God can only choose the wisest and best plan for eternity. The principles of right and wrong (good and evil) will always exist. God created the angels and man with the freedom to choose between right and wrong. Angels were made to live in heaven. Adam and Eve were given a Paradise on Earth.
God allowed Lucifer, the rebel angel, to seize world rule and introduce sinful choices. “How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer…You said in your heart…I will raise my throne above the stars of God…” Isaiah 14:12-13 (NIV).
Lucifer heard God tell Adam: “…you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.” Genesis 2:17 (NIV). But this information did not stop Adam or Lucifer and some of the angels from disobeying.
Lucifer, disguised as a serpent, lied to Eve by saying, “You will not die.” Genesis 3:4. Sadly, Adam and Eve chose to disobey God and sinned.
God always knew that righteousness is understood best by comparing it to sin and its evil consequences. God is allowing and is using Lucifer to teach how sin causes suffering, sorrow, and death.
When God’s Kingdom on earth is established, resurrected mankind will remember their horrible experiences with evil. The lessons learned will increase man’s love and praise for the Creator. Mankind will then greatly value the path of goodness.
During that Kingdom, Christ will have “seized…that ancient serpent…and bound him for a thousand years.” Revelation 20:2 (NIV). Lucifer and the unrepentant angels will be killed and destroyed forever. “And the angels who…abandoned their proper dwelling (home in heaven)…he has kept…for judgment on the great (Kingdom) Day.” Jude 6 (NIV). During that same Kingdom time, men who do not repent will also die forever.
God’s perfect Kingdom on earth, the paradise Adam lost, will be restored and become the home to redeemed mankind. “Then I saw a new earth…(God) will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away…Those who are victorious will inherit all this, and I will be their God and they will be my children.” Revelation 21:1-7 (NIV).
Satan and this sinful world also provided a special test for Jesus and His followers. Jesus, Himself, needed to suffer. “Even though Jesus was God’s Son, he learned obedience from the things he suffered,” Hebrews 5:8 (NLT). By enduring suffering, we, believers, follow His example and develop Christ-like characters.
Victorious Christians will be “heirs together of Christ” of the Kingdom. Romans 8:17 (YLT). As heirs, we will assist Jesus in God’s Kingdom. “To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I was victorious and sat down with my Father on his throne.” Revelation 3:21 (NIV).
Eventually, everyone who learns to love God more than anything else and to hate everything that is opposed to God’s will be blessed forevermore. This has always been God’s Plan.
