If you pay attention to American pop culture, you could learn a lot about angels! For instance, in film, you may remember George Baily’s guardian angel, Clarence, from Frank Capra’s 1946 Christmas classic “It’s A Wonderful Life.” Some of you may also remember angels from films like “Angels in the Outfield,” Disney’s “All Dogs Go to Heaven,” and “Bill and Ted’s Bogus Journey.” There are angels in Meg Ryan’s romantic fantasy “City of Angels,” and the Adam Sandler comedy “Little Nicky,” where Sandler plays one of Satan’s three sons and attempts to save his father and prevent his brothers from taking over earth. And just in case you were wondering, “Little Nicky” was a disaster at the box office. But at least Adam Sandler left us with a great cinematic line when he said, “If your father is the devil, and your mother is an angel, you’d be messed up too!” Ironically, this statement is theologically spot on!
Television has also contributed to America’s understanding of angels. Michael Landon’s sentimental series “Highway to Heaven” was immensely popular in the 1980’s. This was followed by “Touched by An Angel” through the 1990’s. And over the past two decades, television shows have emphasized the darker side of angels with shows like “Lucifer,” “Supernatural,” and even the contemporary comedy “The Good Place.”
The medium of music has taught us even more about angels. Did you know that here are over 100 popular songs with “Angel” in the title? Here are my top five:
- Blue Angel by Roy Orbison
- Kiss an Angel Good Morning by Charlie Pride
- Angel of the Morning by Juice Newton
- She Talks to Angels by the Black Crowes
- It Wasn’t God Who Made Honky-Tonk Angels by Dolly Parton, Kitty Wells, and Loretta Lynn
In addition to these, did you know that there are at least ten different songs simply titled, “Angel?” There are versions of “Angel” by Jimmi Hendrix, Fleetwood Mac, Aerosmith, Madonna, and Sarah McLachlan.
Unfortunately, most of what American popular culture has taught us about angels is rubbish. When angels are sensationalized or sentimentalized, it leads to superstition! This is why there are so many misconceptions about angels like:
- “Every time a bell rings, an angel gets it wings.”
- “As you travel life’s winding roads, angels light the way and share the load.”
- “Sometimes angels sing to you in the wind—all you have to do is listen.”
- “Sometimes angels are just ordinary people who help us believe in miracles again.”
- “Tread in the path of angels and your steps will always be light.”
- “God just needed another angel in heaven.”
- “We are all just winging it; that’s what angels do.”
These lines sound great on Hallmark cards, but the problem is that none of them are true! But there are many people who believe these superstitions about angels. In my experience, most people err on one extreme or the other: they either put too much faith in angels or they don’t believe in them at all.
Rather than being influenced by American popular culture, let’s take a look at what the Bible teaches about angels. I will to highlight some verses which teach us about the true nature and purpose of angels.
The Nature of Angels
Let’s begin with a basic biblical definition of an angel: Angels are created spiritual beings with moral judgment and high intelligence, but without physical bodies. (Grudem 397) Angels have not always existed, but they are part of the universe that God created. Job 38:1-7 tells us that angels were actually created before human beings and the rest of the world:
Then the LORD answered Job out of the storm. He said: “Who is this that darkens my counsel with words without knowledge? Brace yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer me. Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation? Tell me, if you understand. Who marked off its dimensions? Surely you know! Who stretched a measuring line across it? On what were its footings set, or who laid its cornerstone—while the morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted for joy?
Likewise, angels are spiritual beings without physical bodies. Hebrews 1:13-14 says, “To which of the angels did God ever say, ‘Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet?’ Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?” Therefore, angels usually cannot be seen by humans unless God gives them a special ability to see them. There are numerous examples throughout the Scriptures where angels appeared to human beings. The most memorable example of this is from the Christmas story when the angel Gabriel appeared to Mary and Joseph to announce the coming birth of the Messiah. Remember also, it was an angel that appeared to the shepherds and announced Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem. The appearance of angels was extremely rare, which explains why fear was usually the immediate reaction.
Angels’ high intelligence is seen in the simple fact that they speak intelligible languages and have knowledge of the physical and spiritual world. Angels’ moral judgment is displayed by the fact that some of them fell from their positions by committing sin. Like humans, they were created with free will and had the capacity to choose to worship God or disobey him. Sadly, some of the angels joined Satan in his rebellion against God and they will eventually face God’s judgment. Look at 2 Peter 2:4, “For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell, putting them into gloomy dungeons to be held for judgment.”
And finally, let’s briefly consider the rank and order among the angels. One angel, Michael, is called an “archangel” in Jude 9, a title that indicates authority and rule over other angels: “But even the archangel Michael, when he was disputing with the devil about the body of Moses, did not dare to bring a slanderous accusation against him, but said, ‘The Lord rebuke you!’” Michael is also the leader of the angelic army that will defeat Satan and his band of demons in the final cosmic battle. Whether this means that to Michael as the only archangel, or whether there are other archangels, Scripture does not tell us. Some branches of the Christian Church acknowledge three, four, or seven archangels, but Michael is the only one explicitly mentioned in the Bible. Regardless of the number, there is the rank of archangel.
