Dear Lighthouse,
I want to start a little mini-series with you
through this weekly e-mail. Have you ever seen the show Myth Busters? I think it’s on Discovery. Anyway, it’s these
guys that go around and test out various urban legends and assumed truths to find out their validity – like will a penny
kill you if dropped from the Empire State Building, can you ski behind a row boat, or is Jimmy Hoffa really buried at Giants
Stadium. I thought it might be neat to address some common Bible myths. I’d like to cover are some misunderstandings that come from the Bible and bust
‘em. We’ll call it Bible Busters!
So sit back and enjoy the first installment.
(By the way, if you have some Bible myths that
you would like “busted” or explored, send me an e-mail and I’ll do my best to find the truth or at least
give some insight. Anyway, it would help me make a good series.)
MYTH #1: People become
angels when they die.
Okay, this is a good one. First of all, let’s define what we know from Scripture. There
are only three types of beings in the known universe – at least as far as the Bible speaks on the subject. They are God (in the Three Persons of the Trinity), humans (us), and angels (other created beings in Heaven). This is a kind of hierarchy for the universe.
God is at the top since He is eternal, has always existed, and since He created everything else. The angels are below Him and we are below them both in terms of authority and power. This is the case now, but the hierarchy has changed in the past and will change again before it’s
all over. We’ll explore that in a minute.
So, to make it clear, angels are different than
humans. They are not interchangeable. Take
this passage for instance: “We [apostles]
have been made a spectacle to the whole universe, to angels as well as to men.”
(I Cor. 4:8) Paul is writing here to the Corinthian Church and making
the case that his suffering and that of his fellow apostles is on display to men and angels.
Why would he make such a distinction between the two groups if there did not actually exist a difference between the
two? But there is more evidence.
We know little about angels, but we can piece
together a picture from several passages. Angels are strong and powerful (II
Peter 2:11); they seem to have free-will (II Peter 2:4 & Jude 1:6); and they cannot die – at least not in the sense
we understand death. Let me give some detail on that last point. Jesus was asked a question about marriage and the resurrection by the Sadducees. They were attempting to trap Him in His answer. They asked
who a woman would be married to if she had multiple husbands on earth, each of whom died before her. Jesus gives some interesting insight to angels in His answer found in Luke.
“The people of this age marry and are given in marriage. But those who are considered worthy of taking part in that age and in the resurrection from the dead will
neither marry nor be given in marriage, and they can no longer die; for they are like the angels.” (Luke 20:34-36) This is the only point I saw in Scripture
where we are compared to angels. Note that Jesus makes it clear that we are like
them, but don’t become them. We are like the angels in that once
we are dead we exist in the spiritual world and cannot die a mortal death again. Also
note in context that we will not be married. One could imply, then, that angels
do not marry either – though I think that is beside the main point. So
angels seem to exist in a Heavenly, spiritual realm that is beyond our line of sight.
Yet over time they have had intimate contact with humans.
Angels seem to have been created by God to carry
out specific missions or jobs. Hebrews 1:14 declares, “Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?” That’s us – Christians. So, a primary job
of angels seems to be serving us as directed by God. Read more of Ch. 1 in Hebrews
to gain more insight. Another angelic duty may include the role of a “guardian
angel” at least for children (Matt. 18:10). We know they will have a role
on Judgment Day as told in the parable of the weeds in Matt. 13:49 and surrounding.
And several verses point out the key role angels played in the Old Covenant God established with Man (Gal. 3:19 &
Heb. 2:2). In fact, Stephen mentions them when he is accusing the teacher of
the law of their disobedience, “you who have received the law that was put into
effect through angels but have not obeyed it.” (Acts 7:53)
So
angels have helped usher in the God’s Covenants, but what about their spiritual status?
The answer to this is my final piece of evidence that people don’t become angels when they die.
Angels can sin.
“For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell,
putting them into gloomy dungeons to be held for judgment …” (II Peter 2:4 & Jude 1:6 again). This seems to make it clear that angels can sin and are punished for it.
We know that angels come in different types: cherubim, seraphim, destroying angels, archangels, and so on. Perhaps even the cryptic reference to “sons of God” and their relations with women recorded
in Gen. 6:1 may refer to angels. One created angel seems to have even led a rebellion. This theory is open to some speculation, but it seems that there was a time
when angels rebelled against God. They were led by an archangel, Satan, the Morning
Star. (Isaiah 14:12 and surrounding) Revelation
seems to pick up the story, “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.” (Rev. 12:9) These “fallen” angels we could refer to as demons. There
are many references to their activity on earth and in Heaven.
Their salvation
pathway is a mystery save one obscure verse. Paul chastises his readers who were
too quick to go to court with each other, “Do you no know that we will judge
angels? How much more the things of this life!” (I Cor. 6:3) So, it seems their judgment is tied to us
– humans. It does not seem tied to Jesus Christ like our salvation is. The book of Hebrews expands on this themes declaring, “It is not to angels that he has subjected the world to come, about which we are speaking.” (Heb. 2:4) No, we will inherit the earth and thus be in authority
over the angels in the end. And Jesus was made “a little lower than the angels” (in authority) for a time when we was encased in human flesh as the
Messiah. But Jesus, it seems, came as Messiah for us, not the angels. “For surely it is not angels He helps, but Abraham’s
descendants.” (Heb. 2:17). Indeed the hierarchy of Heaven has and will
change a bit, but the fate of angels is still a mystery to me.
So, what are we to make of all this? Well, I think it’s fairly obvious that angels and men are different beings – each created for
God’s specific purposes in mind. We should be mindful of angels and respect
their authority as it is now. We should not slander them nor even slander the
demons or Satan himself. These are dangerous activities for mere mortals (II
Peter 2:11 & Jude 1:9). We should also recognize that angels are still serving
God and may be among us without our even knowing it (Heb. 13:2). But most importantly
we should never worship angels nor think they offer us any form of salvation or immortality.
“Do not let anyone who delights in false humility and the worship of angels
disqualify you for the prize. Such a person goes into great detail about what
he has seen, and his unspiritual mind puffs him up with idle notions.” (Col.
2:18) Angels are created, sinning, free-will beings similar to ourselves but
in greater position and authority – they are not God and they are not people.
God deals directly with them and seems to have a different plan of salvation in store for them that may involve us. So if you should ever happen to encounter one, remember the message he bears is from
the Father and is infinitely more important than the messenger.
Respect angels, but you’ll never be one. Honor God, but you aren’t Him either.
Someday, though, all of us – angels and men – will stand before God to give an account. Are you ready?
Serving Him with you,
Evan