And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased.”

Luke 2:13-14

TCR Number: 143-148

The word “Angel” appears 275 times in the Bible. According to Holy Scripture angels are created spiritual beings (Hebrews 1:14) who have emotions, knowledge (limited), intelligence, and a will. This is the case in both good angels of God and evil angels of the devil, known as demons. In 1 Peter 1:12, we read that the angels desire to investigate the saving working of God in the lives of sinners. We see the angels of God singing praises unto the Lord in Luke 2:13, which would indicate that angels have emotions. They also have the ability to exercise their will. In the case of evil angels (demons), we see this in Luke 8:28-31. There is no Scripture to support the idea that angels have physical bodies. So, based on this we must conclude that angels do not have physical bodies. We can see from Matthew 1:20 that angels are messengers of God. They brought a message to Joseph from the Lord concerning his marriage to Mary and to testify of Mary’s faithfulness to him. They told him to, “fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.” We also see this in Luke 2:8-15 when the angels of God announced Christ’s birth to the shepherds. Although angels have power and are sent from God they are not to be worshipped. In Colossians 2:18 the Bible says, “Let no one keep defrauding you of your prize by delighting in self-abasement and the worship of the angels, taking his stand on visions he has seen, inflated without cause by his fleshly mind.”

Nature of Angels.

They are spiritual beings – Hebrews 1:14

They cannot reproduce after their own kind – Mark 12:25

They cannot die – Luke 20:36

They are not like mankind – Psalm 8:4-5

They have power – 2 Peter 2:11

They are created by God – Colossians 1:16

They watch over and care for children – Matthew 18:10

In Jude 6 we read about, “angels which kept not their first estate.” This is a reference to a group of fallen angels whom Satan used to cohabit with women (Genesis 6:1-4). In 2 Peter 2:4 we read, “For if God spared not the angels who had sinned, but having cast them down to the deepest pit of gloom has delivered them to chains of darkness to be kept for judgment” (DBY). These are the fallen angels that the Bible calls demons. They rebelled with Satan before Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden of Eden. These demons have a will, and they do the will of Satan. In Genesis 3:1 the Bible says that the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which God made. The serpent in the Garden of Eden questioned God and caused Adam and Eve to doubt. In Matthew 4:1 we read about the devil tempting Jesus to sin. In 1 Kings 22:20-22, we read about the Lord permitting a lying spirit to control the prophets and give Ahab the wrong advice. Ahab made a responsible choice as he was warned of the truth by Micaiah.

We also read in the life of Job that the devil did all manner of evil against him. The lesson here is that evil and fallen angels are agents for the devil and entice people to do evil. In Mark 1:23-24 the Bible says, “And there was in their synagogue a man possessed by an unclean spirit, and he cried out saying, Eh! what have we to do with thee, Jesus, Nazarene? Art thou come to destroy us? I know thee who thou art, the holy one of God” (DBY). Fallen angels know who created them and they are aware of the divine nature of our Lord and Saviour. When they possessed the man in the synagogue they called Jesus, “the holy one of God.”

Roles of Angels

Guardian angels – Hebrews 1:14

Seraphim linked to the worship of God – Isaiah 6:1-3

Cherubim guard the holiness of God – Genesis 3:22-24, Ezekiel 1:5, and Revelation 4:6

Angels have different roles to play in the sovereign will of God. Seraphim are angelic beings and belong to the highest rank of celestial hosts. They are associated with light, devotion, and purity. Lucifer was once included among the names of Seraphim but lost his rank and position when he sinned and was thrown down to earth. Cherubim are linked to the protection and promotion of the holiness of God.

Angels in the Life of Christ

Predicted his birth – Luke 1:26-33

Proclaimed the birth of Christ – Luke 2:13

Warned of danger – Matthew 2:13

Ministered to Him – Matthew 4:11

Defended and protected him – Matthew 26:53

Rolled back the stone from Christ’s tomb – Matthew 28:2

Announced the resurrection of Christ – Matthew 28:6

Angels are different to mankind. They serve a different role to man in the decrees of God. After death humans do not become angels. Humanity and angels are both created by God. However, angels are not created in the likeness of God, as mankind is (Genesis 1:26). Angels can take on a physical form but are never transformed into men and women. The holy angels of God walk in full obedience to God. They work to do the will of God on earth and in heaven. They encourage in times of testing and danger (Acts 27:23-24), and they care for the righteous at the time of their departure from this world (Luke 16:22).