What Can Angels Do

The other day, I was asked to respond to this question.  "Can angels, whether God's or the fallen spirits, move objects like doors, drawers and so forth like ghosts are portrayed in movies as doing?"  My response was as follows ...

Concerning your question about what angels can do ... you must remember there is a big difference between God's angels that He assigns to each of us and the so-called "fallen angels," usually called demons, which are sent to tempt and bother us in what ever way they can.

God's angels are still as they were created.  They still have their angelic body, in which they can present themselves in material form if need be.  They don't take up residence in your body and become part of your life like the Holy Spirit does; but yet as a spirit being they can and do walk with you, stand guard over you, and even bring things to you from God.  They are called "ministering spirits" to believers in Jesus.  They can do whatever God instructs them to do, and nothing today can hinder them in their duty like what happened in the Book of Daniel where there was a spiritual battle for 21 days.  The "cross of Jesus" took care of that problem once and for all time.

Some of the fallen angels are locked up by God in the deepest abyss of Hades, a prison called "Tartaros," and the ones that aren't, (the demonic spirits) are allowed to tempt man and bring sickness and all sorts of evil to our lives ... which means most likely, they can do or are allowed to do certain things in this physical world.  Why and how that is ... I have no answer that I can find in God's Word.  But this I do know ...

Satan is the "one who lies in wait," (that's what his name means) one delighting in ... the permission ... to inflect tortures on man, and who goes as far in producing misery as he is allowed, restrained only from destroying man by the express command of God.

Albert Barnes, the old American Presbyterian biblical scholar and theologian from the 1800's said this about the permission needed to inflict misery and evil on man ...

"It is to be observed, that Satan, and the other fallen spirits, are subject to the will and command of God, and although he and his fallen angels desire and love to injure and hurt man, Satan is described as bound with a chain, and he never dares to touch man unless God relaxes the reins ... which through observation in life ... God seems to do often."

As I have written many times before, I believe without a doubt, that ...

God, as the Creator of all things, upholds, directs, disposes, and governs ... all ... creatures, actions, and things, from the greatest event to the least, by His wise and holy providence, according to His infallible foreknowledge, and the free and immutable counsel of His own will, goodness, grace and mercy ... forever.

Many believers are quick to agree that they have no problem accepting the statement above as true concerning eternity and Heaven, but struggle with the thought of God operating life today in this manner.  So I ask ... if it's okay for eternity, why is it not okay now?

God governs the world, but ... the truth is ... we cannot always see the reasons of His conduct, nor know why He does one thing, omits another, or permits a third thing.  We will never know or understand the depths that are involved in the government of God; but even so ... according to Ephesians 1:11 ... "God works all things."

The affirmation here is not merely that God accomplishes the designs of His own will, but that He does everything.  Every spirit, person, object and event ... is under His control ... accordingly for His eternal plan.  God is the author of all things but sin; and works all these happenings according to His will, as He so chooses.

I will bring this to an end by saying ... if any of the fallen angels or evil demonic spirits can do anything in our physical realm, it is because God has given them permission to do so.  If God has a reason to allow a fallen spirit to move an object, slam a door shut, or torment and harass any human beings ... then I suppose it is possible that they just might be able to do that.  But I really don't believe my Maker and Keeper gives permission all that often.

John Wesley said ... "The Spirit World is dark unto us, but we lie open to it."

I hope this helps explain ... the unexplainable.

 

Comments welcome.