Angels, demons & Satan
In an increasingly secular world, there is still a surprisingly large attention to Angels. Cards, gifts, jewellery, art, ornaments, decorations, clothing and even TV dramas feature angels. Many people even use the term ‘guardian angel’ with sincerity.
Many popular films and television programs also dramatise demons and evil spirits, while some people worship, pray to and fear demons and evil spirits.
Are angels, demons and the devil the result of superstition or reality? A myriad mix of superstition, truth and opinion can easily confuse, entice, harm or belittle the truth.
There may be times when you find it difficult to reconcile God’s truth to your own opinion or worldview, God’s truth is eternal, it does not change, our understanding of the truth does change as we allow God to work in our hearts and minds.
These sessions are not about opinion, they are about learning truth, the truth contained in the Bible, together we are going to focus on how we apply God’s truth, black & white in a grey world. To set godly priorities, grow in Christian character and live according to God’s standards so that we are a living witness to others.
WHO OR WHAT ARE ANGELS?
Angels are mentioned at least 108 times in the Old Testament and 165 times in the New Testament (Chafer, Systematic Theology, II, 3). There is ample information available in the Bible to allow us to build a foundation for our knowledge of angelic beings.
The word “angel” actually comes from the Greek word aggelos, which means “messenger.” The matching Hebrew word mal’ak has the same meaning. These words are usually used to usually describe the whole range of spirits whom God has created, including both good and evil angels, and special categories such as cherubim, seraphim, and the archangel.
There are 7 instances where the Bible in the original Hebrew or Greek uses these words to describe human beings:
- ordinary people who carry messages (Job 1:14; Luke 7:24; 9:52)
- prophets (Isaiah 42:19; Malachi 3:1)
- priests (Malachi 2:7)
- church leaders (Rev 1:20)
Sometimes, the Bible speaks figuratively of things or events as “messengers”…
- the pillar of cloud (Exodus 14:19)
- pestilence or plagues (2 Samuel 24:16-17)
HOW DID ANGELS ORIGINATE?
The Bible speaks about the creation of angels, therefore, it is clear that they have not existed for all eternity (Nehemiah 9:6; Psalm 148:2,5). Colossians 1:16-17 explains: “For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created by Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.”
The time of their creation is never definitely specified, but it is most probable that it occurred in connection with the creation of the heavens in Genesis 1:1. It may be that God created the angels immediately after He had created the heavens and before He created the earth—for according to Job 38:4-7, “the sons of God shouted for joy” when He laid the foundations of the earth.
HOW DO ANGELS COMPARE TO HUMAN BEINGS?
- They are stronger than man, but not omnipotent (Psalm 103:20; 2 Peter 2:11; Isaiah 37:36).
- They are greater than man in knowledge, but not omniscient (2 Samuel 14:20; Matthew 24:36).
- They are more noble than man, but not omnipresent (Daniel 9:21-23, 10:10-14).
DO PEOPLE BECOME ANGELS AFTER DEATH?
No, angels are not glorified human beings. Matthew 22:30 explains that they do not marry or reproduce like humans, and Hebrews 12:22-23 says that when we get to the heavenly Jerusalem, we will be met by “myriads of angels” and “the spirits of righteous men made perfect”—two separate groups.
Angels are a company or association, not a race descended from a common ancestor (Luke 20:34-36). We are called “sons of men” but angels are never called “sons of angels.”
DO ANGELS HAVE BODIES?
Since angels are spirits rather than physical beings, they don’t have to be visible at all (Colossians 1:16). Elisha once prayed that his servant would see the armies of angels surrounding the city, and the young man discovered that he had overlooked a lot of invisible beings (2 Kings 6:17)!
Jesus declared that “a spirit has not flesh and bones, as you see me have” (Luke 24:37-39). The Bible does, however, make it clear that angels can only be in one place at a time. They must have some localised presence.
WHAT DO ANGELS LOOK LIKE?
When angels do appear, they generally appear in the form of men. In Genesis 18, Abraham welcomed three angelic guests who appeared at first to be nothing more than some travellers. In the following chapter, two angels went to Sodom where they were assumed to be simply a pair of human visitors.
Angels can take on the appearance of men when the occasion demands. How else could some “entertain angels unaware” (Hebrews 13:2)?
Sometimes an angel appears to be a man with unusual features. Daniel saw an angel with arms and legs resembling polished metal and precious stones, and a face like lightning (Daniel 10:5-6).
