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Tag: angel

He distinctly saw an angel of God
“Cornelius!” the angel said.

Cornelius stared at him in terror.

“What is it, sir?” he asked the angel.

ACTS 10:4 of angels

Sir, yes Sir!?!

ACTS 10: of an angel & a Roman warrior

What an unlikely scene in this new missionary journey of Twelve Jewish Apostles of JESUS the Messiah of Israel.

Luke records an encounter of a Roman soldier, Cornelius, with an angel of God!

Previously, we left Peter in Joppa, where the Apostle has just performed another resurrection.

We will get to Cornelius and then Peter; but TODAY I would like us to consider the role of an angel of God in the mission of the Church.

A missionary moment with a timeless messenger

Man, even a prophet or an Apostle, is mortal – spirit adorned in flesh with beating heart tirelessly churning the blood of life from limb to limb.

We know the nature of a fellow being of dust whom we meet in the street.

But what of an angel?

How would you and I react to such an encounter with that which is unlike us – an angel – a living being created of spirit without flesh and bone, an eternal messenger who may appear to mankind only once in many lifetimes?

What do we really know about angels?

Angels in art have blurred our view of truth, eternity and the messengers of the Lord our God.
Roger@TalkofJESUS.com
- What do YOU think?
We cannot take time here for an exhaustive quest for God-sent angels or an unveiling of messengers veiled in darkness, but let’s glance at the evidence of angels in the Bible.

What do you know about them?

Angels in a Biblical Context
- Question: What book of the Bible makes the most mentions of an angel (or angels)?
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If you guessed: The Revelation of Jesus Christ to John [51x in the KJV]
you would be correct. (But that's a scene somewhat challenging for any to get a clear picture of an angel in its usual mission for the Lord.)
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- What about all the angels in Luke’s Gospel announcing Jesus’ birth?
  - Pretty good guess. [15x KJV] But it comes in fifth.
  - Two Old Testament Books come in at #3 and #4.
    Any guesses? [hint: one is a Prophet]
    CLICK HERE for that answer [19x]
- TWO books of the Bible, one in the Old Testament and one in the New Testament, contain the most references (second only to Revelation) to an angel or angels).
- DO YOU KNOW WHAT THESE TWO BOOKS REFERRING TO ANGELS HAVE IN COMMON?
Answer:

History.
- #3 is Judges
  - & you have probably guessed..
- #2 is ACTS of the Apostles.
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So before we proceed with our look at an angel bringing messages to Cornelius, Peter and others, let's take a brief glance at what the Bible reveals about these messengers of God.
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מַלְאָךְ

mal’āḵ – From an unused root meaning to despatch as a deputy
1. messenger
2. angel
3. the theophanic angel
a messenger; specifically, of God, i.e. an angel (also a prophet, priest or teacher):—ambassador, angel, king, messenger.
Strong’s H4397 – mal’āḵ

An angel may be a heavenly being with a message from God.

BUT a man such as Zechariah (or the Apostle John) may also bring a commanded message and/or a prophetic message of the future from the Lord.

We see this many times:
- And the angel H4397 of God spake unto me in a dream, saying, Jacob: And I said, Here am I.
- And Jacob went on his way, and the angels H4397 of God met him.
- And Jacob sent messengers H4397 before him to Esau his brother unto the land of Seir, the country of Edom.
We needn’t debate if these angels of specific instances were men or heavenly beings; the point is that these angels bring a message of God to men and women for whom He cares.

וַיַּעַל מַלְאַךְ־יְהוָה מִן־הַגִּלְגָּל אֶל־הַבֹּכִים פ וַיֹּאמֶר אַעֲלֶה אֶתְכֶם מִמִּצְרַיִם וָאָבִיא אֶתְכֶם אֶל־הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר נִשְׁבַּעְתִּי לַאֲבֹתֵיכֶם וָאֹמַר לֹֽא־אָפֵר בְּרִיתִי אִתְּכֶם לְעוֹלָֽם׃
CLICK FOR ENGLISH TRANSLATION FROM HEBREW: Shoftim (Judges) 2:1 :: Westminster Leningrad Codex (WLC)
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Would you like to READ an encounter from the Old Testament between an angel and the parents of Samson?
CLICK HERE FOR JUDGES 13 CSB with ten references to this angel.
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Angel in the New Testament

ἄγγελος – angelos
- The KJV translates Strong’s G32 in the following manner:
  - angel (179x),
  - messenger (7x).
Thayer’s Greek Lexicon

