Re: We often see God as like our human Father

What I was reading in the Bible this morning is a wonderful example of one of the differences between God and some earthly parents:

It was the story of how David sinned first by continuing to watch Bathsheba while she bathed, then by having sex with her and then by having her husband killed. When the prophet told him about his sin, he confessed his sin to the Lord and repented of it.

God caused the illegitimate child Bathsheba bore him to die as discipline. Do you know what David did? Before the child died, he prayed and fasted hoping the Lord would change His mind. I can imagine his heartbreak! But when the child died on the 7th day, this is what David did:

2 Samuel 12:20 Then David got up from the ground. After he had washed, put on lotions and changed his clothes, he went into the house of the Lord and worshiped. Then he went to his own house, and at his request they served him food, and he ate.

His servants were surprised at his actions and asked him why he was acting this way when he'd been so desperate for the last 7 days. Here's what he said to them:

2 Samuel 12:22-23 He answered, “While the child was still alive, I fasted and wept. I thought, ‘Who knows? The Lord may be gracious to me and let the child live.’ But now that he is dead, why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I will go to him, but he will not return to me.”

This is one of the verses in the OT that show us that God takes all babies and children below the age of accountability to heaven. David knew that one day he would see his child again!

So only after worshiping God did David comfort his wife and then get on with his life. Worshiping the Lord was the first thing he did after making himself presentable to be in the Lord's presence.

Even though God had just disciplined David for some very, very serious sins, did God continue to rub David's nose in it? No! Did God warn him over and over not to do it again? No! Did he bring it up later to remind David of how terrible he was/is? No, He didn't! Instead, God blessed David!

2 Samuel 12:24-25 Then David comforted his wife Bathsheba, and he went to her and lay with her. She gave birth to a son, and they named him Solomon. The Lord loved him; and because the Lord loved him, he sent word through Nathan the prophet to name him Jedidiah.

The birth of Solomon—the first surviving son of David’s union with Bathsheba—is evidence of God’s ability to bring about good in spite of our sin. Since God knew the end from the beginning, He was not stymied by David’s sin.

The Open Bible

She bare him a son … Solomon. The name means “peace” and was probably given with reference to the inner peace that David and Bathsheba could have before God now that the sin had been confessed. The Lord loved him. This shows the approval of God upon this child. He sent refers to God’s commissioning Nathan to give assurance to David with the divinely given name Jedidiah, which means, in current idiom, “God’s little lover.” The word from which the name was derived (Heb dōd) is from babytalk, and was assumed to express love. David’s own name may be from the same word. KJV Bible commentary.

How awesome is that???

see study on FH

Re: Angels (4)

At this point at least I am only taking information that is in the Bible and not information from either the Apocrypha or the Pseudepigrapha. As far as I am concerned while it will be fun to see what's in those books too, the information from them isn't reliable like the information in God's Word is. So I will always let you know if the info isn't from the Bible so we can tell the difference from what's certain and what's just conjecture and myth.

The Bible teaches that there are three groups of angels:
1. those that have not fallen, the "good angels"
2. the fallen angels that are free
3. the fallen angels that are bound or captive

We know that God's angels, those that never fell from His Grace, are well organized and all have specific jobs. It would seem from verses such as the one in Ephesians that Satan has organized his fallen angels in much the same way.

I have numerous books in my library that discuss angels and it seems that there is some difference of opinion on just which ranks are higher etc. and also whether or not Cherubim and Seraphim are angels or not. Most seem to think that they are at least a type of angel.

Now Let me quote a bit from this book about their organization for us:

Organized Structure in the Angelic Realm (Col. 1:16). There is an organized structure in the angelic realm. Profoundly influential in humanity’s history, angels are involved according to their designated ranks. Though opinion differs as to the placement of angelic offices, it is clear that the angelic host are part of a highly organized world of angel beings.

For example, Daniel 10:13 shows that warring angels have a chief prince, Michael, who is also called an archangel, that is, one who rules over others. Seraphim and cherubim seem to be of a slightly lower rank, just ahead of ministering spirits (Heb. 1:14). However, it may also be that the seraphim and cherubim fill a leadership role in worship while Michael leads the warring angels.

As to the dark angels, Ephesians 6:12 offers insight into the ranks of the evil angelic realm: principalities, powers, rulers of the darkness of this world, and spiritual wickedness in high places.

From the information the Bible gives, we can see that the angelic realm is a distinctly structured society with different levels of authority or power endowed to each according to God’s creative order.
Hayford's Bible handbook.

Let's look at some of the things angels do or are in charge of:

Some seem to be in charge of specific nations, in particularly Israel:

Daniel 10:12-13 Then he continued, “Do not be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to them. But the prince of the Persian kingdom resisted me twenty-one days. Then Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, because I was detained there with the king of Persia.

