Angels:

Order in Heaven and Earth

The Organization of Angels

"For God is not a God of disorder but of peace."(1 Cor. 14:33)

Not only are the angels numerous, they are well organized. Everything God does is harmonious. Therefore, it follows that heaven's organization is orderly. Angels are organized in a fixed system of ranks with varying degrees of power. Angels serve God individually and collectively, carrying out His will and plan.

For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. (Col. 1:16,17)and you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority. (Col. 2: 10) (Jesus) who has gone into heaven and is at God's right hand--with angels, authorities and powers in submission to him. (1 Pet. 3: 22.)

In Ephesians 1: 18-21, we are introduced to the ranks of angels. There are Thrones. These angels have their place around the throne of God. They are vested with great power by which they do God's bidding.

There are Dominions. These angels exercise authority in specific areas in carrying out God's will.

There are Rulers. These angels exercise rule as assigned by God. We don't know what that is specifically, but they reflect the fact that God is a God of order and organization.

Finally, there are Authorities. These are probably subordinate angels who serve under the higher ranks of angels. Beyond these specific angel ranks, the Bible speaks of other angels who have varying levels of rank and authority.

Michael The Archangel-   His name means, "Who is like God."

For the Lord Himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. (1 Thessalonians 4:16) But even the archangel Michael, when he was disputing with the devil about the body of Moses, did not dare to bring a slanderous accusation against him, but said, "The Lord rebuke you!" (Jude 9) 

His name and title imply a rank first among the angels. Apparently, Michael is in authority over all other angels. It is interesting that Lucifer, whose name means "Day Star" or "Son of the Dawn", said, "I will be like the most high God." His pride not only went against God but also against Michael making the two of them enemies. In the book of Daniel, we read of the conflict between the two. Michael is designated as the Chief Prince (Daniel 10:12-15) and is the special guardian for Israel. He is the great prince in Daniel 12:1.

Cherubim Cherubim are winged angels whose duty is to guard over the divine throne.

They are described as powerful, majestic creatures who surround the throne, defending it from any contamination. They are pictured as incomparably beautiful and powerful spirit beings. In Ezekiel 28, we read about one of them: 'You were the model of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone adorned you: ruby, topaz and emerald, chrysolite, onyx and jasper, sapphire, turquoise and beryl. Your You were anointed as a guardian cherub, for so I ordained you . . . You were on the holy mount of God; you walked among the fiery stones. You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created till wickedness was found in you . . . So I drove you in disgrace from the mount of God, and I expelled you, O guardian cherub, from among the fiery stones." (Ezekiel 28:12-19)

This angel is described twice as a guardian cherub driven in disgrace from among the fiery stones to a place called Eden. Although addressed to the king of Tyre, these words describe Satan, perfect in beauty, living in Eden, the anointed cherub, a created being who became proud and corrupt because of his beauty. According to Revelation 12, a great number of angels rebelled with him and were cast out of heaven. (Rev.. 12:7-9)

Ezekiel speaks of four living beings in the midst of a great chariot of burning fire. In Ezekiel 10:1, the prophet calls them Cherubim. They do not function as messengers in their duties. In Revelation 4:1-7, the heavenly scene depicts these angelic beings along with the redeemed, resurrected human beings, all worshipping, honoring, and extolling the eternal God. Other angelic beings carry out the decrees and purpose of God to mankind.

Seraphim, God's burning ones, are winged angels who appear only in Isaiah's vision. They attend God's throne, praising God and acting as agents of cleansing and purification, removing all guilt and sin.

"In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple.

Above him were seraphs, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. And they were calling to one another: "Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory."

At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke.

"Woe to me!" I cried. "I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty."

Then one of the seraphs flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. With it he touched my mouth and said, "See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for." (Isaiah 6:1-7)

Seraphim are ablaze with devotion and adoration. They call out to one another in praise and worship, "Holy, Holy, Holy." When "holy" is used three times in the Hebrew, it signifies that God is perfect in His holiness.

Each seraph has six wings. With two wings they cover their faces. Even these angels cannot look upon God who dwells in unapproachable light. Paul said that God is the . . . "only Ruler, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone is immortal and who lives in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see. (1 Tim. 6:15,16)

With two wings they cover their feet. This speaks of their reverence. They tread on holy ground.