STRONGS G32:
ἄγγελος, -ου, ὁ,
1. a messenger, envoy, one who is sent: Matthew 11:10; Luke 7:24, 27; Luke 9:52; Mark 1:2; James 2:25. [From Homer down.]
2. In the Scriptures, both of the Old Testament and of the New Testament, one of that host of heavenly spirits that, according alike to Jewish and Christian opinion, wait upon the monarch of the universe, and are sent by him to earth, now to execute his purposes (Matthew 4:6, 11; Matthew 28:2; Mark 1:13; Luke 16:22; Luke 22:43
ἄγγελος θεός – angelos theos

AN ANGEL OF GOD

Acts 10:3 (and other passages) referenced by Thayer’s Greek Lexicon [above]

He saw in a vision evidently about the ninth hour of the day an angel of God coming in to him, and saying unto him, Cornelius.
sent by him to earth, now to execute his purposes

hence, the frequent expressions ἄγγελος (angel, messenger of God, מַלְאָך) and ἄγγελοι κυρίου or ἄγγελοι τοῦ Θεοῦ.

They are subject not only to God but also to Christ (Hebrews 1:4ff; 1 Peter 3:22, cf. Ephesians 1:21; Galatians 4:14), who is described as hereafter to return to judgment surrounded by a multitude of them as servants and attendants: Matthew 13:41, 49; Matthew 16:27; Matthew 24:31; Matthew 25:31; 2 Thessalonians 1:7, cf. Jude 1:14.

Up until now, we have encountered an angel seven times in Acts of the Apostles.

What is your COMMENT about any similarities and differences between these seven angels we have met so far in ACTS of the Apostles?

NEXT: Cornelius and the Angel of God
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in ACTS 10: [click for NASB]
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March 30, 2022
Philip: Evangelizing Christ’s Sheep Beyond Gaza
How important is Gaza to Philip’s Evangelizing Mission?

What does Gaza have to do with,

“Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.” and evangelizing Christ Jesus?
Quote of Jesus from the Gospel of Mark 16:15

We’ll talk of JESUS’ evangelism model begun in the Apostles and now a command to Philip, one of Jerusalem’s first seven deacons in a moment. But first let’s review the setting of this semi-familiar scene of Philip baptizing an Ethiopian eunuch in (of all places), Gaza.

Acts of Evangelism by Christ’s disciples from Jerusalem’s Church

8: At that time a great persecution arose against the church which was at Jerusalem; and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles.

Philip: Preaching to Good and Bad Samaritans

This is Philip who served with Stephen in Jerusalem
- 4 Therefore those who were scattered went everywhere preaching the word.
- 5 Then Philip went down to the city of Samaria and preached Christ to them. And the multitudes with one accord heeded the things spoken by Philip, hearing and seeing the miracles which he did.
  - (We will get back to the contrast between Samaria and Gaza in a moment.)
- The Apostles in Jerusalem sent Peter and John to those evangelizing the towns of Samaria.
- .. they [Peter & John] returned to Jerusalem, preaching the gospel in many villages of the Samaritans.
An Angel of the Lord commands Philip: GO to Gaza

We don’t want to dismiss too quickly who sends Philip on his way from the big city of Samaria (then called, Sebastia (when rebuilt by Herod the Great) with its six thousand souls, to an uninhabited Gaza along the road from Jerusalem.

Two routes to the Gaza road along the Mediterranean shore

Luke does not use this description of just anyone.
- Now an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing to the right of the altar of incense. Zechariah [Priest of the LORD and father of John the Baptist] was troubled when he saw the angel, and fear gripped him. – Gospel of Luke 1:11-12
- And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood near them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened. – Gospel of Luke 2:9 – from the nativity of the shepherds near Bethlehem .. (also not too far from here)
We know these instances well; however in Luke’s second account of the Acts of the Apostles the Angel of the Lord initiates some important ACTS of disciples of the Risen Christ Jesus.

Previously, our history of the Apostles imprisoned in Jerusalem has already witnessed one of these appearances of the Angel of the Lord. A praying church is astounded to see Peter and John released from prison and then returning to the Temple to preach the Gospel.

