This is the third Sunday of Advent on the church calendar. It’s getting closer. For us who are parents and grandparents, we might have felt that way back in January, but for our little ones, they probably feel it will never get here. “Hark, the Herald angels sing...” Let’s get to it!

In fact, we do get our first liturgical introduction to an angel today. A surprising one, perhaps, but an angel nonetheless. His name is John. That’s right, the same John that we met in last week’s lesson who gained fame of sorts by baptizing folks in the Jordan River after calling on them to repent of their sins. The John we meet today is actually the same one as last week, but this time he is not identified with his preaching and baptizing; this time he is introduced simply as a messenger, a man sent from God to introduce “the light.” Jesus.

How is John an “angel?” Simple. The term “angel” is derived from the Greek word αγγελος — angelos, which means “messenger.” Angelos and the Hebrew equivalent, malak (which also means “messenger” [the book of Malachi = My Messenger]), are the two most common terms used to describe this class of beings. In general, in texts where an angel appears, their task is to convey the message or do something on behalf of God. Since the focus of the text is on the message, the messenger is rarely described in detail. Thus, the divine emissary may or may not be some sort of supernatural being. He or she might even be dressed in a camel’s hair tunic cinched with a wide leather belt.

To be sure, folks are fascinated by the whole idea of angels. Best seller lists regularly have popular titles about angels. Michael Landon starred for five years as an angel sent to earth to assist mortals in Highway to Heaven; CBS had a similar show which aired on Saturday nights called Touched by an Angel. There was that wonderful movie several years ago starring John Travolta called Michael, with our hero being about as unlike our normal image of an angel as possible — he was presented as paunchy, unshaven, slovenly, and sporting wings such as might have been grafted from a giant soot-smudged pigeon. But he was sweet — over and over he said, “There is no such thing as too much sugar.” Remember those?

You do not hear much preaching about angels despite the many biblical references to them. Some years ago, Billy Graham decided    to do a sermon on angels and realized that he had never heard one. It prompted him to, not only preach a sermon, but write an entire book on the subject: Angels, God’s Secret Agents.¹

Some years ago, when the internet was just coming into its own, I decided that the church I served should have a presence on the web to reach folks who otherwise might have no contact with us at all. It was relatively easy to put up a website, and so we launched one, the first congregation to do so in Greensboro, North Carolina. It had much the same type of information as any church website has today - location, service times, events, activities, and sermons... a new one every week. It attracted a lot of attention, was written up in the newspapers, and so on. No big deal these days, but back then, something on the cutting edge. I mention that because one of the first sermons I posted had to do with angels,² and, to this day, that sermon has attracted more email than any of the hundreds that are currently on my website. One of the notes came from a university student who was involved in a research project on angels and, in his web search, he had come across the sermon and was writing to comment on it. Oh yes, the student was in Indonesia. Amazing!

Another was from a lady, somewhere in the US, I have no idea where. She wrote:

My fifty-year-old mother died in July from cancer and complications from cancer. Needless to say, I have been very overwhelmed with emotions, one of which was my anger with God, and why he chose my mother at this particular stage of our lives, young and starting out, growing families, etc. I could not understand his reasoning, but had no choice to accept it, although I did not truly accept it in my heart. Just recently I had an angelic experience that has put all my anger to rest.

The writer went on to describe seeing a girl who appeared saying there was a ghost outside. She ran to see and what she perceived was   a shadowy image, three dimensional, of her mother who looked at her, smiled and waved, and gave a big thumbs up — something she always did. In that second, the dream was over. The email continued:

I called my pastor in the morning and he told me of people in the Bible with angelic experiences and said that if I believe in what happened, I can feel chosen to know I had a true gift from God. I will tell you this - my anger with God has subsided. I still wish I could have my mom with me here on earth, but knowing I can’t is ok with me. When I saw her, she was so much happier than I ever remembered her being. After the hardships my mom was dealt, it sure felt good seeing her so happy... I’ve heard of a few stories where people said they’ve experienced angels, but never really thought whether I believed them or not. I thought their stories were neat, but that was it. I hope you can read this with an open mind. I don’t know you, but I am sharing something with you that is so special  to me. Reading that you were a minister, made me feel better, but I still am a little leery. Your sermon was the closest thing I’ve found on the internet that related to my experience. So, I thought you must have some feelings or insight to such experiences. Please be honest, but gentle. I’ve been in tears most of the days since this happened, because I am elated that I got to see her again. Tears of joy to the whole experience. Thank you for your time.

