Biblical review on Angels
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As i browse through the secular bookstores i saw quite a few books regarding angels, how to contact your guardian angels, and etc....
It really disturbs me to see such books as well as to hear teachings about angels when in the first place i am certain these are not manner in which we should view angelic beings.
With that intention, I will post a few post for the next few days to come to allow people to know slightly better what does the Bible teaches concerning angels and the correct manner in which we deal with angels. -
Chapter One: Existence of angels
The Bible is full of angelic encounters. Right from the start in the book of Genesis all the way through Revelation we do see references made to angels. Biblical figures such as Hagar, Abraham and Moses from the Old Testament encounter angels. There are many more cases of angelic encounter by other Old Testament figures but i do not have the time to type them all. Moses was called by the angel of the LORD to deliver the Israelites when he saw the burning bush. Balaam was confronted with an angel as seen in Numbers 20-22.
Angels are not imaginary creatures. Rather, they are actively involved in the work of God as seen in the scriptures. Their roles are mainly worshippers of God, messengers, protectors and instruments of God's judgement.
In contrast to the popular idea that angels have wings. It is good to note that there are no mentioning of angels having wings in the Bible. The Bible describes angels to that of appearance of men in dazzling apparels. The only case when wings are used in descriptions are specifically for 2 classes of spirit beings known as Seraphim and Cherubim. These are not angels but they are separate categories of the heavenly beings.
Seraphim have six wings, Cherubim have four wings. Detailed description of these creatures can be seen in Isaiah 6 and Ezekiel 10.
In the book of Daniel, we saw the mentioning of names to angels. Gabriel and Michael are the two named angels in the canonical books of the Bible. According to legends, there are also angels such as Uriel, Raphael and others but we do not consider them simply because the Bible make no apparent mention of them. The angel Gabriel is found in Daniel 9 and Luke 1. He appears in Daniel 9 to bring revelation concerning the future of Israel and in the gospel, he came to annonce the conception of Christ in Mary's womb. Michael on the other hand, is seen to be the defender and guardian angel of Israel and the archangel that is going to confront satan, the fallen archangel. -
When the Bible refers to angels. It is crucial to note that there are two distinct groups of angels. The holy angels also known as the elect angels are God's angels. They served God and obey His commands. On the contrary, the angels of satan, the fallen and rebellious angels are known as evil spirits or demons. They are the one third of angelic beings that go against God and rebel aganist Him and as a result banished from heaven.They are unholy and unclean, full of corruption and wickedness. They are disobedient to God and works against God's purpose and ways.
One particular angel mentioned in the Old Testament - The angel of the LORD, or the angel of YAHWEH is a special angel distinct from all the other holy angels. When one read the Old Testament, he or she will realise that this angel often appears not merely as a messenger but in this angel we see the presence of God Himself. The burning bush encounter is a conversation between Moses and God but when we read we see that it was the angel of the LORD appearing. There are several cases in which this special angel appeared bringing words from God in special authoritative tone and his appearance suddenly vanish in the New Testament. Bible scholars suspect that this angel of the LORD is Christ Himself before His incarnation as human being. We shall talk more about this angel in time to come. -
When the Bible refers to angels. It is crucial to note that there are two distinct groups of angels. The holy angels also known as the elect angels are God's angels. They served God and obey His commands. On the contrary, the angels of satan, the fallen and rebellious angels are known as evil spirits or demons. They are the one third of angelic beings that go against God and rebel aganist Him and as a result banished from heaven.They are unholy and unclean, full of corruption and wickedness. They are disobedient to God and works against God's purpose and ways.
One particular angel mentioned in the Old Testament - The angel of the LORD, or the angel of YAHWEH is a special angel distinct from all the other holy angels. When one read the Old Testament, he or she will realise that this angel often appears not merely as a messenger but in this angel we see the presence of God Himself. The burning bush encounter is a conversation between Moses and God but when we read we see that it was the angel of the LORD appearing. There are several cases in which this special angel appeared bringing words from God in special authoritative tone and his appearance suddenly vanish in the New Testament. Bible scholars suspect that this angel of the LORD is Christ Himself before His incarnation as human being. We shall talk more about this angel in time to come. -
The New Testament just like the Old do talks about angelic beings -both elect angels and fallen ones. The ministry of Jesus on earth often involves angels. After Jesus went thru the temptation by satan, angels came and ministered to Him. The empty tomb of Christ is one of the many occasions angels were seen other than His birth. Holy angels appear to the disciples when Jesus ascended into heaven telling them that He will come back again in the same manner He ascended. They also rescued Peter from prison, transport Philip from one place to another.
The Epistles talks about holy angels in 1 Timothy 5:21 and fallen angels in 2 Peter 2:4. In Colossians 2:15,18 warns us against the worship of angels. There are also mentioning of Christ having authority over the angels.
Jesus also cast out fallen angels from people, the demon-possessed and rebuke them in several occassions. The fallen angels do recognise the identity of Jesus and understands fully His ability and power over them.
The last book of the Bible, Revelation is another book with ample description of angels of both kinds. We see angels worshipping the Lamb of God, protect and preserve the people belonging to God and lastly to pour out God's wrath in judgment on the wicked world. They are involve in the last days.
With that, i have come to a brief summary on the topic existence of angels. Other time i shall move on and talk about the origin of angels...where do they come from?
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The source is from?
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Bible..other sources will not be considered in my posts to come.Originally posted by M©+square:The source is from? -
hmmm...so there is no such things as Guardian Angels? and these so called "guardian angels" people called are actually demons? ewwweee...luckily i dun do invoking of spirits.
