Essay By Dan

It has been my observation that angels are remarkable creatures, God created a wonderful group of beings that quietly move with power and grace behind the spotlight. I read a while back in a Billy Graham book they could be called God’s Secret Agents, not seeking to draw attention to themselves, but to do God’s bidding. One of the reasons I think we may not be personally aware of angels in our life is because they are able to do their job without a revelation to us. The Bible cites a limited number of instances when God has given us a glimpse of these beings at work.

The Bible does not precisely say how many angels exist. It was a “multitude” of the heavenly host that told the shepherds of Jesus’ birth (Luke 2:13). Daniel 7:10 tells us — Thousands upon thousands attended him; ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him. (NIV). That would suggest there are at least one hundred million angels—I suspect the host of angels is a force too vast to imagine. Perhaps that is why Job 25:3 asks — Can His forces be numbered? (NIV).

I wonder sometimes why Scripture does not provide a precise description of how angels look. We do have some verbal imagery; therefore, we know they can appear in different forms. Occasionally angels appear as ordinary humans; we are told it is possible to interact with angels without knowing. Hebrews 13:2 tells us — Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it (NIV).

Even though angels can be overwhelming in appearance, we should not worship angels. John tells us in Revelations 19:9-10 — the angel said … ‘Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!’ And he added, ‘These are the true words of God.’ At this I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, ‘Do not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and with your brothers and sisters who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! It is the Spirit of prophecy who bears testimony to Jesus’ (NIV).

A second time in Revelation 22:8–9 John tells us — when I heard and saw, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel who showed me these things. Then he said to me, ‘See that you do not do that. For I am your fellow servant, and of your brethren the prophets, and of those who keep the words of this book. Worship God’ (NIV). The angel would not accept John’s worship.

It seems prudent to mention Lucifer. I am not interested in promoting his role, I shall not magnify his feral rebellion. But it is necessary to mention him because we may encounter an angel with a message at some point in our Walk with God. We know there are holy angels and unholy ones (fallen angels or demons). If an awe-inspiring angelic being were to appear to us right now, we would be inclined to believe just about anything he said—it is hard to not be awestruck by something so powerful.

What do we do? Scripture tells us to assess any so-called angel’s message (or a teaching from any source) with what we find in God’s Word. “But even if we, or an angel from Heaven, preach any other teaching to you than what we have preached to you, let him be cursed” (Galatians 1:8 paraphrased). Simple? Ya. But we need to guard our hearts. We need to keep our wits about us. Test first. Evaluate any message that appears to be from a heavenly source before you commit. Align the message you are hearing with scripture. If it does not align with scripture, then discard the message. The Word of God does not lie, it is absolute truth. Trust the Logos. Trust the Word of God over all other messages.

I choose Jesus.