition and confusion about God. Jesus was the human form of
God, come to correct and restore God's original design for
humanity as reflectors of God's image and to develop
a character like God. He is the channel of communication
to us while Michael is different.
Michael was God's
primary representative to the angelic hosts before humans
ever existed. Just as Jesus is the primary form of God
designed to engage humans in coming to know God intimately,
Michael was the same entity but in a different form,
designed to interact and engage angels to know God accurately.
But Michael is not central for our remediation, but for the
angels it was important (with or without the fall of Lucifer)
that God communicate and interact with them in a way they
could grasp a true awareness about the invisible attributes of God
for themselves.
The key here is that God's
Christ has ever carried out the role of being the main
communicator who reveals the true nature of the Godhead as
Their great communicator, the go-between, the mediator and
intercessor even long before there were doubts or sin or
rebellion bringing about a need for reconciliation and correction.
Because part of the
Godhead took on the form of an angel called Michael (Who
is Like God) and retained that identity until much later
when He took on the form of the human Jesus, we see how
serious God is about making sure everyone has an Agent
through which they may access the mind and heart of God as
much as possible. For humans, that link is our Savior and High
Priest Jesus Christ. For the angels it was Michael who was
the divine representative of the Godhead who alone knew the
Father's heart like no other and interacted with the angels
for the purpose of revealing the Father just as He did as
Jesus later.
We need to begin by
reviewing the purpose and design of angels, then examine how
Scripture confirms the incarnation of the Son into that form
before He became a human being much later.
The entire first chapter
of Hebrews focuses intently on the contrast between the
authority and role of God's only Son and that of angels
and why they were created. The reason this clarification was
necessary in Hebrews was because the war that began in
heaven was over this very issue – who was to be believed
as telling the truth about the invisible God. When Lucifer
began circulating sly suggestions and innuendoes about God's
integrity and character, it was impossible for any of the
created beings to know what was true since Lucifer's
assigned role in heaven was to relay the realities of the
invisible God to the visible universe in existence at that time.
Because Lucifer was exploiting the trust of all the angels who
relied on him to explain things that were beyond their access
as God designed for Lucifer to do, the fact that Lucifer used this
to his advantage was even more reprehensible. Thus in Hebrews 1
we catch a brief glimpse, a tiny synopsis of what transpired
in the war over God's reputation that began in heaven before
our world was brought into being.
The author of Hebrews
indicates that there was intense questioning over who was
to be believed as telling the truth about God. This is implied in
the idea of Sonship that is the core issue all
throughout the war, yet today has been subverted to be an
issue of whether or not the Son of God Jesus lived eternally with
God in the past or whether we was brought out and separated as
unique being from the bosom of God at some point. This argument
is a scheme of Satan to divert attention away from the
far greater meaning of this phrase only begotten son.
In Scripture, the primary meaning of being a son is about
revealing the nature and disposition of the father and the
family attributes, not about genealogy as Satan wants
us to imagine. This is why who God identifies as being His
legitimate Son is key to grasping what is discussed in this
chapter, because it was central to the war that began in
heaven over which being was relaying the truth about
the invisible God.
His Son is the
radiance of his glory, the very image
of his substance, and upholding all things by the word of
his power, when he had by himself made purification for our sins, sat
down on the right hand of the Majesty on high; having become
so much better than the angels, as he has
inherited a more excellent name than they have.
For to which of the angels did he say at
any time, "You are my Son. Today have I
become your father?" and again, "I will be to him a
Father, and he will be to me a Son?" Again, when he
brings in the firstborn into the world he says, "Let
all the angels of God
worship him." (Hebrews 1:3-6)
This passage summarizes
an enormous amount of hidden history that took place in heaven
related to the passage in Revelation we are looking at right now.
Hebrews 1 is a synopsis of that first stage of the war
before it moved to this planet, but the patterns of how the
war carries on repeat themselves over and over. This is how
we can discern from our perspective in this late stage of the
war, what likely may have taken place in the earlier stages,
for the arguments used to undermine trust in God's
heart have been consistent from the very outset, and the
challenge that unmasks their insidious nature has been
always initiated by the Son who alone is affirmed as being the
only reliable One to reveal the truth that alone is
trustworthy about who God is and what He is like. This is
why the name of this presumed angel meant Who is Like God,
because only the Son was like God, both in the way He acted
and the testimony He gives that contradicts that of the
created angel Lucifer who transformed into Satan the
great rebel who spread lies and accusations against God.
Hebrews makes it clear that
only God has the definitive word as to who is to be trusted
as revealing the truth about Himself. Chapter 1 strongly
infers that there was another angel claiming to be telling the
truth about God that was at variance with the One identified
by God as His Son. This passage infers that originally the
question in the minds of the universe involved which angel
could be trusted. This is why it asks, to which of
the angels did he say at any time... This was because
at that point in history, the Son was in the form of an
angel, and as thus He appeared to be no different than the
other cherub Lucifer who was contesting the witness
of Michael because it appeared there was no significant
material difference between them.