On the other hand, their appearance is sometimes in dazzling white and blazing glory (Matthew 28:3; Luke 24:4). The book of Revelation describes some highly unusual beings who may be a variety of angel in Revelation 4:6-8.
Angels in the Bible never appear as cute, chubby infants! They are always full-grown adults. When people in the Bible saw an angel, their typical response was to fall on their faces in fear and awe, not to reach out and tickle an adorable baby.
Some Bible passages picture angels with wings (Isaiah 6:2,6). Other verses talk about angels flying, and we assume that the wings would be useful for that flight (Daniel 9:21).
Angels can move around without having to depend on wings. Most references to angels in the Bible say nothing about wings, and in passages like Genesis 18-19, it is certain that no wings were visible.
WHAT IS AN ANGELS JOB DESCRIPTION?
We don’t know whether every angel carries out the same tasks, or whether some of them specialise 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).
“Angels spell out the tenderness of God’s love, meet a desperate need; then they are gone. Angels never draw attention to themselves but ascribe glory to God and press His message upon the hearers as a delivering and sustaining word of the highest order. They are vigorous in delivering the heirs of salvation from the stratagems of evil”
Billy Graham
HOW MANY ANGELS ARE THERE?
While the Bible gives no definite figures, we are told that the number of angels is very great (Daniel 7:10; Matthew 26:53; Hebrews 12:22; Revelation 5:11). It appears that all angels were created at one time. No new angels are being added to the number. Angels are not subject to death or any form of extinction; therefore they do not decrease in number.
DO ANGELS APPEAR TODAY?
No biblical teaching rules out the possibility of angels appearing today. One modern account was reported in Moody Monthly in an article titled here’s your answer: John G. Paton was a missionary to the New Hebrides. He had aroused the enmity of the local native chief by his successes in the Gospel, the chief hired a man to kill the missionary. The man went to the missionary’s house, but instead of murdering Paton he returned in terror, saying he had seen a row of men, dressed in white, surrounding the missionary’ home. The chief thought the man had drunk too much whiskey and encouraged him to try again. The next time others of the tribe accompanied him. That night they all saw three rows of men surrounding Paton’s home. When the chief asked the missionary where he kept the men in the daytime who surrounded his house at night, Paton, knowing nothing of what had happened, disclaimed the whole idea. When the chief in his amazement, told his story, the missionary realised the natives had seen an angelic company which God had sent to protect him, and he related it to Psalm 34:7: “The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear God, and he delivers them.” The savages were powerfully impressed with the missionary’s explanation.
ARE ALL ANGELS GOOD?
God created angels perfect, and they were originally uncorrupted in Spirit and holy enjoying the presence of God (Matthew 18:10) and the environment of heaven (Mark 13:32), at the same time, they had free will and were susceptible to temptation and sin, How sin could have come into a perfect creature is a mystery, but that it actually happened is clear.
The Bible classifies some angels as “elect” (1 Timothy 5:21) or “holy” (Matthew 25:31; Mark 8:38). Other angels oppose God under the leadership of Satan (Matthew 25:41; 2 Peter 2:4; Jude 6; Ephesians 6:12). We often call these “demons.”
There is actually a great unseen conflict raging that goes beyond anything we can imagine. It is not, however, a fight between two equal and eternal forces. God who created all beings is still in charge, and once He has used wicked angels to accomplish His purposes, He will bring them to a final defeat.
WHAT IS A FALLEN ANGEL?
In most Christian denominations, a fallen angel is an angel who has been exiled or banished from Heaven. Often such banishment is a punishment for disobeying or rebelling against God. The most-known fallen angel is Lucifer. Lucifer is a name frequently given to Satan in Christian belief.
This usage stems from a particular interpretation, as a reference to a fallen angel, of a passage in the Bible (Isaiah 14:3-20) that speaks of someone who is given the name of “Day Star” or “Morning Star” (in Latin, Lucifer) as fallen from heaven.
The Greek etymological synonym of Lucifer, ??sf???? (Eosphoros, “light-bearer”) is used of the morning star in 2 Peter 1:19 and elsewhere with no relation to Satan. Satan is called Lucifer in many writings later than the Bible, notably in Milton’s Paradise Lost (7.131-134, among others), because, according to Milton, Satan was “brighter once amidst the host of Angels, than that star the stars among.”
