Back to the Wingspan

This is where I’d normally apologize for no post in a few weeks - but I’m not going to do that. As some of you know, I get the bulk of the summer off work so things have been out of routine, so to speak. We have had the pleasure of our grandson from out of state with us, and the responsibility of discipling him on the nature of God and what it means to be a ‘believer.’

But to dive back in… We are still discussing the book Angels by Dr. David Jeremiah. To recap, this is the book that the men’s Bible Study (some folks calls it small group, but I calls it Bible Study) has been discussing. As before, I’ve made a ton of notes that are more for THIS audience - YOU - than for that audience. That being said, let’s jump back in with both wings…

Why Angels Matter (But Aren’t the Main Point)

Jeremiah says something very important! Actually it is repeated all throughout the book so you don’t miss it. “Everything Scripture says concerning angels is in connection to something else as the main theme. There are no pages or passages whose central purpose is to spell out a doctrine of angels. So we can’t uncover as much about them as we might like. Unfortunately those who don’t understand or appreciate the Bible’s wisdom and authority have been quick to jump in and try to fill all the gaps with fanciful conjecture.”

I have another book on angels and that author says the same thing. To paraphrase, when we read of angels, they are performing a larger work. The goal is NOT to teach us ABOUT angels, but that God loves us and takes care of His own!

So remember as you think about ANY spiritual being, what is the PURPOSE behind it. Is it to point to God and His grace, or is it to deceive and ensnare?

Don’t Chase Shadows - Chase the Source (of Truth)

The next point I want to bring out is something Jeremiah quotes John Calvin on - “Let us remember that on the whole subject of religion one rule of modesty and soberness is to be observed, and it is this - in obscure matters not to speak or think, or even long to know, more than the Word of God has delivered.”

Now let me get OFF the subject of angels for a moment and say that this is such a great point overall! To search outside of God’s Holy Word is to invite lies and deception, as well as confirmation bias. In other words, do you trust what God says in His Word? Or do you trust what someone else has TOLD you it means? Do you read it for yourself and ask God to reveal it to you? Or do you ‘listen to preaching’ or ‘go to church and hear the Word’ - as delivered by someone else…

Don’t get me wrong, we are COMMANDED to get with a local group of believers and grow in our spiritual journey! We are told to disciple others - to preach the gospel to the world. As you’ve no doubt heard me say over and over and over again, how can we do this if we are not grounded in the Word?

John Calvin Was Right (and Also Not Always Right)

Take these very quotes I am sharing. Jeremiah believes in a ‘secret rapture’ - a pre-tribulation (before the seven year period) rapture that could occur at any moment. I don’t agree with this interpretation, but that doesn’t mean he is a heretic or not worthy of attention. None of us know it all, and I believe there are a lot of us - me included - who will stand before the Lord one day and go “oh - that’s what you meant - well I guess I got that part wrong.” To believe anything else is to believe you are infallible.

And then the latest quote from John Calvin. I agree completely with what he says here, but I do NOT agree completely with what he taught about predestination. Doesn’t mean I can’t learn from him, but it does mean that I shouldn’t take anything ANYONE says and run with it without verifying. And friend you shouldn’t take anything that I say on faith either. I am saying what I believe God is leading me to say, but I also know my views have changed over the years, and I am humble enough to know that I could be wrong.

A Message for One Heart - But Maybe Yours Too

One more point and I’ll move along… There is someone HEAVY on my heart that I pray reads this post. She once told me she was ‘looking for God’ and I was too immature as a Believer to be able to point her in the right direction. Now it’s years later and she has been deep in the occult and ‘spirituality’ ever since. I believe she respects me enough to listen to me, but I’m not getting through. I want her to hear this if nothing else…

I believe God is real. Jesus is God in the form of a man. Not a person that ‘kept doing it until He got it right,’ but is the eternal Creator come to earth. He told us this, and then proved it by resurrecting Himself. Any other ‘spirit’ that tells you something contrary to this can’t be trusted.

Neither can I be trusted, in the sense that MY views are not guaranteed to be correct. But listen PAST the words you’ve read and heard from others, living and dead, and search out the ultimate truth! I don’t want you to blindly believe something, because that’s only surface-level belief at best. I want you to KNOW it in your heart, as I do!

Spiritual Beings Are Real—But So Is Deception

One last point for this post - one that ties directly to everything above. Jeremiah says, “Wonderful as the presence of an angel might be, God has given us something better. In fact he’s given us the greatest gift of all: his presence through his Holy Spirt, and in his Word.”

Might an angel just be yet another sign? And they are all there - in history! We don’t need a sign to know God is real - or said another way, Creation itself testifies to a Creator. We don’t need to personally see everything God has ever created.

The angels are created beings - just like us! Do you have to see someone in every country to know they are there? Or do you believe that since others have seen people in another part of the world that it exists?

Are there spiritual beings? Yes! Have I seen one? Not that I am aware of, but I have experienced things from the spiritual world. I have experienced what we Believers call the indwelling Holy Spirit, and I have experienced the uneasiness of created beings in the spiritual world that are NOT working for God. I have been deceived and I have also seen the Truth.

Do ‘angels’ always point to God? No!

1 John 4:1 - Dear friends, don’t believe every spirit. Test the spirits to see if they belong to God. Many false prophets have gone out into the world.

2 Corinthians 11:14 - Even Satan himself pretends to be an angel of light.

So test the spirits. Trust the Source. And never chase shadows when the Light is already shining.

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