I do have some feelings or insight as to such experiences. I agree with Shakespeare who we remember saying in Hamlet, “There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamed of in your philosophy.”(Hamlet, 1.5 159–167)

According to regular Gallup Polls, significant numbers of Americans who believe in God also believe in angels, and indications are that more women believe than men. That surprises me a little - after all, how many men describe their wives as angels? “My wife is an angel... always up in the air harping about something.” (Sorry about that; I couldn’t resist — grin.)

So saying, if there is such a thing as a universal idea, one that cuts across cultures and religions, common through the centuries, it is this belief in angels. Not only do Christians, Jews, and Muslims (the monotheistic religions) have angels, but Buddhism, Hinduism, Zoroastrianism do too; winged figures appear in primitive Sumerian carvings, Egyptian tombs and Assyrian reliefs. Angels litter the metaphysical landscape from ancient times to the present.

What does the Bible say about angels? They are not only messengers, they are presented as mediators between God and us, God’s heavenly entourage. Terms such as “sons of God,” “holy ones,” and “heavenly host” seem to focus on angels as celestial beings. As such, these variously worship God, attend God’s throne, or comprise God’s army. These terms are used typically in contexts emphasizing the grandeur, power, and/or mighty acts of God.

By the way,  those cute cuddly little cherubs on Christmas cards  do not reflect the Biblical image; after all, most every time someone encounters an angel in scripture, the first words out of the angel’s mouth are fear not. Who would be afraid of one of those chubby little munchkins?

So, where did the angels come from? The Bible does not say other than to affirm that since only God is eternal, angels must therefore be created beings. They are not ghosts or spirits of the dead. They do not spend time trying to `earn their wings’ like the sweetly ministering Clarence in the annual Christmas movie,  “It’s  a  Wonderful  Life.”  No place in Christian theology do we find any reference to humans becoming angels.

What do angels look like? In the Bible, the appearance of angels varies. Only cherubim and seraphim are represented with wings. Often in the Old Testament angels appear as ordinary men. Sometimes, however, their uniqueness is evident as they do things or appear in a fashion clearly non-human. The brilliant white appearance common to the New Testament angel is not a feature of the Old Testament image. So, yes, even a rough-looking wilderness preacher can fit the bill.

How about gender? Are there boy angels and girl angels? Some point to Jesus words in Mark 12:25 about there not being marriage as we understand it in heaven; instead we will, to use his words, “be like angels;” many have interpreted that as meaning that angels are sexless (which would mess John Travolta’s Michael up big time). But then there is that passage in Genesis 6:2 which says, “the sons of God (or ‘angels’) saw that the daughters of men were beautiful, and they married any of them they chose.” In other words, I would not bet the ranch on either position — the Bible is not clear here. And, by the way, just because the Bible is not clear, this fact has never hindered theologians from speculations — I will not go into them all here, but if you are interested, you can check that old sermon on our website for some of them.

One of the subjects with which that sermon dealt remains one of biggest questions people have regarding angels, specifically guardian angels — do we have them? Lots of folks believe so. The passage in Psalm 91 suggests yes: “For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.” There is Jesus’ comment in Matthew 18:10 (DLNT): “See that you do not look down on one of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven.”