Daniel 10:20-21 So he said, “Do you know why I have come to you? Soon I will return to fight against the prince of Persia, and when I go, the prince of Greece will come; but first I will tell you what is written in the Book of Truth. (No one supports me against them except Michael, your prince.

Daniel 12:1 “At that time Michael, the great prince who protects your people, will arise. There will be a time of distress such as has not happened from the beginning of nations until then. But at that time your people—everyone whose name is found written in the book—will be delivered.

So we can see from this that Gabriel and Michael have been assigned authority over angels who administer God's affairs for Israel and Michael is the head of all of them.

Satan imitates everything God does as we know and he has therefore set up his own high ranking demons (fallen angels that are free) to positions of authority over the nations. (the prince of Persia was a high ranking demon assigned to Persia)

These verses show us too that there is a lot going on in the heavenlies that we're totally unaware of! This battle went on for 3 weeks before Michael came to help Gabriel!

So we know from this that there are angels in charge of nations and and governmental policies etc, both good and evil.

The bible calls Michael and archangel and he is the ONLY archangel that the bible names as one. (That doesn't mean that there aren't other archangels, that only means that we can only verify for sure that Michael is an archangel and we cannot verify any others) His mission or job is to protect Israel. We know there are "chief princes" among the good and fallen angels and that Michael is also one of those as they are the highest ranking angels as far as we can see. "Ruling angels" are also mentioned but nothing else is said of them. They may be the same as what we've just been discussing. Here's the verse that mentions them:

Ephesians 3:10-11 His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms, according to his eternal purpose which he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Since we've mostly talked about Michael here lets see what else the Bible says about him:

Here we see that apparently Satan had designs on Moses's body but Michael intervened, which would be in keeping with his position as defender of Israel.

Jude 9 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!”

In the next passages we see Michael will wage war against Satan and his demons during the Tribulation on Israel's behalf.

Revelation 12:7-9 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.

I think I'll end this here for today as I don't want to get things all confused.

Join us for the Angels Study here!

Re: Angels (3)

Now here's a verse that just caught my eye:

1 Corinthians 11:10 For this reason, and because of the angels, the woman ought to have a sign of authority on her head.

Now why didn't I ever notice that before??? here are some cross references and what one of the commentaries says about this:

1 Corinthians 4:9 For it seems to me that God has put us apostles on display at the end of the procession, like men condemned to die in the arena. We have been made a spectacle to the whole universe, to angels as well as to men.

Ephesians 3:10 His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms,

1 Timothy 5:21 I charge you, in the sight of God and Christ Jesus and the elect angels, to keep these instructions without partiality, and to do nothing out of favoritism.

Psalm 103:20-21 Praise the Lord, you his angels, you mighty ones who do his bidding, who obey his word. Praise the Lord, all his heavenly hosts, you his servants who do his will.

Paul offered a third reason why womanly insubordination in the church should not exist. Angels were spectators of the church (4:9; Eph. 3:10; 1 Tim. 5:21; cf. Ps. 103:20-21). For a woman to exercise her freedom to participate in the church without the head covering, the sign of her authority (exousia, a liberating term; cf. 1 Cor. 7:37; 8:9; 9:4-6, 12, 18), would be to bring the wisdom of God (Eph. 3:10) into disrepute.

Other (but less acceptable) explanations have been suggested for the words because of the “angels”: (a) evil angels lusted after the women in the Corinthian congregation; (b) angels are messengers, that is, pastors; (c) good angels learn from women; (d) good angels are an example of subordination; (e) good angels would be tempted by a woman’s insubordination.

The Bible knowledge commentary : An exposition of the scriptures

because of the angels—who are present at our Christian assemblies (compare Ps 138:1, “gods,” that is, angels), and delight in the orderly subordination of the several ranks of God’s worshippers in their respective places, the outward demeanor and dress of the latter being indicative of that inward humility which angels know to be most pleasing to their common Lord (1Co 4:9; Eph 3:10; Ec 5:6). Hammond quotes Chrysostom, “Thou standest with angels; thou singest with them; thou hymnest with them; and yet dost thou stand laughing?” Bengel explains, “As the angels are in relation to God, so the woman is in relation to man. God’s face is uncovered; angels in His presence are veiled (Is 6:2). Man’s face is uncovered; woman in His presence is to be veiled. For her not to be so, would, by its indecorousness, offend the angels (Mt 18:10, 31). She, by her weakness, especially needs their ministry; she ought, therefore, to be the more careful not to offend them.” A commentary, critical and explanatory, on the Old and New Testaments.

