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Angels
and the Hierarchy of the
Heavenlies.
By
Eddie Russell FMI
If
we ever think of the angels at all it would
probably be around Christmas time when Hymns and
Carols seem full of their presence. In many
homes, shopping centres and city malls around
the world you will find a Christmas tree topped
by a star or by a plastic angel. But how often
do we consider these magnificent creatures at
other times of the year? At this special time of
year even non-believers get caught up with the
warmth of love and friendship and somehow we
know that there is something more going on than
plastic angels and booze. None-the-less, it's a
pity that the angelic is a subject that is
rarely talked about, thought of or taught in
Catholic circles in recent times and yet there
is a wealth of spiritual assistance available to
every Christian in the Body of Christ who are
surrounded at all times by a great cloud of
witnesses
(Heb.12:1).
Sadly
there are some strange notions regarding the
Angels.
One such
notion is that when we die we become an angel and do good
for others. This is certainly the view of Oprah
Winfrey, but I am not sure where this idea comes from
except that I remember people using it as a way of
explaining what happens after death to young children. In
any event, it contradicts the Biblical understanding of
the Angelic which informs us that we will "Judge the
Angels". It would seem that these ideas come from
early folklore and fairy tales which have their roots in
a European pre-Christian era. This would no doubt be the
reason why so many Christians have rejected their
existence as childish notions unbecoming of an
intelligent adult.
However, in spite of this, the angelic has become very
popular in recent years with the advent of the New Age
Movement. Its adherents often use Christian
terminology such as "Guardian Angels" to describe
consultation with the dead or evil spirits. The angels
they are referring to were until recent years called
"Spirit Guides" or "Familiar Spirits" and are clearly
demonic, pagan and occult in origin. In an attempt to
clear up this confusion for Christians is the reason for
this short article. I hope that it will spread some light
on the reality and truth of God's Holy Angels whose role
is to minister to God and His people.
Ministering Spirits.
These angels
whom the Bible calls "Ministering
Spirits"
(Heb.1:14)
have many varying different roles and functions to
assist the Christian here on the earth. Not only do they
minister to God before the Throne day and night but they
also convey God's messages to His people.
Some have specific roles and are created to perform
specific tasks such as the Guardian Angels of countries,
territories and individuals. Although this subject is too
vast to enter into here, perhaps this short article will
allow you to study the subject further.
The Luciferic Rebellion and
The War in Heaven.
The Bible only
mentions the names of four angels from the countless
millions that have been created. They are Gabrielle,
whose name means, "God is Mighty", Michael, whose name
means, "Like God", Raphael, whose name means, "God
Heals", and Lucifer, whose name means, "Light Bearer".
All of them were created good!
It was Lucifer
who rebelled
against God and who through pride, coveted the Throne of
God and the worship that belonged to God alone. This
resulted in a mighty war in Heaven. Lucifer, along with
one third of the angelic host was defeated by the
Archangel Michael and was cast down from Heaven to the
earth where he became known as "Satan", a name which
literally means; "Adversary" as well as "Devil", which
means, "Accuser of the brethren".
So let us examine this
angelic war and its
outcome.
In Revelations chapter 12 we find the story. A great and
wondrous sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with
the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of
twelve stars on her head. She was pregnant and cried out
in pain as she was about to give birth. Then another sign
appeared in heaven: an enormous red dragon with
seven heads and ten horns and seven crowns on his heads.
His tail swept a third of the stars out of the sky and
flung them to the earth. The dragon stood in front
of the woman who was about to give birth, so that he
might devour her child the moment it was born. She gave
birth to a son, a male child, who will rule all the
nations with an iron scepter. And her child was snatched
up to God and to his throne. The woman fled into the
desert to a place prepared for her by God, where she
might be taken care of for 1,260 days.
*And there was war in heaven.* Michael and his angels
fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels
fought back. But he was not strong enough, and they
lost their place in heaven. The great dragon was
hurled down—that ancient serpent called the
devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was
hurled to the earth, and his angels with him.
Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say: “Now have
come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our
God, and the authority of his Christ. For the accuser
of our brothers, who accuses them before our God day and
night, has been hurled down. They overcame him by the
blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony;
they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from
death. Therefore rejoice, you heavens and you who dwell
in them! But woe to the earth and the sea, because the
devil has gone down to you! He is filled with fury,
because he knows that his time is short.”
When the dragon saw that he had been hurled to the
earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the
male child. The woman was given the two wings of a
great eagle, so that she might fly to the place prepared
for her in the desert, where she would be taken care of
for a time, times and half a time, out of the
serpent’s reach.
