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This is a production of World Video Bible School.
To God be the glory.
We live in a world that is fascinated by angels.
The Bible has a lot to say about angels, as well. There are some 300
references in the Bible to God's heavenly messengers.
But just what is an angel?
In both the Hebrew Old Testament and the Greek New Testament the word translated,
"angel" simply means a messenger.
The fourth century church father Augustine once wrote,
"The name angel refers to their office not their nature.
You ask the name of this nature, it is spirit,
you ask its office, it is that of an angel,
which is a messenger."
My definition of angels, after having studied extensively what the Bible says
on the subject is this:
A class of the mortal spirit beings
neither human nor divine
who live in heaven and were created by God as his servants.
Now that's a lengthy definition. Let's unpack it and break it down little by little.
Let's ask first of all, what is the nature of angels?
The Bible teaches that angels, like God, their Creator,
are spirit beings. In Hebrews chapter 1 in verse number 7 we read,
"And of the angels He says:
'Who makes His angels spirits and His ministers a flame of fire.'"
In verse 14 this question is raised about angels:
"Are they not all ministering spirits
sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation?"
Now you might say, "Well that's not very helpful. What is a spirit like?"
There are two ways in which spirit beings are different from you and I.
In the first place, spirits are non-physical.
In Luke chapter 24 in verse 39 and in one of his post resurrection appearances
to his disciples, Jesus said this, "Behold my hands and my feet,
that it is I Myself. Handle Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have."
So, spirit beings are not flesh and blood beings like you and I.
Also, spirit beings are invisible.
That is, they cannot be seen with the naked eye.
The apostle Paul in Colossians chapter 1 verse 15 and 16 taught this:
"He is the image of the invisible God,
the firstborn over all creation.
For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth,
visible and invisible,
whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers.
All things were created through Him and for Him." Now notice those words:
thrones, dominions, principalities and powers.
If you do a little study on the Greek word so translated
you will learn that they refer to different ranks or orders of angels.
They are among the invisible creation of God. Consider a couple of Bible examples.
In Numbers chapter 22, we find the story of Balaam recorded.
You remember that Balaam was a false prophet. And God sent an angel to punish
him but Balaam was not aware of the angel's presence. He was invisible
and it wasn't until God opened his eyes that he was then able to see the angel.
A very similar case is found in Second Kings chapter 6.
Here we find the prophet Elisha under siege
by the soldiers of the king of Syria but he's completely unworried about their threat
because he has . . . God had sent a core of angels
as fiery horseman in chariot to surround the enemy army.
Now Elisha, being a propeht, could see them but his servant could not
because they were invisible
to the unaided natural eye. So angels being spirit beings are invisible.
If there were one standing beside you right now you would never know it.
Angels are also immortal.
In Luke chapter 20 in verse 36 Jesus, in teaching about those
who attained to the resurrection to eternal life said,
"Nor can they die anymore,
for they are equal to the angels in our sons of God,
being sons of the resurrection."
Now that implies that angels are immortal.
That is, once created they do not die.
Also we know from the Bible that angels are neither human nor divine.
Now again, consider Luke 20:36. Here's something else that we learn from it.
That we become like the angels.
We don't become angels when we die. That's another popular myth
and you so often hear it at the funeral of children,
but it's simply not biblical.
Consider also Psalm 8 verse 5
where we read, "For you", that is God, "you have made him", that is mankind,
"a little lower than the angels.
And you have crowned him with glory and honor."
Of course, in the resurrection Luke 20:36
that inequality will be remedied, we will be equal to the angels in that day
but in this present age, we have been made by God a lower than the angels.
Now, from all of these biblical facts about angels we can draw certain conclusions.
For example, as angels are spirit beings,
that is, they are without physical flesh-and-blood bodies
then it must be the case that they are without gender.
Gender of course is a product of our physical bodies.
Furthermore since angels are immortal
and don't marry or reproduce and they do not die,
then it must be the case that their numbers are static. There are no baby angels being born.
We know from the Bible that angels have superhuman power and knowledge.