Head Coverings for Women Type of Covering Description

Headband (Heb. shabis)
Probably a head ornament or front-band of gold or silver (Is. 3:18, 20; v. 18, “scarves” in NKJV).

Headdress (Heb. pe˒er)
Ornamental head covering worn by wealthy women, probably wound about the head (Is. 3:20; Ezek. 24:17). Also used to describe the garland of the bridegroom or turban worn by men as well as the cap worn by priests (Is. 61:10; Ezek. 24:17, 23; 44:18).

Head covering (Gk. peribolaios, lit. “covering”)
First Corinthians probably refers to some kind of hair covering—perhaps even a shawl.

The wearing of long, loose hair by an adulteress confirms that such would be considered shameful (Num. 5:18).

The importance of the covering seems to be twofold: to show clear distinction between the sexes and to affirm publicly a wife’s commitment to her husband’s leadership (1 Cor. 11:2–16).

This custom may have been especially important to the Corinthians because of the pagan and immoral influence around them.

Veil (Heb. tsaciph)
Rebekah put on a veil when she approached Issac before her marriage, perhaps as a sign of her betrothal. The veil was to be removed at the time of marriage (Gen. 24:65).

Tamar used the veil to trick Judah (Gen. 38:14, 19).
(Heb. redid)

The veil-like, thin garment was probably for summer (Song 5:7; Is. 3:23).
(Heb. tsamah)

This face veil (lit. “locks”) was probably ornamental, perhaps a long train of adornment for women of high social standing (Song 4:1, 3; 6:7; Is. 47:2). (Heb. mispachoth)

This covering (probably a cap fitting close to the head) is associated with the activities of false prophetesses (Ezek. 13:18, 21).

Full veiling does not seem to be part of the Old Testament culture. However, head coverings were important to women in biblical days. They not only offered protection from the elements but also served as symbols of modesty and, for a married woman, as a token of her commitment to her husband.

The theological principle of divine order remains unchanged even though its specific manifestations, such as a woman’s covering her head in Corinth, may differ from place to place and culture to culture (see chart, Theological Foundations for Headship). This order was evident in the chronological sequence of creation (1 Cor. 11:8, 9). Furthermore, woman was man’s “glory” (v. 7). This concept refers to the act of “manifesting or pointing to the role of another. ” The woman, who pointed to the man, was to be covered in the presence of God; while man, who pointed to God, was not. The practice was also followed “because of the angels” (v. 10). Paul reasoned that angels, the most submissive of all creatures, would be offended by non-compliance. Furthermore, God had provided a natural analogy that emphasized the appropriateness of the head covering: “Nature” favors women over men in the provision of hair on the head (vv. 13–15). Finally, Paul appealed to the universality of Christian practice (v. 16). The principle of headship was important, and its symbol was to be observed in all the churches.

Theological Foundations for Headship
The priority of Adam’s creation. Gen. 2:7
The use of the name “Adam” for the entire race. Gen. 2:20
The investiture of Adam with authority prior to Eve’s creation. Gen. 2:15
The assignment to the man of the responsibility for provision and protection. Gen. 2:15–17
The responsibility of the man in naming the animals. Gen. 2:20
The designation of the woman as the man’s helper. Gen. 2:18, 20
The naming of the woman by the man. Gen. 2:23; 3:20
The recognition of the man as leader and spokesman. Gen. 3:9; 11
Woman's study Bible

OK, LOL I got off track but I couldn't resist! I figured if I didn't include the veil stuff someone would ask about it lol

Interesting though that the angels are involved in so much isn't it! Do you think it means that the angels are even involved with us here at Fresh Hope????

Join us for the Angels Study here!

Re Angels

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pathwalker There are seven Archangels that I am curious about, they are, Michael, Gabriel, Raphael, Uriel, Phaeul, Zarachiel, and Simiel. I know that the two most talked about Archangels in the Bible are Michael and Gabriel, where in the Bible are the other 5 mentioned? Besides Satan, are there any Archangels that were bad angels?

Mark, this is what I found in a quick search in my bible library for you:

There are only three named individual angels in the Bible, Gabriel, Michael, and Satan. Michael, who always appears in connection with Israel, is the only named “archangel.” or ruling angel. His function appears to be that of protecting God’s chosen people in some special way. According to Rev. 12:7–9, he will be successful in defeating Satan during the tribulation period. The handbook to Bible study : With a guide to the Scofield study system.


Angels who are prominent individuals.

