Angels (3)

	Angels were created by God in the beginning.  They praise, assist and announce.  They will assist in the harvest of souls when Christ returns.  But does the Bible reveal anything about the nature of these heavenly beings?
	"It was revealed to them," 1 Peter 1:12 says of the prophets, "that they were not serving themselves, but you, in these things which now have been announced to you through those who preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven-- things into which angels long to look."
	So we learn one thing about angels.  They long to know certain things.  This implies a certain amount of curiosity on their part.
	"I tell you that in the same way," we read in Luke 15:7, "there will be {more} joy in heaven over one sinner who repents, than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance."
	So here is another characteristic that angels have.  They rejoice.
	"And angels who did not keep their own domain," we read in Jude verse 6, "but abandoned their proper abode, He has kept in eternal bonds under darkness for the judgment of the great day."
	Angels are free agents.  They have the choice of obeying or disobeying God.
	"For in the resurrection they neither marry," Jesus comments in Matthew 22:30, "nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven."
	Angels are not sexual beings.  There is no marriage among angels.
	"The sons of this age marry and are given in marriage," Jesus teaches in Luke 20:34-36, "but those who are considered worthy to attain to that age and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry, nor are given in marriage; for neither can they die anymore, for they are like angels, and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection."
	Angels do not experience death, either.
	"Please let the word of my lord the king be comforting," a woman says to David in 2 Samuel 14:17, "for as the angel of God, so is my lord the king to discern good and evil. And may the Lord your God be with you.'"
	"But my lord is wise, like the wisdom of the angel of God, to know all that is in the earth," she adds in verse 20.
	"Moreover, he has slandered your servant to my lord the king;" Mephibosheth comments to David in 2 Samuel 19:27, "but my lord the king is like the angel of God, therefore do what is good in your sight."
	According to these three verses, angels are very wise.
	"But of that day and hour no one knows," Jesus states in Matthew 24:36, "not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone."
	So, although the angels are very wise, their knowledge is not unlimited. 
	"Bless the Lord," Psalm 103:20 proclaims, "you His angels, mighty in strength, who perform His word, obeying the voice of His word!"
	Angels are mighty.  But just how powerful are they?
	"Whereas angels who are greater in might and power do not bring a reviling judgment against them before the Lord," 2 Peter 2:11 states.
	Angels are more powerful than humans.
	"Then it happened that night," 2 Kings 19:35 records of an encounter with the Assyrian army, "that the angel of the Lord went out, and struck 185,000 in the camp of the Assyrians; and when men rose early in the morning, behold, all of them were dead."
	Angels are so mighty that it takes only one of them to defeat 185,000 soldiers.
	"And behold," we find in Matthew 28:2, "a severe earthquake had occurred, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled away the stone and sat upon it."
	An angel has no trouble removing the huge stone which covers the tomb of Jesus.
	"But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God," Hebrews 12:22 says, "the heavenly Jerusalem, and to myriads of angels."
	"And I looked," John writes in Revelation 5:11, "and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne and the living creatures and the elders; and the number of them was myriads of myriads, and thousands of thousands."
	A myriad is 10,000.  A myriad of a myriad would be 100 million.  So how many is myriads of myriads?  If one angel can destroy an army of 185,000, just how much power is there in myriads of myriads of angels? 
	"If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love," Paul states in 1 Corinthians 13:1, "I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal."
	Angels have their own language.  In fact, their language seems to allow them to communicate with people anywhere in the world.
	"Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers," Hebrews 13:2 advises, "for by this some have entertained angels without knowing it."
	Angels are not always obvious.
	"Let no one keep defrauding you of your prize," Paul urges in Colossians 2:18, "by delighting in self-abasement and the worship of the angels, taking his stand on { visions} he has seen, inflated without cause by his fleshly mind."
	Angels are not to be worshipped.
	"And I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things," we read in Revelation 22:8-9.  "And when I heard and saw, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who showed me these things." 
	"Do not do that;" the angel responds. "I am a fellow servant of yours and of your brethren the prophets and of those who heed the words of this book; worship God."