This should not sound
strange, for this same Son of God met the same resistance as a human
while among us here on earth. He was constantly challenged over
the issue of authority to represent God because He appeared so
'normal' like any other human being.
Who has believed
our message? and to whom has the arm of Yahweh been revealed?
For he grew up before him as a tender plant, and
as a root out of a dry ground: he has no
form nor comeliness; and when we see him, there is no
beauty that we should desire him. He was despised, and
rejected by men; a man of suffering, and acquainted with disease: and
as one from whom men hide their face he was despised; and we
didn't respect him. (Isaiah 53:1-3)
This was no new
revelation about God that was not already present when the
Son had the form of the angel Michael. God never changes, and
neither does the testimony about God throughout the entire history of
creation and the war that was caused by Lucifer's distortions some
time after creation. God knew what was coming, so He provided a
faithful witness called Who is Like God as His agent and
revealer of truth for all who would believe in His testimony
that God's power is made most clear in apparent
weakness. When the Son took on the form of an angel, His
character and the likeness of God revealed through His interactions
with all other created beings was identical to what He
reflected when He later took on the form of a human. This
sequence is spelled in Philippians.
Have this in your mind,
which was also in Christ Jesus, who, (1)
existing in the form of God, didn't consider
equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking
the (2) form
of a servant, being (3)
made in the likeness of men. (Philippians
2:5-7)
This clarifies three
stages of existence the Son of God experienced to bring
reconciliation and synchronization to the entire universe, both
fallen and unfallen. The Son originally existed in the form of God
and was always equal with God. But in order to expose what
is invisible to created beings about the nature of what God is
really like, the Son (the one that alone reveals the full truth
about the father which is what being son really means)
exhibited the humble nature of God by emptying Himself or laying
aside the privileges and power of living as the supreme being over
all, and took on the form of a servant.
This servant phase is
key for appreciating why the angel Michael can be understood
to simultaneously be the Son of God. We must appreciate
the meaning and purpose of what it means to be an angel.
Again, Hebrews one spells that out plainly in the same chapter that
outlines the original issues that began this war.
But which of
the angels has he told at any time, "Sit at my right
hand, until I make your enemies the footstool of your feet?"
Aren't they all serving
spirits, sent out to do service for the sake of
those who will inherit salvation? (Hebrews 1:13-14)
Angels were
specifically designed as ministering spirits. That is their
purpose and design, and their joy is found only as they
fulfill that servant function, just as our joy is found
only in fulfilling our design to reflect the glory of God as
His image and thus develop characters that is just like His.
This spirit of ministering to others is also a reflection
of God's heart, for the truth about the invisible essence of what
God is like requires all the different aspects of creation to even
begin to display the magnitude of God's greatness.
That which is known of
God is revealed in them, for God revealed it to them. For the
invisible things of him since the creation of the world
are clearly seen, being perceived
through the things that are made, even his everlasting
power and divinity....
(Romans 1:19-20)
This is a key principle
of creation design that unlocks many things that presently seem
mysterious to us. Paul explains that all creation is a
magnification and revelation of the invisible
attributes of God. Thus all creation plays a role in helping
everyone come to appreciate and love the Creator, even if they have
never known about Him intellectually or cognitively.
The heavens declare
the glory of God. The expanse shows his
handiwork. Day after day they pour forth speech,
and night after night they display knowledge.
There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not
heard. Their voice has gone out through all the earth,
their words to the end of the world.... (Psalms 19:1-4)
Yet beyond the testimony
about who God is as revealed in how all creation together is
to reflect perfect harmony and beauty, God has always had an
objective faithful Witness called His Son who also is the
Creator and ongoing Sustainer of all creation. The Son may
assume different forms of created intelligence, but He has always
been present and active in one form or another in order to facilitate
ready communication with the mind and heart of God.
In Daniel we find more
clues that help identify this Michael as being the
divine revelation of God rather than simply being another created
angel. In Daniel's account of visions given to him long ago, Michael
is said to play a pivotal role in the war raging as the enemy
sought to interfere with God bringing about fulfillment of
previous prophecies, even as God was revealing to Daniel important
aspects of the backstory along with important prophecies of future
events to overturn Satan's power.
But the prince of the
kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days; but, behold, Michael,
one of the chief princes, came to help me: and I remained
there with the kings of Persia.
But I will tell you that
which is inscribed in the writing of truth: and there is none who
holds with me against these, but Michael your prince.
(Daniel 10:13,21)
Many translations I believe
fail to correctly render verse 13. In the Hebrew it indicates
that Michael is the one who is the chief of all the supernatural
princes, not merely one among many. This mistranslation can bring
confusion preventing us from seeing the significance of what is
mentioned about the Prince who identifies specifically with all who
are loyal to God.
The only translation I have
found that identifies this is Young's Literal Translation.
