Sabbath School Lesson for March 31-April 6, 2018
When preparing for someone’s arrival, it certainly helps to know as much as possible about the person who is coming. Therefore, the goal this quarter is not just to focus on an event and our preparation for it, but on the Person of Jesus, the One who is arriving soon to take us home with Him. Knowing, not just about Him, but knowing Him intimately as a Friend, will guide our preparations, making us not only look for, but long for, His Second Coming.
This week we will embark on a quick review of why the Second Coming is even needed. It revolves around the controversy between Christ and Satan. There is a war going on in the universe, and thankfully we are given just enough information in the Bible to enable us to be useful soldiers in this cosmic war.
Without some knowledge of the players in this universal tug of war and of the issues that precipitated the conflict, we won’t be adequately equipped to take our stand and help fight in this enormous spiritual struggle. So, let’s see what the Bible tells about this great controversy between Christ and Satan and use that knowledge as we make our own moral decisions now and in the future. Even though we may already be familiar with this information, hearing the story again should cause us to deepen our commitment and inspire us to improve our preparation for the events to come.
Focus Text: “And the dragon was enraged with the woman, and he went to make war with the rest of her offspring, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.” Revelation 12:17 NKJV
This one verse identifies the players, the issues, and even the strategies of this great cosmic conflict that has touched all our lives, with or without our knowledge.
The Players:
- Who is the dragon? He was identified earlier in the same chapter, verse 9, as being “that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world” NKJV.
- Who is the woman? She is seen in many Bible passages as the church, God’s people on earth. See Jeremiah 6:2, 2 Corinthians 11:2, and Ephesians 5:25.
- Who are God and Jesus Christ? John 10:30 says clearly, “I and My Father are one.”
The Issues:
- God’s commandments (Do we need to obey them?)
- the testimony of Jesus Christ (Is Jesus worthy of our worship?)
The Strategies:
- Satan is mad at God’s followers.
- Satan targets them with temptation and persecution.
- God’s people continue to keep His commandments and testify of Jesus’ great sacrifice.
Sunday: The Fall of a Perfect Being
The biblical worldview is different from others, especially when it comes to the knowledge of Satan, formerly Lucifer, the one who started this war. God wisely only gives us enough information about this dastardly character to enable us to avoid him.
Wise Christians know of his existence and that he still has supernatural powers enough to endanger all of us if we aren’t careful. See Ephesians 6:12. But beyond that, there are aspects of Lucifer’s fall that we will never fully understand this side of heaven. We are capable of seeing where sin originated and with whom, but the hows and whys always seem to be out of our grasp.
We are given, however, enough information about Lucifer’s, and subsequently Adam and Eve’s fall into sin, to protect us from following in their footsteps. Of course, information isn’t enough, as we all know. Our relationship with God the Father and His Son is our greatest, and only real, protection from Satan and his devices to enlist us on his side of the conflict.
Discussion Questions:
Read Isaiah 14:12-14, Daniel 8:9, 10, and Revelation 12:4. Who are most likely the “stars” of heaven or of God? How do these verses show us what took place in heaven when Lucifer turned his heart against God?
Read Ezekiel 28:1, 2. How did pride contribute to the downfall of Lucifer? And how dangerous is pride for even the most stalwart follower of God?
Read 2 Thessalonians 2:3-8. What are some of the unknown factors associated with the existence of sin, making it a “mystery” to us? If we could find a valid reason why sin exists, how would it then cease to be sin?
Monday: More Than Head Knowledge
Although little is revealed about Lucifer’s fall and his expulsion from heaven, we have more details regarding the path of sin that Adam and Eve took here on earth. Their experience shows us that we need more than just to know God’s directives; we must know and trust Him as a friend. His desire and will for our life must become ours fully. Only this would have prevented them from making the unfortunate choices they made in the Garden of Eden.
Eve and Adam both knew that eating the fruit of that particular tree was forbidden by God, and that it would lead to death. Although death was no doubt a foreign concept to them, as they had never witnessed it, they certainly knew, from Eve’s responses to the serpent, that death was not something to be desired.