(1) Michael (Dan. 10:13; 12:1; Jude 9). The name Michael means “who is like God?” and identifies the only one classified as an archangel in Scripture. Michael is the defender of Israel who will wage war on behalf of Israel against Satan and his hordes in the Tribulation (Rev. 12:7–9). Michael also disputed with Satan about the body of Moses, but Michael refrained from judgment, leaving that to God (Jude 9). Jehovah’s Witnesses and some Christians identify Michael as Christ; this view, however, would suggest Christ has less authority than Satan, which is untenable.

(2) Gabriel(Dan. 9:21; Luke 1:26). His name means “man of God” or “God is strong.” “Gabriel seems to be God’s special messenger of His kingdom program in each of the four times he appears in the Bible record.… He reveals and interprets God’s purpose and program concerning Messiah and His kingdom to the prophets and people of Israel.” In a highly significant passage, Gabriel explained the events of the seventy weeks for Israel (Dan. 9:21–27). In Luke 1:26–27 Gabriel told Mary that the One born to her would be great and rule on the throne of David. In Daniel 8:15–16 Gabriel explained to Daniel the succeeding kingdoms of Medo-Persia and Greece as well as the untimely death of Alexander the Great. Gabriel also announced the birth of John the Baptist to Zacharias (Luke 1:11–20).

(3) Lucifer (Isa. 14:12) means “shining one” or “star of the morning.” He may have been the wisest and most beautiful of all God’s created beings who was originally placed in a position of authority over the cherubim surrounding the throne of God. (See additional discussion under “Origin and Nature of Satan.” )

The Moody handbook of theology

Ra´phael (the divine healer). According to Jewish tradition, Raphael was one of the four angels which stood round the throne of God—Michael, Uriel, Gabriel, Raphael.

Smith's Bible dictionary

An angel (2 Esd. 4:1-11). Uriel served as a guide to Enoch in the upper heavens (1 Enoch 19-22) and was one of the four angels of the Presence (cf. 1 Enoch 9:1).

Harper's Bible dictionary.



2 Esdras 4:1-11 And the angel that was sent unto me, whose name was Uriel, gave me an answer, And said, Thy heart hath gone to far in this world, and thinkest thou to comprehend the way of the most High? Then said I, Yea, my lord. And he answered me, and said, I am sent to shew thee three ways, and to set forth three similitudes before thee: Whereof if thou canst declare me one, I will shew thee also the way that thou desirest to see, and I shall shew thee from whence the wicked heart cometh. And I said, Tell on, my lord. Then said he unto me, Go thy way, weigh me the weight of the fire, or measure me the blast of the wind, or call me again the day that is past. Then answered I and said, What man is able to do that, that thou shouldest ask such things of me? And he said unto me, If I should ask thee how great dwellings are in the midst of the sea, or how many springs are in the beginning of the deep, or how many springs are above the firmament, or which are the outgoings of paradise: Peradventure thou wouldest say unto me, I never went down into the deep, nor as yet into hell, neither did I ever climb up into heaven. Nevertheless now have I asked thee but only of the fire and wind, and of the day wherethrough thou hast passed, and of things from which thou canst not be separated, and yet canst thou give me no answer of them. He said moreover unto me, Thine own things, and such as are grown up with thee, canst thou not know; How should thy vessel then be able to comprehend the way of the Highest, and, the world being now outwardly corrupted to understand the corruption that is evident in my sight?

Quote:

Phaeul, Zarachiel, and Simiel.

Mark, so far I haven't been able to find any references to these three "archangels" anywhere. They are most definitely NOT in the Bible though, not even in the Catholic bible! I will keep looking however. I don't give up easily LOL

