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This web page is archived for historical purposes and is no longer being updated. Newer data is available on the STD Data and Statistics page.
Organized collaboration among interested, committed public and private organizations and communities is the key to reducing STDs and their related health burdens. As noted in the report of the Institute of Medicine, The Hidden Epidemic: Confronting Sexually Transmitted Diseases1 surveillance is a key component of our efforts to prevent and control these diseases.
This overview summarizes national surveillance data on the three notifiable diseases for which there are federally-funded control programs: chlamydia, gonorrhea, and syphilis. Several observations for 2008 are worthy of note.
In 2008, 1,210,523 cases of sexually transmitted Chlamydia trachomatis infection were reported to CDC (Table 1). This is the largest number of cases ever reported to CDC for any condition. This case count corresponds to a rate of 401.3 cases per 100,000 population, an increase of 9.2% compared with the rate in 2007. Rates of reported chlamydial infections among women have been increasing annually since the late 1980s when public programs for screening and treatment of women were first established to avert pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) and related complications. In 2008, the chlamydia rate in black men was 12 times higher than that in white men; the chlamydia rate in black women was eight times higher than that in white women.
The continued increase in chlamydia case reports in 2008 most likely represents a continued increase in screening for this infection, more sensitive tests, and more complete national reporting but it may also reflect a true increase in morbidity.
In 2008, the overall rate of chlamydial infection in the United States among women (583.8 cases per 100,000 females) was almost three times the rate among men (211.1 cases per 100,000 males), reflecting the large number of women screened for this disease (Tables 4 and 5). However, with the increased availability of urine testing, men are increasingly being tested for chlamydial infection. From 2004 through 2008, the chlamydia rate in men increased by 45% (compared with a 21.5% increase in women over this period).
Data from multiple sources on prevalence of chlamydial infection in defined populations have been useful in monitoring disease burden and guiding chlamydia screening programs.
In 2008, the median state-specific chlamydia test positivity among women 15 to 24 years of age who were screened at selected family planning clinics in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands was 7.4% (range: 3.1% to 15.0%) (Figures 9 and 10).
At selected prenatal clinics in 22 states, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands the median state-specific chlamydia positivity was 7.9% (range: 1.8% to 19.2%) (Figure B).
The prevalence of infection is greater among economically-disadvantaged women 16 to 24 years of age who entered the National Job Training Program in 2008 from 39 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. The median state-specific prevalence was 12.8% (range: 5.4% to 20.8%) (Figure K). Among men entering the program in 2008 from 48 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico the median state-specific chlamydia prevalence was 7.0% (range: 0.8% to 14.4%) (Figure L).
Following a 74% decline in the rate of reported gonorrhea from 1975 to 1997, overall gonorrhea rates have plateaued over the past eleven years. In 2008, 336,742 cases of gonorrhea were reported in the United States, corresponding to a rate of 111.6 cases per 100,000 population, decreased from the rate in 2007 of 118.9 cases (Figure 13 and Table 1).
As in previous years, in 2008 the South had the highest gonorrhea rate among the four regions of the country (Table 13). Although the gonorrhea rate in the South declined for many years, it increased by 11% between 2005 and 2006 and has continued at that slightly elevated plateau through 2008. The rate in the West decreased slightly in 2007 and again in 2008 after a 29% increase between 2003 and 2006. While rates decreased in the Northeast and Midwest from 2007 to 2008, they have remained relatively stable over the past 10 years (Figure 15).
From 1996 to 2008 the rate of gonorrhea has been similar in men and women (Figure 14). In 2008 the gonorrhea rate in women was 119.4 per 100,000 population compared to a rate of 103.0 per 100,000 population in men (Figure 14). As with chlamydia, gonorrhea rates in women are highest in the 15 to 24 year age group. In men, they are highest in the 20 to 24 year age group (Figure 18). In 2008, the gonorrhea rate in black men was 28 times higher than that in white men; the gonorrhea rate in black women was 16 times higher than that in white women.