Yet, despite having walked and talked with God in the Garden, Adam and Eve both chose to ignore God’s warning and ate of the fruit that the serpent so craftily and falsely advertised to them. This demonstrates that no matter how close we may feel to God, we are never beyond Satan’s reach in this present life.
Only through a total commitment and allegiance to God, evidenced by actions that indicate our surrender, will God be able to supply us with the means to overcome the devil’s inducements to sin.
Discussion Questions:
Read Genesis 3:1-3, 2:16, 17, Exodus 19:12, 13. Although not stated in Genesis, could Eve have been correct in understanding God’s cautions about not even touching the fruit, and do you believe that it was at least implied in God’s warning to Adam and Eve? How does this amount of caution inform us about how close we should allow ourselves to sin, especially in these last days?
Read Genesis 3:4, 5, 13 and Job 4:17. In what ways was Eve deceived? Why will we never be equal to God?
Read Genesis 3:6, 7, 22-24. Why would it be better for mankind not to know evil, which seems to have been God’s original plan? Was God just and merciful in keeping them from evil, and later banning our first parents from the beautiful Garden? If staying in the Garden would have perpetuated sin, in what ways does this change your perception of death?
Tuesday: War in Heaven and Earth
One can no longer deny the extent to which evil has infiltrated our planet. No matter where you live, pain, suffering, and death seem right at our doorsteps, thanks to modern technology. And it only grows increasingly so, with each passing generation. Times of reprieve are sometimes witnessed, but on the whole, things are only getting worse, not better.
We do not have to allow this to make us a pessimist, however, seeing only the bad in the people and events around us. With an accurate biblical worldview we can look forward optimistically to a new heaven and a new earth to enjoy at a future time of God’s choosing. And the best part about this new existence will be the presence of Jesus, our Lord and Savior.
In the meantime, we must arm ourselves with as much information as God reveals in His Holy word. In the Bible we discover that this war isn’t just about what’s happening here on earth. It’s actually a universal struggle, which began in heaven, and is now restricted to our planet and is being witnessed by all God’s creation throughout the cosmos.
- Michael, whose name means “Who is like God?”, has been described in various places in the book of Daniel, and has been identified by some Bible scholars as our Creator, Jesus.
- Satan, whose name means “adversary”, stands for the rebel Lucifer.
These two are the principal characters in this extensive battle. It seems ironic that a creature, such as Lucifer, would chose to fight against his Creator; but that is exactly what happened.
When Adam and Eve sinned, it seemed that the whole world would be lost to the power of Satan. But God had a contingency plan that would provide a way to redeem the human race. He hasn’t given up on His children. God Himself, in the person of Christ, would come to rescue us from the death grip Satan has used to hold us hostage, as it were, for so many centuries.
Through Christ’s spilled blood, we have access to heaven again. We know the final victory belongs to Jesus. Our only task is to prepare and wait for the glorious closing event to happen.
Discussion Questions:
Read Revelation 12:7-9, Daniel 8:11, 25, 9:25, 10:13, 1 Thessalonians 4:16, 17. How do these verses help identify Michael, the archangel as Jesus, the Messiah?
Read Hebrews 1:1, 2 and John 1:1-4. How do these verses uphold Jesus as our Creator? So, who was Lucifer really battling against?
Read Revelation 12:6, 14-16, 17 and Daniel 7:25. How is the time period determined for when God’s people would have to flee persecution, when the little horn power was strongest? [a time = 360 days in a Jewish year at the time of Daniel–times = 720 days or 2 years–one half a year = 180 days–with a final total of 1260 days or years (this, by the way, fits the length of time during the Middle Ages when an apostate church held power from 538-1798 A.D.)]
Wednesday: With You Always, Even Unto the End
Even though God’s people suffered tremendous persecution during the 1,260 years spoken of in both Daniel and Revelation, we can expect Satan will continue his attacks right up to the Second Coming. As a matter of fact, we are warned that he will step up the pressure on the followers of God at the very end, because he is angered and realizes his time is almost over (Revelation 12:12).
But God has promised to be with us throughout our ordeal. No matter what we are going through, we are assured that He will “not leave us nor forsake us” (Joshua 1:5 and Hebrews 13:5). And this applies right up to the “end of the age” (Matthew 28:20).
