“And this good news of the Kingdom will be preached in all the inhabited earth
for a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.” — Matthew 24:14.
The following account of the two lawsuits is not explicitly recorded in God’s Word, but it represents situations depicted there. Now, let’s look at the first lawsuit. Satan, the Devil, falsely accused the Almighty God of a few things. We as Christians need to understand this because when we know Satan’s plan and what he is trying to achieve, we also learn what kind of behaviour he attempts to mislead us, humankind, into, to succeed with his plans.
In “Chapter 1 - Be Discerning!”, we see that both our Heavenly Father and His beloved son, Jesus, appreciate that we worship no one but the Heavenly Father. In the model prayer Jesus gave us, praying to the Heavenly Father is the first item he highlighted. Satan, however, hates what God values or appreciates the most. Therefore, Satan’s plan on this matter is to mislead people into not worshipping the Heavenly Father or to worship someone else instead of the Heavenly Father. Similarly, Satan’s false accusations directed towards God aim to undermine His reputation. Satan tries to mislead people into certain behaviours so that his false accusations might appear legitimate.
Now, let us put on a nice suit with a tie and head to the courtroom.
Who do we see there? First, we see the almighty Creator, our Heavenly Father, as the great Judge. Then, we also see the dragon, which is Satan, the Devil. But we also notice a few people specifically mentioned in God’s Word, such as Adam and Eve, Job, and even Jesus (in the flesh, during his earthly life). But wait! What do we see? Way more people than that... actually, all the people alive on earth today and all who have ever lived! Wow. That is a crowded courtroom!
Everyone sits down. The silence almost becomes tangible in the room. Then the great Judge, God Almighty, strikes his hammer. The lawsuit begins. The great Judge calls Satan forward to give his statement.
Satan stands up, walks forward, and, stuttering, begins his statement. Satan says, “Almighty God, here I shall sum up some accusations I have towards you.”
- “The people don’t need you; they can do it on their own” — Genesis 3:4-6.
- “The people will curse you when they are in misery” — Job 1:8-12, 2:4.
- “The people will only obey you for selfish reasons” — Job 1:6-12, 2:1-6.
- “There will be no single human being that will stay loyal to you” — Job 1:8-12, 2:4.
- “You don’t have the best intentions with mankind” — Genesis 3:4-5.
- “You are a liar, your way of governing is not right” — Genesis 2:16-17, 3:4.
Note: These scriptures reveal, in overlapping ways, the false claims of Satan.
The Judge frowns and tells Satan, “Those are pretty serious accusations.” The Judge in this story, being the Almighty God Himself, has the power to obliterate Satan, but chooses not to. Why? Because our Heavenly Father, however, is very righteous and at the same time a very loving and caring person.
He decided to handle the situation with patience, which is an excellent example for us humans. Instead of getting angry at someone who trespasses against us, try to show patience and understanding.
Also, because our Heavenly Father chose not to destroy Satan immediately, it reveals something for which we, as human beings, can be very grateful to our Heavenly Father - namely: He shows us patience and understanding as well! Instead of simply destroying us for our wrongs, our Heavenly Father shows us patience! Something we can love and praise our Heavenly Father for even more!
So... The lawsuit continues... Instead of directly obliterating Satan, the Heavenly Father, the Judge, says to Satan: “Those are pretty serious accusations. Do you have proof?” Satan replies: “Not as of now, but if you give me some time, I will prove it!” The Judge responds: “Okay. Then you have until a certain moment in time to prove your accusations are true, but... if even a single person on earth proves you wrong, then you lose your case, and the rightful punishment awaits you and your followers.” Satan replies: “Ha! It will be easy! I will not lose this case!”
And so Satan began to deceive humankind, leading them into wicked behaviour to win his case. However, unfortunately for Satan and his followers, but happily for our Heavenly Father, the situation turned out to be not as Satan had expected!
Satan’s false accusation “that no single person would be loyal to the Heavenly Father” has proven to be untrue. When we look at the chapters of Job, we see that Job was afflicted with diseases and pains, lost his possessions, and even lost his children because of Satan’s actions. He endured great suffering because of Satan! But did Job become unfaithful to God? No! At first, he thought that God was punishing him, but he remained loyal to God. Even when God corrected him, he did not reject it but accepted it humbly. And Elihu, who tried to speak sense into Job and soothe him, honoured God in the process. He also remained loyal to God. Abraham, David, and Moses also remained loyal to God. Although they were not perfect, just as we are not perfect, they made mistakes, and they regretted them and tried to improve. Then Jesus came to earth, the only perfect human being! In his humble, loving, caring, and righteous ways, he interacted with the people. Satan challenged him repeatedly, but whatever challenges Satan threw at him, Jesus remained perfectly loyal to the end! — Philippians 2:8.
So, this lawsuit has already been a victory for our Heavenly Father. Satan lost his case, and the justified punishment awaits him and his followers. However, although Satan has already lost his case, he is filled with great wrath and continues his destructive behaviour.
“More than that, when he came as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death, yes, death on a torture stake.” — Philippians 2:8.
What is our role in this lawsuit?
Because Satan tries to manipulate humanity into certain negative behaviours to win his already lost case, we are like actors in his play. Satan’s false accusations lead him to deceive humankind into taking specific actions based on those false claims. Knowing this, we can focus on behaving in ways that prove Satan wrong. If we strive to live as True Christians and do our best to remain loyal to our Heavenly Father, we demonstrate to Him: “Here, here! We also want to be good people and also want to show loyalty towards you, Heavenly Father!” Although God has already won this case, we, human beings, bring our Heavenly Father joy by showing Him that we love Him and do our best not to cooperate with Satan!