Then from his mouth the serpent spewed water like a
river, to overtake the woman and sweep her away with the
torrent. But the earth helped the woman by opening its
mouth and swallowing the river that the dragon had spewed
out of his mouth. Then the dragon was enraged at the
woman and went off to make war against the rest of her
offspring—those who obey God’s commandments and
hold to the testimony of Jesus. (Revelations 12 1-17)
Chapter 7 to 9, *And there was war in heaven*
refers to the events prior to the creation of Adam. We
find this in Genesis 2: 9, where God warns about two
trees in the middle of the Garden of Eden, the Tree of
Life, and the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.
Cast down before the creation of Adam, Lucifer,
referred to as the serpent is already on the earth.
The two trees with either eternal life or eternal
death were there before the creation of Adam, and so God
did not tempt Adam with the Tree of the knowledge of good
and evil as many might think, but simply warned Adam of
the danger and consequence already present.
Later in Luke 10: 17 - 20, the seventy-two disciples
return from a mission with joy and said to Jesus, "Lord,
even the demons submit to us in your name." He replied,
"I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. I
have given you authority to trample on snakes and
scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy;
nothing will harm you. However, do not rejoice that the
spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are
written in heaven."
Jesus referred to the war in heaven because he was
there. Jesus is the Word Incarnate; the Word that
created all things, including Lucifer and it is against
Jesus, the Word; truth, that Lucifer rebelled, and that
war continues to this very day.
Again, in Revelations 22: 1-6, we find the end of the
story regarding the triumph of the Tree of Life and its
consequence for us if we accept Jesus. Then the
angel showed me the river of the water of life, as
clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of
the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city.
On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing
twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month.
And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the
nations. No longer will there be any curse. The throne of
God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants
will serve him. They will see his face, and his name will
be on their foreheads. There will be no more night. They
will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the
sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will
reign for ever and ever. The angel said to me,
"These words are trustworthy and true. The Lord, the God
of the spirits of the prophets, sent his angel to show
his servants the things that must soon take place."
Scripture also refers to Lucifer by many other names
all of which describe his "fallen nature." These
names are, "Beelzebub", "Prince of Darkness", "King of
Tyre", "Father of Lies". "Day Star", "The Thief", "god of
this world" (cosmos: Gr. world system) but, never
Lucifer again. He is no longer entitled to that name
which described his original nature and ministry. Perhaps
this would be a good time to put Satan in his proper
place and perspective because in these days he is being
worshipped as a god by many people around the
world.
It becomes clear; Satan
(Lucifer) is not an equal and opposite of
God!
Just like all
the other angels he was created by God and therefore by
definition, he is not God. Satan is a creature and
therefore he is subject to God like all else in heaven
and earth and he has no more rights or power than God
allows.
Popular (New Age) thought adopts the concept of Yin
and Yang and believe this to be perfect balance and
harmony. However, it is self evident that this is
erroneous thinking; even the law of physics testifies to
this in that darkness is merely and absence of light, and
therefore, unlike light dispelling darkness, darkness
cannot enter light nor extinguish it. The only outcome of
the war between good and evil in this thinking is
perpetual war due to the neutralizing of this equality,
and hence there will never be peace with a Yin and Yang
or any New Age philosophy, but, it does keep us
entertained and Hollywood in business.
The beginning chapters of the Book of Job show the
true inequality very clearly(Job 1:6-12 - Job
2:1-7) and even though Satan has the effrontery to
enter God's presence with the other angels (sons) he does
so to "accuse" God's people. However, you will notice
that Satan can do no more than God allows him to do. "And
the Lord said to Satan, "Behold, all that he has is in
your power, only do not lay a hand upon his person"
(Job 1:12) and of course Satan did not because
he could not!
These are comforting
thoughts
when we are
faced with such evils as we see in the world today, but
because of the "New Covenant" in the Blood of Christ each
Christian is given authority by God over all the "works"
of the adversary. In fact we are "commissioned" by God to
"announce" the Good News of the Kingdom, and to bring the
captives out of darkness into His wonderful light and so
in Mark 16:17, we read, "In my name (Jesus) they
will expel demons".
The authority that the Father gave to Jesus is now
transferred to His Church. Unfortunately, just like all
the good angels, the evil ones and the Devil himself have
also been relegated to the area of myth by many
Christians whilst the non-believers are very much aware
of his reality.
Satan worship
is on the increase.
Hiding in myth is a good trick if he can get
away with it. It suits his purpose when the
only ones who do not believe that he exists are
the only ones who can dislodge him from his
strongholds. His "new look" is called the "New
Age."
This is just new packaging for a very old thing:
Sorcery. It's selling well at the moment and it
has even got through to Christians who have
lowered their defences against a subtle sales
pitch aimed at a spiritual void.
One of the most nefarious examples today is the
message of Marilyn Manson's "Anti Christ
Superstar." This album solicits acceptance of
Manson as a saviour. It calls young people to
kill their parents and whoever else they see as
their enemy and then kill themselves. According
to Manson, this is how they get saved and set
free.
