Acts 2:17 - And in the last days it shall be, God declares that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh.
2 truths about angels to help us listen carefully to Jesus
I. Angels Occupy a Highly Exalted Position
A. Angels are non-human, created beings that dwell in the fullness of the presence of God, worshipping him
Genesis 1:31-2:1 - God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day. Thus the heavens and the earth were completed, and all their hosts.
Isaiah 6:1-7 - In the year of King Uzziah’s death I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of His robe filling the temple. Seraphim stood above Him, each having six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one called out to another and said, “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the LORD of hosts, the whole earth is full of His glory.” And the foundations of the thresholds trembled at the voice of him who called out, while the temple was filling with smoke. Then I said, “Woe is me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips; For my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts.” Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a burning coal in his hand, which he had taken from the altar with tongs. He touched my mouth with it and said, “Behold, this has touched your lips; and your iniquity is taken away and your sin is forgiven.”
Revelation 4:8 - And the four living creatures, each one of them having six wings, are full of eyes around and within; and day and night they do not cease to say, “HOLY, HOLY, HOLY is THE LORD GOD, THE ALMIGHTY, WHO WAS AND WHO IS AND WHO IS TO COME.”
B. Angels are powerful warriors for God
2 Kings 6:15-17 - Now when the attendant of the man of God had risen early and gone out, behold, an army with horses and chariots was circling the city. And his servant said to him, “Alas, my master! What shall we do?” So he answered, “Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” Then Elisha prayed and said, “O LORD, I pray, open his eyes that he may see.” And the LORD opened the servant’s eyes and he saw; and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.
Genesis 19:10-13 - But the men [angels] reached out their hands and brought Lot into the house with them, and shut the door. They [the angels] struck the men who were at the doorway of the house with blindness, both small and great, so that they wearied themselves trying to find the doorway. Then the two men said to Lot, “Whom else have you here? A son-in-law, and your sons, and your daughters, and whomever you have in the city, bring them out of the place; for we are about to destroy this place, because their outcry has become so great before the LORD that the LORD has sent us to destroy it.”
Revelation 12:7-8 - And there was war in heaven, Michael and his angels waging war with the dragon. The dragon and his angels waged war, and they were not strong enough, and there was no longer a place found for them in heaven.
C. Angels are awesome, glorious messengers of God
Revelation 22:8-9 - I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I heard and saw, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who showed me these things. But he said to me, “Do not do that. I am a fellow servant of yours and of your brethren the prophets and of those who heed the words of this book. Worship God.”
II. Jesus’ Position Is Far Superior to All the Angels (vv.5-14)
A. Jesus is the unique Son of God (v.5)
Hebrews 1:5 - For to which of the angels did He ever say, “YOU ARE MY SON, TODAY I HAVE BEGOTTEN YOU”? And again, “I WILL BE A FATHER TO HIM AND HE SHALL BE A SON TO ME”?
2 Samuel 7:12-14 - When your days are complete and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your descendant after you, who will come forth from you, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be a father to him and he will be a son to Me...
B. Jesus is worshipped by all the angels (v.6)
Hebrews 1:6 - And when He again brings the firstborn into the world, He says, “AND LET ALL THE ANGELS OF GOD WORSHIP HIM.”
Romans 8:29 - “the firstborn of many brothers.”
Colossians 1:15 - “the firstborn of all creation.”
Colossians 1:18 and Revelation 1:5 - “the firstborn from the dead”
Hebrews 1:6 - “the firstborn.”
Hebrews 2:5 - For He did not subject to angels the world to come, concerning which we are speaking.
Philippians 2:8-10 - Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth…
C. Jesus is served by all the angels (v.7, 14)
1. Angels serve at his command (v.7, Psalm 104:4)
Psalm 104:1-4 - Bless the LORD, O my soul! O LORD my God, You are very great; You are clothed with splendor and majesty, covering Yourself with light as with a cloak, stretching out heaven like a tent curtain. He lays the beams of His upper chambers in the waters; He makes the clouds His chariot; He walks upon the wings of the wind; He makes the winds His messengers, flaming fire His ministers.
2. Angels serve Jesus by helping us inherit salvation (v.14)
Hebrews 1:14 - Are they not all ministering spirits, sent out to render service for the sake of those who will inherit salvation?
D. Jesus is the eternally existent Creator and prophesied Anointed/Messiah King (vv.8-12)
Hebrews 1:8 - Your throne, O God, is forever and ever...
Psalm 102:25-27 - Of old You founded the earth, and the heavens are the work of Your hands. Even they will perish, but You endure; And all of them will wear out like a garment; Like clothing You will change them and they will be changed. But You are the same, and Your years will not come to an end.
Psalm 45:1 - My heart overflows with a good theme; I address my verses to the King; My tongue is the pen of a ready writer.
Psalm 45:6-7 - Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; A scepter of uprightness is the scepter of Your kingdom. You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness; Therefore God, Your God, has anointed You With the oil of joy above Your fellows.
E. Jesus’ is seated in the highest position of honor in the universe (v.13)
Hebrews 1:13 - But to which of the angels has He ever said, “SIT AT MY RIGHT HAND, UNTIL I MAKE YOUR ENEMIES A FOOTSTOOL FOR YOUR FEET”?
Hebrews 1:5 - For to which of the angels did He ever say...
Hebrews 1:3 - ...He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high…
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