As with chlamydia in 2008, data on gonorrhea prevalence in defined populations were available from several sources. These data showed a continuing high burden of disease in adolescents and young adults in parts of the United States.
In 2008, the median state-specific gonorrhea test positivity among 15- to 24-year-old women screened in selected family planning clinics in 43 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands was 0.9% (range: 0.0% to 3.8%) (Figure 23). In 2008, the median state-specific gonorrhea test positivity among 15- to 24-year-old women screened in selected prenatal clinics in 20 states, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands was 1.0% (range: 0.0% to 5.0%) (Figure D).
For 16- to 24-year-old women entering the National Job Training Program in 37 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico in 2008, the median state-specific gonorrhea prevalence was 2.7% (range: 0.0% to 5.0%) (Figure M).
Among men entering the program from 34 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico, the median state-specific gonorrhea prevalence was 0.8% (range: 0.0% to 2.8%) (Figure N).
Among women entering juvenile corrections facilities the median gonorrhea positivity was 3.6% (range: 0.0% to 19.0%); the median gonorrhea positivity for men entering juvenile corrections facilities was 0.9% (range: 0.0% to 4.4%).
Among MSM, including men who have sex with both women and men, attending eight STD clinics, the median clinic urethral gonorrhea positivity was 8.0% (range: 4.0% to 12.0%).
The rate of primary and secondary (P&S) syphilis reported in the United States decreased during the 1990s and in 2000 was the lowest since reporting began in 1941. The low rate of syphilis and the concentration of the majority of syphilis cases in a small number of geographic areas led to the development of the National Plan to Eliminate Syphilis, which was announced by the Surgeon General in 1999 and updated in 2006.2 The rate of P&S syphilis in the United States declined 89.7% between 1990 and 2000. However, the rate of P&S syphilis has increased each year since 2001, mostly in men, but also in women for the past four years. In 2008, 13,500 cases of P&S syphilis were reported to CDC. This is the highest number of cases since 1995 and corresponds to a rate of 4.5 cases per 100,000 population, an 18% increase from 2007. Since 2004, the rate of P&S syphilis has increased 67%. After 14 years of decline, the rate of congenital syphilis increased in 2006 and 2007. There were 431 cases of congenital syphilis reported in 2008, the same number reported in 2007.
Although wide disparities exist in the rates of STDs among racial and ethnic groups, there has been a reduction in these differences for syphilis over the past ten years. The P&S syphilis rate for 2008 in blacks was eight times the rate in whites, which is substantially lower than the disparity observed in 1999, when the rate among blacks was 29 times greater than that among whites (Table 34B). However, since 2003, increases in syphilis among blacks have been higher than increases among whites, reversing some of the gains made in this health disparity. In 2008, increases were observed among both black men (28.0 cases per 100,000 population, up from 22.9 in 2007) and black women (7.6 cases per 100,000 population, up from 5.5 in 2007). Much smaller increases were observed among white men (4.0 cases per 100,000 population, up from 3.7 in 2007) and white women (0.5 per 100,000 population, up from 0.4 per 100,000 in 2007).
While syphilis elimination efforts2 initially focused on minority populations in general, increases in syphilis among MSM of all races and ethnicities since 2001 and more recent increases among women and blacks highlight the importance of continually reassessing and refining surveillance, prevention, and control strategies.
1 Institute of Medicine. The Hidden Epidemic: Confronting Sexually Transmitted Diseases, Committee on Prevention and Control of Sexually Transmitted Diseases, National Academy Press, Washington, DC, 1997.
2 Division of STD Prevention. The National Plan to Eliminate Syphilis from the United States. National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2006.
- Page last reviewed: November 16, 2009 (archived document)
- Content source:


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Jedi Insider has some nice (larger) shots of these figures up now.
