190811 Fallen Angels — Demons!

Ephesians 6:11-13 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. ¹² For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. ¹³ Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm.

The Scriptures tell us that when God created the world he “saw everything he had made, and behold, it was very good” (Genesis 1:31). By the time of Genesis chapter 3, we have evidence that the creation was no longer “very good”! Because, Satan himself came into the Garden of Eden to tempt Adam and Eve. What happened? Why was this allowed to happen? I know that I’m not going to be able to give you all the answers but we will look at Scripture and see what it has to say on the subject of demons.

“Satan” is the personal name of the angel who rules over the demons. The name is first used in 1 Chronicles 21:1 identifying an accuser who stood against Israel’s trust in God. The name is used a number of times in the book of Job. Describing the adversary who was able to come into God’s presence and make accusations against God’s people. As we will see later, he is the adversary in Zechariah 3:1-2 accusing the high priest. The New Testament takes the Hebrew name from the Old Testament. Jesus used the name in his temptations in the wilderness. A little later Jesus testified that he “saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.”

Satan never shows up in a red suit with a pitchfork and tail. He always comes in disguise. If he came as he really is it is very likely no one would follow him. Paul tells us that his opponents disguise themselves as apostles of Christ. And this is no surprise to Paul because…

Satan comes in disguise. Let’s look at 2 Corinthians 11:14. And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.

We must be very careful not to be taken in by a being that describes himself as an angel. Demons, pretending to be God’s angels, will lead people astray. We should be careful not to be deceived. For instance, the Mormons claim that an angel gave Joseph Smith the basis of their false religion. The revelation of “golden plates” that contained the book of Mormon, if it happened at all, is in total opposition to the teachings of Scripture. We are not to listen to any creature, human or angelic, that presents teaching that is not found in the Bible. The Bible teaches us that we are not to worship angels or to pray to them. There are many ways that…

Satan — in his demons — seeks to destroy God’s people. Let’s look at the warning in 1 Peter 5:8. Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.

Authority over unclean spirits extends to everyone who ministers in Jesus’ name. In fact, the ability to resist the devil is characterized by triumph over the power of the devil. We’ll look at that a little more in a few minutes. Very clearly…

Satan opposes God’s people. When the temple was reconstructed and sacrifice was resumed after the return from exile we are shown Satan’s opposition in Zechariah 3:1. Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right hand to accuse him.

This Joshua is the grandson of the man who was high priest when Jerusalem fell who was put to death by Nebuchadnezzar. His father lived through the captivity in Babylon and Joshua returned with Ezra to establish worship among those who returned from captivity. Satan is an accuser of God worshipers. With all of his accusations, we need to remember that…

Satan is a liar. Let’s look at the words of Jesus found in John 8:44. You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.

Here we find Jesus being confronted by the Pharisees. They had claimed that God was their father. Jesus’ reply was a direct attack on their claims. He accuses them of not only lying like the devil but of having murder in their hearts. By this point in his ministry, the Pharisees were clearly planning to put him to death. They only needed an acceptable excuse. In order to get that excuse, they would not hesitate to lie. Many years later John would write…

 1 John 3:8 Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.

The devil is not responsible for all the evil in the world but he certainly encourages it. Our human nature following the pattern of our first ancestors, Adam and Eve, always leads to rebellion against God. The world system that we live in is in opposition to God! A life of practicing sin is evidence of our separation from God. We must repent of our sin and turn from Satan’s rule. Let’s take a minute and consider the fact that…

Satan has many descriptive names. Ephesians 2:1-2 And you were dead in the trespasses and sins ² in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience

Here we find one of the descriptive names of our enemy “the prince of the power of the air”. There are many other descriptive names that help us understand what Satan is like. Let me share some of them. He is called the “devil” only in the New Testament. In both old and new Testaments he is called “the serpent”. Jesus used the term “Beelzebul” to describe his enemy. The word means “Baal the Prince”. Jesus used the term “ruler of this world” at least two times. Jesus also uses the term “the evil one” when describing the one that snatches away the good seed in the parable of the sower.

With all this emphasis on Satan beginning in the Garden of Eden and coming through the book of Revelation into the very end time, we must not be overwhelmed by his power. The first two chapters of Job clearly teach us that…

Satan and his demons have limited power. Let’s look at 2 Peter 2:4 For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to chains of gloomy darkness to be kept until the judgment. And Jude 6 And the angels who did not stay within their own position of authority, but left their proper dwelling, he has kept in eternal chains under gloomy darkness until the judgment of the great day.