Arrested AND Released

They laid hands on the apostles and put them in a public prison. But during the night an angel of the Lord opened the gates of the prison, and leading them out, he said, “Go, stand and speak to the people in the temple area the whole message of this Life.”
Acts of the Apostles 5:18-20 NASB20

Philip Goes to Gaza – ACTS 8

But an angel of the Lord spoke to Philip, saying,
“Get ready and go south to the road that descends from Jerusalem to Gaza.” (This is a desert road.)
Acts of Philip, disciple of the Apostles, 8:26 NASB20

27 So he started out, and he met the treasurer of Ethiopia, a eunuch of great authority under the Kandake, the queen of Ethiopia. The eunuch had gone to Jerusalem to worship, and he was now returning.

Seated in his carriage, he was reading aloud from the book of the prophet Isaiah.

The Kandake, Queen of Ethiopia

Amanitaraqide appears to be the subject of a brief reference in the New Testament (Acts 8:27)

Amanitaraqide held the title of Kandake in the Kingdom of Kush during the years 21-41

Source – Wikipedia
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Nubia is a region along the Nile river encompassing the area between Aswan in southern Egypt and Khartoum in central Sudan. It was the seat of one of the earliest civilizations of ancient Africa, with a history that can be traced from at least 2500 BC onward, Kerma culture, and was home to several empires, most prominently the kingdom of Kush, which for a while even ruled over Egypt. 

Before the 4th century, and throughout classical antiquity, Nubia was known as Kush, or, in Classical Greek usage, included under the name Ethiopia (Aithiopia).

[MAP above of this region along the Nile & descriptions: Source] 
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Αἰθίοψ – Ethiopian = “black”

The eunuch, wearing expensive robes of a court official, rides in a royal chariot (reserved for only the highest officials of Rome and independent powerful kingdoms), would seem unapproachable by an ordinary man like Philip. For it seems this royal official would have been in Jerusalem on some important diplomatic mission as the queen’s personal representative.

If you think back to the status of Daniel in Babylon or even further back to this region of the Nile and the earned status of Joseph serving Pharaoh, you will get a good picture of the importance of this man to the highest leaders of his country.
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Even in this A.D. 21st century most men like Philip (and you) would know very little about this distant country in Africa far from Jerusalem and further from Rome and the new world beyond the great ocean.
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Ethiopia, like many lands, must hear the Gospel in many languages.

Graphic source: Oromo Bible Society
O land, land, land, hear the word of the LORD!

No, the Ethiopian court official is not like Philip.

As a diplomat with power to travel the world on behalf of his queen, he will play an important role in the spreading of the Gospel. So after Philip obediently travels to Gaza, he discovers that this man is a brother, a Jew who studies Scripture! And here in Gaza he is returning home to Kush from worship of the LORD in Jerusalem.

(That’s right, the same Jerusalem from which Philip has fled; initially north to the city of Samaria, but now southwest of Jerusalem into the desert lands of Gaza.)

Studying Isaiah with a ‘missionary’ to Gaza

ACTS 8:

29 Then the Spirit said to Philip, “Go near and overtake this chariot.”

(Philip is on foot and has walked this distance from Samaria, but this is now a second command of the Spirit as he reaches the Gaza road.)

30 So Philip ran to him, and heard him reading the prophet Isaiah

30 وَعِنْدَمَا رَكَضَ فِيلِبُّسُ إلَى العَرَبَةِ، سَمِعَ الرَّجُلَ يَقْرَأُ كِتَابَ النَّبِيِّ إشَعْيَاءَ. فَقَالَ لَهُ فِيلِبُّسُ:
ﻋﻤﺎﻝ ﺍﻟﺮﺳﻞ 8:30
Arabic Bible: Easy-to-Read Version

“Do you understand what you are reading?”

31 The man replied, “How can I, unless someone instructs me?” And he urged Philip to come up into the carriage and sit with him.

Philip traveled in style for a while as they read.

Now the passage of Scripture which he was reading was this:

