Angels # 1
We're going to start a new series today on the subject of angels. The 1st thing that I want to talk about is the existence of angels.
I. For all those that believe in the Bible, angels are just as certain as the fact that God exists.
A. There are many that call themselves Christians & they believe in God, but they don't believe in angels, they don't believe that there is a Devil or even Hell.
1. But the Bible is very clear that there is a God, there are angels, there is a Devil & there is a hell.
2. I've never seen an angel but that doesn't matter.
a. The Bible says there are angels & that's all I need.
i. The Word of God is infallible.
b. 2TIM 3:16-17
i. The phrase “Inspiration of God” Literally means from the Greek, “God breathed.”
c. JOHN 1:1
i. Just as perfect as God is so is the Word of God.
ii. Totally without error.
d. I'll say this that all scripture is given by inspiration of God but not all scripture was inspired by God.
i. Not everything in the Word was inspired by God.
ii. God did not inspire Job to say “The Lord giveth & the Lord taketh away.”
a. That was Job saying that out of his own thinking.
iii. God did not inspire Herod to kill all the children 2 & under.
e. But God did inspire the writers of the Word to record exactly what happened so that we can learn by it.
3. There are no errors in the Word of God. If God says that there are angels then there are angels.
B. In the 1st writings of the Word of God, in the Pentateuch, Angels are referred to 32 times.
1. In (GEN 16) Hagar was comforted by an angel.
2. In (GEN 18) Abraham talked to & ate with angels.
3. In (GEN 19) 2 angels delivered Lot & his family from Sodom.
4. In (GEN 28) Jacob dreamed of angels.
5. In (GEN 32) Jacob wrestled with an angel.
i. Just in the book of GENESIS alone, we have 15 references to angels. Not to mention the other 17 times that angels are spoken of in the rest of the Pentateuch.
C. In the Historical books of the Bible (from JOSHUA 1:1- ESTHER 10:3) there are another 39 references to angels.
D. In the Prophets 24 more references.
E. In the Poetic (some say Wisdom books {Job, Proverbs, songs of Solomon., PSA, & ECC}) books 10 references.
F. All 4 authors of the Gospels report the existence of angels.
1. In (ACTS 1:11) we have the story of Jesus Ascension & how 2 angels appeared & said that Jesus was coming again.
2. In (ACTS 5:19) an angel opened the doors of the prison for the apostles.
3. In (ACTS 8:26) an angel told Philip where to go to minister. That was the incident of the Ethiopian.
4. In (ACTS 10) an angel appeared to Cornelius & told him to send for Peter.
5. In (ACTS 12:7) An angel came to Paul to deliver him from prison.
6. In (ACTS 27) an angel came to bring comfort to Paul.
G. In the rest of the Epistles including the book of REV. we have more than 100 references to angels.
1. All the writers of the NT except for James refer to angels.
2. They knew that there were angels.
II. Turn with me to 1TIM 5:21
A. The “Elect angels” here are talking about godly angels.
1. Now turn to JUDE 6
a. God did not create these angels so that they would fall nor did He create them fallen.
b. They left their 1st estate.
c. They abandoned their dwelling place with God through their act of sin. (2PET 2:4)
III. Let's look at the origin of angels now.
A. 1st of all we know that angels were created.
1. Only God is eternal, without beginning or an end. (God the Father, God the Son & God the HS)
a. God always was & always will be.
b. Some people say that Jesus was created.
i. COL 1:16-17
ii. If Jesus created ALL things, then He could not have been created.
iii. In (GEN 1:1) it says “In the beginning God created...”
a. The Word “God” in this V is “Eloheem” which is the plural of God, meaning God the Father, God the Son, & God the HS.
iv. Going back to (COL 1:17) from the NIV translation it says, “He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.”
a. {Bob Yandian more air in a chair.}
2. Angels have a beginning point, just like man.
a. PSA 148:2-5
b. This tells us how angels were created.
i. God spoke the Word & they were created.
3. But as far as when they were created we don't really know.
a. There are some things in the Word of God that can help us narrow it down a little.
B. The 1st appearance that we see of angels are in (GEN 3:24) where God set Cherubim at the Garden of Eden to guard the Tree of Life.
C. But we can narrow it down a little further.
1. MATT 25:41
a. Apparently angels were created before hell was.
2. GEN 2:17
a. What this V is saying is that “in dying thou shalt surly die.”
b. That's talking about spiritual death.
i. Spiritual death (separation from God) is hell.
c. Angels were created before (GEN 2).
3. But we can even narrow it down just a little further.
a. EZE 28:14
i. I'm not going to go on reading this, but you already know that this is talking about Satan.
ii. Go back 1 V to EZE 28:13
b. We see Satan, in his fallen state, as the serpent back in (GEN 3:1).
i. So Satan, who was an angel, must have been created sometime before man was ever created.
ii. At least 6000 years ago. Probably long before that.
D. GEN 2:1
1. Sometime when God was creating the heavens & the Earth, He also created angels.
IV. Why did God create angels?
A. If God is all powerful, which He is, why did God create angels?
1. NEH 9:6
2. REV 4:8
a. The NIV calls them living beings.
b. These living beings had 6 wings.
c. The angels that are called seraphims also have 6 wings.
i. Why were these living being, these angels created? To worship God.
B. (COL 1:16) says that all things were created by Him & for Him.
1. Every thing that was created was created to bring Him glory.
2. EPH 1:10-12
a. Weather it man or angels, we were created to glorify Him.
WOLCC SUN AM 10/31/93