I quote “The emphasis is on the fact that they are removed from the glory of God’s presence and their activity is restricted (metaphorically, they are in “eternal chains”), but the text does not imply either that the influence of demons has been removed from the world or that some demons are kept in a place of punishment apart from the world while others are able to influence it. Rather, both 2 Peter and Jude tell us that some angels rebelled against God and became hostile opponents to his Word. Their sin seems to have been pride, a refusal to accept their assigned place, for they “did not keep their own position but left their proper dwelling” (Jude 6).” Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology, pp 412-413

Satan and his demons are kept restricted to God’s will. They can do nothing without permission. This does not mean we should not fear them. Instead, it means that we should be careful in dealing with them. He that is in us is greater than he that is in the world. But if we take off on our own in combat with the devil we will be defeated most of the time. Satan and his demons have had the opportunity to observe us all our lives and draw conclusions from that. They cannot read our minds, only God can, but they can predict our actions from our past performance.

When Jesus went up on the mountain with Peter, James and John the other disciples were confronted with a demonized boy and failed to deliver him. When Jesus came down off the mountain he said that this kind only comes out by prayer. Obviously, a prayerful relationship to God is necessary before we can defeat the devil.

We are also reminded of the seven sons of Sceva in the book of Acts. They attempted to cast out a demon in the name of Jesus who Paul preached and they were thoroughly defeated. Exorcism is not magic! It is the work of the Holy Spirit.

Satan is very powerful, however…

He can be opposed. Let’s look at James 4:7-8. Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. ⁸ Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

Often Christians will quote the sentence “Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” While neglecting “Submit yourselves therefore to God” that clearly comes first. If we try to resist the devil without first being submissive to God we will be clearly and soundly defeated. The devil only laughs at those who try to resist him in their own strength. Only God can defeat him. Jesus gave the power over evil spirits — demons — to his disciples. Luke recorded this gift for us in chapter 10 of his gospel. He gave his disciples explicit directions. They were to pray earnestly for laborers in the harvest. They were to make no provisions for themselves. They were to heal the sick and proclaim the kingdom of God. When they returned they rejoiced that demons had been subject to them in his name. Jesus immediately said that he gave them authority over the demons and all the power of the enemy but they were not to rejoice in that. They were to rejoice that their names are written in heaven!

It is so easy to get caught up in spiritual warfare.  Satan, even in defeat, will snatch a victory out of loss if he can get us wrapped up in our authority. We will be just like those disciples who were at the foot of the mountain unable to cast out a demon that Jesus quickly disposed of. We should rejoice that we are God’s children and be careful to always give him credit for any victory we receive. You see…

Christian believers already live in victory! Look with me at 1 Corinthians 15:56-57. The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. ⁵⁷ But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

We should rejoice that God gives us the victory. But that victory is not in our abilities. That victory is through our Lord Jesus Christ. The only ability we may have is avail-ability. If we are available to God he will use us as he chooses. Sadly enough we often are disappointed that God chose what we did not.

Now let’s look at the end of Romans chapter 8.

Romans 8:37-39 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. ³⁸ For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, ³⁹ nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

We are more than conquerors. We are not more than conquerors in our strength! Our victory is in the Lord Jesus who loved us enough to die for us. Nothing can overwhelm us or separate us from the love of God. Rest in him and he will take you where he wants you to go to do what he wants you to do and you will discover that gives victory over Satan and his demons.

There are two wrong ways to deal with the reality of the devil and his demons. First, there is the tendency to deny his existence. “The other is to believe, and to feel an excessive and unhealthy interest in them. They themselves are equally pleased by both errors and hail a materialist or a magician with the same delight.” C. S. Lewis, Screwtape Letters. We must recognize that our enemy exists without, at the same time, giving him too much control in our lives. The greatest victory over the devil is our surrender to Jesus as Lord and Savior. We are born in sin and heirs of death and hell. But God loves us enough to send Jesus to defeat our enemy. We must confess with our mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in our hearts that God raised him from the dead.

All scriptures quotes are from: The Holy Bible: English standard version. 2001. Wheaton, Ill, Standard Bible Society.

190804 God’s Messengers — Our Protectors

Psalm 34:7 The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and delivers them.

The Bible makes it clear that God wants us to be aware of the existence of angels. God wants us to know the truth that the Bible presents. We should be aware that our lives are influenced by the existence of angels. They are present when we worship God — in private, in small groups, and with our church family. Angels are watching our obedience, or disobedience, throughout the day. Though angels do not have physical bodies, as we do, throughout history they have intervened in the lives of Christian believers. Let’s look at a few examples…

One special angel had a unique responsibility. He was placed at the gate of the Garden of Eden to protect mankind from what might’ve been. Oh, how I have wished that God would have created such a barrier to guard me against what might have been.