	The Bible does provide information about the nature of angels.  But, still, there seem to be a lot of common misconceptions about them.  As we have already pointed out, there is the idea that angels are dead humans.
	"For neither can they die anymore," we have already noted from Luke 20:36, "for they are like angels, and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection."
	Notice that Jesus says resurrected people are LIKE angels. Should we think that Jesus made a mistake and should have said, "They ARE angels"?
	Another misconception is that angels are female.  In fact, angels are not sexual beings.  But they are pictured in the Bible as men.
	"And entering the tomb," Mark 16:5 records, "they saw a young man sitting at the right, wearing a white robe; and they were amazed.
	Still another mistaken idea is that angels have wings and halos and play on harps.
	"Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers," we have seen from Hebrews 13:2, "for by this some have entertained angels without knowing it."
	This would be a strange statement if angels always had wings, halos and harps.  As we have noted, wings are included in the descriptions of the cherubim and the seraphim.  But they are symbolic and not intended to represent physical characteristics.  The idea that angels carry harps may come from passages such as Revelation 5:8.
	"And when He had taken the book," this passage states, "the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, having each one a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints."
	Once again, this is a prophetic account containing symbolic language.  Notice that the bowls are not really bowls.  The passage itself states that they are prayers.  Should we assume, then, that the harps are really harps?
	One of the greatest misconceptions, though, may be the existence of guardian angels.  This idea is most likely based on two passages: Matthew 18:10 and Hebrews 1:14
	"See that you do not despise one of these little ones," the first verse cautions, "for I say to you, that their angels in heaven continually behold the face of My Father who is in heaven."
	Does this passage say that children have guardian angels?  Does it say that angels stand beside children to protect them, or that their angels stand in the presence of God to report what happens to them?  If every child is protected by a guardian angel, why do bad things happen to children?  According to 1 Timothy 2:5, Jesus is the one mediator between God and men.  But children don't need a mediator, since they have not yet done anything which needs mediation.  They simply need someone to represent them before God.
	"Are they not all ministering spirits," Hebrews 1:14 asks of angels, "sent out to render service for the sake of those who will inherit salvation?"
	Do those who obey God have guardian angels?  To answer this question correctly, we must decide what service it is that angels render for those who will inherit salvation.  To do this, we need only read the next verses.  There is a chapter division after this verse.  But chapter and verse distinctions were added by men centuries afterward and were not part of the original text. The fact that the next verse begins with the phrase, "For this reason," should be a clue that this is a poor chapter break.  The thought continues in the next chapter.  Before looking at the next verse, though, we should notice that the promised service is for those who WILL inherit salvation and not for those who have already inherited it.
	"For this reason," Hebrews 2:1-3 adds, "we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away {from it.} For if the word spoken through angels proved unalterable, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompense, how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation?"
	According to the text, the angels delivered the word which leads to our salvation.  Doesn't this sound like a service provided for those who will inherit salvation?
	Where does Satan fit into the picture?  Where did he come from?  Two passages which identify Satan as a fallen angel are probably used incorrectly.
	"How you have fallen from heaven," Isaiah 14:12-17 states, "O star of the morning, son of the dawn! You have been cut down to the earth, you who have weakened the nations!  But you said in your heart, 'I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God, and I will sit on the mount of assembly in the recesses of the north.  I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.' Nevertheless you will be thrust down to Sheol, to the recesses of the pit.  Those who see you will gaze at you, they will ponder over you, {saying,} 'Is this the man who made the earth tremble, who shook kingdoms, who made the world like a wilderness and overthrew its cities, who did not allow his prisoners to {go} home?'"
	According to verse four, though, this prophecy is directed at the king of Babylon.  The title "star of the morning" in verse 12 is sometimes translated "Lucifer."  This is the only time which this name is used in the Bible.  So it may not be correct to apply this name to Satan. 
	"Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty;" Ezekiel 28:17-19 says, "you corrupted your wisdom by reason of your splendor. I cast you to the ground; I put you before kings, that they may see you.  By the multitude of your iniquities, in the unrighteousness of your trade, you profaned your sanctuaries. Therefore I have brought fire from the midst of you; it has consumed you, and I have turned you to ashes on the earth in the eyes of all who see you.  All who know you among the peoples are appalled at you; you have become terrified, and you will be no more."
	But verse 12 says that the King of Tyre is the subject of this prophecy.  It is possible that these passages make symbolic reference to Satan.  But that still does not mean they describe his origin.  Luke 10:18 and Revelation 12:9 both mention Satan being cast out of heaven AFTER he is Satan.
	There is no question that some angels have rebelled.
	"For if God did not spare angels when they sinned," 2 Peter 2:4 records, "but cast them into hell and committed them to pits of darkness, reserved for judgment."
	It is very possible that Satan is a "fallen angel" or, more likely, the leader of the angels who have rebelled against God. But we need to make sure that our confidence is no stronger than that which is revealed in the Bible.
	While we may not be entirely certain about the origin of the devil, there is no doubt about his future.
	"Then He will also say to those on His left," Jesus promises in Matthew 25:41, "'Depart from Me, accursed ones, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels."
	Where do we want to spend eternity?  It will either be with God and His angels or with the devil and his angels.  There is no other choice.  Perhaps we should increase our efforts to know and follow the truth.  For only the truth will set us free.

Unless otherwise noted, "Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE(R), (C) Copyright 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission." (www.lockman.org)