"I'm ready to slap someone for giving him a removable helmet..."Well then, slap many of the people on these furums who asked and asked and asked for removable helmets. Hasbro's only doing it because collectors wanted it.
I hate the removable helmets on ROTS clones, because Hasbro hasn't done as good with them... I know some people want them, but so far they've done a poor job on the ROTS removable helmets.
I wonder if that Kashyyyk Elite helmet is removable.
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Wednesday, December 21, 2011
Diverse Coalition of Environmental, Business, Public Health, and Labor Leaders Call on Federal and State Agencies to Bring Clean Energy Ashore
Melville, NY – A broad coalition of New York's environmental, business, and labor organizations today called on state and federal leaders to move forward with offshore wind development. New York has substantial offshore wind resources and there are currently several proposals to develop job-producing clean energy off the coast of Long Island.
The Wind Works 4 Long Island Coalition set a single, clear message: It is time to get moving and generate much-needed clean energy for New York from offshore wind.
"The diversity of this coalition demonstrates broad and unprecedented support for harvesting the region's abundant offshore wind resource," said Gordian Raacke, Executive Director of Renewable Energy Long Island, a regional not-for-profit organization. "As environmental, business, public health, and labor groups we know that offshore wind power means cleaner air, a stronger economy, and more jobs."
"In 2012, LIPA and Governor Cuomo will make significant energy decisions for Long Island that will impact us for decades to come. Offshore wind needs to be advanced and embraced as part of our energy mix in order to lead us away from the hazards of fossil fuels. Our new coalition is here to let Albany and LIPA know that we need their leadership to achieve the essential goals of cleaner air, energy independence and cost control," said Adrienne Esposito, Executive Director at Citizens Campaign for the Environment.
"Our energy challenges present economic development opportunities for Long Island. Renewable energy projects like offshore wind initiatives can help our environment and our economy. Long Island has the potential to be the clean energy capital of the east coast and we are supportive of the wind and solar industries as we think it will create jobs for Long Islanders," said Kevin S. Law, President & Chief Executive Officer of the Long Island Association.
"We must continue with a common goal to push the boundaries toward a renewable energy future," said Action Long Island Chairman Sheldon R. Sackstein. "It is essential to recognize that we are here today writing the energy history of Long Island, being called upon by the future to take action now. This must be our legacy."
"Wind energy and other renewable energy sources can create hundreds of thousands of new American jobs," said Roger Clayman, Executive Director of Long Island Federation of Labor, AFL-CIO. "Clean energy plays a vital role in our economic recovery."
"Expanding the use of renewable energy sources such as offshore wind power will not only conserve energy, it will reduce pollution and improve the quality of air we all breathe," said Michael Seilback, VP of Public Policy and Communications at the American Lung Association in New York. "New Yorkers, including the 2.5 million who suffer from lung disease, deserve the clean air benefits that wind power provides."
"With progress on clean energy short-circuited in Washington, New York has an unprecedented opportunity to lead the nation," said Marcia Bystryn, President of the New York League of Conservation Voters. "Offshore wind energy will not only help clean the air, it will create 21st century jobs that are desperately needed on Long Island and around New York State. We urge Governor Cuomo, Senate Majority Leader Skelos, Speaker Silver and LIPA to get behind this and other clean energy advancements."
"By failing to capture the power of offshore wind, we're ignoring pollution-free power for nearly four million New York homes," said Ross Gould, Air & Energy Program Director for Environmental Advocates of New York. "So while New Yorkers are debating the dangers of industrial gas drilling and fracking, we should be harnessing a true clean energy source--offshore wind."
"Governor Cuomo has a golden opportunity to lead the nation in the pursuit of local, job-producing clean energy from offshore wind," said Catherine Bowes, Senior Policy Representative at National Wildlife Federation. "On behalf of our over two hundred thousand members and supporters in New York, National Wildlife Federation calls on our state and federal leaders to rapidly move offshore wind energy development forward in order to protect future generations of people and wildlife from the harmful pollution resulting from our reliance on fossil fuels."