Prior to the flood, and after Adam and Eve sinned. Genesis 3:24 He (God) drove out the man, and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life.

At first glance, this passage of Scripture seems to point to angelic interference on earth. Interference that would be harmful to us. Or at least to Adam and Eve! I have slowly developed an understanding of this angelic protection for us. Between reading the word devotionally, sermon preparation and funeral service preparation I have come to the following conclusion. Adam and Eve were in the garden for an undesignated period of time. During that time they had available to them a large variety of vegetarian delights. There were two trees in the middle of the garden that were special. One was the tree of knowledge. To eat of it was an act of rebellion. After that rebellion, the man and woman so destroyed their relationship with God that death became a gift to them.

 Let’s look at Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians. “The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are futile.” ²¹ So let no one boast in men. For all things are yours, ²² whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future—all are yours, ²³ and you are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s. (1 Corinthians 3:20-23)

The church at Corinth was deeply divided. They had internal groups who claimed to follow different teachers. Paul wanted them to understand that all the teachers were available to them. But in the course of saying that he added “life or death” as part of the things that belonged to the believers. I understand life as a gift! I had to work on death as a gift! But I see now that it is far better to face the judgment than live eternally in a sinful condition.

Let’s move ahead in time to the life of Jacob. We find Jacob running away from his brother’s hatred and running toward his mother’s family. So far as we can tell, there was little information to be had about angels up until then.

Angels exist though not often recognized. Genesis 28:12 And he dreamed, and behold, there was a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven. And behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it!

God wanted Jacob to know that there was spiritual activity going on which he had never seen. God often speaks to us in dreams. I’m not sure we pay enough attention to what we see and hear during our sleep. Jacob was highly impressed. He had used a stone as a pillow while he slept. In his dream, he saw a stairway leading to heaven that was covered with angels coming and going. Immediately he believed that this phenomenon was unique to the location he was in. Yahweh assured him he was the God of Abraham, Isaac and the now Jacob himself. He promised Jacob that the land where he was sleeping would be given to him and his offspring.

Another example of the angelic activity is seen when…

An angel met Moses in the burning bush. Exodus 3:1-2 Now Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian, and he led his flock to the west side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. ² And the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He looked, and behold, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed.

Moses had long since laid aside any abilities that he had learned while growing up in the house of Pharaoh, the king of Egypt! 40 years he had lived in Egypt only to be driven out of the country and then living 40 more years as a shepherd on the backside of the desert. Undoubtedly Moses had seen many strange sights in his time alone with the sheep. Nothing he had ever seen before equaled a bush that was burning but not being burned up. Obviously, the fire was within the tree not on it. From this encounter Moses found himself facing up to Pharaoh, the king of Egypt. He would demand that the people of Israel who were being held as slaves be released to go and worship God! He needed to know that God was with him and the burning bush that did not burn up became a sign that God was with him.

When the people of Israel observed the destruction of Egypt’s gods in 10 amazing plagues they were easier to convince that God had called them out. They had become a huge nation and were in great need of help. God revealed himself to them in a pillar of cloud by day and fire by night. Even when they rebelled against God he did not abandon them in the wilderness instead…

An angel guided and guarded them in the wilderness. Exodus 23:20-21 Behold, I send an angel before you to guard you on the way and to bring you to the place that I have prepared. ²¹ Pay careful attention to him and obey his voice; do not rebel against him, for he will not pardon your transgression, for my name is in him.

The rebellion against God had caused Yahweh to turn them over to an angel. It seems that God himself led them up to the point of receiving the 10 Commandments. While God was dictating the law the people in the valley were rebelling against him. After Moses’ interceded for them God allowed them to live but guided by an angel not God himself. There is far too much information for me to share with you at this time.

More than once, too often to repeat, the angel of God — or the angels of God — guided the judges, prophets and kings. Sometimes their protection extended even to the destruction of the enemy armies.

Several hundred years later…

Isaiah looked back on God’s extended protection. Isaiah 63:9-10 In all their affliction he was afflicted and the angel of his presence saved them; in his love and in his pity he redeemed them; he lifted them up and carried them all the days of old. ¹⁰ But they rebelled and grieved his Holy Spirit; therefore he turned to be their enemy, and himself fought against them.

