Angels, Once More

SUN., FEB. 18, 1996, 6:01 AM
FARM, STUDY

This morning, at the Forum hour, you will join a group that shall consider the reality and actions of angels, as part of this earth scene. The little books that will be the fount of the discussion are focusing on what My Holy Scriptures tell about angels. This isn’t much, but consider it important to be aware of and appreciate what is said about these special spiritual beings.

Mostly, in these stories, angels take on a physical form much like a human. It’s interesting, isn’t it, that the angels that heralded My birth, as Jesus, are usually thought of and portrayed as females, whereas in most of the specific, individual encounters the angel is male. I’ll just say that they are not sexual beings, but when they take human form they are perceived as male or female. I, the Holy Spirit, have not taken bodily form (at least that has been reported), but I have told you that I am both fully male and fully female AND not a sexual being at all. Being sexual can be part of being spiritual, but being fully spiritual can encompass all of the good of sexuality without that which hinders. ( 6:21 / 6:35 )

Angels are part of the “balance” of earth life. Just as there is a wide diversity in humans… in form, temperament, and abilities… so it is also with angels. They are large and small, shy and bold, talented and, well, just faithful… and, of course, everything in between the extremes.

Earth life was “designed” to have conflicts, decisions, even some chaos. Angels often are a “moderating factor” in this design, doing both preventive and rescue work. Angels don’t need personal recognition. Their spirits are such that they can do what is assigned, generally or specifically, without the need for recognition and human approval. One of the best examples of this is in the story you will retell next week, retitled here, for this Teaching, as the Angel in the Fiery Furnace. The story suggests, with no details, that a single, unidentified angel, appearing like a man, protected 3 young men from burning… from even being singed by a fire, in a furnace, that was so hot it killed the attendants who threw them in. Thrown in, they were bound. He “unbound” them. They were reported walking around in the furnace, in the fire, without being harmed. Now that’s protection!

Yet this angel didn’t get to come out with Shadrach and company to “take a bow” and “make a testimony”. He just disappeared, having done his miraculous job quite well. This is a model for human life when a person is close to or has reached enlightenment. There no longer is a need for recognition and approval, for all that you do is now for Me. The priority of life is to serve Me, not accumulate honors on earth.

( 6:56 / 7:52 )

The Bible doesn’t tell about the origin of angels, but I’ll say they were just part of the balance of Creation. Just as there are innumerable forms of microscopic life not mentioned in the Scriptures (many of which are quite beneficial to human health and life) so there are angels, spiritual forms of life, also beneficial. Actually, one of My reasons for their creation and inclusion is My sense of fun. I knew that rationality would develop as humans learned to use their brains, and that extreme rationality would reject spiritual aspects of life. So I created angels to act in ways unexplainable rationally. It’s almost perverse fun to see some secular humans squirm as they deal with angelic acts.