We know this because of the wonderful miracles
that they so often performed throughout the pages of the Bible.
And of course God has used them to supply revelation to man
that we would otherwise have no way of knowing.
So there are...angels are greater in power and knowledge
than we mere mortals.
We also know that angels have free will.
We know this because some of them abuse their freedom of choice
and chose to rebel against God.
In 2nd Peter 2 verse 4, the Scripture says,
"For if God did not spare the angels who sinned,
but cast them down to hell and delivered them into chains of darkness
to be reserved for judgment."
So there were angels who sinned.
From this fact it necessarily follows
that angels had freedom of choice.
Angels display a variety of emotions in the Bible as well.
You might remember in Job 38 verse 7
we're told that the angels, "shouted for joy" when God laid the foundation of the Earth.
And Luke chapter 1 verses 18 and the angel, Gabriel, displayed
righteous indignation at the doubt of Zacharias when informed
he and his wife, Elizabeth, would miraculously conceive a child in their old age
who would be John the baptist.
In First Peter chapter 1 and verse 12
we learn that angels have curiosity. Here's an intriguing passage.
The apostle Peter wrote, "To them" referring to the Old Testament prophets
"To them it was revealed that, not to themselves,
but to us", that is to we Christians,
"to us they were ministering the things which have now been reported to you
through those who preach the Gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven".
And then note this last thought:
"things which angels desire to look into."
Angels, in other words, are curious about the Gospel truths
that had been revealed to us
by the Holy Spirit through the apostles and written in the New Testament.
Now we noted a moment ago that there are some things
that angels have superior knowledge, they have supernatural knowledge.
But interestingly enough God has blessed us to know some things that they do not know.
In the New Testament God has revealed to us certain things
that they want to know more about, they desire to look into,
they are curious about those things.
That is a tremendous blessing. Here's an area where God has blessed we Christians
in a way that he has not blessed angels.
And that should certainly motivate us to be even more desirous of understanding
what the Bible teaches.
Now let's raise this question:
Where did angles come from?
Well, the Bible teaches in a number of places that they were created by God.
In Psalm 148 for example beginning in verse 1, the Bible says,
"Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord from the heavens;
Praise Him in the heights! Praise Him, all His angels; Praise Him all His hosts!
Praise Him sun and moon; Praise Him all you stars of light!
Praise Him you heavens of heavens, and you waters above the heavens!
Let them praise the name of the Lord," now mark this please,
"For He commanded and they were created."
Angels then, like everything else that exists in heaven and on Earth were created by God.
We also know that they were created before Genesis 1 verse 1.
In Job 38 verse 7, once again, the Bible says that the angels,
"when the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy"
In context, the reason they are shouting for joy and singing together
is that God has laid the foundations of the Earth.
Now, it follows therefore that they existed sometime prior to that time.
We don't know how long before the beginning, in Genesis chapter 1,
God created the angels but we do know that they were in existence
and that they sang for joy when God laid the foundations of the Earth
in Genesis 1 verse 1.
We also know that according to Hebrews 12 verse 22,
that God created an innumerable company of angels, millions of angels.
The Bible says in this verse, "But you have come to Mount Zion into
the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem,
to an innumerable company of angels."
We know the purpose for which they were created was to serve God.
In Psalm 103 verses 20 and 21 the Bible says,
"Bless the Lord, you his angels, who excel in strength, who do His word,
heeding the voice of His word. Bless the Lord all you His hosts,
You ministers of His, who do His pleasure."
So angels were created to serve God
but part of the will of God is that they also serve his children.
Again in Hebrews 1 verse 14 the Bible says of the angels,
"Are they not all ministering spirits set forth to minister for those
who will inherit salvation?"
It is a rhetorical question that of course expects the answer:
Yes, indeed.
They are God's ministering spirits.
Sent forth why?
To minister to you and I, those who will inherit salvation.
Well what is the work of angels?
When we study all that the Bible has to say on this subject
we can break their work down into 4 areas.
In the first place, the Bible says that angels worship and glorify God.
