- [Narrator] Details about angels that many do not know.
Number one, spirit beings.
What do angels look like?
Is there anything in the Bible that hints
that they are men with pale skin who sit on clouds,
dress in long, white robes,
and have two enormous wings on their backs?
Do we ever see them with harps in their hands?
Even though this is how angels have always been depicted
in art and literature,
there is absolutely no evidence in the Bible
to imply that this is how angels actually appear.
Angels are spirit beings.
Hebrews 1:14 includes information about the ministry
of elect angels to believers.
Hebrews 1:14: "Are not all the angels ministering spirits
sent out by God to serve, accompany,
protect those who will inherit salvation.
Of course they are."
Angels are spiritual entities that participate
in a wide variety of activities,
and one of the responsibilities of an elect angel
is to serve, or minister to believers in different ways.
As ministering spirits, angels aid believers
in numerous ways.
Angels are sometimes dispatched by God
in order to respond to people's prayers.
A good illustration of this is the time
when Peter was thrown in jail
not long after the execution of James.
The church's prayers were obviously answered
when an angel came to save Peter.
This was an evident answer to their prayers.
Even though it may not be obvious to us,
God can use angels to answer our prayers,
just as he did in this instance.
In spite of the fact that angels perform a variety
of ministries for believers,
it is essential to keep in mind that the Lord of hosts
is our savior,
and that he is the one who was ultimately responsible
for sending angels.
Angels do not take initiative on their own,
nor are they completely all-knowing or everywhere at once.
Psalm 148:5, "Let them praise the name of the Lord
for he commanded and they were created."
The holy angels carry out the will of God.
It is God alone who deserves the praise and glory
for the answered prayers, encouragement, protection,
and service that angels carry out for believers.
We give thanks to God for the ministering spirits
that he has ordained, and we praise him
for looking out for us in all that he does.
The elect angels are aware of their position
as servants of the most high,
despite the power and glory that they possess.
Like the angel in Revelation emphatically
said to John when the apostle tried to worship him.
Revelation 22:9.
"But he said to me, 'Do not do that.
I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers,
the prophets, and were those who heed
and remember the truths contained in the words of this book.
Worship God.'"
As John witnessed and heard these things,
he immediately went to his knees before the angel,
but he was not permitted to do so.
The angel was nothing more than a created entity.
The only being worthy of worship is God.
Number two, usually not seen.
Most of the time, individuals do not have the ability
to perceive angels.
In their ordinary activities, they are not visible.
As an illustration, Balaam was unable to recognize the angel
that was standing in front of him in the path.
The donkey looked up and saw an angel of the Lord standing
in the middle of the road with a sword drawn in his hand.
Because of this, the donkey veered off the road
and entered the field.
Balaam struck the donkey in order to coax it
back onto the path.
Numbers 22:25 through 27.
"When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord,
she pressed herself against the wall
and crushed Balaam's foot against it,
and he struck her again.
The angel of the Lord went further,
and stood in a narrow place where there was no room to turn,
either to the right or to the left.
Where the donkey saw the angel of the Lord,
she laid down under Balaam,
so Balaam was angry and he struck the donkey a third time
with his staff."
Elisha prayed that his servant's eyes would be opened
so that he might see the angels that were surrounding him.
2 Kings 6:17,
"Then Elisha prayed and said, 'Lord, please open his eyes
that he may see.'
And the Lord opened the servant's eyes and he saw.
And behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots
of fire surrounding Elisha."
The chariots of fire are a term that refers to angels.
Number three, not recognized as angels.
Many times in the Bible, angels have no recognizable form.
Many times people saw them, but they didn't even realize
that the beings they saw were angels.
They did not appear to be any different from other people.
Judges 13:6.
"Then the woman went and told her husband saying,
'A man of God came to me and his appearance
was like the appearance of the angel of God.
Very awesome.
I did not ask him where he came from,
and he did not tell me his name.'"
Judges 13:21.
"The angel of the Lord did not appear again to Manoah
or his wife.
Then Manoah knew that he was the angel of the Lord."
Abraham had angelic visitors that looked human.
Genesis 18:1 through 2.
"Now the Lord appeared to Abraham
by the terebinth tree of Mamre in Hebron,
while he was sitting at the tent door
in the heat of the day.
When he raised his eyes and looked up,
behold, three men were standing a little distance from him.
When he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them
and bowed down with his face to the ground."
Number four, appear as men.
When angels are mentioned in the Bible,
they're never characterized as having the appearance
of women or children.
Rather, they are always described as having
the appearance of men.
For instance, we are told that angels appeared at the tomb
where Jesus was laid to rest.
John 20:11 through 12.
"But Mary who had returned was standing outside
the tomb sobbing, and so as she wept,
she stooped down and looked into the tomb.
And she saw two angels in white sitting there.
One at the head, and one at the feet
where the body of Jesus had lain."
Despite this, Luke portrays these angels
as having the appearance of human beings.
In the midst of their confusion on this matter,
all of a sudden, two men dressed in dazzling clothes
stood beside them.
Luke 24:4.
"While they were perplexed and wondering about this,
suddenly, two men in dazzling clothing stood near them."
Even when angels appeared to humans in human form,
people were quick to recognize them
for what they truly were, angels.
The two angels that are named in scripture
have names of men, Michael and Gabriel.
Number five, able to eat.
Angels, when they take on human form,
are granted the ability to consume food.
