Angelic Conflict part 72: Angelology 101 – Heb 1:14; 2:5-18; Rom 5:17, 21; 6:12-13; 1Co 15:25; 1Ti 6:15; 1Jo 5:19.
length: 60:55 - taught on May, 8 2013
Class Outline:
Title: Angelic Conflict part 72: Angelology 101 - HEB 1:14; 2:5-18; ROM 5:17, 21; 6:12-13; 1CO 15:25; 1TI 6:15; 1JO 5:19.
It strengthens our faith in God’s providential care, to know that spirits of so high rank are deputed to minister to creatures who are environed with temptations and are conscious of sin.
HEB 1:1 God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways,
HEB 1:2 in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world.
HEB 1:3 And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power. When He had made purification of sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high;
HEB 1:4 having become as much better than the angels [in His humanity], as He has inherited a more excellent name than they [King of kings and Lord of Lords, the Word of God, and a name only He knows (Rev 19)].
HEB 1:5 For to which of the angels did He ever say,
"Thou art My Son, Today I have begotten Thee"?
And again,
"I will be a Father to Him And He shall be a Son to Me"?
HEB 1:6 And when He again brings the first-born into the world, He says,
" And let all the angels of God worship Him."
HEB 1:7 And of the angels He says,
"Who makes His angels winds, And His ministers a flame of fire."
Angels are servants and messengers, who obey God as the wind and the fire, but the Son is Lord of all - and we are in union with Him.
HEB 1:8 But of the Son He says,
"Thy throne, O God, is forever and ever, And the righteous scepter is the scepter of His kingdom.
HEB 1:9 "Thou hast loved righteousness and hated lawlessness; Therefore God [deity of Christ], Thy God, hath anointed Thee With the oil of gladness above Thy companions."
HEB 1:10 And,
"Thou, Lord, in the beginning didst lay the foundation of the earth, And the heavens are the works of Thy hands;
HEB 1:11 They will perish, but Thou remainest; And they all will become old as a garment,
HEB 1:12 And as a mantle Thou wilt roll them up; As a garment they will also be changed. But Thou art the same, And Thy years will not come to an end."
HEB 1:13 But to which of the angels has He ever said,
"Sit at My right hand, Until I make Thine enemies A footstool for Thy feet "?
HEB 1:14 Are they not all ministering spirits, sent out to render service for the sake of those who will inherit salvation?
Christ said that a spirit does not have flesh and bone as a man does, LUK 24:39, therefore their bodies are most likely immaterial.
Yet, have the angels not also inherited salvation? Though the Bible intimates in certain passages that angels have received salvation it seems with a deeper look that they did not and that only man is the recipient of God’s grace for salvation.
HEB 2:5 For He did not subject to angels the world to come, concerning which we are speaking.
HEB 2:6 But one has testified somewhere [PSA 8:4-6], saying,
"What is man, that Thou rememberest him?
Or the son of man, that Thou art concerned about him?
HEB 2:7 "Thou hast made him for a little while lower than the angels;
Thou hast crowned him with glory and honor,
And hast appointed him over the works of Thy hands;
HEB 2:8 Thou hast put all things in subjection under his feet. "
[pause]For in subjecting all things to him, He left nothing that is not subject to him. But now we do not yet see all things subjected to him.
It’s important to look at this quotation from its source in order to fully understand this passage:
Man was made a little lower than the angels, and was the undisputed lord of this lower world. He was in a state of innocence. But he rebelled, and this dominion had been lost.
And the devil said to Him, "I will give You all this domain and its glory; for it has been handed over to me, and I give it to whomever I wish.
The dominion of man was lost to an angel, a fallen angel, the fallen angel, who we can be sure relished his new kingdom.
in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving, that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
He relished in his kingdom, and not just that, but the people in it were under his power.
EPH 2:1 And you were dead in your trespasses and sins,
EPH 2:2 in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience.
Even after being dethroned by Christ at the cross, those remaining in the world, refusing salvation, or believing in Christ but walking in darkness still find themselves subject to him.
The greatest subjection was in what satan promised the woman would not happen, spiritual and subsequently physical death.
Since then the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil;
One of the very simple things that we often miss is that angels do not die.
"The sons of this age marry and are given in marriage, but those who are considered worthy to attain to that age and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry, nor are given in marriage; for neither can they die anymore, for they are like angels, and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection.
Their bodies are not made of rudimentary, earthly material that expires. Since angels cannot die then Christ could not die for them. He became flesh and blood so that He could die, spiritually and then physically.
And the serpent said to the woman, "You surely shall not die!
Yet Christ came into the world as a man, not an angel, that He might conquer the spiritual and physical death of man.
ROM 5:17 For if by the transgression of the one, death reigned through the one, much more those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.
“reigned” - basileu,w[basileuo; aorist/future active indicative] = to reign, to be king, to exercise kingly power.
This is the only root word used in the NT for king, reigning as king, or kingdom.
In light of this it is insightful to see the other places where this verb is used.
ROM 5:21 that, as sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
ROM 6:12 Therefore do not let sin [OSN] reign in your mortal body that you should obey its lusts,
ROM 6:13 and do not go on presenting the members of your body to sin as instruments of unrighteousness; but present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God.