In the wonderful vision of the throne of God
that the prophet Isaiah saw and recorded in chapter 6 of his book
in verse 3 and 4 we note the seraphim who praise God:
"Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole world is full of His glory!"
In Revelation chapter 5 verses 11 and 12 the apostle John recorded a
similar scene in his vision of the throne of God in heaven. Here, John wrote,
"Then I looked and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne, the
living creatures, and the elders;
and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand,
and thousands of thousands," millions of angels,
"saying with a loud voice: 'Worthy is the Lamb who was slain
to receive power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and blessing!'"
In the second place, angels fight against the enemies of God.
Consider with me what the Bible says in Genesis chapter 19
beginning in verse 11 and reading through verse 13.
This is the story of the angels in *** with Lot.
The Bible says of the angels that went to visit Lot,
"and they struck the men who were at the doorway of the house with blindness,
both small and great, so that they became weary trying to find the door.
Then the men said to Lot, "Have you anyone else here? Son-in-law, your sons, your daughters,
and whomever you have to be in the city--take them out of this place!
For we," notice this, "we will destroy this place because the outcry against them
has grown great before the face of the Lord and the Lord has sent us to destroy it."
Now mark that for a moment. When the fire and brimstone fell,
it was through the agency of these two angels,
sent to investigate the wickedness of ***
that the judgment of God was delivered.
So angels fight against the enemies of God's people.
We see also from this same text
the third ministry of angels revealed.
Namely, they function as God's messengers, revealing His word to mankind.
They told Lot and his family to flee from the doomed city.
Finally, we see the fourth work of angels illustrated in Genesis 19.
Namely that they served and guarded God's faithful children.
Having spent a fruitless night trying to warn his family to flee
from the doomed city, in Genesis 19 beginning in verse 15, Moses wrote this,
"When the morning dawned,
the angels urged Lot to hurry saying, 'Arise, take your wife and your two
daughters who are here, lest you be consumed in the
punishment of the city.' And while he lingered..." Isn't that amazing?
*** is but moments from being destroyed by God and his angels
and yet the Bible says some reason there Lot was, he was lingering.
Now it just shows how deeply the devil and the world can get their hooks into us
if we're not on our guard. But continuing.
"And while he lingered, the men," that is the angels, "the men took hold of his hand
his wife's hand, and the hands of his two daughters, the Lord being merciful to him,
and they brought him out and set him outside the city.
So it came to pass, when they had brought them outside, that he said,
'Escape for your life!
Do not look behind you nor stay anywhere in the plain.
Escape to the mountains,
lest you be destroyed.'"
Now, here's the million-dollar question.
And I'm sure this is the question that's already occurred to you.
What are angels doing today?
As we learned in our previous lesson on the truth about angels
we know that angels are not bringing messages from God today.
Nor are they miraculously appearing today.
The Bible does teach that angels serve as the invisible agents of providence.
The Baptist evangelist Billy Graham once wrote a book about angels
called "God's Secret Agents" and I think that's an excellent description of the angels.
Now what is providence?
Providence is God's non-miraculous work performed through natural law and circumstances.
The book of Esther is a prime example.
If you read the book of Esther it is a remarkable story of
God's deliverance of his people from certain destruction
and yet there's not a single miracle performed in the book.
Nothing supernatural occurs in the book of Esther
and yet God's will is providentially done.
He operated behind-the-scenes in such a way to save his people from certain death.
Now in Genesis chapter 24,
we have an example of an angel operating as the invisible agent of God's providence.
In Genesis 24, Abraham has decided the time has come
for his son Isaac to take a wife.
He sends one of his servants
to go back to their homeland in Mesopotamia
and find there, a suitable bride for Isaac.
He assures him that an angel will go with him and help him succeed in his mission.
For example in Genesis 24 verse 7,
the Bible records Abraham is saying to his servant, "The Lord God of heaven,
who took me from my father's house and from the land of my family
and who spoke to me and swore to me saying,
'To your descendants I give this land,'
He will send His angel before you,
and you shall take a wife for my son from there."