Abraham welcomed a visit from angels
by preparing food for them to eat.
Genesis 18:7 through 8.
"Abraham also ran to the herd and brought a calf,
tender and choice, and he gave it to the servant to butcher,
and he hurried to prepare it.
Then he took curds and milk and the calf
which he had prepared and set it before the men.
And he stood beside them under the tree while they ate.
It has been noted that the psalmist
wrote of the food of angels.
Psalm 78:25.
"Man ate the bread of angels.
God sent them provision in abundance."
However, this is not to be taken literally
since angels do not have bodies.
Number six, their clothing.
As angels make their appearance,
they are always dressed, sometimes in white attire,
and other times, in clothing that is exceedingly bright.
Luke 24:4.
"While they were perplexed and wondering about this,
suddenly, two men in dazzling clothing stood near them.
We find no darkness in them whatsoever,
as they are representing God, who himself is light."
When Jesus ascended into heaven,
two angels appeared wearing white clothes
and having the appearance of men.
They were looking intently up into the sky
as he was going.
When suddenly, two men dressed in white
stood beside them.
Acts 1:10 through 11.
"While they were looking intently into the sky
as he was going, two men in white clothing
suddenly stood beside them who said,
'Men of Galilee,
why do you stand looking into the sky?
This same Jesus who has been taken
up from you into heaven will return in just the same way
as you have watched him go into heaven.'"
Number seven, face of an angel.
The Martyr Stephen was said to have the face of an angel
when he spoke to the religious rulers.
Acts 6:15.
"Then all those who were sitting in the council stared
intently at him.
And they saw that Stephen's face was like the face
of an angel."
Sometimes the glory of the Lord shown through the angels.
Luke 2:9.
"And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them.
And the glory of the Lord flashed and shown around them.
And they were terribly frightened."
Number eight, they never appear in subhuman form.
Angels may take the form of humans at times,
but they never take a form that is less than human.
That is, they never look like animals, birds,
or any other material thing.
Instead, they always take the form of humans.
Number nine, wings?
Medieval art made popular the idea that angels had wings.
At times, when angels have appeared to people
in the word of God, there is no signal that they had wings.
The wings are never attributed to angels
who appeared to humanity.
Two types of angelic creatures,
the cherubim and seraphim have wings.
Apart from the cherubim guarding the Garden of Eden
after the sin of Adam and Eve,
there is no other report of their appearance to humans.
They're are seen in visions, or are representative figures
in the Ark of the Covenant and the temple.
Thus, the idea that some angelic creatures
have wings has some biblical validity.
However, it is not certain that any angel who appeared
to humans ever was in the form that included wings.
Seraphim wings, their meaning and significance.
Two wings to cover their faces.
The seraphim may cover themselves with four
of their six wings to express their humility before God.
These burning angels in particular may use a pair of wings
to cover their faces to show God reverence,
believing themselves unworthy to look upon God's face,
and also in obedience to the Lord's admonition
that no one may see his face and live.
Two wings to cover their feet.
The seraphim's use of a second pair of wings
to cover their feet may also indicate
their reverence for God,
as the angels may refuse to reveal any unclean aspects
of their being before the Lord.
Two wings to fly.
The seraphim used their remaining two wings to fly
and wait upon God.
This detail Isaiah gives us of the seraphim,
utilizing the majority of their six wings to revere God.
Number 10, they worship God.
Isaiah 6:3 through 4.
"And one cried to another
and said, 'Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts.
The whole Earth is full of his glory.'
And then posts of the door were shaken by the voice of him
who cried out, and the house was filled with smoke."
In this context, the seraphim are not speaking directly
to the Lord God.
They are praising his glorious character to one another
in the presence of the Lord.
When Isaiah saw the angels holy regard, obedience,
and praise for God, he realized
that he was not only different from the Lord God,
but also different from the angels.
We read, "For my eyes have seen the king,
the Lord of hosts."
From the outside, Isaiah looked like a good, godly man.
Yet when he saw the king sitting on his throne,
the Lord of Hosts,
he realized how corrupt he was in contrast.
Isaiah's blameless life took on a quite different appearance
when set against the backdrop of God's absolute perfection.
The phrase "Holy, holy, holy," appears in the Bible twice.
Once in the Old Testament, Isaiah 6:3,
and once in the new.
Revelation 4:8.
Both times, the phrase is spoken or sung
by heavenly creatures, and both times,
it appears in a vision of a man being brought
to God's throne.
First by the prophet Isaiah,
and subsequently by the Apostle John.
Revelation 4:8.
"The four living creatures, each having six wings,
were full of eyes around and within.
And they do not rest day or night saying,
'Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, who was and is
and is to come.'"
The holiness of God is the most difficult
of all God's traits to express.
Holiness is not something we inherit
as a part of our nature.
We only become holy in relationship to Christ.
It's a sanctity that's been ascribed to you.
It is an imputed holiness.
Only in Christ do we become the righteousness of God.
God's holiness is what distinguishes him
from all other beings,
what separates him from everything else.
God's holiness is more than just his perfection
or sinless purity.
It is the essence of his otherness, his transcendence.
God's holiness represents the mystery of his awesomeness,
and causes us to gaze in wonder at him,
as we begin to comprehend
just a little of his majesty.
In his vision depicted in Isaiah 6,
Isaiah witnessed personally God's holiness.
Isaiah, while being a prophet of God
and a blameless man, was aware of his own sinfulness.