WHAT ABOUT salvation FOR FALLEN ANGELS/DEMONS?
Angels were all created good but some turned bad on their own. Angels don’t need faith as they already have the knowledge of celestial things, so their rebellion against God constituted .unforgivable sin. Matthew 12:32 qualifies unforgivable sin as being unforgivable in “this age or the age to come.”
Peter wrote about God’s judgement on angels in 2 Peter 2:4, “God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell, putting them into gloomy dungeons to be held for judgment” and Jude writes of angels who “did not keep their positions of authority” (Jude 6). The cause and
What is a Demon?
Demons are spoken of as spiritual beings (Matt. 8:16; 10:1; 12:43-45) at enmity with God, and as having a certain power over man (James 2:19; Rev. 16:14). They recognize our Lord as the Son of God (Matt. 8:20; Luke 4:41).
According to the Book of Revelation (Rev 12:9), demons are the angels that fell from heaven (fallen angels) with Satan when he chose to rebel against God. The Greek form of demon (daemon) id often translated “devil” in the King James Version of the New Testament.
HOW MANY DEMONS EXIST?
The number of demons, at least according to Christian demonology, is high. In the early times of Christianity it was accepted that there was an unknown number of demons. During the Late Middle Ages, some demonologists tried to evaluate this number. Some theologians based on Revelation 12:3-9 state that one third of all the angels fell and became demons. In the 15th Century, many Christian theologians believed that there were 400 million angels and based on this in 1467 Alfonso de Spina calculated that the number of demons was 133,316,666 (666 legions, 6,666 demons in each legion, 66 rulers).
Some scholars supported the idea that the number of demons was unique and they could not procreate, others did not accept a unique number of demons. Gregory of Nyssa, in the 4th century, supported the idea that demons procreated with other demons and with women to produce male and female demons.
WHAT ARE THE Characteristics of DEMONS?
In Christian tradition, demons share characteristics of angels they are spiritual, immutable, and immortal. Demons are not omniscient, but each one has a specific knowledge (sometimes on only one subject, sometimes on more than one). Their power is limited to that which God allows, so they are not omnipotent. Demons are believed to have the power to physically or mentally hurt people, but only within the boundaries of what God will allow.
Christian demonology states that the mission of the demons is to induce humans to sin, often by testing their faith in God. Christian tradition holds that temptations come from three sources: the world, the flesh, and the devil. Many believe that demons torment people during their life, like the case of Job or through possession, causing disgraces or simply showing themselves before persons to frighten them, or by provoking visions that could induce people to sin or to be afraid. (Matthew 17:15-16)
Demons are also believed to try to make people abandon the faith, commit heresy or apostasy, remain or turn themselves Pagan. 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.”
WHAT DO DEMONS LOOK LIKE?
Demons can take any desired appearance, even that of an “angel of light” (2 Corinthians 11:14). Nevertheless, they were generally described as ugly and monstrous beings by Christian demonologists. Many of these descriptions have inspired famous painters like Luca Signorelli, Hieronymus Bosch, Goya, the artist that made the drawings for the Dictionnaire Infernal, and others.
The Devil in particular has been popularly symbolised as various animals, including the serpent, the goat and the dragon. The idea that demons have horns seems to have been taken from the Book of Revelation 13:1 and 13:11. The book of Revelation seems to have also inspired some depictions of demons (Revelation 13:1-2). This idea has also been associated with the depiction of certain ancient gods like Moloch and the shedu, which were portrayed as bulls, as men with the head of a bull, or wearing bull horns as a crown.
WHAT abilities do demons have?
Demonic powers are believed to include fabrication, psychokinesis, levitation, divination, possession, seduction, ESP, telepathy, witchcraft, and curses, as well as binding, making contracts, controlling the classical elements, animal control, and provocation. Demons use variants and combinations of these powers to harass, demoralize, confuse, and disorient the victim, or the willing subject of demonic interest. All of these attacks, as well as their effect or scope, can be nulled by God.
WHAT ABOUT DEMON POSSESSION?
There are some biblical mentions of the incarnation of demons through possession, in the New Testament, according to the Matthew, Mark and Luke demons could be seen and heard, as well as banished. For example in Matthew 8:16 “When the evening had come, they brought unto him many that were possessed with devils: and he cast out the spirits with [his] word, and healed all that were sick.” (See also Mark 1:23-27, Matthew 4:24, Matthew 8:28-33, Matthew 9:32-33, Mark 5:1-20).
