Would you turn with me to Hebrews
chapter one? We looked at the first three
verses last week, and we're going to look at this fourth verse
tonight. being made so much better than
the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name
than they. I want to speak tonight on the
subject of angels. I've been preaching for 26 years
and I've never brought a message on angels that I remember. Rich,
if I had, you'd remember it, have I? Okay, Rich always remembers
everything. And I'm going to preach the gospel
in preaching this message on angels as the Lord enables me. Now, this verse being made so
much better than the angels wouldn't mean much if we did not have
some familiarity with angels. Look over in Hebrews chapter
13, verse two. Be not forgetful to entertain
strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares. That's an interesting verse,
isn't it? You know, I remember one time
I picked up, this is actually, I was still, I wasn't married
yet. I picked up a guy thumbing. And I picked him up somewhere
on 64 and drove to Lexington. He didn't have anywhere to go.
And he asked me if he could stay with me. And I just thought,
man, this guy will kill me probably if I do, rob me of everything
I got. And I said, I'm sorry, I just can't do that. And I started
worrying. I thought, what if I just turned
away an angel? I worried about it, but there's
one thing that, I don't want to be crude, there was one thing
that convinced me he wasn't an angel. He smelled really bad.
And so I thought he couldn't have been an angel. But at any
rate, I worried something over that. What if I had an angel
and I turned him out? Now I realize that people can
have a morbid fascination with angels and even worship them. We read in Colossians 2.18 of
those who worship angels, intruding into those things that he has
not seen, vainly puffed up in his fleshly mind. You know, even
John in the book of Revelation fell down at the feet of an angel
to worship it when he shouldn't have. Turn to Revelation chapter
22. Revelation 22 verse 8. And I,
John, saw these things and heard them. And when I'd heard and
seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel.
which showed me these things. He saw a real angel. Then saith
he unto me, see thou do it not for I am thy fellow servant and
of thy brethren, the prophets and of them which keep the sayings
of this book, you worship God. He said, don't you dare worship
me, worship God. But even John fell down at the
feet of an angel. Now in the Bible, This word angel
is used for three different people. Now, the word angel means a messenger. That's all it means, a messenger.
Most of the time in the Old Testament when we read of the angel of
the Lord, it's the Lord himself. The Lord Jesus Christ is called
the angel of the Lord. Remember how the angel of the
Lord was in the flame that went up with Manoah and his wife Saul,
I think it's in Judges 13, and he said, I've seen the face of
the Lord. It was the Lord himself. And sometimes in the scripture,
an angel refers to a pastor. The Lord wrote to the seven angels
or the seven churches and the angel of their churches. That
means he wrote to the pastor of those churches. An angel is
a messenger. And sometimes an angel is a reference to these
created beings called angels, the angels of God. And Peter
tells us in second Peter chapter two, verse 11, that they are
greater in power and might than we are. They're much stronger
than us. They don't have the same limitations
we do, they're spirits. In this same chapter in Hebrews
chapter one, it says, he maketh his angels spirits. They don't
have the same limitations of the flesh that you and I have
and what power they have. We read of the angel of the Lord
in 2nd Samuel 24 killing 70,000 people after David offered up
or took a census without taking the atonement money and an angel
was sent and killed 70,000 people. Now, evidently angels were created
before us. I believe, personally, the Bible
doesn't give us this information, but I believe that their creation
and their fall took place sometime between Genesis chapter 1 verse
1 and Genesis chapter 1 verse 2. in the beginning, God created
the heavens and the earth. And all of a sudden in verse
two, it says the earth was without form and void. Well, something
happened. He didn't create the earth without
form and void. Something happened during that
time that I believe that was the creation and the fall of
angels. You know, the demons are fallen
angels. Satan, Lucifer, who is very real
is one of those angels that fell. Turn to Isaiah chapter 14. Isaiah chapter 14. Verse 12, how art thou fallen
from heaven? Oh, Lucifer, son of the morning. How art thou cut down to the
ground which did weaken the nations? For thou hast said in thine heart,
I will ascend into heaven. I will exalt my throne above
the stars of God. I will sit also upon the mount
of the congregation and the sides of the north. I'll ascend above
the heights of the clouds. I'll be like the most high. Yet
thou shalt be brought down to hell. to the sides of the pit. Job chapter 4 verse 18 makes
this statement regarding angels. It says that God charges his
angels with folly. And that's even talking about
the angels who have not fallen. Now there are those who have
fallen, the demon, Satan and his bunch, and the ones who have
not fallen. And the scripture actually says
God charges his angels with folly. Why is that? It's because they're
mutable. It's because they could fall.