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jillian Cindy , only Michael and Gabriel are mentioned in the Bible. I don't know where the other names come from . Possibly from the Catholic Bible translation and from literature. Christian Answers has a very good article on Angels. Below is just one thing of the angels that it talks about. But has a whole article on Angels . Very informative and interesting. Check out their site. I have it on my favorites list. I love this site. We don't know whether every angel carries out the same tasks, or whether some of them specialize in certain areas. The Bible does speak about classes of angelic beings like cherubim (Ezekiel 1) and seraphim (Isaiah 6). We also know the names of two notable angels: Michael (Daniel 10:13; Jude 9) and Gabriel (Daniel 9:21; Luke 1:19,26). The unnamed angels who appear most often in Scripture carry out a variety of tasks—all designed to serve God… Worship and praise - This is the main activity portrayed in heaven (Isaiah 6:1-3; Revelation 4-5). Revealing - They serve as messengers to communicate God's will to men. They helped reveal the law to Moses (Acts 7:52-53), and served as the carriers of much of the material in Daniel, and Revelation. Guiding - Angels gave instructions to Joseph about the birth of Jesus (Matthew 1-2), to the women at the tomb, to Philip (Acts 8:26), and to Cornelius (Acts 10:1-8). Providing - God has used angels to provide physical needs such as food for Hagar (Genesis 21:17-20), Elijah (1 Kings 19:6), and Christ after His temptation (Matthew 4:11). Protecting - Keeping God's people out of physical danger, as in the cases of Daniel and the lions, and his three friends in the fiery furnace (Daniel 3 and 6). Delivering - Getting God's people out of danger once they're in it. Angels released the apostles from prison in Acts 5, and repeated the process for Peter in Acts 12. Strengthening and encouraging - Angels strengthened Jesus after His temptation (Matt 4:11), encouraged the apostles to keep preaching after releasing them from prison (Acts 5:19-20), and told Paul that everyone on his ship would survive the impending shipwreck (Acts 27:23-25). Answering prayer - God often uses angels as His means of answering the prayers of His people (Daniel 9:20-24; 10:10-12; Acts 12:1-17). Caring for believers at the moment of death - In the story of Lazarus and the rich man, we read that angels carried the spirit of Lazarus to “Abraham's bosom” when he died (Luke 16:22). Author: Dr. John Bechtle. http://www.christiananswers.net/q-acb/acb-t005.html

Yes that is a good site! I was shocked when I checked my bible library and saw what a HUGE amount of information there is in it on angels! It's going to be a fun study that's for sure!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pathwalker In Revelations 16:1-17- 1And I heard a great voice out of the temple saying to the seven angels, Go your ways, and pour out the vials of the wrath of God upon the earth. 2And the first went, and poured out his vial upon the earth; and there fell a noisome and grievous sore upon the men which had the mark of the beast, and upon them which worshipped his image. 3And the second angel poured out his vial upon the sea; and it became as the blood of a dead man: and every living soul died in the sea. 4And the third angel poured out his vial upon the rivers and fountains of waters; and they became blood. 5And I heard the angel of the waters say, Thou art righteous, O Lord, which art, and wast, and shalt be, because thou hast judged thus. 6For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and thou hast given them blood to drink; for they are worthy. 7And I heard another out of the altar say, Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are thy judgments. 8And the fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun; and power was given unto him to scorch men with fire. 9And men were scorched with great heat, and blasphemed the name of God, which hath power over these plagues: and they repented not to give him glory. 10And the fifth angel poured out his vial upon the seat of the beast; and his kingdom was full of darkness; and they gnawed their tongues for pain, 11And blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, and repented not of their deeds. 12And the sixth angel poured out his vial upon the great river Euphrates; and the water thereof was dried up, that the way of the kings of the east might be prepared. 13And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. 14For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty. 15Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame. 16And he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon. 17And the seventh angel poured out his vial into the air; and there came a great voice out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, It is done. The Bible talks about seven angels, do we know who are the seven angels? After reviewing Pastor Richards Study on Rev 16 I see that these are not the Archangels.

No, they aren't archangels, and we aren't told their names. They are as far as we're told just seven of the vast numbers of angels that serve the Lord. I will keep my eyes open however to see if I can find any more specific info on these particular angels, but I kind of doubt if I will...

OK, let me go study a bit and then I'll be back and post the next part for us!

 

Join us for the Angels Study here!

Angels

I thought it might be fun to take a look at angels for a bit.

The first thing I remember learning about angels is that they are often God's messengers and that they do not like or want us to bow down to them or pray to them. They serve the Lord just as we do and give Him the glory for everything. What I didn't know until recently was that the word "angel" actually translated from both Greek and Hebrew means "messenger". I thought that was interesting.

There are some people, especially Catholics who seem to have this false view that people turn into angels when they die, but that's totally wrong. God created angels before He created humans. We are a totally different species then angles are. One does not "turn into" the other, nor should we want to!

The Bible says that the angels were created to serve men. Isn't that neat that even before He created us, the Lord made angels who's main purpose would be to help us and serve us! This is one of the things that so galled Lucifer that he rebelled and was cast out of heaven. He just couldn't stand the thought of having to serve us puny, undeserving, sinful humans. I can't say as I really blame him...I sure wouldn't want to serve me either!

Well let's first take a quick look at some of the things God's Word says about angels ok?

Hebrews 1:14 Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?

Here we see that all angels are "ministering spirits" and the word "ministering" means serving as in a servant. Note too that the angels are sent to serve everyone that is or will be saved. One way in which they serve us is as our guardians:

Matthew 18:10 “See that you do not look down on one of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven.

While we are here on the earth in our physical bodies the angels are actually above us since they don't have a sin nature.