And the head of the kingdom of
Persia is standing over-against me twenty and one days, and lo,
Michael, first of the chief heads,
hath come in to help me, and I have remained there near the kings of
Persia; (Daniel 10:13 YLT)
At that time shall
Michael stand up, the great prince who
stands for the children of your people; and there shall be
a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to
that same time: and at that time your people shall be
delivered, everyone who shall be found written in the
book. Many of those who sleep in the
dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life,
and some to shame and everlasting contempt. (Daniel 12:1-2)
Here we find Michael
as identified as the prince who stands for God's people as
well as being linked to the resurrection of the righteous at
the second coming of Christ at the beginning of the
millennium.
Following these links allows
us to see more clearly that in fact Michael was the same entity
as the one who later became Christ as a human being and who
will return to resurrect His children as well as the one who
ever stands up for them no matter what difficulties they have to
endure. Michael is the Prince above all princes just as He is
Lord and lords and King of kings.
Keep in mind that up
until the human incarnation of Christ, the Son of God retained
the form of an archangel, meaning the highest authority
above all created angels. The Son of God as we have already pointed
out, took on the form of a servant angel, and it was in
this form that He interacted by coordinating the activities of
all the angels of God in heaven working to rescue fallen humanity
and to counter the wily schemes of the enemy sabotaging
heaven's activities for both our salvation as well as God's. Thus it
is likely that it was in the form of Micael that Christ acted
as the agent of heaven, communicating God's will and directions as
the chief administrator of heaven's involvement in this war
that started in heaven..
But Michael,
the archangel, when contending
with the devil and arguing about the body of Moses, dared
not bring against him an abusive condemnation, but said, "May
the Lord rebuke you!" (Jude 1:9)
For the Lord
himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the
voice of the archangel, and
with God's trumpet. The dead in Christ will rise
first, (1 Thessalonians 4:16)
It is true that putting all
these verses together does not conclusively prove that Michael
was in fact the same entity as the Son of God. I understand that, and
each one is free to evaluate all the evidence and come to
their own conclusion. This does not preclude that Michael was a
created angel of very high rank. But for me, it simply makes more
sense and fits into the larger picture that, just as
Satan is identified under many different labels, so too can the
Son of God be seen acting within various capacities
under different titles and functions. These last two verses
for me provide compelling evidence that it was more likely Christ,
the Creator with power to raise the dead to life, who
was identified as Michael the archangel, as well as the fact
that He most accurately portrays the disposition of the Father's
heart by refusing to be drawn into contention with the
accuser.
In these verses we see the
tight connection between Michael as the archangel and the
resurrection. Jesus declared that He is the
resurrection and the life, and we know that Jesus is also the
Son of God, the only one who is fully like God and the
only one who has seen and knows God intimately. The
pattern is quite clear when we view it from the much broader
perspective of the entire scope of the war against God and His
people. The Son while taking on various forms through the
course of the existence of creation that He himself spoke into
existence, has involved Himself inside that creation while not
losing His original identity as being God even though He
willingly laid aside all that power and honor. He did so because that
is part of how He reveals the true nature of God, for He says
unequivocally that if we have seen Him we have seen the Father.
This has been true all along, whether He was representing
God as Michael to the angelic hosts in heaven or revealing God
to the watching universe and to us as a humble, weak and
vulnerable human being fully trusting in and reflecting
His Father's true glory as the greatest Servant of all.
Whoever of you wants to
become first among you, shall be bondservant of
all. For the Son of Man also came not to be
served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for
many. (Mark 10:44-45)
This is the testimony of
our Prince about the disposition of God we are designed to
reflect. Just as Jesus did not come to be served but to serve,
in the same way God is not looking to be served but to serve.
Jesus is the express image of God in every way, and when we
begin to grasp this as the reality that defines His testimony all
throughout the history of creation, the amazing beauty and
attractiveness of God and His design has the power to transforms us
as we become willing to participate in reflecting this unique
and unexpected aspect of His glory.
When Michael contended
with the devil over resurrecting the body of Moses (keep in mind
that no one had ever been resurrected from the dead up to this
point in the history of the rebellion), the Son of God was revealing
the nature of God's disposition towards His archenemy who is the
great accuser and ultimate arguer. God and all who reflect Him, never
argue with the accuser but simply defer the matter to another
source of authority. This is the nature of agape love, for
love never seeks to fight for its rights or even defend
itself but always trusts that God will work things out for
our best good and for the glory of His reputation in the long run.
He had seven stars
in his right hand. Out of his mouth
proceeded a sharp two-edged sword. His face
was like the sun shining at its brightest. (Revelation
1:16)
These are those who were
not defiled with women, for they are virgins. These are those
who follow the Lamb wherever he goes. These were redeemed
by Jesus from among men, the first fruits to God and to the Lamb. In
their mouth was found no lie, for they are blameless.
(Revelation 14:4-5)
This highlights the reality
that this war is over control of the mind, capturing the
imagination and heart, and about the nature of what
is in the mouth. Jesus fights this war with a sword that
is exclusively seen as coming from His mouth, never in
His hand. This is highly significant and central to understanding how
we are to follow His example if we are willing follow wherever He
leads us.
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