Once more, the entire concept of lawsuits reflects situations described in God’s Word.
Let’s put on our fine suits with a tie once more and head to the courtroom!
Who do we see there? The same as before—the great Judge, our Heavenly Father. Then, as convicted criminals, all people currently living on earth and all who have ever lived are present. Wow! Once again, a very crowded courtroom!
But hey, something caught our attention. There is something different now. Jesus is not in the courtroom. As Jesus was not born in the traditional way of making children, he was not affected by the inherited sin of Adam and Eve. — Romans 5:12, Genesis 3:2-6. Jesus was brought into Mary’s womb by God’s Holy Spirit and, therefore, was born perfect and remained so during his time on earth. Jesus did not sin once, so he is not among the condemned! — Luke 1:28-33, Matthew 1:20-25.
Everyone in the courtroom sits down. The silence is almost tangible. Then the great Judge, God Almighty, once more strikes his hammer. The lawsuit commences.
In front of the big Judge lies an enormous stack of papers – the criminal records of everyone present in the courtroom. On these papers are written all their sins, yes, even being born, which leads to the inherited sin of Adam and Eve. After each entry (each sin), the punishment is written: “death penalty”. Each paper, or criminal record, contains numerous entries: “sin, sin, sin” and “death penalty, death penalty, death penalty” written behind each. And that applies to every human being (except Jesus) who has lived on earth until today!
Wow! I start to feel uncomfortable. Does that mean I belong to those convicted ones, too? Unfortunately, humanity as a whole belongs to those convicted. *Sigh* That’s not a pretty sight! That’s not a comforting idea... It’s a rather miserable situation!!
But wait, something happens! We hear the door opening in the courtroom, and everyone turns their faces towards the door. Who could it be?... A man with a very kind face, dressed in white robes and holding an iron staff, walks into the courtroom. It’s Jesus!!!
Jesus walks further until he reaches the desk of the big Judge and says: “Dear Heavenly Father, dear Judge, I was sent to earth to die for them, so that everyone who exercises faith in me will not be condemned anymore but will have everlasting life.” — John 3:16.
The Judge nods and says, “It is true.” He looks at the stack of papers before Him on His desk, the criminal records of humanity, and notices that on top of some records is written: “Has exercised faith in the son of God, Jesus Christ.” Then the Judge picks up His large pencil and, on those criminal records where “Has exercised faith in the son of God” is written at the top, He draws two bold crossing lines over the paper in the form of an X. He then says to those people: “It is true. You have exercised faith in my beloved son, Jesus, and with his blood, he paid the ransom for you. Your criminal record is wiped clean; you are no longer guilty.” And He continues, “You are free to go, enjoy your everlasting life in paradise!”
Those people who are set free, together with Jesus, walk out of the courtroom joyfully.
This story, about the lawsuits, illustrates how crucial it is to embrace the True Christian lifestyle. We are all in the same boat; we’re all in this together. We all need it. It’s not a luxury. We cannot afford not to choose it. And it’s not a one-time decision — it’s a way of life, practising it until the end and beyond.
“This means everlasting life, their coming to know you, the only True God, and the one whom you sent, Jesus Christ.” — John 17:3.
And since the pangs of distress are already occurring and the Great Tribulation, which will end with the Armageddon, is approaching closer and closer, do we honestly expect to “keep our heads above the water” during those incredible and miserable times on earth if we are not seated at the dining table of our Heavenly Father? Satan is in no way interested in protecting his followers. Our Heavenly Father, however, is loving and caring, far more than I can express in words, and He makes tremendous efforts to save us and free us from misery.
Another example of why it is so important to choose the side of the Almighty God, our Heavenly Father. The whole world is living in a way that can be described as “what on earth are we doing???” — 1 John 5:19.
Irresponsible behaviour that harms ourselves or others leads to trouble. We become like aimless projectiles, easily influenced or deployed by Satan himself—he directs these projectiles (humans) to achieve his own plans. This is also why there is such chaos and misery on earth: the world is filled with false religion, immoral conduct, wars, plagues, poverty, crime, and human suffering. Especially since Satan and his demons were expelled from Heaven, trouble on earth has increased dramatically. Satan is full of anger, knowing he has only a short time. — Revelation 12:12.
Many people, without realising it, will be cooperating with Satan to carry out his evil plans. Meanwhile, those who stand by the Heavenly Father strive to behave well and are protected by Him, remaining firm in Faith and able to offer help and support to others during these perilous times.
It can be likened to a ship at sea. A ship without a course merely drifts where the wind blows it. But a boat with a steady course will reach its destination! The boat in this illustration represents humankind, and the wind signifies Satan and his schemes.
“We know we originate with God, but the whole world is lying in the [power of the] wicked one.” — 1 John 5:19.
Being cleared of the criminal records of sin with “death penalty” inscribed beside it is only possible by exercising faith in Jesus Christ - and that includes learning and practising the True Teachings, also called True Christianity, which Jesus brought to earth. By practising True Christianity as a lifestyle, we will (like a boat at sea) sail along the right course that leads to eternal life in paradise on earth and avoid straying from that course due to any wind blowing. For some, it may seem like “costing some effort” to practise good behaviour, but the rewards are immense. (The tribulation of practising good behaviour is temporary, but the rewards are everlasting).
“Therefore, we do not give up, but even if the man we are outside is wasting away, certainly the man we are inside is being renewed from day to day. For though the tribulation is momentary and light, it works out for us a glory that is of more and more surpassing greatness and is everlasting;” — 2 Corinthians 4:16-17.
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