2018-05-04
Good Morning Dear Ones,
As promised last week, our subject will be angels. Until I read Angels by Dr. Billy Graham [Word Publishing, 1994, SWC 526212], I didn’t spend too much time thinking about them. To me, they were something made of paper and cloth that I put on my Christmas tree. But, I have come to believe that angels are real and that they are God’s heavenly servants. COL 1: 16, “For through Him [Christ] God created everything in heaven and on earth, the seen and the unseen, including spiritual powers, lords, rulers, and authorities. God created the whole universe through Him and for Him.” God created everything from nothing, the highest angel in heaven and mankind on earth. There are several orders of angels. 1) archangel. Scripture designates Michael, the chief angel and guardian angel of Israel, as an archangel [Jude 9]. We have Biblical grounds for believing that Lucifer was the archangel before his fall. The archangel is the principle or chief angel over the others, and Michael now holds that post [DN 12: 1]. The glimpse we get of the unseen world is brief and occurs in DN 10: 21. He is a messenger of the Law and judgment, who appears in REV12: 7-12, leading the armies that battle Satan, the great dragon, and his demons. Michael will finally be victorious in the battle. Michael will accompany Christ at His second coming and will shout that wonderful news that Christ is returning and that those faithful who have physically died and await their resurrection will hear him shout, “…the dead in Christ shall rise first” [1 THESS 4: 16].
2) The angel Gabriel, whose name in Hebrew means “God’s Hero, God is great, or the mighty one,” is the messenger angel of mercy or promise, He carries messages to people from God. He bears good news in DN 8: 16 and 9: 21, as well as LK 1:19 and 26. When he tells Daniel, “…Understand the vision,” he lays out God’s plan for the sequence of events in the end times [DN 9: 23]. We also see Gabriel in the NT in LK1: 19, as he announces to Zacharias the birth of his son, John, and John’s ministry as the forerunner to Jesus. It is Gabriel, who appears to Mary with the news of Christ’s birth to come [LK 1: 30-33]. 3) seraphim are next, and we find them in IS 6: 1-7, when God needs specific angels to purify and cleanse His human servants. I suspect they are the ones who are on the mercy seat of the Arc of the Covenant above it. Their ministry is to praise the name and character of God in heaven. They have six wings, two which cover their faces, two which cover their feet, and two used for flying. They are indescribably beautiful. 4) cherubim are next, and they are found beside God’s throne. They are included in the plan for the tabernacle in the wilderness and the Ark of the Covenant. EZK 10 pictures them with hands, feet, and wings. They are “full of eyes” encompassed by “wheels within wheels.” In this chapter, there is a prophecy of the destruction of Jerusalem. The gradual withdrawal from Jerusalem of God’s glory happens in EZK 10. Both seraphim and cherubim constantly glorify God. Both Paul and Peter report that God has set apart all who believe in Christ as “no longer strangers but members of God’s household [EPH 2: 19] and “a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation who should show forth the praises of Him, Who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light” [1 PET 2: 9]. EPH 3:12 lets us know that the inner sanctuary of God’s throne is always open to those who have repented of sin and trusted Christ as Savior. Many people the “living creatures” often mentioned in REV are cherubim. No matter how great they are, their glory is dim in comparison to that of the Father and the Son. Angels protect us and deliver us, even though they are mostly unseen.
As much as Satan has his stronghold on earth right now, he is already defeated due to the sacrifice of His physical life that Christ made on the cross [JN 12: 31; JN 16: 11]. Christ has abolished spiritual death and brought immortality to those in God’s light. He has gone to the right of God’s throne in heaven -with angels, authorities, and powers in submission to Him [1PET 3: 22]. They rejoice in the salvation of sinners.
PRAYER: O Lord, according to COL 2: 20, we who believe have died to worldly priorities. However, we are imperfect and still in need of sanctification. As sinners, we acknowledge our need for You and for forgiveness for these sins. King David, in PS 51, confessed his sins just as we should confess ours. If we are unaware of our sins, then You will help us uncover them. We are seeking You out for this purpose and for Your wisdom through the Holy Spirit. For it is You alone, Who can show us Your will and the path we should take to obey it. You have promised to move us forward in our spiritual maturity, and we praise and thank You for this. The Good News of the Gospel of Jesus Christ allows us to know we can always count on Your love, just as He does. While most of the time we can’t see or hear angels at work for You in our best interests, we believe they are real and obeying Your commands. There are supernatural truths beyond our limited perspective or understanding, that describe them, their work, Your attributes and deeds. However, we can see the results of these things, which lead us to believe they are real. We confess our sins [readers: confess yours at this time in this prayer], knowing full well that if our confession is genuine, we will be forgiven. We believe that this includes acknowledgement of the sin and stopping the thoughts or behavior. Our relationship with You, Dearest Father, matters tremendously to our opportunity for eternal life. We love You and praise You. We thank You and offer You our obedience, in the holy/mighty name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
NEXT WEEK: I am led to write about the main messages of COL 3 -4: 6 as they apply to our present and future life. It’s entirely possible that you feel skeptical about what I’ve written in this devotion. That’s because the Bible describes a system that God has set up to carry out His plan for us that involves supernatural appearances and behavior. Of course, God has supernatural powers that enable Him, with the help of Christ and the angels, to carry out creation, protection of humans, and other parts of His will. When we look around us, we see the results of His creation, i.e. beautiful scenery, animals, plants, etc. It is true that every society, whether primitive or complex has knowledge of a “greater power” that affects human lives. In my innermost being, I know that Being is God, a God with three personalities, i.e. the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Because intangible phenomena, like the subjects in today’s devotion, can’t be held in the hand, completely described, or fully understood by humans, we must accept them on faith. I testify to their existence and the love our God has for us from my many years of experience and faith in them. It is my prayer that each of you who reads my writing will come to the same conclusions. The Bible is an amazing book, one that has its own supernatural properties. I hope you will derive the joy and inner peace that faith in Christ gives. Praise and thanks be to Christ!
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn
JS 24: 15
© Lynn Johnson 2018. All Rights Reserved.
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