In addition, The Church of Satan is well
established under law in the USA and possibly
elsewhere too. Television proliferates these
beliefs through such programmes as Charmed,
Ghost Whisperer, Supernatural and many other
witchcraft programmes that are very popular with
our youth.
The
Baptism of Fire The Prophecy. The Promise. The Anointing
& The Consequences.
A short film produced by Eddie Russell FMI tells
the audio visual story of the prophecies from
1990 until now. Is it a prophetic message for our times? You
be the judge. fmitv
YouTube
Channel
We are able to call on the
angelic to assist us when we need help.
Along with the
Word of God, the Power, and the Gifts of the Holy Spirit
working on our behalf, we also have countless millions of
angels at our disposal in the same way that Jesus did
when he was arrested in Gethsemane.... "do you not
suppose that I can call on my Father to provide at a
moment's notice more than twelve legions of angels"
(Mat 26:53).
Psalm 91 is worth reading and studying because it refers
to the protection the Father provides for all His
children who find themselves in dangerous circumstances.
It informs us that by remaining in a close relationship
with God. He promises to rescue us from: the snare of the
Fowler, the destroying pestilence, the terror by night,
the arrow by day, and from plagues, the wicked, evil, and
affliction.
Then, in verse 11, it says, "for to His angels He has
given command about you, that they guard you in all your
ways." And again in verse 13, it says: "you shall tread
upon the asp and the viper; you shall trample down the
lion and the dragon." Notice that it says, "you will". It
is "we" who do it! By what power? By the power of God, of
course. That is "our" authority and, let's face it, "if
God is for us, who can be against us?" (Rom 8:31)
It stands to reason that if God is for us everything
that is of God is for us too. We are never alone as much
as we may think that we are. God's angels are ever
present to help us in all that we do.
Angels are countless in
number(Rev.5:11)
"Their cavalry
troops whose count I heard were two hundred million in
number." (Rev 9:16) Angels are immortal Celestial
Spirits created by God. They are created to represent Him
and to guard His interests (Ps.148: 5-6). Angels
were created before God created the world
(Job.1:6,).
Angels do not have corporal bodies but they can manifest
themselves in human form. An example of this is seen in
the account of Lot regarding Sodom and Gomorrah
(Gen.19, Acts.10:30, Tobit 12:11-22).
I recommend that you read the whole book of Tobit where
you will see the wonderful deeds of the Archangel Raphael
on his behalf. Raphael is one of the seven spirits before
the Throne of God. He seems to be the angel who protects
the family. In this account, you will see how he saves
Raguel from the wicked demon, Asmodeus (Arabic: "the
destroyer") who has killed seven of her husbands
before they could consummate the marriage and how he
heals Tobit of his blindness and helps Tobit's son Tobias
to successfully marry Raguel. Then in the ending chapters
he reveals a truth about his angelic nature.
(Although
non Catholics do not accept this book as Canon of
Scripture, the book of Tobit is a magnificent insight
into the role of Angels that was richly expressed in
Hebrew Angelology and belief. The Catholic Church accepts
Tobit as part of the Canon of
Scripture).
Celestial
Beauty. Occasionally
angels will appear
in all their
celestial beauty and glory (Matt 28:3,
Dan.10:5-6). In Daniel 10: 12-14, and verses 20-21,
you will see Gabrielle and Michael in their role of
bringing an answer to prayer and how they deal with the
demonic angel of the kingdom of Persia.
Angels do not
marry.
They are pure spirit beings and are referred to as a
'company' rather than a 'race'. They are always referred
to in the masculine gender. (Matt.22:30, Luke 20:
34-36). St. Thomas Aguinas tells us that because
angels are referred to as a company and not a race they
cannot procreate; they are pure spirit beings with no
need of a body or its attributes. In wahtever body they
might have appeared are only apparant bodies for our
comfort when encountering them.
Angels have different
functions.
Angels have
different functions and are created for specific tasks
and they have various levels of authority which include:
"Thrones", "Dominions", "Seraphim", "Cherubim", "Angels",
"Archangels", and "Guardian Angels" (Col. 1:16, Jude
9.). Guardian Angels are given to children when they
are born and are there to minister to them throughout
their life (Matt. 18;
10).
Angelic worship.
Angels worship
before the Throne of God and serve Him day and night
(Ps. 148: 2, Tobit 12:15, Heb. 1:6, Rev. 4: 5-8).
The angels celebrate before the Throne of God every
time a sinner repents and turns to God. (Luke 15; 10,)
Just think how much Heaven will rejoice when we
really get moving with Evangelisation!
Angels escort Christians to
heaven when they die(Luke
16:22)
The angels
record our deeds, good and bad, in a book that will be
opened at the final Judgement (Mal.3:16, Rev.20:12).
