Revelation 12:1-7

                                MICHAEL AND THE MALE CHILD

            One of the few readings that get to mention Jesus Christ and Michael the archangel in the same passage which is also outstanding in its kind is Revelation 12:1-7. It is vital that we track down passages like this to get the message(s) and see if in one way or the other, JM believers are proven right or wrong. I will be quoting the full passage from verse 1 to verse 7 and would also expound where need may be.

I "Now a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a garland of twelve stars."

            In this very vision, we have a "woman" clothed with the sun and with the under her feet and is also said to have a garland of twelve stars on her head. This is absolutely symbolic, of course, since such a thing is impossible in the literal sense. Some see this to refer to Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ, since it is stated that she was to bear a male child who would shepherd all nations (v.5 cf. Psalms 2:9). Others, however, see this to refer to Israel in "her" glorious state; since it is said that she is with a garland of twelve stars on her head (which may be a reference to the twelve tribes of Israel; each representing the sons of Jacob while the sun and moon representing Jacob and his wives, Genesis 37:9). For some reasons, I prefer the latter interpretation since vv. 5-6 talk of the persecution of Israel as so on which the Bible never records happened to Mary.

Revelation 22:16

                              "I AM THE... BRIGHT AND MORNING STAR"

                                    "I, Jesus, have sent My angel to tesify to you these things in the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the Bright and Morning Star" --- Revelation 22:16 (Most translations have it this way)

                   Jesus, in this passage, is specifically telling us His Glory; affirming all the revelations given to John the apostle and then He further goes further to identify Himself as "The Root and the Offspring of David" and "The Bright and Morning Star" (some have "The Bright Morning Star"). Jesus was fund of this in the Book of Revelation, back in Revelation 3:14, He identifies Himself as "The Amen," "The Faithful and true Witness" and "The Beginning of God's creation". These titles are overwhelmingly great and for the fact that they refer to just one man, Jesus, I feel there is a lot about Jesus (which surely doesn't include being Michael) that meets the eye. However, Jesus/Michael believers have struck again and this time, they've chosen a specific title, "The Bright and Morning Star," to be a "proof" that Jesus COULD BE Michael the archangel.

REVELATION 12:7 AND REVELATION 19:14-16

                     ARMY LEADER: JESUS OR MICHAEL?

                                    "The Bible states that 'Michael and his angels battled with the dragon... and its angels' (Revelation 12:7)Thus, Michael is the leader of an army of faithful angels. Revelation also describes Jesus as the leader of an army of faithful angels. (Revelation 19:14-16) And Apostle Paul specifically mentions 'The Lord Jesus' and 'his powerful angels' (2 Thessalonians 1:7; Matthew 16:27; 24:31; 1 Peter 3:22) So the Bible speaks of both Michael and 'his angels' and Jesus and 'his angels' (Matthew 13:41) Since God's Word nowhere indicates that there are two armies of faithful angels in heaven-- one headed by Michael and one headed by Jesus-- it is logical to conclude that Michael is none other than Jesus Christ in his heavenly role" ---What Does the Bible Really Teach? Appndx. pp. 218-219 "Who Is Michael the Archangel?"

                        Who is the leader of the heavenly army? This is the question where the entirety of the argument is based; is it Jesus or is it Michael OR are they one in the same?

From the above quoted Jesus/Michael believer (Hence, JM), we see that this reasoning is based on the Revelation 12:7 that talks of Michael battling the dragon "with his angels" and Revelation 19:14-16 that depicts Jesus Christ going off to battle "with the armies of heaven" for the final battle. They see this to mean that both Jesus and Michael are called "army leaders" and that since the Bible does not talk about two heavenly armies (one headed by Michael and the other headed by Jesus), then, they say, it is "logical" to conclude that they are the same.

John 20:28

                                                                                STUDIES IN GOD'S HOLY WORD

             TOPIC: The Words of Thomas in John 20:28, what do they mean?

                   The story of our Lord Jesus Christ and the challenge of "doubting Thomas" isn't something unheard of amongst Christians and Non-Christians alike. Apostle John recorded how our Lord appeared to his disciples, affirming the fact that he had defeated death as he had earlier promised and how Thomas, who wasn't with them when the Lord came, doubted it when told by the others.

                        In John 20:25, Thomas said:

            "Unless I see in His hands the print of the nails and put my fingers into the print of the nails and put my hands into his side, I will not believe,"

                        Obviously, Thomas doubted that the Lord had resurrected. He probably could have felt that Jesus could not have come have back to life after being bruised, beaten, given a very heavy cross to carry to Golgotha, nailed with huge nails by huge Roman soldiers and even after being dead and buried; his tomb, sealed and watched by Roman guards 24-7 intending to avoid any possible resurrection. Any average man would immediately abandon every hope of ever seeing Jesus again alive and that was exactly what Thomas was on that day; an average man, not a firm-in-faith believer.

1 Thessalonians 4:16 (Part I)

                             "WITH THE VOICE OF ARCHANGEL"

                                "For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God; and the dead in Christ shall rise first." --- I Thessalonians 4:16 (KJV, NRSV, e.t.c.)

                             "For the Lord himself will descend from Heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in christ will rise first." --- I Thessalonians 4:16 (Gideons, NWT, e.t.c.)

                             "There will be the shout of command, the archangel's voice, the sound of God's trumpet, and the Lord himself will come down from heaven. Those who have died believing in Christ will rise to life first." --- I Thessalonians 4:16 (TEV)

                             "The foremost angel, both in power and authority is the archangel, Jesus Christ also called Michael. (1 Thessalonians 4:16; Jude 9) Under his authority are seraphs, cherubs, and angels." --- (The Watchtower, November 1, 1995 "The Truth About Angels")

                        Personally, I do not hold that Jesus Christ our Lord is one in the same with Michael the archangel but, I have been -- and will always be-- open-minded to any scripturally proven fact that may show otherwise yet, as far as I've been able to see, there is no solid evidence to bolster its scriptural status and of course, only conjectures could help give it grounds in the Bible. Reading through proof texts tendered by those who claim that the Bible teaches that Jesus Christ is the archangel, Michael, the above quoted verse tends to be one held in very high regard. In fact, one isn't faulty to think that it is the very verse (at least, the way they interpret it) that must have inspired the belief that Jesus is Michael the archangel but is this what this verse really states? Let's analyze further.

Jude 1:9

                                                MICHAEL "THE ARCHANGEL"

                                    "Yet Michael the archangel, in contending with the Devil, when he disputed about the body of Moses, dared not bring reviling accusation, but said, "The LORD rebuke you!" " --- Jude 9 (Most translations have it this way)

                             "God's Word refers to Michael "the archangel." Jude 9. this term means "chief angel". Notice that Michael is called the archangel. This suggests that there is only one such angel. In fact, the term "archangel" occurs in the Bible only in the singular, never in the plural." --- What Does the Bible Really Teach? Appndx. pp. 218-219

                        If you've ever had a dialogue with some sect of Christians or Pseudo-Christians who hold and believe that Jesus is the same as Michael, I'm pretty sure you must have heard them use I Thessalonians 4:16 alongside Jude 9 much more often than they use others. It is claimed that since the Bible only mentions one "Archangel" and never has the word in a plural form, therefore, Michael must be the ONLY archangel. (In support of this claim, they cite Jude 9 as proof because of the use of the article "Michael THE archangel" to mean that Michael is the only one). And from this line of argument, the link this very claim into saying that the archangel mentioned in I Thessalonians 4:16 is none other than Michael.