Cool as you please the preacher said, "Oh by the way, when you see the term 'angel of the Lord' in Scripture, that's referring to a pre-incarnate form of Jesus." Not, "That's my opinion." Not, "There are several good Bible scholars that have said... " No it's a settled fact!
With me it's a little unsettling. Isn't the making of Jesus into an angel one of the steps on the road to heresy and cultic thinking? Don't the Witnesses claim that, and the Mormons?
I know where the idea comes from, Biblically. There are several passages in the Old Testament where the angel of the Lord shows up and starts saying things that can only be the words of God. For example, Genesis 16:10, where the angel says to Hagar, "I will multiply your descendants exceedingly..." Many other times conversations in which the angel engages refer to the him alternately as an angel and God Himself. It's a very understandable notion.
However, in other passages, the Lord and the angel are clearly two distinct beings, as in I Chronicles 21:16 and 27, where David sees the angel of the Lord with his sword drawn, and then the Lord tells the angel to put his sword away.
So who is this angel, if not the Lord? We would do well to heed the answer given to Manoah in Judges 13 when he asked a similar question. There are obviously some things we do not know or need to know. But to jump to the conclusion that this angel is God or God's Son is premature, and is the same mistake, I believe, that John made when he also was visited by this very person.
In Revelation 22:7, John hears His angel (v. 6, that is, the angel of the Lord) say, "Behold I am coming quickly..." John is therefore about to worship him, and is told to stop! Then the angel keeps talking more of Jesus' words, v. 11 and v. 13, even to saying "I am Alpha and Omega!" Why shouldn't John think this is God! But he was wrong.
Is it possible for the very words of God to come out of the mouth of an angel? Obviously. They are messengers. That's one reason they were created!
We who would follow Christ must all learn the very difficult task of keeping our eyes on the Word alone. What does it say? What does it not say? Here, it says, (1) angel (created being) (2) of (belonging to, not identical with) (3) the Lord, who created it.
Why must we make it anything else?
http://chosunhouse.com is a website I put together a few months back to get the word out to believers that they need to pray for North Korea. I have created over 200 blogs and the site features a live news feed, lists of resources, picture essays, and ways to respond to the overwhelming need in North Korea. Let's love Chosun together! Contact me any time at diakonos5@yahoo.com
And who am I? A man found of God over 50 years ago, called to the ministry, serving the Lord as needed in my world. Married, member of a local church in the Chicago area, with full time work in public education. I love to write Scriptural works. Who are you? Would love to fellowship with believers who respond.
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