In Billy Graham’s book is the story of the Reverend John G. Paton, pioneer missionary in the New Hebrides Islands. He told a thrilling tale of hostile natives surrounding his mission headquarters one night, intent on burning the Patons out and killing them. John Paton and his wife prayed all during that terror-filled night that God would deliver them. When daylight came they were amazed to see that, unaccountably, the attackers had left. Praise God from whom all blessings flow!

A year later, the chief of the tribe was converted to Jesus Christ, and Mr. Paton, remembering what had happened, asked the chief what had kept him and his men from burning down the house and killing them. The chief replied in surprise, “Who were all those men you had with you there?”

The missionary answered, “There were no men there; just my wife and I.” The chief argued that they had seen many men standing guard

• hundreds of big men in shining garments with drawn swords in their hands. They seemed to circle the mission station so that the natives were afraid to attack. God’s angels? The chief agreed that there was no other explanation. Do you have one?

I will say this: I do have a problem with some stories. In my files   I have one of a woman who says she was prevented from going into a certain building at a certain moment because she was held back by an unseen hand on her shoulder. She looked around but saw no one nearby. She tried again and was stopped again. Whirling around, she still saw no one.³ But then she heard a clear voice: “It would not be wise for you to go in there just now.” Hours later she learned that there was a woman murdered in the building, just after she would have entered. It could have been her — it probably would have been her, she thought. She got down on her knees and gave thanks. But the story raises a disturbing question: if she was actually saved by an angel, why did the other woman have to die? Where was her angel? Are angels partial to certain humans — does even God play favorites? I have never heard an answer that satisfies me. What do you think? In the comic strip “Family Circus,” Billy comes into the house all tattered and torn. He looks like he has been in a wreck, then a fight, then dragged for a mile or two by a team of runaway horses.

He asked, “Do guardian angels take days off?”⁴

The biggest hazard in all this fascination with angels is that it can take people’s focus off God, the God who created these ministering agents in the first place, the one who loves us and this whole world so much that God’s own son Jesus of Nazareth, the babe of Bethlehem who grew into the Christ of Calvary, came to redeem us. Angels are a sign of God’s interest in us, of God’s desire to point us in the right direction. In the Bible, God uses angels to guide people to begin new ventures, to protect themselves, to wait, to trust. Certainly, God used John to introduce us to Jesus. There is no reason to think that God has stopped guiding people that way. My advice is to keep your eyes open for angels of all kinds. Do not confine yourself to wings and halos. Just remember that, biblically, the word we translate as angel is just as correctly translated messenger. One messenger might be your conscience. “Ah, ah, ah.” “Watch it.” “Careful.” Listen for that inner voice that keeps you from straying from the right path. An angel.

A second might be found in your dreams. This has great biblical precedent — In the Old Testament, Abimelech, Jacob, Laban, Joseph, the Egyptian Pharaoh, Gideon, and Solomon. In the New Testament, Joseph, the wise men, and the wife of Pontius Pilate, to name a few. Analyze your dreams and their symbols (if you remember them), to see what is being said to you — an angel.

Third, look for angels in the people around you every day. Years ago, I was in the process of wrestling with God in discerning where it was my ministry would take me next. I was convinced it was a church in Kansas. One morning, as Christie and I were walking, she said to me, “I don’t know how you feel called to Kansas, but I feel called to North Carolina (where another church was asking me to serve). She had never said anything like that to me before — ever — an angel. And yes, we ended up in North Carolina.

Angels… A pastor went to visit a newly-married couple in his congregation. He knocked on the front door. A sweet voice from within called, “Is that you, angel?”

The minister replied, “No, but I’m from the same department.” Angels. No, we do not begin to have all the details available to us.

But if you are interested in angels, be glad - it is a sign of a healthy hunger for the answers to the great mysteries. Listen for God’s messengers and messages, even from a wild-looking character from out in the desert who is the last one we would ever imagine at this time of year when we raise our voices with “Hark, the herald angels sing.” Remember, “There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamed of...” Hamlet (1.5 167-168) Angels.

Amen!