With two wings they fly. With humility and holy recognition of Jehovah on the throne, they fly to carry out the commands they receive from the One on the heavenly throne.

When Isaiah was permitted by God to see this wonderful vision, he said, "Woe to me! I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty."

Then, in characteristic fashion, one of the seraphim flew to Isaiah with a live coal in his hand that he had taken with tongs from the altar. He touched Isaiah's lips with it and said, "See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for." Here, the agent for cleansing was a ministering seraph. The coal from the altar is a symbol of cleansing through the blood of sacrifice. Isaiah confessed his sin and he was cleansed and fitted for his prophetic office. If the heart is right, the lips will speak right. When God wants to cleanse us from sin he uses the ministry of angels to apply the results of His atoning sacrifice.

Gabriel - whose name means, "The mighty one of God", is endowed with awesome power. He is described as an angel who stands in the very presence of God. Gabriel is the one who brings revelation to people regarding God's purpose and program. For example, Gabriel revealed the future by interpreting Daniel's vision, giving him understanding and wisdom. When carrying out the directive of God, Gabriel has the ability to fly swiftly, probably faster than the other angels. In Daniel 9 and 10, Gabriel, appearing as a man, gives Daniel the vision and the interpretation of the prophecy of the 70 weeks.

In the New Testament, some 500 years later, Gabriel brings a message to Zechariah concerning the birth of John and announces the miraculous conception of Jesus to the Virgin Mary. God entrusted to Gabriel alone the greatest messages that ever left the courts of heaven. God honored Gabriel before the entire angelic realm.

Angelic Appearance-The appearance of angels varies. Often in the Old Testament angels appear as ordinary men. Sometimes, however, their uniqueness is evident as they do things, or appear in a fashion that is clearly super-human (Gen. 16:7-11; Ex. 3:2; Num. 22:23; Judges. 6:21; 13:20; John 20:12). [Editors note: please take the time to look at these references] The brilliant white appearances common to the New Testament angel, as at the tomb announcing the resurrection of Christ, is not a feature of the Old Testament.

Guardian Angels - Jesus said in Matthew 18:10, "See that you do not look down on one of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven." This seems to assign protective roles to angels specifically to children.

*Michael, angelic prince over Israel, Dan. 12:1. He provides protection to Israel in the time of great tribulation. The protection is for those whose names are in the book of life who will be delivered.

*Angels of specific churches in Revelation 1:20. "The mystery of the seven stars that you saw in my right hand and of the seven golden lampstands is this: The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.

*Revelation 2 and 3, John implies that an angel represents each church in heaven.

This evidence is commonly used to assert that each individual has a "guardian" angel assigned to him or her by God. However, the term, "guardian angel," is not used in scripture and the idea is at best only implied in these passages. [Editor's note: one cannot forget the great words from Psalm 91. "For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone."

God's Ordered Universe

A Biblical world-view is based on the premise that the Sovereign God ordered the universe to function in a definite way. Crucial to this world-view is recognizing the authority of God.

Paul taught that "the authorities that exist have been established by God."

Jehovah established an authority structure in government (Romans 13:1). He established authority structure for the church (1&2 Timothy, Titus and other passages in the pastoral epistles).

God established a chain of command for the family (Ephesians 5:22-23).

He has likewise established an authority structure in the angelic realm as we have seen. All authorities, whatever they may be, are in submission to the greater authority of Jesus Christ himself. He who has ears to hear let him hear what the Spirit says.

Application

We often repeat this phrase from the prayer the Lord taught his disciples: "Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven." Do we understand what that means and what we are praying? Have we repeated this prayer so often that we have lost the impact of its meaning for us in our daily lives? Are these just words we have memorized and say absentmindedly?

We need to remember that Christ is better than the angels. He created all things and He is the head over every power and authority. He has gone into heaven and is at God's right hand with angels, authorities and powers in submission to Him. He is far above all rule and authority, power and dominion and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come.

Considering all this, should we take our submission to His ultimate authority more seriously than we do?

Celestial Spectators of Planet Earth
Angels Among Us - Part One
Angels Among Us - Part Two

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