The servant departs, he arrives in Mesopotamia and he comes to a well.
There he offered the following prayer to God in verses 12-14:
the Bible says, "Then he said,
'O Lord God of my master Abraham,
please give me success this day,
and show kindness to my master Abraham.
Behold, here I stand by the well of water,
and the daughters of the men of the city are coming out to draw water.
Now let it be that the young woman to whom I say,
'Please let down your pitcher that I may drink and she says, 'Drink.'
and I will also so give your camels a drink,' let her be the one you have appointed
for your servant Isaac.
And by this I will know that you have shown kindness to my master."
Now the first woman he meets is the beautiful and pure Rebecca.
He goes to speak to her family
and he mentions in verse number 40 that Abraham had said an angel would
guide him to the right woman.
And so they consent realizing that it is the will of God
for Rebecca to go back with the servant and marry Isaac.
Now here's the interesting thing about Genesis 24 and the angel
who helped the servant.
If you read the chapter very carefully
you will notice that the angel never spoke to the servant.
He never revealed himself to the servant
nor did he perform a single miracle.
Yet God used the angel behind the scenes in some way that we don't fully understand
to answer the servants prayer and to help him find Rebecca to be Isaac's wife.
Now friends and brethern, that is providence in action.
The Bible says in Hebrews 13 verse 2
that, "some have unwittingly entertained angels."
That's how angels operate today.
They operate as the invisible agents of God's providence. They'll not reveal themselves to us,
and yet we can and we should be thankful
that they so operate, according to the will of God,
in your life and mine.
Angels are providentially used by God.
Again in Hebrews 1:14 quoting this time from the American Standard Version,
the Bible says of angels, "Are they not all ministering spirits,
sent forth to do service for the sake of them that shall inherit salvation?"
The Greek text literally says they are continually sent forth.
In order to serve you and I that will inherit salvation one day.
The Bible also teaches in Luke chapter 16 verse 22
that the angels carried the spirit of the righteous beggar Lazarus to paradise.
Friends, as God is no respector of persons
I'm sure that every faithful saint
who has closed his eyes in death,
has opened them in the next world
to find their spirits with that same angelic escort to paradise.
Though we in this present age
will not speak to or see
or encounter an angel in any obvious way,
friends and brethren the Bible does teach that one day all of us
will see an angel and that day is the Judgment Day.
According to Jesus in Matthew chapter 25 verses 31-33, when he returns
all of the angels will accompany him on the Judgment Day.
Our Lord said, "When the Son of Man comes in His glory,
and all the holy angels with Him,
then he will sit on the throne of His glory.
All the nations will be gathered before him,
and He will separate them one from another,
as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats.
And he will set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left."
All of humanity, then on the last great day will be separated into these two groups:
the sheep and the goats, the saved and the lost.
The sheep representing the saved are welcomed into heaven.
In Matthew 25:21, the Bible says that he will say to those on his right hand,
"Come, you blessed of My Father, enter the kingdom prepared for you
from the foundation of the world."
The devil in his angels, on the other hand, along with all of sinful humanity,
will be cast into hell forever.
In Matthew 25 verse 41 the Bible says
that he will say to those on his left hand,
"Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels."
In Matthew chapter 13 verses 47-50, Jesus taught the parable of the dragnet,
which shows is that the angels will not be inactive, they will not be mere
window dressing on the day of judgment.
In deed, they will separate humanity into these two great groups
and enforce the Lord's judgments.
The Bible says, "Again the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet
that was cast into the sea and gathered some of every kind, which,
when it was full they drew to shore;
and they sat down and gathered the good into the vessels, but threw the bad away.
So it will be at the end of the age.
The angels will come forth,
separate the wicked from among the just and cast them into the furnace of fire.
There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth."
Friends, if the Judgment Day were today,
what group would God's angels put you in?
In Matthew 25 verse 46,
concluding the judgment of the sheep and the goats,
the Bible simply says (Jesus speaking),
"And these," meaning the goats,
"will go away into everlasting punishment
but the righteous into eternal life.