Hebrews 2:7 You made him a little lower than the angels; you crowned him with glory and honor

Psalm 8:4-6 what is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him? You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor. You made him ruler over the works of your hands; you put everything under his feet:

But one we have received our new bodies and no longer have our sin nature to deal with, then we will be above the angels in a sense since they will still be our servants and we will judge them:

1 Corinthians 6:2-3 Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if you are to judge the world, are you not competent to judge trivial cases? Do you not know that we will judge angels? How much more the things of this life!

Angels don't have physical bodies like we do, instead they are totally spirit:

Ephesians 6:12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

Hebrews 1:14 Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?

Apparently they can take on a physical form when they want to as is shown in many verses when they did so:

Genesis 18:2-3 Abraham looked up and saw three men standing nearby. When he saw them, he hurried from the entrance of his tent to meet them and bowed low to the ground. He said, “If I have found favor in your eyes, my lord, do not pass your servant by.

Luke 1:11 Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense.

Angels are intelligent, as we can see from the many verses in the Bible where they have carried on conversations with people. They have desires, emotions, wants etc. just like we do, except that theirs aren't corrupted from sin as ours are now:

1 Peter 1:12 It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you, when they spoke of the things that have now been told you by those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Even angels long to look into these things.

There are different types and divisions of angels such as the cherubs:

Genesis 3:24 After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life.

Cherubim guard the tree of life in the garden of Eden, God's throne and the Ark of the Covenant and mercy seat. (Exodus 25:18-22 and Exodus 37:7-9) One of my commentaries says:

The fullest description of cherubim is in Ezek. 10, where they are closely related to the glory of God and have a part in its presence and its withdrawal, moving at the Almighty’s direction.
Spirit filled life study Bible.

Of course we know about Archangels because of the verses concerning Archangel Michael which show him as being like a warrior angel and the special protector of Israel. The following verse gives us yet more information about the divisions of angels each of which has it's own assignments:

Colossians 1:16 For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him.

This goes along with this verse:

Ephesians 6:12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

Again let me share what some of my commentaries says about this:

The Son’s Creation includes “all” things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible. These indicate the entire universe, both material and immaterial. The hierarchy of angelic beings—thrones (thronoi) or powers (kyriotētes) or rulers (archai) or authorities (exousiai)—indicate a highly organized dominion in the spirit world, a sphere in which the Colossians were engaged in the worship of angels (Col. 2:18) and over which Christ reigns supreme (cf. Eph. 1:21; 3:10; 6:12; Phil. 2:9-10; Col. 2:10, 15).

The Bible knowledge commentary : An exposition of the scriptures

principalities, or powers—rather, “rules, or authorities”: the former are stronger than the latter (compare Note, see on Eph 1:21). The latter pair refer to offices in respect to God’s creatures: “thrones and dominions” express exalted relation to God, they being the chariots on which He rides displaying His glory (Ps 68:17). The existence of various orders of angels is established by this passage.

A commentary, critical and explanatory, on the Old and New Testaments.

21. Greek, “Far (or high) above all (Eph 4:10) principality (or rule, 1Co 15:24), and authority, and power (Mt 28:18), and dominion (or lordship).” Compare Php 2:9; Col 1:16; Heb 7:26; 1Pe 3:22. Evil spirits (who are similarly divided into various ranks, Eph 6:12), as well as angels of light, and earthly potentates, are included (compare Ro 8:38). .... Some philosophizing teachers of the school of Simon Magus, in Western Asia Minor, had, according to Irenaeus and Epiphanius, taught their hearers these names of various ranks of angels. Paul shows that the truest wisdom is to know Christ as reigning above them all. A commentary, critical and explanatory, on the Old and New Testaments.

The subject of angels is really fascinating to me so I think this will be a fun study to do! Of course one of the verses we're probably all familiar with is this one:

Hebrews 13:2 Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it.

We'll talk about that and others tomorrow though!

 

Join us for the Angels Study here!

Re: We often see God as like our human Father

  Most of us tend to assume that God isn't going to help us.  We pray and ask Him to but fully expect His answer to be "no, deal with it yourself" or something along those lines.  We usually come up with all kinds of "reasons" the Lord won't help us, such as we've sinned about this or that, or we haven't done a perfect job of handling our money, or haven't been the perfect wife, father, whatever. I know I used to do this a lot and still get occasionally catch myself having these kind of thoughts. 

For something like this what we have to do is stop ourselves when we find ourselves having those kind of thoughts and go to our bibles and find out what the truth is about God and how He treats us.  One of my favorite psalms immediately comes to mind for this but I'll only post parts of it:

Psalm 103:6 The Lord works righteousness and justice for all the oppressed.

Psalm 103:8 The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love.