1CO 15:20 But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep.
1CO 15:21 For since by a man came death, by a man also came the resurrection of the dead.
1CO 15:22 For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all shall be made alive.
1CO 15:23 But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, after that those who are Christ's at His coming,
1CO 15:24 then comes the end, when He delivers up the kingdom to the God and Father, when He has abolished all rule and all authority and power.
1CO 15:25 For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet.
1CO 15:26 The last enemy that will be abolished is death.
Since then the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil;
1TI 6:11 But flee from these things [false doctrines and lust for wealth], you man of God; and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance and gentleness.
1TI 6:12 Fight the good fight of faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called, and you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.
1TI 6:13 I charge you in the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and of Christ Jesus, who testified the good confession before Pontius Pilate,
Hold your place:
JOH 18:33 Pilate therefore entered again into the Praetorium, and summoned Jesus, and said to Him, "Are You the King [the noun of basileuo - basileus] of the Jews?"
JOH 18:34 Jesus answered, "Are you saying this on your own initiative, or did others tell you about Me?"
JOH 18:35 Pilate answered, "I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests delivered You up to me; what have You done?"
JOH 18:36 Jesus answered, "My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, then My servants would be fighting, that I might not be delivered up to the Jews; but as it is, My kingdom is not of this realm."
JOH 18:37 Pilate therefore said to Him, "So You are a king?" Jesus answered, "You say correctly that I am a king. For this I have been born, and for this I have come into the world, to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice."
JOH 18:38 Pilate said to Him, "What is truth?"
This is a bad question since truth is not a what but a who and the truth is standing right in front of Pilate, yet Pilate asks what the truth is, meaning he assumes it is in a book or a person’s mind somewhere else.
The truth is that Christ our King has reclaimed all that man has lost through rebellion and has conquered death. Grace comes with truth - believe in Him.
That is why He asks Pilate if he is asking from his own initiative, because if he is, he is close to faith. Unfortunately, he was not.
Go back:
1TI 6:11 But flee from these things [false doctrines and lust for wealth], you man of God; and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance and gentleness.
1TI 6:12 Fight the good fight of faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called, and you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.
1TI 6:13 I charge you in the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and of Christ Jesus, who testified the good confession before Pontius Pilate,
1TI 6:14 that you keep the commandment without stain or reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ,
1TI 6:15 which He will bring about at the proper time — He who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords;
“King of kings” - basileu,j tw/n basileu,w[basileus ton basileuo]
1TI 6:16 who alone possesses immortality and dwells in unapproachable light; whom no man has seen or can see. To Him be honor and eternal dominion! Amen.
Paul often closes a section of his writing with such doxologies or hymns of praise to God though his letter is not finished. It reveals his excitement and awe of God’s word and God’s plan for the church, for the present and future reigning of Christ, and for God’s victory over His enemies in which believers in the human race reap the benefits of. The word for dominion in verse 16 means manifest power which Christ now has because of His cross.
The final culmination after all enemies are gone and the universe is made anew.
And there shall no longer be any night; and they shall not have need of the light of a lamp nor the light of the sun, because the Lord God shall illumine them; and they shall reign forever and ever.
For now, satan maintains a very temporary rulership so that the Church may reveal God’s glory in the midst of it:
We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one.
The Church was never created to clean up the devil’s world, but to maintain power, peace, love, and to powerfully represent Christ and His victory despite the devil’s world.
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.
However, when Christ said, “It is finished,” satan lost his rulership of the world, though he is allowed to continue until Christ returns.
God has let him remain so that he can be beat by God’s Church.
"Now judgment is upon this world; now the ruler of this world shall be cast out.
"I will not speak much more with you, for the ruler of the world is coming, and he has nothing in Me;
and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged.
It is found complete only in the "second man the Lord from heaven" (1 Cor 15:47), the Lord Jesus to whom this control is absolutely given.
1CO 15:45 So also it is written, "The first man, Adam, became a living soul." The last Adam became a life-giving spirit.
1CO 15:46 However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural; then the spiritual.
1CO 15:47 The first man is from the earth, earthy; the second man is from heaven.
This giving of life is experienced in time for all believers who refuse to walk in the world as a lifestyle. Hence the very real danger of walking in darkness. The actual execution of this casting out will not occur until the Second Coming of Christ.
REV 20:2 And he laid hold of the dragon, the serpent of old, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years,
REV 20:3 and threw him into the abyss, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he should not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were completed; after these things he must be released for a short time.
He is released for a short time simply to show that mankind, even in perfect environment, in the presence of the risen Savior, will give lip service to Him and join the first rebellion against Him to come their way. It is a final sad testimony to the negative volition of God’s creatures.
REV 20:10 And the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are also; and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
So man was created and given dominion over the earth. By his fall man lost his dominion of the earth to satan and his demon organization. Satan gained rulership of the kingdom of the earth as well as over the human race. Christ became a man in order to reclaim the kingdom and the people for God. All who believe in Christ are set free eternally. All who walk with Christ are set free in time even though satan retains his federal, but temporary, headship over the world. His power is limited by God and he has been defeated.
Christ became a man and not an angel and the submission of the world is for believing mankind and not for angels who minister to them.
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