And the only reason they don't fall is because God keeps them
from it. As a matter of fact, the angels that have not fallen,
that are still serving the Lord as they should, they're called
in 1 Timothy 5, verse 21, the elect angels. The only reason
they haven't fallen is because God has preserved them from falling.
And every one of us will fall. Angels, human beings, doesn't
matter what, we will fall unless we're kept by God and preserved
from falling. The elect angels love election.
Now the first time it created angels appear in the scriptures
in Genesis 18. Would you turn with me there? Verse 1, And the Lord appeared unto him,
the Lord appeared to Abraham in the plains of Mamre. And he
sat in the tent door in the heat of the day. And he, Abraham,
lifted up his eyes and looked and lo, three men stood by. And
when he saw them, he ran to meet them from the door and bowed
himself toward the ground and said, My Lord, if now I found
favor in thy sight, pass not away. I pray thee from thy servant. Now, this is this is when the
Lord came to tell Abraham about the destruction of lot of Sodom
and Gomorrah. Look in Chapter 19. Chapter 19
of Genesis. And there came two angels to
Sodom and even These two were with the Lord in chapter 18.
And Lot sat in the gate of Sodom and Lot seeing them rose up to
meet them. And he bowed himself with his face toward the ground.
He knew they were angels. How he knew that, I don't know.
And he said, behold, now my Lord's turn in. I pray you into your
servant's house and tarry all night and wash your feet. And
you shall rise up early and go your ways. And they said, nay,
but we'll abide in the street all night. And he pressed upon
them greatly. And they turned unto him and entered into his
house. And he made them a feast and did bake unleavened bread. And they did eat. And you know
the rest of that story where they end up destroying or the
Lord uses them to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah. Now angels actually
play a very significant role in the New Testament. Two angels
are mentioned in the New Testament, Gabriel and Michael, both archangels. They're actually given names.
Now, the angel Gabriel first appeared to Zacharias at the
birth of John the Baptist, and then he appeared to Joseph with
the gospel message. You see, if you just read what
the angels had to say, you'll preach the gospel. Look in Matthew
chapter one, Matthew chapter one, verse 18.
Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise, when as his
mother Mary was a spouse to Joseph before they came together, she
was found with child of the Holy Ghost. Then Joseph, her husband
being a just man, not willing to make her a public example,
was minded to put her away privately. He didn't believe that she was
with a child from the Holy Ghost. He thought she'd been with some
other man, obviously. And who wouldn't think that?
I mean, if your fiancé said that this happened the way it happened,
you wouldn't believe him. He didn't believe. But while
he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared
unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear
not to take unto thee Mary thy wife, for that which is conceived
in her is of the Holy Ghost, and she shall bring forth a son,
and thou shalt call his name Jesus, Savior, for he shall save
his people from their sins." Is there a greater gospel message
than that? He, the angels preach the gospel. He, the Lord Jesus
Christ, shall save his people, his elect, from their sins. And then this angel appears to
Mary. Look in Luke chapter 1, verse
26. And in the sixth month, the angel
Gabriel was sent from God unto the city of Galilee, named Nazareth,
to a virgin, a spouse to a man whose name was Joseph, of the
house of David, and the virgin's name was Mary. And the angel
came in unto her and said, Hail, thou art highly favored, highly
graced is the word. Holy Grace, the Lord is with
thee. Blessed art thou among women.
