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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, and perhaps this article will help you
to clear that up.
One
such cute 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 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."
Let us
examine more closely this angelic war and its
outcome.
In Revelations chapter 12 we find the event. 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;
Satanis
not an equal and opposite of God as claimed by
many!
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. Hence there will never be peace with a
Yin and Yang concept or any other New Age or
occult philosophy, but, it does keep us
entertained and Hollywood in
business.
Demons
manifest and shriek as Catholic Evangelist,
Eddie Russell FMI preaches at a conference in
Uganda.Not for the faint
hearted.
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.
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). No holy angel of God
will accept homage or worship from humans. If one ever
does, it is a clear sign that it is a demon in
disguise.
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).
The
Natures of Angels and How they
Operate. Part
2 of a 5 Part Series from
Firecast-CatholicTV that reveals far
more than on this web page. 80
mins.
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. We are
indeed surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses, and
there is nothing plastic about that.
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.
References:
Blaze Magazine Print Edition. Summa
Theologica; Saint Thomas Aquinas. Catholic
Encyclopaedia. Taking our Cities for God by John
Dawson. New American Bible. Copyright ©
All Rights Reserved. 