Augustine thought that demons often were imaginary, but sometimes could enter human bodies, but later accepted the idea of the materialisation of demons. Thomas Aquinas followed Augustine’s idea, but added that demonic materialisation had sexual connotations because demons tried to seduce people to commit sexual sins.
Does Satan Exist?
The name Satan means “adversary” or “opponent”. Peter call him “Your enemy the devil” (1 Peter 5:8).Joshua stood before the angel of the Lord, with “Satan standing at his right side to accuse him” (Zechariah 3:1). Satan is opposer and enemy to both God and His people. Nowhere does the Bible depict Satan wearing a red suit with horns and a pitchfork. Caricatures are part of Satan’s attempt to persuade people that he doesn’t exist.
Some consider belief in the existence of Satan as primative, naive or superstitious. Biblically there can be no doubt as to the devil’s existence and personality. He is presented as appearing before God and challenging Him about Job (Job 1:6-12; 2:1-7). There is no mistaking the reality of Satan tempting our Lord Jesus in the wilderness - he spoke to Jesus and Jesus spoke to him (Matthew 4:1-11).
Does Satan have more than one name?
Satan is known by many names in the Bible. Some names refer to his reality and personality, others are used to describe him and his work:
- The tempter (1 Thessalonians 3:5)
- The evil one who snatches the good seed of the Word of God from people’s hearts (Matthew 13:19)
- Our enemy (1 Peter 5:8)
- The father of lies and a murderer (John 8:44)
- The supreme deceiver (Revelation 12:9)
- Belial (2 Corinthians 6:15)
- Beelzebub (Matthew 12:24)
What is the Christian’s perspective on Satan?
Despite the power of Satan and his demons, Christians need not fear them if they are in close fellowship with Jesus.
The reality of the Holy Spirit’s presence in us ensures our safety, “the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world” (1 John 4:4).
From the Bible the following scriptural truths are revealed:
- Satan’s power over a believer is limited. The devil could not touch Job without God’s permission (Job 1:9-12; 2:4-6). Demons had to ask permission of Christ to enter pigs (Mark 5:12). Satan is not all-powerful.
- The devil is not all-knowing, if he were he would have known in advance the futility of trying to subvert Job, he would have realised that it was useless for him to try and tempt Jesus in the wilderness.
- Satan was conquered by Christ. John wrote,
“The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work” (1 John 3:8).
- Satan is destined for final judgement,
“And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever” (Revelation 20:10).
What is the Christian’s defence against Satan?
Our Lord Jesus overcame Satan at the cross, Christians can claim God’s promise of help when they resist the devil, causing him to flee (James 4:7). Our resistance comes from “Standing firm in the faith” (1 Peter 5:9). Our defence comes from the whole of armour of God (Ephesians 6:10-17).
We can also defend ourselves by:
- Realising that Satan is not behind every misfortune we encounter - we have personal responsibility and choice for our actions.
- Recognising that every true believer is engaged in a spiritual battle - do not be fooled into thinking the devil is not real.
- Renewing your mind by understanding and applying biblical principles to your life (Romans 12:2).
Avoiding tempting circumstances or dabbling around the edges of things that seems harmless or acceptable “Let no one be found among you, who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead” (Deuteronomy 18:10-11). Some of the things Christians must avoid are: Alchemy, Animism, Astrology, Channeling, Chaos Magic, Clairaudience, Clairvoyance, Crystalmancy, Demon worship or consultation, Divination, Feng Shui, Fortune telling, Freemasonry, Horoscopes, Hydromancy, I Ching, Incantations, Kabbalah, Mediums, Mirror gazing, Necromancy, Omens, Oracles, Ouija boards, Paganism, Palmistry, Qabalah, Rosicrucianism, Runes, Satanism, Shamanism, Soothsaying, Sorcery, Spells (casting, conjuring), Spirit-guides, Spiritists, Spiritualism, Tarot cards, Tea cup reading, Voodoo, White witchcraft, Wicca, Witchcraft and Wizardy
CONCLUSION
Do angels and demons exist? The Bible says YES!
In addition to the physical realm that we see, there exists an invisible spirit realm that the Bible refers to as the Heavenlies. This invisible realm is inhabited by good spirit beings called angels and evil spirit beings called demons, and affects our world every day. “We do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.” (2 Cor. 4:18).