Angels have the authority to execute God's Judgement
on Cities, Nations and People (Eccl. 5:6, Ezek. 9:1-6,
Ps. 33:4-6, Kings 19:35, Acts 12:23).
Angels are Messengers of God
not ascended masters.
Angels are
messengers of God to His people (Zech. 1: 9, 13-14, 19
Luke 1:11-20, Luke. 1:26-38) and it is this encounter
that dominates our Christmas celebration. However,
appearances of the angels are usually brief and formal.
They are aimed at improving our relationship with the
Lord rather than attracting attention to themselves
(Revelation 22: 8-9)
We will judge the
Angels.
Until we enter
the fullness of our redemption the angels enjoy a
superior position to us, but they will then serve under
us as the Bride of Christ when we become the elite of all
God's creation (Rev. 21: 9-14, 2Tim.2:12). We will
even judge the angels (1Cor.6:3).
However, because angels are so magnificent, people
have fallen into the sin of angel worship. To us they
may seem like God Himself, but to God they are as far
away from His perfection as your dog is to you. We must
always remember that the angels, good and bad, are
creatures, they are not gods. Saint Thomas Aquinas points
out that the angels are not supernatural simply because
the condition of an angel as a created being is natural
to his state. God and God alone is the only supernatural
being. So the Bible warns us not to worship angels
(Col. 1:18, - Rev. 19:
10).
God's Holy Angels are ever
present to help us.
It is
comforting to know whom and what you have working on your
side. Angels and Christians are partners and allies in
the spiritual warfare in which we find ourselves. They
assist us to dislodge Satan from his stronghold in the
world. When Intercessors come together and prayer
prevails it brings powerful angels to aid and assist us
to hinder the workings of Satan (Hebrews 1:4, Daniel
10:12-13).
We must not confuse the
works of the angels with the role of the Holy
Spirit.
The role of the angels and the role of the Holy Spirit
are very different even though they are companion roles
in our lives by assisting us to build the Church and in
establishing the Kingdom of God where we live. The
difference lies in that the role of the angels is to
administer material affairs. The role of the Holy Spirit
is to reveal the mind of God and to make Jesus known.
Matthew 4:11 shows this distinction clearly; Jesus was
"led" by the Spirit, "taught" by the Spirit, and "filled"
with the Spirit, but He was "defended" and
'fed' by the angels.
Angels are also territorial
spirits and are assigned to particular earthly
territories.
The Archangel
Michael is the Guardian Angel of Israel (and ours
too). The Bible shows us that Cities are under
angelic guardianship (Dan. 12:1, Ezek. 9:1, Acts.16:9,
Acts.10:30). When we read Revelations Chapters 2 and
3, we can see this clearly: "To the presiding spirit of
the Church in Ephesus". The "presiding spirit" =
literally; angels. (NAB footnotes). Angels were
thought of as being in charge of whole communities and
individuals alike. (Matt. 18:10, Acts 12:15).
"Only God is home for the
love of the angels, just as He is for us. The
angels must make their way home, for love's fire
is the Divine Flame, or there is no
warmth".
(St
Thomas Aquinas Summa Theologica / Hebrews.
1:7).
It
was love's flame that warmed the heart of a
young virgin when the Archangel Gabrielle came
to announce the good news that a saviour was to
be born. It is Gabrielle that God sends to
announce "Good News". Every major
proclamation of God was announced by Gabrielle
and considering that Mary would have been well
acquainted with the angelic tradition of her
faith such as we have looked at here. It's not
so surprising that she was a little afraid when
she was confronted with such a being as
Gabrielle although her fear was that of respect
rather than that born of a lack of faith. It was
her faith to say yes that brought about
the greatest miracle of God in all of history,
past, present and future.
When the time came for the Saviour to enter into
the world, angels appeared to shepherds and
proclaimed the "good news" of a Saviour
born. The Glory of God shone around them with an
angelic multitude of the Heavenly Host, praising
God and saying, "Glory to God in the highest,
and peace to those on whom His favour rests"
(Luke.2:9-14). The Shepherds saw that
Glory on that first Christmas night and Mary
treasured these things in her heart (Luke
2:19).
As you go about your duties next Christmas
Season, and you happen to notice a little
plastic angel on your Christmas tree, stop a
while, and ponder in your heart the Glory that
surrounds you and your family. You have powerful
friends in high places and perhaps your
Christmas Carols might come to mean a little
more to you than you may have previously
thought.
Live
Webcast from Perth WA February
10th.
Angels: The Hierarchy of the
Heavenlies
We are indeed surrounded by a
great cloud of witnesses, and there is nothing plastic
about that.
References:Blaze Magazine Print Edition. Summa
Theologica; Saint Thomas Aquinas. Catholic
Encyclopaedia. Taking our Cities for God by John
Dawson. New American Bible.