And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast
in her mind what manner of salutation this should be. And the angel
said unto her, Fear not, Mary, for thou hast found favor with
God. And behold, thou shalt conceive
in thy womb, and shalt bring forth a son, and thou shalt call
his name Jesus. Now look at this description
the angel gives of the Lord Jesus. He shall be great. He shall be
called the Son of the Highest. And the Lord God shall give unto
him the throne of his father David. And he shall reign over
the house of Jacob forever. And in his kingdom there shall
be no end. Then said Mary unto the angel,
How should this be, saying, I know not a man? And the angel answering
said unto her, That the Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and
the power of the highest shall overshadow thee. Therefore also
that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called
the Son of God. And behold, thy cousin Elizabeth,
she also hath conceived a son in her old age, and this is the
sixth month with her which is called barren. For with God nothing
shall be impossible. And then there was the angel's
appearance to the shepherds. Look in chapter 2 of Luke, verse
8. And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in
the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And lo,
the angel of the Lord came upon them, And the glory of the Lord
shone round about them, and they were sore afraid. And the angel
said unto them, Fear not, for behold, I bring you good tidings
of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is
born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ. The Lord, and this shall be a
sign unto you, you shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling
clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the
angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,
glory to God in the highest and on earth peace, goodwill toward
men. Then there was the time of the
Lord's temptation. in the wilderness. Remember when
he fasted for 40 days and after this time of temptation, when
the devil tempted him, we read, behold, angels came and ministered
to him. And then in Gethsemane's garden,
look in Luke chapter 22. I want you to see what a significant
role the angels play in the New Testament. Verse 39. And he came out and went as he
was wont to the Mount of Olives, and his disciples also followed
him. And when he was at that place, he said unto them, Pray
ye that ye enter not into temptation. And he was withdrawn from them
about a stone's cast, and kneeled down and prayed, saying, Father,
if thou be willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not
my will, but thine be done. And there appeared an angel unto
him from heaven, strengthening him. You know, while he was being
arrested, you remember when Peter cut off that fella's ear with
a sword? Now he was trying to take his head off. He ducked
and he got his ear. Now let's read what our Lord
said about that in Matthew chapter 26. Matthew 26. I love this passage of scripture.
Verse 51. And behold, one of them which
were with Jesus stretched out his hand and drew a sword and
struck a servant of the high priest and smote off his ear.
Then said Jesus unto him, put up again thy sword into his place,
for all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword.
Thinkest thou that I cannot now pray to my father, and he shall
presently send me more than 12 legions of angels, 72,000 angels. Now that's a remarkable thing
to think about. These angels, they were ready to smite. They
were ready to do whatever it took to destroy. They saw their
Lord and their Master being crucified, being mistreated. And I don't
think they fully knew what was going on. And they were ready
to smite because of this. What about the angels after the
resurrection? Look in Matthew chapter 28. In the end of the Sabbath, as
it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene
and the other Mary to see the sepulcher. And behold, there
was a great earthquake. For the angel of the Lord descended
from heaven and came and rolled back the stone from the door
and sat upon it. His countenance was like lightning,
and his raiment white as snow. And for fear of him, the keepers
did shake and became as dead men. And the angel answered and
said unto the women, fear not. For I know that ye seek Jesus
which was crucified. He is not here, for He is risen,
as He said. Come, see the place where the
Lord lay, and go quickly, and tell His disciples that He is
risen from the dead. And behold, He goeth before you
into Galilee. There shall you see Him, lo,
I told you. And they departed quickly from the sepulchre with
fear and with great joy, and did run to bring His disciples
word. And what about the angels at
the ascension of our Lord? Turn to Acts chapter 1. Acts chapter 1. Our Lord is ascending
back into glory. And we read beginning in verse
10. And while they look steadfastly toward heaven, as he went up,
behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, which also
said ye men of Galilee. Why stand ye gazing up into heaven?
