Then War Broke Out in Heaven

One thing that few people will bother to make an argument about is the idea that there is good and evil in this world. They will argue which things qualify as good and which things qualify as evil, based on whatever cultural, religious, or political viewpoints they subscribe to, but the majority of people find it necessary to admit that there are two distinct forces at work in the world around us. The hot debate begins when you start talking about why this is the case and what or whom these forces actually are.

According to some, these are simply forces of nature, balancing the circle of life with a give and take. Evidence tells me that is actually enough to satisfy some apparently not-so-curious minds. But for others, that ceases to be good enough when we come face to face with forces are so obviously higher and more powerful than ourselves. A theory that is somewhat related to this thought process is Moral Dualism. This is the belief that there are two separate and independent powers or forces at work in the universe, and that these powers have opposing character: one of them is good, and the other is evil. That's fairly logical, and isn't too incredibly far off from what the Bible teaches. Dualism and Christianity deviate however, at the point where Dualism says that these powers are essentially equal. Neither one has more authority than the other, and neither one was created by the other. I don't think very many people actually claim to be "Dualists" but in a way this theory matches with the popular idea that good and evil have always been a natural part of life and we just have to deal.

The very fact that what we perceive as evil actually exists is one of those issues that has tripped up countless thinkers and has sadly many times led to the rejection of the possibility of a God who claims to be so good. The permission of such monstrous wickedness in this world is a difficult fit with a God who claims to be love by definition. It's a fair objection; I believe in asking questions, raising inquiries and not accepting fluff as truth worthy of basing your life around. But the Bible doesn't seem to have much favor for fluff either, as it doesn't leave us with surface level explanations, but rather it hands us the pieces to a bigger picture. 

"How you are fallen from heaven

O Lucifer, son of the morning"

Isaiah 14:12

"You were the seal of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.

You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone was your covering...

The workmanship of your timbrels and pipes 

was prepared for you on the day you were created.

You were the anointed cherub who covers; I established you;

You walked back and forth in the midst of the fiery stones.

You were perfect in your ways from the day you were created,

'til iniquity was found in you."
Ezekiel 28:12-15

"Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty,

you corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor..." 

Ezekiel 28:17

"For you have said in your heart, 'I will ascend into heaven,

I will exalt my throne above the stars of God...

I will ascend above the heights of the clouds,

I will be like the Most High.'"

Isaiah 14:12-14

 "Then war broke out in heaven. 

Michael and His angels fought against the dragon, 

and the dragon and his angels fought back.

But he was not strong enough and they lost their place in heaven."

Revelation 12:7,8

"So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, 
called the Devil and Satan,who deceives the whole world;
he was cast the the earth, and his angels were cast out with him."
Revelation 12:9

"Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! 
For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, 
because he knows that he has a short time."
Revelation 12:12 

We feel the pull of good and evil daily around us because there was a war in heaven. And there was a war in heaven because one extremely high ranking angel decided he would rather be worshiped than to worship the King. And there has been no end to the string of consequences that have unfolded since that decision. This is where Christianity triumphs where Dualism cannot: the God of the Universe is more powerful than the rebel, and has promised a total eradication of the sin problem if we will only hold fast until He comes back. 

"Affliction shall not rise up a second time."
Nahum 1:9

Great honor always comes with great risk, even in the throne room of the King of Majesty. God does not, and did not, create or condone evil, but he also has no interest in creating robots either. The freedom to decide is one of the most beautiful gifts God could have given His creation, but also one of the most dangerous. The freedom that allows you to decide how you wish to live your life and where to place your priorities and loyalty is the same freedom that allowed Lucifer to open rebellion against the King of Heaven. And rather than immediately eliminate the trouble maker from existence, God allowed His character to be placed on trial and has given us the right to decide with whom we wish to place our loyalty. ...Because God is love by definition, and it's not love any other way.