What the Bible Says About Angels

(Psalm 103:20) We must be very careful not to fall short of Scripture, and not to go beyond it. Angels are real, created beings, messengers of the Lord. Today we discover what the Bible says about them. Believe in angels...but trust in the Lord! (0949250224) ----more----

 

Angelology: The Doctrine of Angels

What does the Bible say about angels? In our world today, there's a great deal of speculation about these invisible creatures and who they are and what they do. And then some people on the other end of the spectrum say that's all imaginary. That's just make believe. It's like some children's fairy book tale.

It's something that was just concocted from the imagination of some person. But what does the Bible say? What does the Word of God teach about angels? In Psalm 103, verse 20, we read these words, "Bless the Lord, ye His angels, that excel in strength, that do His commandments, hearkening unto the voice of His Word."

I think that probably is one of the greatest summary verses on the doctrine of angels that you'll find in all of scripture because it reveals so many primary truths about them. Now there are many things we do not know about the angels. But there are a few things we do know. One is that they are created beings.

The Bible says that they are His angels. Where did they come from? They came from the Lord. And what do they exist for? Psalm 103 verse 20 answers that. They exist to do His commands. They hearken to the voice of one person. They don't come to do our bidding. Instead, they exist to do the bidding of their Creator.

Primarily, that is to bring Him worship and bring Him praise. The Bible says they are to bless the Lord. Everything they do is connected in some way to the glory of God. That's why when you talk about Satan and the fallen angels, their great sin was in detracting from the glory of their creator. Stealing from God, if you will, the glory that was due to His name alone.

Now these angels are higher than man, but they're lower than God. The Bible says here in Psalm 103 verse 20 that they excel in strength. They're greater than man. In the sense of their created abilities and yet they are not God. They should not be worshiped as God. I think there are several errors and misinterpretations when it comes to the subject of angels.

One is that some people have just outright rejected the idea of angels. Liberal theology attacks, anything that's miraculous or supernatural or invisible. They say, if you can't prove it, then it can't be. But that is totally against the principle of faith. So God's Word teaches that there are angels.

We're going to learn more about them. We can't reject them. Then, on the other hand, some people have made idols out of angels. Many people have perverted the place of angels in worship. They have exalted them to the place of a Savior to be prayed to, to be trusted in. And my friend, that's idolatry.

Colossians chapter 2, verses 18 and 19 says, Let no man beguile you of your reward. In a volunteer humility and worshiping of angels, intruding into those things, which he has not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind, and not holding the head, from which all the body, by joints and bands, having nourishment ministered and knit together, increaseth.

The bottom line is this, the angels must never take away from the place that Christ alone is worthy to have. Now that portion of scripture in Colossians 2 also tells us a third misinterpretation of angels. Some people reject them, some people make idols out of them, and then some very well intentioned people presume to know things about them that God's word is not clear on.

Sometimes writers of fiction have assumed and attributed things to God. To angels that are not scriptural they have overemphasized the place of angels. I want to tell you this. We must not fall short of scripture, but we certainly must not go beyond scripture. Let me say it this way. We must not be unwise about what is written.

We must be wise about what is written. In other words, we must know what does the Bible say about angels. Psalm 148, verse 2, and again in verse 5, we read these words, Praise ye Him, all His angels. Praise ye Him, all His hosts. Let them praise the name of the Lord, for He commanded, If you follow the angels back to their origin, you will find the one who is worthy of worship, and that is the God that the angels serve.

As a matter of fact, in scripture, when men fell down at the feet of created beings, of angels to worship, those angels very hastily said, Stand up, get up, don't worship me, worship God. Why? Because they reflect the glory of God, and they deflect all glory. back to God. Now, what do we know about angels from Scripture?

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 First of all, we know they're real. They exist. They appear all through the Word of God. They're mentioned 108 times in the Old Testament. Job tells us that they were p