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Huh? The contents from first four post wasn't from the bible.Originally posted by NeonTetra:Bible..other sources will not be considered in my posts to come. -
no la..i meant all my posts since first post were from Bible source.Originally posted by M©+square:Huh? The contents from first four post wasn't from the bible.
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M©+square left the thread and goes to study the subject of Angelology.
Tricky doctrines here.
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as u see from the above biblical descriptions..angels r not to be worhsipped, contacted or prayed to. The are merely servants of God and they take orders from Him.Originally posted by OrangeFreak:hmmm...so there is no such things as Guardian Angels? and these so called "guardian angels" people called are actually demons? ewwweee...luckily i dun do invoking of spirits.
Guardian angels are names talking about angels guarding ppl. in a way...it is so because God's angels indeed will protect His people but no need to resort to pray and contact them. By doing so, u might contact fallen angels instead. -
indeed the topic on angels are misunderstood by many. the so-called books abt angels out there r not accurate. that is why i want to make right ppl's idea on angels.Originally posted by M©+square:M©+square left the thread and goes to study the subject of Angelology.
Tricky doctrines here. -
My problem is. Your post ain't very 'right' either.Originally posted by NeonTetra:indeed the topic on angels are misunderstood by many. the so-called books abt angels out there r not accurate. that is why i want to make right ppl's idea on angels. -
Please substantiate your statement, or at least provide an example of what he said that isn't 'right', in your opinion, so we know what you mean.Originally posted by M©+square:My problem is. Your post ain't very 'right' either. -
hmm...perhaps u can point out where my wrongs are and of course my posts r not theologically flawless...the idea is biblical maybe my words r not so clear. feel free to discuss but i got to make this clear that all discussions here is based on the biblical concepts about angels.Originally posted by M©+square:My problem is. Your post ain't very 'right' either. -
Chapter Two: Origin of angels
Where do angelic beings come from? The Bible started with the book of Genesis narrating the creation of the heavens and the earth and everything in it. We read that God made the sun, moon, plants, animals and finally the unique creation of Adam and later Eve. We never read about the occasion in which the angels were created. Infact throughout the Bible, the reality of angels is assumed. The Bible simply refer to angels as if people already know who they are. The reality of angels is somewhat similar to the reality of God. Their existence is assumed and need no further explanations. However, we know from scriptures that God made all things both visible and invisible and from that we know thet God created angels.
So when did God created angels? Although there is no mentioning of such in the Bible, we can infer from the temptation of the first couple in the Garden Of Eden. Right at the start of human history, satan disguised himself in the form of a serpent and from this we can know that God created the angels before He created the physical world we see today.
Angels like human beings and all other created order owe their origins from God. The difference between angels and us is that they do not have a physical body but we do. Other differences is that they are servants of God and ministers of God and have tremendous powers and in the Old Testament we do read about one angel able to defeat a large number of human fighters. Angels are able to fly but that doesnt mean they possess wings and the Bible often tells us that people who encounter angels do not realise that they have seen one simply because they appear in the likeness of men.
Satan and his angels also comes from God. We need to understand that one third of the angelic beings led by satan rebelled against God and as a result banish from heaven into the atmosphere. That is why the New Testament refer satan as 'prince of the powers of the air' that simply tells us the realm in which they function and by no means make oxygen toxic to us. haha
The remaining two thirds are the holy/elect angels we have read about previously. With that in mind, we need to know that God still have powers over satan and his fallen angels. No doubt what the holy angels can do, fallen angels can do likewise because they used to be like them. They still have tremendous powers and capability to do what they want. The basic difference between these 2 is that one is for God and the other in opposition of God. -
I have questions.
1. Do angels have free will? Yes right? Or else how could Lucifer turned away from G-d? If they have free will, mean we not unique in G-d's creation liao.
2. I assume Lucifer is not omnipresent, so he cannot be at two places at the same time? So there's no way he can affect two person at the same time? It is strange why people always refer to any devil as Satan or Lucifer when it could be the doings of his followers.
3. Do you think G-d and Lucifer still plays Job games with us today? Like G-d wager with the Devil and allows misfortune to befall a good christian. -
A. I think this is possible. God is still in full control over all. And we see in Revelation that God let loose the evil spirits from the Pit and allos them to torment and cause havoc on the earth before the end of world.Originally posted by Icemoon:I have questions.
1. Do angels have free will? Yes right? Or else how could Lucifer turned away from G-d? If they have free will, mean we not unique in G-d's creation liao.
A. yes angels have free will. obey or defy God as seen in the case of lucifer and his angels. The difference between angels and us is that their free will has irreversible consequences. Satan and demons dont repent and come back to God. They cant be redeemed by Jesus. We on the contrary is able to repent of our sins and be saved. We r unique.
2. I assume Lucifer is not omnipresent, so he cannot be at two places at the same time? So there's no way he can affect two person at the same time? It is strange why people always refer to any devil as Satan or Lucifer when it could be the doings of his followers.
A. Good observation. Yes indeed satan is limited and he is not like God who is omnipresent. Satan and his demons cannot be at two places the same time. But we see havoc everywhere because there are a large numbers of demons everywhere just like the holy angels are everywhere.
3. Do you think G-d and Lucifer still plays Job games with us today? Like G-d wager with the Devil and allows misfortune to befall a good christian. -
due to busy schedule..the remaining posts will not come so quickly. stay tuned......