BIG IDEA
God created spiritual beings called angels and demons.
READING
Heb. 1
THOUGHTS
Angels are not dead relatives or mystical spirits, nor are they the personification of our positive or negative emotions. Angels are special beings created by God with celestial/heavenly bodies (Ps. 148:2,5; Col. 1:16; Heb. 11:14; Rev. 4:11, 5:13).
Angels are intelligent (Matt. 8:29; 2 Cor. 11:3; 1 Pet. 1:12), show emotion (Luke 2:13; James 2:19; Rev. 12:17), and exercise their own will (Luke 8:28-31; 2 Tim.. 2:26; Jude 6). Angels were created by God to declare and promote the glory and will of God.
A. Physical Realm: Angels actively execute God’s desires in our world. Angels are God’s agents to bring about God’s ultimate will in our society—whatever it may be at a particular point in time (Gen. 28:12; Ps. 103:20; Matt. 13:41, 24:31; Luke 2:15; Heb. 1:7, 2:2; Rev. 7:1; 8:2). Today, angels are sent by God to help believers (Heb. 1:14). They observe Chris- tian life and suffering (1 Cor. 4:9, 11:10; Eph. 3:10; 1 Pet. 1:12). They encourage and comfort (Acts 27:23–24) and care for the righteous at death (Luke 16:22). They reveal God’s response to prayer (Acts 12:5–10). They help win those far from God (Acts 8:26, 10:3).
B. Spiritual Realm: In the spiritual realm, God’s angels battle fallen angels, called demons (Rev. 12:7–9; Daniel 10), on their way to exercise God’s will in the earth.
C. In Eternal Heaven: Angels eternally worship and give glory to God (Ps. 103:20, 148:1–2; Isa. 6:1–3; Heb. 1:6; Rev. 4–5, 22:9).
God created angels in a hierarchy of authority. This same hierarchy is continued to this day. (Col. 1:15–16; 1 Pet. 3:22). While angels are mentioned over two hundred times in the Bible, and there is different speculation about them, we do know the follow- ing types of angels exist: Seraphim (Isa. 6:1–2), Cherubim (Exod. 25:20, 26:31; Ezek. 26:1; Heb. 9:50), and Archangels (Jude 1:9).
Who is Satan and What Are Demons?
Satan was a lead angel in heaven who oversaw over one- third of all the angels. He managed all the music in Heaven
(Ezek. 28:13–14), but because he and the angels he oversaw rebelled against God, he was thrown out of heaven by God (Isa. 14:12–14; Rev. 12:7–9). He and his angels lost their heavenly bod- ies, and together they look for physical bodies to live in (Matt. 12:43–45; Luke 11:24). Satan and his demons (fallen angels) are not omnipresent, omnipotent, or omniscient, yet they are very highly organized (Col. 1:15–16).In the beginning, Satan deceived Adam and Eve and gained authority in the earth (Gen. 1:26; 2 Cor. 4:4). But because of Jesus, he lost his influence in the earth (Eph. 1:16–23; 1 John 3:8). Today, we are in the process of the restoration of God’s authority in the earth. Today, Satan Is powerless against Christ’s followers (Eph. 2:4–6) and has an eternity prepared for Him in the separation realm of hell (Matt. 25:41).
Demons are under Satan’s strict orders and accredited with a variety of different types of activities:
- stealing, killing, and destroying God’s good creation (John 10:10)
- accusing believers before God (Rev. 12:10)
- deceiving and tempting (John 8:44; 1 Pet. 5:8; Rev. 12:9)
- causing false visions and dreams (Jer. 14:14; Zech. 10:2; Matt. 4)
- making evil appear harmless (2 Cor. 11:14)
- lying (1 Kings 22:19–22)
- creating fear (Rom. 8:15; 2 Tim. 1:7)
- tempting (Matt. 4:1–11; 1 John 2:15–17)
- dividing people (Judg. 9:22–24)
- causing tormenting thoughts (1 Sam. 16:14–16,23)
- bringing the affliction of some sicknesses – (Job; Matt. 9:32–33, 12:22)
- channeling (1 Chron. 10:13; Isa. 8:19)
DISCUSSION
- How does our culture view angels and demons?
- How do angels interact with Christians?
- Why do Satan and demons strike fear into people?
Q&A
DO I NEED TO FEAR DEMONS COMING TO LIVE IN ME?
While demons can cause opposition and spiritual attack exter- nally, followers of Jesus do not need to fear demons coming to live inside of them (2 Cor. 6:15–16; Col. 1:13; 1 Pet. 1:5; 1 John 5:18). en God’s good creation, He must step in to ensure its ultimate preservation.