Jesus and the Angels

Click here for the audio message of – Hebrews 1:1-4

We continue our look at angels this morning. This time however, we look at Jesus and the Angels. We have probably all had a certain group of people knock on our door at some point in time and want to tell us about God.

When you ask these people about Jesus and who He is, you will get an answer that is completely different from Scripture. But that is a good question that all Christians should be able to answer. How would you explain who Jesus is to someone who doesn’t know much about Him.

Some people believe that Jesus was just another man. He was a great teacher. He was a great prophet and wonderful person. Some maybe even believe He is an angel of some type.

We know that angels are created beings by God to carry out His will. The Jewish people held angels in high regard. They believed they were the highest beings next to God. And as we saw with the Seraphim a few weeks ago, that is true in sense of proximity to God.

But as with most things in life, there were Jews that took this idea or concept to the extreme. Some of these people believed that Angels, in particular Michael the archangel, was more powerful than the Messiah.

The book of Hebrews was wrote about 30 to 40 years after Jesus’ death and resurrection. We do not know the human author, but we know that all Scripture is given by God so the human actually writing the words is immaterial to us and our discussion.

So, 30 to 40 years have gone by since the events of Jesus’ ministry and some of the Jews are still confused. They were still struggling with the concept of who Jesus really was. They were struggling with the difference between Jesus and the angels of God.

The Jews were familiar with the angels. They knew about their importance. They knew their power and closeness to God. They knew and saw the power of Jesus too and they just weren’t sure at times who He really is. Some people still struggle with this today.

The author of the book of Hebrews sets out to make it clear who Jesus really is. The simple conclusion is the fact that the Son of God is superior to the angels in every way. There is a more excellent name. That name is Lord and no angel is Sovereign Lord of all. That is reserved for Christ alone.

Versus one through three give us several facts about Jesus. We know that Jesus is appointed heir of all things. Everything that exists will ultimately come under the control of Jesus. In Matthew 28:18 Jesus says, “All authority has been given to me on heaven and on earth.”

Not only does Jesus have all authority, but through Him all things were made. Colossians 1:16 says, “For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him.”

Jesus is the Creator and Sustainer of all. When we see Jesus we see God. God’s glory shines through Him. Jesus is the exact representation of God, not just a reflection or godly person or being. He is God.

It is through Jesus that we have a path to salvation. Through the cross we are cleansed of our sin. And since that sacrifice, Jesus is now seated at the right hand of God the Father, the place of honor. Jesus’ redeeming work is done and now reigns over all.

That is the Son of God. That is Jesus. That is God. And no angel can claim that. Sure, several places in the Old Testament angels are called the sons of God. But no angel was ever given the title “Son of God”.

The term sons of God simply refers to the position of being in the glory of God. The angels are God’s servants, but the true Son of God reigns as Sovereign Lord of all. The author of Hebrews repeatedly reinforces the Sovereignty of Jesus. This should bring us strength and encouragement.

We have a God that we can trust and rely on. We have a God who sacrificed His life for us, so that we may have eternal life with Him. We don’t worship angels thinking they can save us. Nor do we rely on them for our strength. Yes, they are here worshipping with us. Yes, God uses them to help us. But they, like us, are servants of God.

The angels were created by God. God is eternal and unchanging. Even after the rapture and Heaven and Earth are destroyed, God remains. Angels do play an important role in God’s creation and care and ministry to His people.

In fact, angels are to serve those who will inherit salvation. And that’s us. Angels are sent to serve us. That is their role. That is their destiny. That being said, I want to caution you though. Even though angels are here to serve us, we are not to command or pray to the angels.

Scripture makes that very clear to us. The New Age movement tries to encourage people getting into contact with angels in some way. That idea goes against Scripture. As we have talked about before, our prayers are to God the Father, the Son, and or the Holy Spirit.

So, we realize that Jesus is Sovereign Lord of all and the angels are His ministering servants. Angels are inferior to Jesus. This should not discourage us though and we should not discount their ministry. They serve God faithfully as we should do as well.

Angels are a unique part of God’s creation. We should not worship them or try to contact them, but we need to realize their purpose and the possibility of their presence in our lives. We all need help in our lives and God gives us what we need. Sometimes it might be the neighbor who helps us. Other times it might be an angel. Who knows.

There were several occasions in Jesus’ life that angels came and ministered to Him, even though He is superior to the angels. They were there at the beginning of His ministry when He was tempted by Satan in the wilderness. They were also there near the end of His ministry that night in the garden.

The angels were ministering to Christ, who is Creator and Sustainer of all. They strengthened Him through His trials and temptations. If they can do that for Christ, imagine what they can do for us.

God knows what we need and He will give it to us. Let us remember that during our times of trouble.

Closing Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank you for our time in your Word this morning. We thank you for the ability and opportunity to continue our study of your unique creation of angels. Help us to truly understand what it is that you want us to know.

We thank you for sending us your angels to serve and to minister to us. But we ultimately thank you for your Son and the sacrifice that He made for our salvation. It is through his name that we pray and give thanks.

AMEN.