“But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit.”
(1 Cor. 2:10, NKJV)
We are currently examining how the knowledge of the gospel of Christ increases and spreads, as part of the sixth kingdom of Christ that is being established on earth. We are specifically looking at Rev. 14:6: “Then I saw another angel flying in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach to those who dwell on the earth—to every nation, tribe, tongue, and people …”
We need to pay particular attention to the angel in the book of Revelation who in the first chapter, is called Jesus’s angel, and in the last chapter, where He speaks, is called “my angel”. Obviously this is a very specific angel or messenger, not an ordinary human messenger. It is important to realise that this angel, like everything else in the book of Revelation, is also a symbol.
If Jesus is called “the Angel of the Lord” 56 times in his pre-incarnation state in the Old Testament (for instance in Gen. 16:7; Num. 22:25), the Messenger who is also known as “the Angel of the Covenant” (Mal. 3:1), it is very easy to also see the Holy Spirit as a Messenger or Angel, as the Lord Jesus is ALSO a Spirit (2 Cor. 3:18).
The easiest and most clear explanation of this angel is to be found in Rev. 22:16: “I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things in the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the Bright and Morning Star.” Clearly the angel who is at issue here has a specific mission, namely to bring the revelation of the Christ to the churches. The necessary question that follows is obviously – Who sent Jesus to proclaim these things about/concerning Himself, the revelation of Jesus the Christ, to the world? The answer is simple, according to John 16:7 & 12-15: “Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you … I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come. He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you. All things that the Father has are Mine. Therefore I said that He will take of Mine and declare it to you.”
Shortly before this conversation, Jesus said the following in John 15:26: “But when the Helper comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify of Me.” This is placed in beautiful relief by 1 Pet. 1:12: “To them it was revealed that … which now have been reported to you through those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven—things which angels desire to look into.” Paul neatly summarises it in 1 Cor. 2:9-10 & 12: “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him. But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God … Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God.”
- Selah: Do you know who the special messenger of Jesus is?
- Read: Acts 13-15
- Memorise: Acts 15:8 (this is the answer to the question above)