This same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall
come again in like manner as you've seen him go into heaven. Now, when the Lord returns, the
scripture says he's going to return with his mighty angels
in flaming fire, taking vengeance on them that know not God and
that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. First Thessalonians
chapter one, verses seven through ten. And angels are actually
said to rejoice in the salvation of sinners. Listen to this scripture.
Luke chapter 15 verse 10 says there's joy in the presence of
the angels over one sinner that repenteth. And then in Matthew
chapter 18 verse 10, the Lord says concerning his children,
take heed that you despise not one of these little ones. For
I say unto you that in heaven, they're angels. Did you catch
that? their angels do always behold
the face of my father which is in heaven." Do we have guardian
angels? Evidently. Evidently. Look at this scripture
in 2 Kings chapter 6 from the Old Testament. Some men have come to arrest
Elisha, an army full of men and they had compassed around the
city that Elisha was in. And we read in verse 15 of 2
Kings chapter 6. And when the servant of the man
of God was risen early and gone forth, behold, and host compassed
the city, both with horses and chariots. And his servant said
unto him, Elisha my master, how shall we do? And he answered,
fear not. For they that be with us are
more than they that be with them. And Elisha prayed and said, Lord,
I pray thee, open his eyes that he may see. And the Lord opened
the eyes of the young man and he saw and behold, the mountain
was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha. They were there when he didn't
see them. But when God supernaturally opened his eyes so he could see
him, we see this great scene. Now, when Paul speaks of the
great mystery of godliness, turn to 1 Timothy 3. I want you to
see this. 1 Timothy 3. Verse 16. And without controversy, great
is the mystery of godliness. God was manifest in the flesh,
justified in the Spirit. What's it say next? Scene of
angels. Scene of angels. Don't you reckon
they were amazed at the things they saw? When they saw God become
a man born in a stable, they were thinking, what is this?
When they saw their Master and their Lord nailed to a cross,
were amazed they were dumbfounded by this scene of angels you know
peter actually says talking about the things of salvation which
things angels desire to look into you know we're gonna be
with angels in heaven hebrews chapter 12 verse 22 says ye are
come to mount zion under the city of the living god the heavenly
jerusalem and to an innumerable company of angels Do you believe in angels? Sure
I do. Of course I do. And I really
like them. I love them. They're servants
of my Redeemer. And they're in this room right
now. I have no doubt about it. And
I would get a hearty, angelic Amen when I make this statement. Christ is better than angels. Hebrews chapter one, verse four. Christ is made so much better
than the angels. And oh, they're mighty beings,
no doubt, but they're created. As he hath by inheritance obtained
a more excellent name than they. 4 verse 5, For unto which of
the angels said he at any time, Thou art my son, this day have
I begotten thee, and again I'll be to him a father, and he shall
be to me a son. Now this was never said of any
angel. Gabriel means a mighty warrior of God. That's what the
word means by definition. Christ is God. There's a big
difference. Michael means like unto God. Christ didn't like unto God.
Christ is God. And that's what he's going to
go on to say in this passage of scripture to show his superiority
to angels. Look what verse 6 says, Again,
when he bringeth in the first begotten into the world, he saith,
And let all the angels of God worship him. You see, Christ
is the object of worship. And the angels worship Him. They all hail the power of Jesus'
name. Let angels prostrate fall. And that's exactly what they
do in His presence because He is to be worshipped. Now what
does worship mean? When you worship, this is what
worship means, and the angels worship this way. When you worship,
you fall down at his feet and acknowledge whatever he does
is right. He can do with you whatever he's pleased to do.