Isaiah

נִגַּשׂ וְהוּא נַעֲנֶה וְלֹא יִפְתַּח־פִּיו כַּשֶּׂה לַטֶּבַח יוּבָל וּכְרָחֵל לִפְנֵי גֹזְזֶיהָ נֶאֱלָמָה וְלֹא יִפְתַּח פִּֽיו׃
מֵעֹצֶר וּמִמִּשְׁפָּט לֻקָּח וְאֶת־דּוֹרוֹ מִי יְשׂוֹחֵחַ כִּי נִגְזַר מֵאֶרֶץ חַיִּים מִפֶּשַׁע עַמִּי נֶגַע לָֽמוֹ׃
Masoretic Text Isaiah 53:7-8, quoted in ACTS 8:32-33
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Or perhaps the Ethiopian official traveling from Jerusalem through Gaza back to Egypt would have held a Septuagint translation of the Hebrew Bible into Greek. ..dated to the reign of Ptolemy II of Egypt (285-246 BC).. 
(READ more about ancient Egypt and Ethiopia from Source link: biblearchaeology.org)
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πάντες ὡς πρόβατα ἐπλανήθημεν ἄνθρωπος τῇ ὁδῷ αὐτοῦ ἐπλανήθη καὶ κύριος παρέδωκεν αὐτὸν ταῗς ἁμαρτίαις ἡμῶν
Yeshaiya (Isaiah) 53:6 :: Septuagint (LXX)

In reading all of Isaiah 53 he would have just read in verse 6:
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All we like sheep have gone astray; 
we have turned every one to his own way; 
and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. [KJV]
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34 So the eunuch answered Philip and said, “I ask you, of whom does the prophet say this, of himself or of some other man?”

35 Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning at this Scripture, preached Jesus to him.

Our chariot journey with Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch, to be continued..
February 9, 2022
Arrested AND Released
So they arrested the apostles and put them in the public jail.
But an angel of the Lord opened the doors of the jail during the night, brought them out..
Acts of the Apostles 5:18-19a – CSB

ACTS of Arrests witnessed by the Apostles

Politically motivated religious leaders of Jerusalem now begin to develop a dossier of accusations against Peter, John and the Apostles, because as disciples of the Messiah Jesus they boldly proclaim the Lord’s resurrection from His horrific death on a cross.

As they once again imprison the Apostles, let’s look back briefly at what Annas, Caiaphas and the ruling council of Jerusalem have on them. Herod’s palace records also add evidence.

Simon, a Galilean fisherman, aka Peter, had been a disciple of John the Baptist.

John baptized disciples, even JEWS, to REPENT about three years ago.

Herod had John the Baptizer beheaded.

Pharisees report that Simon and John were part of Jesus’ inner circle of Apostles.

The Pharisees and their scribes began grumbling to His disciples, saying, “Why do you eat and drink with the tax collectors and sinners?”
Gospel of Luke 5:30 NASB20

Simon Peter identified near Jesus’ trial

Witnessed just three months ago just prior to the Passover feast by a servant of the High Priest:

Now when they had kindled a fire in the midst of the courtyard and sat down together, Peter sat among them. And a certain servant girl, seeing him as he sat by the fire, looked intently at him and said, “This man was also with Him.”
Gospel of Luke 22:55-56 NKJV

A Noteworthy Sermon from Solomon’s Portico

Just days ago the Sanhedrin, Jerusalem’s High Court, orders Peter NOT to say anything about Christ Jesus. Although Peter and John were arrested for preaching repentance, Jerusalem’s leaders released them from prison as a politically palatable concession to the crowds who had witnessed Peter healing a man lame from birth.

By what power? Political prowess by the powers that be

And when they had summoned them, they commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. – ACTS 4:18

Arrested, yet the Apostles boldly remain in Jerusalem

ACTS of the Apostles 5:

12 At the hands of the apostles many signs and wonders were taking place among the people; and they were all together in Solomon’s portico…

And increasingly believers in the Lord, large numbers of men and women, were being added to their number, to such an extent that they even carried the sick out into the streets and laid them on cots and pallets, so that when Peter came by at least his shadow might fall on any of them. The people from the cities in the vicinity of Jerusalem were coming together as well, bringing people who were sick or tormented with unclean spirits, and they were all being healed. But the high priest stood up, along with all his associates.. laid hands on the apostles and put them in a public prison.

Previously, the authorities brought Peter and John before the council, however on this occasion the Lord sends an angel to open their prison door!

and leading them out, he said,
“Go, stand and continue to speak to the people in the temple area all the words of the whole message of this Life.”
ACTS of an Angel of the Lord 5:19b-20

Daybreak after another night in prison

At daybreak they entered the temple courts, as they had been told, and began to teach the people.
ACTS of the Apostles 5:21 NIV

(Of course, these same officials of Jerusalem’s political elite who had seized them believed that the Apostles were still imprisoned as before.)

Not just another day at the office

BIG political victory last evening. Those Apostles opposed to OUR LEADERSHIP of JEWISH JERUSALEM await OUR VERDICT of what to do with them.

