Angels

Basic Christian Doctrines 19

 

1.   Angels are Real.

Angels are real beings. They are not myths. They are not the product of over-active imaginations, hallucinations, mistaken identities or hoaxes. They are not fairies, genies, brownies or  pixies. . They are as real as human beings. They are not “ghosts”, nor the spirits of dead people. They were created by God before He created Man, and they are higher than Man (more intelligent, stronger, older, never sleep, etc).

 

2.   Angels are Spirits.

Angels are frequently called “spirits” (Heb. 1:14). They do not have material physical bodies as we do (Luke 24:39). They live in the heavenly realm, but interact with us in the physical realm. They are invisible except for the rare times when God has let them become visible. They are personal. They have minds, memories, emotions, wills, consciences, morality, movement, can talk, etc. Unlike Man, their number is not increasing, for God is not creating any more of them, nor do they marry and reproduce (Mark 12:25). Though it is not stated that they are made in the image of God, in a sense they resemble God more than Man does: like God they are non-physical, holy, etc.

 

3.   Angels are Holy.

Scripture frequently describes them as “holy angels” (Mark 8:38, Rev. 14:10). It would seem that one third of the original angels fell into sin, leaving two-thirds as holy (Rev. 12). They never sinned and never will sin. Though they are moral beings with the capacity to sin, they never will fall. They always obey God (Psa. 103:20). Indeed, it is their highest delight to obey whatever God commands. This is what we should pray in the Lord's Prayer, “Thy will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven.” These holy angels are elect (I Tim. 5:21).

 

4.   Angels are Messengers of God.

The word “angel” in both Hebrew and Greek means “messenger, representative, one who runs an errand.” They speak on God's behalf. On some occasions, they worked miracles. They seem to have a place in the affairs of the universe in a variety of ways, such as involvement with the planets. They take orders from God alone. We cannot command them, nor even speak to them, let alone pray to them (for prayer is a form of worship).

 

5.    Angels Worship God.

 

Among the many duties of the holy angels is worship. Most of the glimpses into Heaven recorded in Scripture reveal the presence of angels involved in worship. Specifically, Isa. 6:3 and Rev. 4:6-9 describes how they sing and chant and fall down before the throne of God, saying “Holy, holy, holy.” They directly see God in His glory and reflect this glory back to Him. Though they are also given sight into what's happening here in the physical part of the universe, their main activity is that of worship. They are commanded to worship God, and they most willingly and swiftly obey (Psa. 29:1-2, 89:7, 103:20-21, 148:1-2). They worshipped Jesus at His birth (Heb. 1:6, Luke 2:9-14). We are forbidden to worship the angels (Col. 2:18, Rev. 22:8-9). One day, believers will join angels in the worship of God, but we will have a song to sing that even the angels cannot sing.

 

6.   Angels Have Rank.

Angels are sometimes described as “the host of heaven.” God Himself is “Lord Sabaoth”, Lord of the Hosts. “Host” means soldiers in an army. The holy angels are God's heavenly army in the war against Satan's army of fallen angels. Thus, they have rank. Scripture describes these as principalities, powers, rulers, thrones, etc (Eph. 1:20, 6:12, Col. 1:16, 1 Pet. 3:22, Rom. 8:38). The Bible also describes some angels as cherubim (Gen. 3:24) and others as seraphim, or burning ones (Isa. 6:2).

 

7.   Angels Oppose Demons.

There is a war going on in the supernatural realm between the good angels and the evil angels. Rev. 12 and parts of Daniel describe it, and a few other places give brief clues as to what is going on. Michael the Archangel is the highest ranking angel on one side, Satan on the other. These are the only two angels called “archangels”, which means “chief angels”. Christians and non-Christians are also involved in this spiritual war, but we do not see it as clearly as the angels do. While some popular writers have exaggerated and sensationalized this spiritual conflict, we should not ignore or trivialize it. It is real.

 

8.   Angels are Powerful.

They are called “mighty ones” (Psa. 103:20) and “powerful angels” (2 Thess 1:7). 2 Pet. 2:1 says that they are more powerful than we are. Two of them blinded all the homosexuals in Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen. 19:11). One angel slew 185,000 Syrians in a single night. They are not omnipotent, nor omnipresent or omniscient. But they are more powerful than we are. The fallen angels lost their holiness but not their power, at least not all of it.

 

9.   Angels Serve Christians.

Heb. 1:14 says of the good angels, “Are they not all ministering spirits sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation?” Several verses in Scripture indicate that there are indeed “Guardian Angels”, though it is difficult to say if this means that each Christian has one specific angel or many, whether they come and go, etc. Psa. 91:11-12 is perhaps the clearest text that speaks of this work of the angels. Angels also escort us to Heaven when we die (Luke 16:22). They will be sent by Christ at the Rapture to escort us to be with Him without dying (Matt. 24:31, 1 Thess. 4:16). Meanwhile, they protect us from seen and unseen dangers, such as from demons.

 

10. Angels Serve Christ.

The good angels serve our Lord Jesus in a variety of ways. First, since He is God, they take orders from Him and worship Him. When He was here on Earth, the angels served Him in several ways. They ministered to Christ after the 40 days in the wilderness, probably bringing Him food and water (Mark 1:13). When Christ was in the agony of sweating blood in Gethsemane, an angel appeared and strengthened Him (Luke 22:43-44). Christ told His captors that He had authority to call down thousands of angels to rescue Him (Matt. 26:53). Christ is not an angel, but is their Commander-in-Chief, even higher than Michael. He is higher than the holy angels and is their head (Col. 1:16, 2:10, Eph. 1:20-21, 1 Pet. 3:22). He is not their mediator per se, so far as salvation is concerned, for they do not need salvation. And though the angels are higher than we are, we will be elevated higher than the holy angels. They are the servants of the King of Kings, but we will be the Bride of the King of Kings.