You only worship a sovereign God, and the angels worship a
sovereign God. They know they're in his hand,
and whatever he does is right. Look at verse seven. and of the
angels, he saith, who maketh his angels spirits and his ministers
a flame of fire. Now the angels are made by him
and serve him. Colossians 1 16 says angels are
made by him and for him. Verse eight. But under the sun,
He says, God, the father says to the God, the son, thy throne. Oh, God is for ever and ever. A scepter of righteousness is
the scepter of thy kingdom. Now he never said anything like
that to an angel. Thy throne. Oh God. This is the father speaking
to the son. Thy throne, O God. And I love
to think of the throne of the Lord Jesus Christ. As a matter
of fact, Lord willing, that's what I'm going to preach on next
Sunday night. The throne of the Lord Jesus Christ. It's a sovereign
throne. That means He's in absolute control. Oh, He reigns. He doesn't have
a right to reign. He does reign. It's a throne
of justice. Justice and judgment are the
habitation of Thy throne. And it's a throne of grace. It's
a throne of mercy. Oh, the throne of the Lord Jesus
Christ. No angel sits on a throne. They
fly around the throne crying, holy, holy, holy, but they don't
sit on the throne. This can't be said of angels. Look in verse nine, it goes on
to describe the Lord Jesus Christ. Thou has loved righteousness
and hated iniquity. Therefore God, even thy God,
hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows. Now angels, no doubt, love righteousness
and hate iniquity, but not the way he does. This is talking
about the very character of our Lord Jesus Christ. Here's what
holiness is. He loves righteousness and he hates iniquity. There's
not a better definition of holiness in all the Word of God than that.
Thou hast loved righteousness and hated iniquity. Therefore God, even thy God,
hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows. They don't share in his character.
He is other. He's other. He's altogether different.
He's altogether different from angels. He's altogether different
from men. Nobody's like Him. He's utterly
unique, the Lord Jesus Christ. He's better than angels. I love
this next verse, verse 10. And thou, Lord, in the beginning
has laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the
work of thy hands." Angels can't create, they're created. The
creator is better than the angels. Thou, Lord, in the beginning
has laid the foundations of the earth and the heavens are the
work of thy hands. shall perish, all creatures, all created things,
they shall perish, but thou remainest, and they all shall wax old as
doth a garment, and as a vesture shalt thou fold them up, and
they shall be changed, but thou art the same, and thy years shall
not fail. No angel can be said to be immutable. That's why he charges his angels
with folly. They can mutate. That's what
Satan did. He mutated. He became a fallen
angel and his demons. And you and I, all angels would
fall if he didn't keep them from it. The only reason they didn't
fall is because they were elect angels. But he's the same. I love to think of the immutability
of Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ, the same. Yesterday, today, and forever. You think about how much you
change. Your moods go up, my moods go
up, go down, this way, that way. One time I'm full of fear, another
time I think I'm full of faith, but I change so much. I change
so much. It's hard telling how many times
I change in a 24-hour period. Just change, change, change and
decay and all around. I change, you change, but he
doesn't change. He is absolutely immutable. You see, he's God. He's God. If he could change, it would
either be an improvement or he'd be going downhill. And that's
not going to be said of him. He said, I am the Lord. I change
not. Therefore, ye sons of Jacob are
not consumed. You see, remember that announcement
by the angels in Matthew chapter one, verse 21, thou shall call
his name Jesus for he shall save his people from their sins. You
see God's people have always been his people. I don't understand
how that can be, but God's elect have always been viewed by God
as his people. Before, I know I was born on
9959, but my existence in the mind of God's a whole lot older
than that. However old God is, that's how old I am in his mind,
in his purpose. Now how that, behold, he said,
I've loved you with an everlasting love. He said his affection on
his people before the foundation of the world, and he's not going
to change. I am the Lord, I change not. Therefore ye sons of Jacob are
not consumed. Now if I change, if I change,
he'd get rid of every one of us, wouldn't he? if he would
change. There's no doubt in my mind about
that. But thank God he doesn't. He's always faithful to his covenant. He's always faithful to his promise.