(Or so they thought, as these religious officials arrived at work in a Jerusalem guarded by Roman centurions.)
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ACTS 5:21b
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Now when the high priest came, and those who were with him, they called together the council, all the senate of the people of Israel, and sent to the prison to have them brought.

But when the officers came, they did not find them in the prison, so they returned and reported,

“We found the prison securely locked and the guards standing at the doors, but when we opened them we found no one inside.”

(REMEMBER their dilemma of JESUS’ EMPTY TOMB just a couple of months ago?) NOW what?

Who does this Galilean we arrested think he is?
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Narrative of this private conversation is a speculative fiction behind the scenes in ACTS 5.
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On that day when we arrested this Simon of Capernaum the first time what was it I said?

When we released him after he drew crowds to himself in the Portico of Solomon proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection from the dead, he challenged our very authority to hold or release him.

So when the others asked, “What are we to do with these men?”

I insisted, DO NOT release them to cause more trouble.

But when they couldn’t find cause to keep these men in prison I said, “You had better start a dossier on them, because we will just have to arrest them again.”

For this Simon Peter had confirmed my distrust when he answered:

“Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, make your own judgment; for we cannot stop speaking about what we have seen and heard.”
Acts of the Apostles 4:19b-20 NASB20

Let’s punish them this time!

So I was all prepared to tell you, “I WARNED YOU about these men.”

But what’s this we hear now after having arrested these crowd-stirring Galileans again so soon? Listen to this new report as we assembled this morning:

The Captain of the Temple Guard’s Report

But on arriving at the jail, the officers did not find them there. So they went back and reported,
“We found the jail securely locked, with the guards standing at the doors; but when we opened them, we found no one inside.”
ACTS of the Captain of the Temple Guard 5:22-23 NIV

Even though it seems impossible, these rabble-rousers must have escaped and run home to Galilee.

(Maybe not such a bad thing for us.)

NOW what do we do?

Now when the captain of the temple guard and the chief priests heard these words, they were greatly perplexed about them as to what would come of this.

25 But someone came and reported to them, “The men whom you put in prison are standing in the temple area and teaching the people!”

The Apostles Now have Thousands of Disciples

And Peter, John and the others are preaching boldly as the Angel has commanded them to continue with the words of the Gospel of Jesus Christ as they return to preach in the Temple.

IT IS YET ANOTHER SIGN, not to be taken lightly by those who had seized them the previous day, throwing the Apostles into Prison.

26 Then the captain went along with the officers and proceeded to bring them back without violence (for they were afraid of the people, that they might be stoned).

(A riot against the capitol police? Roman soldiers in Jerusalem would certainly never condone such RAGE by any Jewish crowd throwing stones at Jerusalem’s politicized religious police.)

Would you, the arrested, convict US?

27 After they brought them in, they had them stand before the Sanhedrin, and [Caiaphas, or possibly Annas] the high priest asked,

“Didn’t we strictly order you not to teach in this name?

Look, you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and are determined to make us guilty of this man’s blood.”

[Peter had convicted them of their complicity in Jesus’ Sacrifice on the Cross; however the Apostle had also stated that God the Father had allowed it AND that JESUS had been raised from the grave!]

But Peter and the apostles answered,

“We must obey God rather than men.

30 The God [theos] of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom you put to death by hanging Him on a cross. He is the one whom God exalted to His right hand as a Prince [archēgos] and a Savior [sōtēr], to grant repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins.

32 And we are witnesses of these things; and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey Him.”

GUILTY!

When they heard this, they were furious [diapriō – cut to the quick] and wanted to put them to death.

It is what we should have done the first time we jailed them.

WE know that these men have escaped, but HOW? Never-the-less, WE cannot allow them to continue to sway all of Jerusalem to become disciples of this JESUS we hung on a Roman cross just two months ago.

AWAY WITH THEM!

οἱ δὲ ἀκούσαντες διεπρίοντο καὶ ἐβούλοντο ἀνελεῖν αὐτούς
But when they heard this, they became infuriated and nearly decided to execute them.
ACTS of the Sanhedrin 5:33

An Appeal Against Rash Reaction

But a Pharisee named Gamaliel, a teacher of the Law, respected by all the people, stood up in the Council and gave orders to put the men outside for a short time.
ACTS of Gamaliel 5:34 NASB
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To be continued...
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December 1, 2021