I once knew a man who said he saw angels on a regular basis. He said that they were shadowy figures standing in the distance. In one instance, a man was charging toward him to do him harm, and one of the shadows moved between him and the aggressive man. The aggressive man turned away. Personally, I was climbing a small mountain and got stuck. I couldn’t go up or down. Suddenly a man appeared, seemingly out of nowhere, and started telling me where to place my feet until I got to a safe place. I stood there and tried to relax. When I turned to thank him, he was nowhere to be seen.
I, on a number of occasions spoke to individuals who have their physical needs fulfilled on a daily basis, because the angels they summon, and interact with provide them with the means to acquire money.
For some others, it's fame. For different ones, it's different things.
It's one thing to believe that Satan and his angels are so lame, that they don't know how to deceive individual, so that they have them believing things that are not scriptural, so that at the end of the day, Jesus tells them, "Get away from me, you workers of lawlessness".
It's another, to be in tune with, or understand Satan's schemes.
so that Satan will not outsmart us. For we are familiar with his evil schemes.
2 Corinthians 2:11
When a person sticks to the scriptures, and put his ideas, in the background, he will not be outsmarted by Satan.
Who would not want to cast out demons, and perform powerful work?
Would you not like that, and is it not true that if you were given that ability, you would use the same logic as you did in your examples... "Ah, it must be God, because Satan would not do this for me."?
Wouldn't he?
Why then would Jesus in his right mind refer to these as lawless works? Matthew 7:21-23
The answer is given in 2 Thessalonians 2:9-12
9 The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, 10 and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved. 11 And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, 12 that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
That's profound isn't it.
The very works that Jesus used, Satan - the one who masquerades as an angel of light employs.
In order to do what? Mislead, or deceive those who refuse to believe the truth, that would protect them from Satan's lies.
What is that truth, in this case?
I don't need to repeat it, since
I already said it.
Did you notice though, that Paul says,
God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie?
How much more plainer do we want it said.
A
delusion is a fixed belief that is not amenable to change in light of conflicting evidence.
There's nothing more can I say.
No amount of scriptures will convince someone who tells themselves that God bypasses and dismisses his means of communication, to deal with individuals as some kind of specialty, exclusive of billions of sincere ones, despite their not having one single scripture to support their subjective opinion, while on the other hand having several scripture that deny that opinion.
"Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation? "
"But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels ..."
"For there stood by me this night the angel of God, whose I am, and whom I serve, Saying, Fear not, Paul; thou must be brought before Caesar: and, lo, God hath given thee all them that sail with thee. Wherefore, sirs, be of good cheer: for I believe God, that it shall be even as it was told me." (Curious that Paul would need an angel to tell him what the holy spirit in him could have easily revealed) ...
The phrase son of man is found a hundred and ninety seven times in scripture, ninety three alone of these God reverenced as being Ezekiel ... but who were these angels that Nathaniel was promised he would see ...
"But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins ..."
"But when the multitudes saw it, they marvelled, and glorified God, which had given such power unto men."
"Whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained."
"Beloved, now are we the sons of God ..." (the son of man is the son of God ... "Adam the son of God")
I'm curious to know what that scripture means to you firstly ....
I'm not certain what scripture you want address, since you used several, but I want to address all.
I hope I do answer your question. If not, please be more specific.
Your first text mentions "heirs of salvation".
Heirs of salvation. Heirs of salvation. Heirs of salvation.
I just wanted to emphasize that the heirs of salvation are specified.
So the ministering spirits are sent forth to minister for them.
The Bible refers to these heirs at Daniel 7:27; Romans 8:16, 17, and other texts.
People mistakenly assume that they are these heirs, because they believe in Christ.
However, the scriptures make a distinction between the heirs, and those who would gain salvation. Romans 8:19-23; Galatian 4:29-31
This is not the thread to get into that, but think of the fact that the disciple understood that those heirs would sit on thrones in the kingdom of God, as is seen from James and John, wanting to be seated at the right and left of Jesus. Mark 10:37; Luke 22:28-30; Revelation 14:1-4
Paul is addressing those ones. Not us.
These are the ones Jesus promised holy spirit to guide and lead them by, and it is these alone whom Jesus used angels to minster.
John was the last of these.
Paul did not outlive John. The last visit of an angel to give a message and revelation, was to John.
People coming after can claim anything, but their claims are not substantiated by the breath of their mouth.
When Jesus said to Nathanael, you will see angels of God ascending and descending to the Son of Man, he referred to himself as the son of man, on this occasions, as he customarily did some 80+ times in the Gospels.
Angels did descend to him, and ascend, and one of those occasions was recorded by the historian Luke, who gathered his information from an eyewitness of those occasions. Luke 22:43
Jesus wasn't stating something that would become a rule.
He was letting these men know that they would see things of a heavenly nature, more than his ability to see a past event... like Nathanael sitting under a fig tree.
Again, this occurred while Jesus was on earth, and before he actually sent the Revelation to John, to give to the congregations.
Matthew 9:5-8
5 For whether is easier, to say, Thy sins be forgiven thee; or to say, Arise, and walk? 6 But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins, (then saith he to the sick of the palsy,) Arise, take up thy bed, and go unto thine house. 7 And he arose, and departed to his house. 8 But when the multitudes saw it, they marvelled, and glorified God, which had given such power unto men.
What the scripture says is...
Jesus said to the man, "thy sins be forgiven thee", that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins, and the multitudes saw it, and they marvelled, and glorified God, which had given such power unto men (Jesus was man (Matthew 4:3, 4; Matthew 17:8; 1 Timothy 2:5; Romans 5:15) - the son of man... (Matthew 8:20; Matthew 12:8; Matthew 12:40; Matthew 16:13; Matthew 16:27, 28; Matthew 17:9; Matthew 17:22; Matthew 18:11) born to man Galatians 4:4).
The scripture does not say anything more. It says only what it means, and means only what it says.
Do you see something else other than what it says?