When we consider the true nature of angels as revealed in Scripture, it should prevent us from falling into the extremes of preoccupation or disbelief. Since the Bible testifies to the fact that God created angels, we should believe in their existence and be thankful for their presence. The Bible tells us how God has used angels in the past and how he will use them in the future, and even though we can’t see them, we believe that there are angels among us now—accomplishing the work that God has called them to do.
Likewise, in light of what we’ve just learned about angels, here are a few affirmations we can make about angels:
- Angels were created by God. Therefore, we should never worship or pray to angels! We only worship the Creator, not the creation!
- Angels are spiritual beings! Since they don’t have bodies, they don’t marry, procreate, or die.
- Angels and humans are distinct beings! Angels are not ordinary people and we don’t become angels when we die!
May we never fall into the trap of sensationalizing or sentimentalizing angels; it always leads to superstition and idolatry. Jesus Christ is the proper object of our faith and affection. He is the one who suffered and died on the cross to pay the penalty for our sins! He is the one who rose again on the third day and offers us the gift of eternal life. Jesus is the only one who is worthy of our worship! But we can still be thankful for the presence and ministry of angels.
The Purpose of Angels
Now that we have examined the nature of angels, let’s explore the purpose (or ministry) of angels. I will highlight four key roles: worshiper, messenger, guardian, and guide.
Worshiper
God created angels, first and foremost, to worship and glorify him. This is their primary ministry to God. They use their intellectual capacity and moral will to glorify God in speech and song. We see this clearly in Revelation 4: 8-11, where the Apostle John describes his vision of heaven:
Each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around, even under his wings. Day and night they never stop saying: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come.” Whenever the living creatures give glory, honor and thanks to him who sits on the throne and who lives for ever and ever, the twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne, and worship him who lives for ever and ever. They lay their crowns before the throne and say: “You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being.”
Messenger
The second ministry role of angels is that of a messenger. The Hebrew (malak) and Greek (angelos) words for “angel” literally mean messenger. Throughout history, God has used angels to announce messages and reveal his will to human beings. I’ve already mentioned how God used angels to announce the birth of Christ, but take a look at the angel’s resurrection message in
Matthew 28:1-6:
After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay.”
Guardian
There are many places in Scripture that highlight the role of angels as guardians but let me just point out one. Psalm 91:11-12 says, “For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.” Even though these is no evidence that God assigns human beings a specific guardian angel, he does use angels guard us from a variety of dangers.
John Paton was a missionary in the New Hebrides Islands. One night hostile natives surrounded the mission station, intent on burning out the Patons and killing them. Paton and his wife prayed during that terror-filled night that God would deliver them. When daylight came they were amazed to see their attackers leave. A year later, the chief of the tribe was converted to Christ. Remembering what had happened, Paton asked the chief what had kept him from burning down the house and killing them. The chief replied in surprise, “Who were all those men with you there?” Paton knew no men were present–but the chief said he was afraid to attack because he had seen hundreds of big men in shining garments with drawn swords circling the mission station.
Guide
Like the role of guardian, there is a multitude of verses in Scripture that reveal the role of angels as guides. One of the most famous ones is found in the story of the Magi visiting the Christ-child in Bethlehem. As you may recall, when King Herod discovered that the true king of the Jews was born in Bethlehem, he issued a decree to kill all of the male boys two-years-old and under. Here’s a verse from Matthew 2:13—When they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up,” he said, “take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.”
Just as they did in the biblical times, angels continue to perform the ministries of worship, messenger, guardian, and guide today. Every time we gather together to worship God (like we are doing this morning), we join with the angels in heaven to declare that he is the holy creator, the one who was and is and is to come! Like the angels, we acknowledge that the one who sits upon the throne is worthy to receive glory, honor, and thanks forever and ever.
Sometimes God uses angels to deliver his message to his people. Personally, I’ve never seen or heard an angel, but I’ve met people who have. Today, there are many stories coming out of the Middle East, where Muslims are seeing visions of Christ and hearing messages from angels, and they are responding to the gospel of Jesus Christ. Who knows, maybe God will send one of his messengers to us someday. But even if he doesn’t, he has already given us his word so that we can know his will for our lives.
God continues to use angels to guard us from danger and guide us to safety—sometimes angels protect us from dangers in which we were not even aware! We can take comfort in the fact that God can instantaneously deploy thousands, if not millions, of angels to protect us the perils of this world and guide us along the path he has chosen for our lives!Conclusion
I believe there are angels among us! Let us thank God for their existence and ministry in our lives!