24
Patriarchs and Prophets
the supremacy of Christ. He had determined to claim the honor which
should have been given him, and take command of all who would
become his followers; and he promised those who would enter his
ranks a new and better government, under which all would enjoy
freedom. Great numbers of the angels signified their purpose to accept
him as their leader. Flattered by the favor with which his advances
were received, he hoped to win all the angels to his side, to become
equal with God Himself, and to be obeyed by the entire host of heaven.
Still the loyal angels urged him and his sympathizers to submit to
God; and they set before them the inevitable result should they refuse:
He who had created them could overthrow their power and signally
punish their rebellious daring. No angel could successfully oppose the
law of God, which was as sacred as Himself. They warned all to close
their ears against Lucifer’s deceptive reasoning, and urged him and his
followers to seek the presence of God without delay and confess the
error of questioning His wisdom and authority.
Many were disposed to heed this counsel, to repent of their disaf-
fection, and seek to be again received into favor with the Father and
His Son. But Lucifer had another deception ready. The mighty revolter
now declared that the angels who had united with him had gone too
far to return; that he was acquainted with the divine law, and knew
that God would not forgive. He declared that all who should submit
to the authority of Heaven would be stripped of their honor, degraded
from their position. For himself, he was determined never again to
acknowledge the authority of Christ. The only course remaining for
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him and his followers, he said, was to assert their liberty, and gain by
force the rights which had not been willingly accorded them.
So far as Satan himself was concerned, it was true that he had now
gone too far to return. But not so with those who had been blinded by
his deceptions. To them the counsel and entreaties of the loyal angels
opened a door of hope; and had they heeded the warning, they might
have broken away from the snare of Satan. But pride, love for their
leader, and the desire for unrestricted freedom were permitted to bear
sway, and the pleadings of divine love and mercy were finally rejected.
God permitted Satan to carry forward his work until the spirit of
disaffection ripened into active revolt. It was necessary for his plans
to be fully developed, that their true nature and tendency might be
seen by all. Lucifer, as the anointed cherub, had been highly exalted;