In my RSTD 395 class, we recently had a class based around the question are angels real? I did some research to back my opinion and I feel as though this evidence is sufficient enough to persuade anyone.
From past experiences
and teachings that I have been a part of throughout my life the answer to the
question is easy. Most of the time, people associate angels as being a human
type being that is white in color, has feathery wings on their back, and have a
glowing halo above their heads. This is a nice depiction but I do not believe
that this is what angels look like. Angels are the mediators or “messengers”
between heaven and earth. Angels can be invisible but I also believe that
angels can look just like us and come to earth to serve a significant purpose
all the while nobody even knows it. If we look into the Bible, angels are
talked about a whopping 273 times. We can find that angels were created by God
in Genesis 2:1 “Thus the heavens and the earth, and all the host of them,
were finished” (NKJV). As well as in Colossians 1:16 “For by him
all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible,
whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by
him and for him” (NIV). In the book of Matthew chapter 22 verse 33,
angels are mentioned as not being capable of marriage “At the resurrection
people will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the
angels in heaven” (NIV). We can see that angels are wise beings and have
great intellectuality, being messengers of God “...while I was still in
prayer, Gabriel, the man I had seen in the earlier vision, came to me in
swift flight about the time of the evening sacrifice. He instructed me and said
to me, "Daniel, I have now come to give you insight and understanding” (Daniel 9:21-22). And we can also see that angels do indeed
have the capability to fly, which is another common attribute that people
associate angels with. Also in Daniel 9:21 it states “... while I was still
in prayer, Gabriel, the man I had seen in the earlier vision, came to me in
swift flight about the time of the evening sacrifice” (NIV), and in
Revelation 14:6 it claims that “And I saw another angel flying through the
sky, carrying the eternal Good News to proclaim to the people who belong to
this world—to every nation, tribe, language, and people “ (NLT).
The Bible gives us
some more facts about angels and some are as follows:
· - Angels are
spiritual beings (Psalm 104:4, Ephesians 3:10)
· - Some angels
are invisible (Job 4:15-18)
· -Angels are
not meant to be worshipped (Revelation 19:10)
· -Angels have a
will (Isaiah 14:12-14, Jude 1:6)
· -Angels are
subject to Christ ( 1 Peter 3:22)
· -Angels have
emotions such as joy and longing ( Job 38:7, 1 Peter 1:12)
· -Unlike God,
angels are not omnipresent, omnipotent, or omniscient ( Daniel 10:12-13, Jude
1:9)
· -There are too
many angels to count (Psalm 68:17,
Hebrews 12:22)
· -Most angels
remain faithful to God (Revelation 5:11-12)
*Some
do not, such as Lucifer who was a fallen angel
There are many types
of angels and they go by many different names. Some are called ministers,
messengers, watchers, hosts, sons of the mighty, Cherubim, sons of God,
chariots, among others. These names are strong, powerful names but the angels
that intrigue me the most are called Seraphim. In chapter 6 of Isaiah we see
the description of these immense beings. The prophet Isaiah described these
beings as the “fiery, burning ones”. These angels have a total of six wings,
verses 2-4 state “Above him were seraphs, each with six wings: With two wings
they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they
were flying. And they were calling to one another: ‘Holy, holy, holy is the
Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.’ At the sound of their
voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with
smoke.” These angels continually worship God and are beings of pure light.
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