Psalm 103:10-13 he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him;

Psalm 130:3-4 If you, O Lord, kept a record of sins, O Lord, who could stand? But with you there is forgiveness; therefore you are feared.

Psalm 30:5 For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime; weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning.

God loves us so much more then even our earthly parents can that it's not something we can truly comprehend.  At least I know I can't.  I vividly remember when my first child, Michelle, was born.  I honestly thought I was going to burst from all the love that filled me for her!  I was astounded at the depth and magnitude of the love I felt for that tiny baby.  When I got pregnant a few months later with my second child, Michael, I was terrified that I wouldn't be able to love another child because I didn't see how it would be possible for me to hold anymore love in my heart then I already did.  Of course when he was born I felt that same incredible surge of overwhelming love for him too, and I felt that same love for each of other children when they were born.  That love I felt so many years ago, the depth and magnitude of it, for each one of my five children has never ebbed even a tiny bit.  Even now that they are grown and have children of their own, I still love them every bit as much as I did the first time I held them in my arms.  And you know what? When each of my grandchildren was born a new and just as deep love for each of them bloomed in my heart.  It brings tears to my eyes even now.  I can't imagine feeling a love greater then the love I feel for my children and grandchildren and yet I know beyond any doubt that the Lord loves me, them, you and all of us even greater then I or any mother can love her child!

We've already talked about this verse which speaks to this:

Isaiah 49:15-16 “Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you! See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands;

How about this one:

Matthew 7:11 If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!

And then there's this one:

Psalm 56:8 Record my lament; list my tears on your scroll— are they not in your record?

Jeremiah 31:34 No longer will a man teach his neighbor, or a man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest,” declares the Lord. “For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.”

God knows us so intimately, so well that while he casts our sins as far away from Him as the east is from the west, and refuses to remember them, but He will never forget our suffering for He says He will avenge us for every bit we've ever suffered. 

Nor do we have to worry about what kind of mood He's in when we pray, like we had to think about with our parents.  Our God doesn't change, He isn't going to treat us one way today and a different way tomorrow.  Nor will he give us His second best, but only His very best is good enough for us!

James 1:17 Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

I could go on and on but I'm sure everyone gets the idea.  Ok, lol, one last one:

2 Corinthians 1:20-22 For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ. And so through him the “Amen” is spoken by us to the glory of God. Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.

So when you start feeling that the Lord isn't going to help you, open your bible, ask Him to show you the Truth and He will!

Stress, worry, fear, etc & the Christian

God's ways of dealing with stress, fear, worry, anxiety and depression that I talked about in this study are exactly what has enabled me to not just "get through" the last year and a half, but has enabled me to go through it without anxiety and with great joy! Most of you know that my husband, Bruce, has been laid off for 16 months now and was about to lose his unemployment benefits in a couple of weeks. He heard about a possible job opening yesterday afternoon and went there this morning to apply for the job. He just called me and he got it!!! It's "local", just in the next town up from us so it will only take him about 20 mins to get to work each day. He's going to be working on a horse farm which is owned by an old friend of his! This is really great because the work won't be as hard on his back as the construction was. He's really getting too old for construction work anyway. But he loves working outdoors so this will be perfect for him! (but then God always gives us perfect gifts!)

James 1:17 Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

But that's only half of the praise report! The other half is that the Lord carried both of us through these last 16 months, keeping us calm and keeping us from being stressed out about it. We've always lived from pay check to pay check so we had no savings to rely on. But the Lord covered our bills every single month somehow so that even now the only bills that we are behind on are hospital bills. (and that's my fault, not the Lord's... I could have gotten them on a payment plan but simply didn't bother. I did that with the ones from the doctors, but the hospitals billing dept for the lab, xrays, etc was just so obnoxious that I decided they'd be the last thing I'd pay) The Lord always even made sure we had money to get our 9 grandchildren birthday and Christmas gifts! He even provided for us to loan our children money occasionally when they needed it!

I know that this would be wonderful for anyone, but because in the past financial security was very important to me, the fact that the Lord got us through these last 16 months this way, depending solely on Him for our finances, was a real miracle! He has taught me so much and this has been like a "final exam" for me to see if I would truly trust Him. There is NO way that I could have handled this before I was saved. There was no way I could have handled this even two years ago. If the Lord hadn't made sure that I had grown enough in Him to face this, I would have fallen flat on my face and probably been in a psych ward within the first 6 months easily and it probably would have been the end of our marriage.

In the past I would have been anxious, worried, tense, scared to death, angry, and full of fear, but the Lord helped me keep my mind focused on Him so that instead I felt calm about it. I did have some moments when I'd go to Him and tell Him that I just didn't see how we could possibly keep on going; or tell Him that I really couldn't handle much more, and each time I did, He would comfort and encourage me and most important, He would strengthen me.

