The most important – by far the most impactful – conflict in history is that between Satan and God. God created angels before He created humans, and a lot happened in heaven in the realms of the angels. Among those angels was Lucifer, a very high-ranking angel who was in charge of a LOT in heaven. Some commentators believe that Lucifer was in charge of the worship initiatives and activities in heaven. At that time, there was no opposition to God. So this would have been perhaps the most high ranking position. You can read some of his story in Isaiah 14:12 and following and in Ezekiel 28:12 and following.
So – Lucifer was very possibly the #2 being in heaven, just under God Himself – Who was, and is, embodied by God the Father, Jesus the Son and the Holy Spirit. Lucifer decided, however, that being JUST #2 was not for him. He wanted to be #1. He rebelled against God and apparently convinced one-third of the angels to follow his rebellion. God threw him out of heaven, along with the angels who followed his lead, bringing the conflict into the realm of earth and the creation of God. Now named Satan (the deceiver), he now inhabited the realm that man would also inhabit. As the prize of all God’s creation, the humanity that God so loved, man would now become the target of the wrath of the one who was thrown out of heaven, the one whose rebellion had failed.
We know about the Garden of Eden and the sin committed by Adam and Eve. We know of the result – physical death being the most significant consequence. But in addition, man would have to cultivate the ground in the midst of weeds and other growth that would greatly complicate his ability to take advantage of the blessings of plant and food fertility in the Garden, and in the earth itself. Women would have to experience pain and suffering in the process of childbirth, which would also become a risky and potentially fatal endeavor. These are implications that were not intended in God’s perfect creation. It is only after perfection became imperfection with Adam and Eve’s sin, that these conditions came to pass.
But in Genesis 3, we see that the good thing that came out of this horrific situation was God’s promise of a Redeemer Who would ultimately defeat Satan, the enemy, and Who would reverse the curse that came with Adam and Eve’s Garden sin. This Redeemer would be born of a virgin, and the signs of His Advent would be clear.
The Old Testament is a story of the playing out of this conflict between God and Lucifer – now known as Satan, through the earliest periods of human history.
We see this conflict play out in the persecution of the nation of Israel. Why? Well – God had reaffirmed His promise of a Redeemer to Abram, to whom God also promised that his offspring would become a great nation. God also promised that the world would be blessed through his seed, a reference to the coming of the Redeemer (Genesis 12:1-3). This means that this Redeemer would come out of the great nation that would descend from Abram, which would be the Hebrew nation Israel. Satan would step up his attempt to destroy / contaminate the Hebrew lineage, in an attempt to foil God’s plan for the Redeemer. He knew because of the promise given to Abram that it would be Abram’s seed through which the Redeemer would come.
At the close of this time period, God would fulfill the earlier promise of that Redeemer. Jesus would be born into the Hebrew nation, as the One Who had been told of by the OT prophets.
This week, we kick off our new series in Matthew 4, where we see the first open and obvious manifestation of this conflict, as it occurred between Satan and the Incarnate Jesus.
Hope to see you this Sunday!
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