He doesn't change. Only God's like this. No angel
can be described as changeless. Now these angels are mighty beings,
no doubt, but they're creatures. They can't be compared to the
Lord Jesus Christ. Christ is better than any angel. Verse 13, but to which of the
angels said he at any time, sit on my right hand until I make
thine enemies thy footstool. He never said that to an angel,
did he? I love to think of our Lord ascending back to the Father,
having accomplished salvation for everybody he died for. And
the Father says, sit. at my right hand until I make
every one of your enemies your footstool. You see, the Lord
Jesus Christ does have enemies. Every unbeliever is his enemy,
and they're all going to be made his footstool, but he's seated
at the right hand of the Father. The Father never spoke to an
angel like that. Are they not all? Verse 14. Are
they not all, every one of these angels, ministering spirits sent
forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation. Now here's what angels are involved
in. Here's their purpose. They're ministering spirits.
Now, they're servants of God and their purpose is to minister
to them who shall be heirs of salvation. That's the purpose
of angels. You see, Christ didn't take upon
him the nature of angels, did he? No savior for angels that
fell. No savior. You know, I think
it's interesting how when people are against the fact that God
elected who would be saved. I've never heard anybody complain
about the fact that he didn't provide a savior for angels.
But he didn't. He took not upon him the nature
of angels, but the seed of Abraham. And angels are ministers of those
who are heirs of salvation. Remember that angel's remark
in Matthew chapter 1 in the very first chapter of the New Testament,
thou shalt call his name Jesus. Savior for, here's why. This is an angel message. This is the message the angels
gave. Now I know they only gave the words that God gave them
to give. It obviously began with God, but here's angelic preaching. Thou shalt call his name Jesus.
Four, he shall save his people from their sins. Did he? Yes, he did. I am saved from
my great enemy, my sins. That's my enemy. My greatest
enemy, without any question, is my sins. My sin. But He has saved me from my greatest
enemy. He saved me from the condemnation
of my sin. He did that by being condemned
in my place. and taking his righteousness
and causing it to be mine. And now I stand before God, not
guilty. That's saved, isn't it? I'm never
going to have to give an account for my sins. Sins I haven't committed yet.
And I hope I never commit another one. But even when I say that, I know
because of my flesh, I don't want to sin anymore. But you
know, the sins I haven't even committed. I'm already taken care of. I'm
just before God having His righteousness. He saved me from the condemnation
of sin. He saved me from the power of
sin. Sin shall not have dominion over
you, for you're not under law. But you're under grace. He put
his grace in my heart. There was a time when I couldn't
believe. I couldn't repent. I couldn't love God. I couldn't
understand the scriptures. Whatever spiritual it was, I
couldn't do it. But by his grace, he gave me
a new heart and a new nature. And I now can do what I couldn't
do. I can believe the gospel I'm believing right now. I love
the Lord Jesus Christ right now. There's a time when I couldn't,
didn't even know what it meant. I'm repenting right now. And I used
to think, well, what in the world does repentance mean? I know
now. It's because he saved me from
the power of sin. And one of these days he's going
to save me from the presence of sin. As a matter of fact,
I've been saved from the presence of sin because I'm up in heaven
right now in Christ. I'm right there at the right hand of the
Father as I'm united to Him. Now, that's what the Scripture
teaches. All believers are united to the Lord Jesus Christ, the
one with Him. Where He is, I am. As He's seated at the right hand
of the Father, I'm right there with Him. I've actually been
saved from the presence of sin, and one of these days I'm going
to experience it. I haven't experienced it yet, but I will experience
it without question. Now, these angels are sent forth
to be Ministers heir to those who are the heirs of salvation
now what all they do. I don't know I Don't know but
I don't need to know but they're the Lord's servants and I like
angels like you I look there were real sin to which I love
them, but Christ is better than angels You take the best angels Christ is better. Beyond the
best is the better. And that's what you're always
going to say of the Lord Jesus Christ. Whatever, 10 trillion
eons from now, still the song is, Christ is better. Let's pray together.