Angels 101
Angels are celestial beings, usually benevolent, who occupy the supernatural world. They are considered to be powerful and capable of influencing the affairs of humanity.
Many Christian traditions, such as Catholicism, Anglicanism and Eastern Orthodoxy, teach that angels are created beings. The Bible says they were present before God’s own creation of the world (Job 38:7). It also says they were sent to Earth with messages from their Lord (Daniel 10:10-14).
The Bible reveals only a few characteristics of these mysterious creatures. They are powerful spiritual beings who take care of the people on earth in an unseen way.
What is an Angel?
The Bible uses the word angel to describe both human and divine messengers. For example, Gen. 32:24 describes Jacob’s vision of a ladder, which is explained to be a group of angels. God is also called an angel (Psalm 34:7). From this we can see that the term “angel” can include both human and divine messengers in some cases, though it’s typically used for superhuman beings like the angels found in Scripture.
The majority of the book of Hebrews discusses angels who minister to humanity (Heb. 1:14-15). They are invisible but nevertheless have great power and authority (Heb. 1:14) and can therefore minister in powerful ways that surpass what humans can do.
When discussing angels, Christians will often ask whether they are all equal in stature or form (Gen. 16:7), referring to the hierarchy of beings in heaven. This question comes from Joachim of Fiore, a 14th century Christian theologian (1405-71). He taught that angels were all made of “godly matter” and therefore had more authority than lesser beings. The divine nature of angels meant that they were made from “purest light” and could therefore have no imperfections, while lesser angels were formed by “earthly elements. “
Function of Angels
Angels function as messengers from their Lord. Christ reveals what angels do: “But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. For he will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you” (John 16:13-14). During His earthly ministry Christ delegated His authority to angels. Out of His love and mercy, Christ would use angels as His servants to help save mankind (Matt. 19:10; Acts 5:19).
The Bible also says that each believer has a personal guardian angel that looks out for him or her (Genesis 24:7; Matt. 18:10; Acts 12:15). In the Old Testament, angels protected the people of Israel from their enemies (Psalm 34:7-9).
Angels guide people by leading them to the truth of God and speaking to them spiritually (Acts 7:53; Gal. 1:8). Though it’s often said that angels “minister” to believers, this doesn’t mean that they serve us as servants. They help believers out of love for God. The book of Hebrews says that Christ is the high priest who ministers to angels (Heb. 2:17-18). An angel’s function is not to serve us but tell us of God’s will (Psalm 103; Matt. 22:31-32).
Hierarchy of Angels
Scripture doesn’t really give any detailed information about the hierarchy of angels, though it does refer to “thrones” and “dominions” (Col. 1:16). Based on this we can say that there are different types of angels, some of whom have more authority than others.
Some Christians believe that angels are organized into a hierarchy that follows the same order as God. There are three main groups, each with its own angelic responsibilities: messengers (who carry out the commands of God); principalities (who work on earth; John 10:28); and powers (who oversee the heavens; Heb. 1:7-8).
Other Christians believe that angels are spiritual beings, some of whom may be more powerful than others. They believe that there is no hierarchy but rather that all angels work together to carry out God’s will.
Angels are often identified with a particular group of angels within the hierarchy. For example, the archangels Michael and Gabriel are believed to represent the principalities and powers respectively, while the archangel Raphael is associated with messengers.
Angels in Christianity
Angels are in christianity , as a non-corporeal spirit being, a clearly revealed in the Bible. Angels are also mentioned as being created by God, and according to the Bible, angels are immortal.
Angels are mentioned more than 150 times in Scripture. The names of angels appear in the Bible with the title “angel” or “messenger”, but not always with the name itself. For example, there is Michael the Archangel (also named “my warrior”) and Gabriel (the name means “man of God”). The apostle John uses the title of “angel” in his Gospel, but this is not the only place that it appears. The writer of Hebrews calls his main characters “angels”.
Christians believe that angels are spiritual beings who work for God. Jesus said to His disciples, “Do not be afraid, little flock; for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom” (Luke 12:32).
Guardian Angels
A guardian angel is a holy spirit being sent from the God to watch over and protect a person.
The Bible says it is possible to have a guardian angel (Zechariah 1:12-13) and also that God sends angels to guide individuals (Matt. 18:10). Each believer has an angel assigned by God who looks after him or her (Gen. 24:7; Matt. 18:10; Acts 12:15).
The belief in guardian angels is similar to the idea of the ancient Greeks that everyone has a personal deity who watches over him or her. Christians believe that guardian angel are real spiritual beings who are sent by God and that their main purpose is to help people believe in Christ. In some parts of the Bible, angels are described as protecting believers (Gen. 19:15-23; Acts 27:23-25), helping them (Gen. 24:7; Heb. 1:14), praying for them (Matt. 18:10), interceding and getting answers to prayers (Dan. 9:20-23; Acts 12:1-5).
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Conclusion
Angels are magnificent celestial beings, and their primary function is to serve people in the way of fostering trust and belief in Christ. They sometimes appear to people in dreams (Gen. 22:12; Matt. 18:10; 20:20-21; Luke 8:26), or in apparitions, which are visions of people that are not seen by the actual senses.
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