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traitor. No, it was in him that iniq–
uity was found. But, after how
long? We don't know. God does
not reveal that!
It
could have been
any number of years from one or
Jess to millions times millions.
And then, even after Lucifer
himself made the decision to rebel
and try to invade God's heaven to
take over the universe, it is not
revealed how long it took him to
persuade all of the angels under
him to turn traitor and follow
him:
1 know well the method he
used. He uses the same method
still today in leading deceived
humans into disloyalty, rebellion,
and self-centered opposition
against God's government. First,
he turns one or two to envy, jeal–
ousy and resentment over an
imagined injustice-then into dis–
loyalty. Then he uses that one or
two, like a rotten apple in a crate,
to stir up resentment, feelings of
self-pity, disloyalty and rebellion
in others next to them. And, as
each rotten apple rots those next
to it until the whole crate is rot–
ten, so Satan proceeds.
lf,
in the government of God on
earth today, the "rotten apples" are
not thrown out early enough, they
would destroy the whole govern–
ment. But, once thrown out of the
crate, they cannot do any more
damage to those in the crate.
But
think
how long it must have
taken the soured and embittered
Lucifer to turn millions of holy
angels into resentment, bitterness,
disloyalty, and finally open and
vicious rebellion.
It
could have tak–
en hundreds, thousands or millions
of years. This was all before the
first human was created.
All this happened after the origi–
nal creation of the earth, described
in verse 1 of Genesis
l.
Verse 2 of
this creation chapter describes a
condition
resulting
from this sin of
the angels. The events described in
verse 2, therefore , may have
occurred millions of years
after
the
original creation of the earth.
The earth, therefore, may have
been created millions of years ago.
But continue this passage in Eze–
kiel 28: "By the multitude of thy
merchandise they have filled the
midst of thee with violence, and
thou hast sinned: therefore 1 will
36
cast thee as profane out of the
mountain of God: and 1 will
destroy [remove] thee, O covering
cherub, from tbe midst of the
stones of fire. Thine heart was
lifted up because of thy beauty,
thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by
reason of thy brightness: I will cast
thee to the ground ..." (verses 16-
17). At this point the context
returns to the soon-to-appear ,
human, religious-political ruler–
of whom the prince of ancient
Tyre was a forerunner.
Earlier in this chapter, I showed
you how physical destruction, ugli–
ness and darkness had covered the
face
of the earth, as the result of
the sin of Lucifer (who is now the
devil) and these "angels that
sinned" (now demons), and how in
six days God had renewed the face
of the earth (Gen. 1:2-25).
Why the Creation of MAN?
But why did God create man on the
earth (Gen. 1:26)?
Look at this situation as God
does. God has given us humans
minds, like the mind of God, only
inferior and limited. God made us
in bis image, after bis likeness
(form and shape), only composed
of matter instead of spirit. But
God says, "Let this mind be in
you, which was also in Christ
Jesus" (Phi!. 2:5). We can, to
sorne degree, think even as God
thinks. How must God have
looked at the situation, as he
started renewing the face of the
earth-after the colossal debacle
of the angels!
He had created a beautiful, per–
fect creation in the earth. He popu–
lated it with holy angels-probably
millions of them. He put over
them, as king, on an earthly throne,
the archangel-the cherub Lucifer.
Lucifer was the supreme master–
piece of God's creative power as a
single separately created spirit
being. He was the most perfect in
beauty, power, mind, knowledge,
intellect, wisdom, within the
almig-hty power of God to create.
God can create nothing higher or
more perfect, by instantaneous
fiat.
Yet this great being, knowledge–
able, trained and experienced at
God's own throne in heaven over
the universe and the administration
of the government of God, had
rejected that government, cor–
rupted bis way, rebelled against
administering or even obeying it.
He had led all bis angels astray and
into the sin of rebellion.
Now consider further. Apparent–
ly the entire universe had been
created also at the time of the
earth's creation. There is no evi–
dence either in God 's revealed
Word, nor in science, that any of
the planets in endless outer space
had been inhabited with any form
of life. But God does nothing in
vain. He always has a purpose.
Apparently all such planets in
the entire universe
NOW
are waste
and empty-decayed
(tohu
and
bohu)-like
the earth was, as
described in Genesis l :2. But God
did not create them in such condi–
tions of decay- like our moon.
Decay is
not
an original created
condition-it is a condition
result–
ing from a process
of deterioration.
Evidently if the now-fallen angels
had maintained the earth in its
original beautiful condition, im–
proved it , carried out God's
instructions, and obeyed bis gov–
ernment, they would have been
offered the awesome potential of
populating and carrying out a tre–
mendous c r eative program
throughout the entire universe.
When they turned traitor on earth,
their sin must have also brought
simultaneously physical destruct ion
to the other planets throughout the
universe, which were potentially
and conditionally put in subjection
to them.
Earth to Become Universe
Headquarters
l t will be explained in chapter sev–
en of this work that God's purpose
is to make this earth, ultimately,
the headquarters of the entire uní–
verse.
Remember, this earth, origi–
nally, was intended to be the abode
of a third of all the angels. The
angels, beholding the earth at its
creation, found it so beautiful and
perfect they shouted spontaneously
for
JOY
(Job 38:4-7).
It
was to pro–
vide a glorious opportunity for
them. They were to work it, pro–
duce from it , and preserve and
increase its beauty.
And at this point, it is well to
The PLAIN TRUTH