Steve Cummings - Faith, Life & Culture

This is the fourth of four articles on what the Bible says about angels. I hope you have enjoyed reading them. If you missed any of them you can click on the link at the end of this article and it will take you to my Faith, Life & Culture blog. I have many other articles on various subjects that you might like to read as well. Don’t forget to subscribe. ACTIONS OF ANGELS – PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE PAST (Old and New Testaments) 1. Slew 70,000 from Dan to Beersheba. (2 Samuel 24:15-16) 2. Slew 185,000 Assyrians. (2 Kings 19:35) 3. Struck Sodomites blind to protect Lot’s family. (Genesis 19:11) 4. Protected Hebrew children in a burning furnace. (Daniel 3:28) 5. Went before the Israelites’ camp. (Exodus 14:19) 6. Spoke to Moses at Sinai. (Acts 7:38,53) 7. Announced Jesus’ birth to Joseph. (Mathew 1:20) 8. Announced Jesus’ birth to Mary. (Luke 2:11) 9. Announced Jesus’ birth to Shepherds. (Luke 2:13) 10. Angel told Joseph to flee to Egypt. (Matthew 2:13) 11. Angels

ORIGIN OF ANGELS THEY WERE CREATED BY GOD Psalm 148:2-5 – Praise Him, all His angels; Praise Him, all His hosts! 3 Praise Him, sun and moon; Praise Him, all you stars of light! 4 Praise Him, you heavens of heavens, and you waters above the heavens! 5 Let them praise the name of the Lord, for He commanded and they were created. Colossians 1:15-17 – He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16 For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through him and for Him. 17 And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist. John 11:1-3-14 – In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 The same was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. 14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the

There are many myths about angels, and there is much about angels which we cannot know. The Bible is our only reliable source of knowledge and this study only focuses on what the Bible reveals and will not get into wild speculation. Colossians 2:18 – “Let no one cheat you of your reward, taking delight in false humility and worship of angels, intruding into those things which he has not seen…” Angels are mentioned 108 times in the Old Testament and 186 times in the New Testament. They are mentioned in 17 Old Testament books and 17 New Testament books. The word “angel” is translated from the Hebrew MALAWK which appears some 211 times in the Old Testament. In the New Testament it is from the Greek ANGELOS and appears 188 times. The basic meaning of the word “angel” whether in the Old or New Testament, is “messenger.” BIBLICAL FACTS ABOUT ANGELS ANGELS ARE INNUMERABLE Matthew 26:53 – Or do you think that I cannot now pray to My Father, and He will provide Me with more than 12 legions of a

It is impossible to fully understand, but the Bible teaches that God has a mighty army of angels at his side who are always ready to do his will at all times, and they are on our side as Christians. There are over 300 references in the Bible to angels. Angels show up in the first book of the Bible as well as the last book of the Bible. From start to finish the Bible has numerous references to angel involvement in the affairs of the world, and specifically, in our personal lives as directed by God. Why study angels? 1) Because the Bible has a lot to say about them. 2) Knowledge of their ministry is a source of comfort and courage to believers. 3) An awareness of the invisible realm is useful in our spiritual welfare. Understanding what’s going on “behind the scenes” helps us to be more faithful and confident about what’s going on in our lives. 4) Angels are extremely interested in us, so we should be interested in them. 5) We can better know and understand the many ways God works in our