Because of Him, and only because of Him, I was able to stand firm in faith these last 16 months and I'm so very grateful to Him! I can say from personal experience that these verses are indeed true and that God's way of dealing with worry, fear, anxiety, stress and depression really work!

If we will be obedient to Him and simply take that first step each day and study His Word and apply it to our lives, then He is always faithful and merciful to help us, encourage us and strengthen us so that we can have the kind of victorious life He wants for us to have. No, I don't mean that we won't have trials...but instead, we will be not just happy, but full of joy in spite of those trials! Satan loses big time when we are obedient to God and when we're obedient, we then experience the abundant life that Christ died to give us!

Romans 14:4 .... And he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand.

Isaiah 26:3 You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you.

Philippians 4:6-9 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.

Philippians 4:12-13 I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength.

Philippians 4:19 And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.

1 Peter 1:3-7 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade—kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.


To read this study from the beginning click here: Stress,worry,fear etc & the Christian

We often see God as like our human Father

Bek asked me to start a study about this and how although we tend to view God the same way we do our human father (or mother) that He is far superior to our human parents, even if they happened to be the best, most godly Christian parents we could imagine. None of us had perfect parents and many had parents who physically, emotionally or sexually abused them. So for all of us, when we initially meet God when we're saved, we have a rather distorted idea of who He is and it can be very difficult for us to learn to trust Him because of that.

I think this is something that we can all relate to in some way. My parents were not Christians at all and my mom divorced my dad when I was about 8 and married someone else. My step father also wasn't Christian and he was an alcoholic. Let's just say that this left me with a very distorted view of men and fathers in general.

When I was saved, I realized and told the Lord that I knew that my view of Him was wrong and that it was part of the reason I didn't trust Him. When you've been betrayed or hurt by your earthly parents, it's hard to trust anyone much less someone else claiming to be a parent to you. I asked Him to help me to trust Him and I think that's really the first step each of us has to take. First to realize we have that problem and then to take that problem to the Lord and ask His help in overcoming it.

One of the things I realized as time went by and the Lord taught me more about Himself, was that just like with a human relationship, the more I got to know the Lord, the more I was able to trust Him. So the answer to this problem is both to take it to the Lord and ask His help, and then to determine to really get to know God for Himself. (not for what other people say about Him--but from what He Himself says)

God is very aware that we have this problem and He wants nothing so much as to help us overcome it. He actually addresses this problem here:

Isaiah 49:15-16 “Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you! See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands;

You see, He is saying in that passage that while most mothers are good and would never forget their child, that there are some parents who do not have any regard for their children. He assures us in this passage that even though there are some parents like this, that He is not like that and He will never ever forget us.

When you meet someone for the first time, you don't sit down with them and pour out your life story and tell them all your secrets and concerns. No, that would be pretty reckless! Instead you chat about inconsequential things like the weather, likes and dislikes, etc. The next time you see them is more of the same. Each time you meet that person you learn a little more about them and in the process you determine whether or not that person is someone you can trust.

When we are saved, we are brought into a close personal relationship with God.

Galatians 4:6 Because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.”

But for us it's more like we're "introduced" to Him. We are in the relationship with Him now, but we don't yet know Him. We might know "about" Him, but we don't really know Him yet. What most of us simply don't realize is that our relationship with the Lord requires work, just like any human relationship we have, be it our marriage or a friendship.

If we do not make the effort to get to know God by reading, studying and reflecting on His Word, with His help, then our relationship with Him will always remain shallow and unproductive. We will continue to know more "about" Him then to know Him personally.

Do you understand the difference in that statement? If I tell you that I have a daughter who's name is Michelle and tell you all about her, you might become quite knowledgeable about her and her life. Of course you'll be assuming that what I'm telling you about her is true, and it might not be. Since you don't know her personally though, you won't have any way of discovering if what I'm telling you is true or not. This is what someone with a shallow relationship with God is like. They may know a lot about Him from what other people, including their pastor has said, or through books they've read, etc. but they don't know Him so they have no way of knowing if anything they think they "know" is true or not. There is little to no growth involved in this kind of relationship.

This is not the kind of relationship Jesus died for. He died so that He and the Father could be in close communion with us. He wants us to know Him personally, not just know about Him from what others have said or through books you've read.

Just as we have to take time to spend with our physical friends to get to know them, so we also have to take time to spend with God and His Word to get to know Him. I'm afraid there simply is no shortcut for this.

I hope this gives everyone a beginning so that we can talk about other parts of this from here. Let me know what you think and where you'd like to go with this next ok?

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