God’s promise of eternal life in the earth made new sustains His remnant, down through time. Just as Abraham waited for that “city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God”, so will we wait for our glorious reunion with Jesus and our loved ones in the New Jerusalem.
Jesus reassures us with His promise to “come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also.” See John 14:3. NKJV He wants us to wait with reassurance, not with a troubled and fearful heart, for this blessed event. After all, He begins by saying, “Let not your heart be troubled,” verse 1.
Discussion Questions:
Read Matthew 28:20, Acts 4:31, 18:10, and 23:11. How did Jesus fulfill this promise for the apostles? How have you seen it work in your life, or in others?
Read Romans 8:35-39 and Matthew 10:28. How would you describe the “soul” that cannot be destroyed?
Read 2 Timothy 4:8 and James 1:12. What qualifies us for a crown when we get to heaven? What must we love in order to receive it?
Thursday: The Law and the Gospel
Present truth continues to be the law and the gospel, which encompasses God’s will and desire that His justice and mercy be seen and appreciated by all created beings. In each historical time period on earth, however, God initiates a new way to express and promote this everlasting truth.
- The establishment of the Seventh-day Adventist church in the nineteenth century, with its emphasis on the fourth commandment, one that the world had lost sight of, demands that we take a fresh look at the whole Decalogue, and the justice of God that His law represents.
- The renewed interest in the Second Advent requires us to see the gospel of Jesus in its entirety.
By highlighting the two concepts, contained in the name Seventh-day Adventist, we are drawn back to the two main themes in the Bible:
- Keeping the law is our response of love to God, and
- the sacrifice of the Messiah is God’s response of love to us.
Together, these two concepts of law and the gospel enable us to have a fulfilling relationship with our Creator.
Discussion Questions:
Read Deuteronomy 11:1. What happens when we keep God’s law without loving God? Why does God, even in the Old Testament, encourage love–not just to others, but to God Himself?
Read 1 John 5:3 and James 2:20. What happens when we love God without keeping His law? What is it that prevents His commandments from being a burden?
Read Revelation 14:12. Following the warnings of the three angels’ messages, how does this description of God’s saints sound like they fit those living at the end of time? How do they exemplify the law of God and the gospel of Jesus? Why is patience a noted characteristic of these saints?
Summary
Getting a glimpse of the great controversy between Christ and Satan enables us to prepare for Christ’s return. It gives us the reason for why our allegiance to God is needed in this universal struggle. This week we explored…
- the fall of Lucifer, a perfect being of high standing in God’s heavenly kingdom, whose pride became his downfall (Sunday)
- the fall of Adam and Eve, whose faith and trust in God was inadequate to shield them from Satan’s attack in the Garden (Monday)
- the war that our world has been plunged into after Lucifer was expelled from heaven (Tuesday)
- the reassurance that Jesus provides His followers that He will sustain and ultimately come back to save us from all our trials (Wednesday)
- the part that the law and the gospel play in securing our salvation (Thursday)
A Word in Closing
“So long as all created beings acknowledged the allegiance of love, there was perfect harmony throughout the universe of God…And while love to God was supreme, love for one another was confiding and unselfish.” Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 35
In trying to understand this “allegiance of love”, we might think of the marriage relationship. The marital vows include an allegiance of love to each other. In other words, it means the couple pledge to be faithful and true, a promise that their special love will remain only for each other.
Ever since Satan has exposed himself as God’s rival, we here on earth must be ever vigilant in rebuffing his attempts to woo us from God’s protecting arms of love.
Therefore, our preparation for the Second Coming includes knowing about God’s archenemy and the spiritual battle that is being fought and witnessed by the universe. By arming us with…
- His law that we are to keep and
- the gospel of Christ that we are to share,
…we can have the protection we need that will keep our relationship with God alive, thwarting Satan’s plan to steal us from the one with whom we have vowed a lifetime of love.
Next Week’s Lesson: Daniel and the End Time
To read the Sabbath School Lesson Quarterly or see more resources for its study, go to https://www.absg.adventist.org/
All Outlook blogposts by Teresa Thompson, are at http://outlookmag.org/author/teresathompson/