These thoughts given to Isaiah suddenly revealed something to me I had not seen before. “In all their affliction he (Yahweh) was afflicted.” Ordinarily, we do not think of God as feeling our pain but this clearly shows that he does. “In all” the angel of his presence saved them. He redeemed them with his love and pity. He lifted them up and carried them. I would like to have seen “and they were so appreciative of his love and redemption that they followed him faithfully”! Instead, we see these words “But they rebelled and grieved his Holy Spirit”! As a result of that rebellion God who had brought them out of Egypt and carried them through the wilderness and, in the days of David and Solomon established a world-renowned kingdom, turned and became their enemy. It took several hundred years of his patience before the people were carried into captivity. When they returned it was to a land ruled by foreign powers that endured 400 years of silence from God. There was no prophet. They could only hope for the coming Messiah!

At the end of those silent years, an angel came to Zechariah the priest in Jerusalem and a few moments later to a young girl in Nazareth. Mary was her name and she was assured that the child she would bear would be the Savior of his people.

Wise men came from the East bringing him gifts of spices and gold. This baby, Jesus, would be in great danger from the rulers of the land. His human father, Joseph, was obedient to the angel that the real Father sent.

The Father’s angel protected the baby Jesus. Matthew 2:13-15 Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you, for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.” ¹⁴ And he rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed to Egypt ¹⁵ and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet, “Out of Egypt I called my son.”

When the wise men presented their gifts an angel was sent to warn Joseph that the king would take the life of the Messiah if he stayed in Judea. I believe we can understand the gifts of the wise men were sent by God to provide the resources needed to keep Jesus alive. A lot of people have spent a lot of time trying to decide exactly what their gifts meant. And since there were three gifts it has always been assumed that there were three wise men. Nowhere in the Bible’s text is the number of men presented. The Father sent angels to prepare the way for the acceptance of the baby Jesus. Angels were sent to announce the birth of his son and to warn them of danger and show them the way of escape. Throughout his ministry…

Angels took care of Jesus. Matthew 4:11 Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and were ministering to him.

In this example, we are at the very beginning of his ministry. He had been baptized by John ”to fulfill all righteousness”. He was then led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. He fasted for 40 days. Then in his weakened condition, the tempter came. Jesus turned away every temptation with the word of the living God! Then we find that he was strengthened by the ministry of angels. At the end of his ministry, we find these words recorded by Luke. He was with his disciples in a place where he had often gone for prayer, the garden of Gethsemane.

Luke 22:41-43. And he withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, and knelt down and prayed, ⁴² saying, “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.” ⁴³ And there appeared to him an angel from heaven, strengthening him.

I am convinced that should Jesus have simply asked the Father to remove the cup without the qualifying “if you’re willing” or, “not my will but yours” the angels would have poured into Jerusalem. I am sure they would have been eager to get into the fight. However, for our benefit, the Father chose to allow Jesus to take our sins to the cross.

We are familiar with the presence of angels during the next few days. It was angels who met the women at the empty tomb. It was angels that told the disciples who were watching Jesus ascend into heaven “This Jesus… will come in the same way”. Throughout the beginnings of church…

Angels gave direction in NT ministry. For example in Acts 8:26. Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Rise and go toward the south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” This is a desert place. It was now time for the gospel to begin to spread and an angel came to Philip, one of the first seven deacons, to tell him to go to a desert place. He went there in order to share the gospel with a high government official in the nation of Ethiopia.

When it was time for the gospel to go out into the ranks of the Roman army and angel was sent to speak a centurion named Cornelius. The story is contained in Acts 10:3-5 out the ninth hour of the day he saw clearly in a vision an angel of God come in and say to him, “Cornelius.” ⁴ And he stared at him in terror and said, “What is it, Lord?” And he said to him, “Your prayers and your alms have ascended as a memorial before God. ⁵ And now send men to Joppa and bring one Simon who is called Peter.

One other example for our encouragement. Paul was on board a ship with some of his friends and several prisoners and Roman soldiers. It had been two weeks since the storm began and they were very fearful. We find Paul explaining the situation to the others on board ship.

Acts 27:23-24 For this very night there stood before me an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I worship, ²⁴ and he said, ‘Do not be afraid, Paul; you must stand before Caesar. And behold, God has granted you all those who sail with you.”

The angel not only told Paul he would survive that he told him why he would survive. Paul was being sent to bear witness to Caesar! Nothing could prevent his arrival in Rome!

God’s love for us is revealed when we compare ourselves with angels. First, we were created in the image of God. Second, we will judge the angels and not the other way around. We bear children like ourselves — the angels do not. Some of the angels rebelled and those will never be redeemed! All of mankind has rebelled and yet some are redeemed.

Angels can influence our lives but only Jesus can provide salvation. Have you trusted Jesus as your Lord and Savior? If not, I encourage you to do so today!

All scriptures quotes are from: The Holy Bible: English standard version. 2001. Wheaton, Ill, Standard Bible Society.