"Offshore wind can help New York meet its renewable energy goals while creating new green collar jobs and sustainable economic growth," said Carol E. Murphy, Executive Director of the Alliance for Clean Energy New York. "The level of economic impact that offshore wind has to offer far exceeds that of conventional generation, and when combined with the environmental benefits of having an emissions-free resource that is immune to the volatility of fossil fuel prices, offshore wind is easily one of the best options for meeting Long Island and New York City's growing energy needs. We encourage our leaders and policy makers to keep the momentum going and ensure the successful development of Long Island's proposed offshore wind projects."
"Long Island and New York State are blessed with an abundant offshore wind resource which presents a unique opportunity to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels while reducing our carbon footprint," said Robert Catell, Chairman of the Advanced Energy Research and Technology Center at Stony Brook University. "We must increase the amount of renewable energy in Long Island's energy mix and environmentally acceptable and competitively priced offshore wind projects should be seriously considered."
"By harnessing the wind blowing off our shores, not only can we power New York with clean energy, we can create much-needed jobs and attract new industry to the state," said Brandi Colander at Natural Resources Defense Council. "With enormous potential for offshore wind power in New York, we can develop a sustainable source of domestic energy here at home, while capturing the enormous economic and environmental benefits that come with it."
"Offshore wind has the potential to reduce New York's reliance on dirty fossil fuels, improve our air quality and our health, and provide thousands of local jobs," said Vanessa Pierce, Director of the Eastern Region for the Sierra Club's Beyond Coal Campaign. "By being the first state to develop offshore wind in the Atlantic, New York can lead the way to a cleaner energy future."
"For the first year ever, more global investment capital went toward renewable energy than fossil fuels. Offshore wind is an exciting, technologically-available form of renewable energy that can rapidly contribute to fulfilling our energy needs and creating a cleaner environment, while keeping billions of energy dollars in Long Island's economy, where they belong." Bob DiBenedetto, President/Executive Director of HealthyPlanet.
"The HIA-LI applauds the offshore wind coalition for this much needed effort toward a renewable energy future," said Terri Alessi – Miceli, President, Hauppauge Industrial Association (HIA-LI). "We understand that offshore wind power helps create a more efficient economy."
The WindWorks 4 Long Island coalition includes the following members, and more information is available at www.windworks4LI.org
Citizens Campaign for the Environment (CCE) empowers communities and advocates solutions for our shared environment and public health and is supported by over 80,000 members throughout New York State and Connecticut. www.citizenscampaign.org
updated by tbono 12/21/11


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Browse: Home / Our week in Pics (week 86) (Oct. 26- Nov. 1st) / 578397_10152000650777008_881950995_n
About the Author
Amanda Acuña an influential Mom Blogger. She created MommyMandy as an online resource to the parenting community. She is married to her high school sweetheart and has three daughters, ages 15,12, 6 and a son who is 2. They currently reside in Texas.


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The following commentary does not necessarily reflect the views of AgWeb or Farm Journal Media. The opinions expressed below are the author's own.
As a farm machinery mechanic and writer, Dan brings a hands-on approach that only a pro can muster. Along with his In the Shop blog, Dan writes a column by the same name as well as the Shop Series for Farm Journal magazine. Always providing practical information, he is a master at tackling technical topics and making them easy for all of our readers to understand. He and his wife, Becky, live near Bouton, Iowa.
Remember last spring when the shear pin on the (driveshaft, drillshaft, marker arm) on your planter broke and you ended up temporarily fixing it with a rusty 16-penny nail or 3/8-inch bolt you found in the bottom of the tractor's toolbox? Be honest---that nail or bolt is still in place, isn't it? Even if you take time before planting to replace it, it's not a bad idea to carry one or two spares in the tractor.
In fact, it's a good idea to spend a few minutes walking around the planter to make a list of the various shear bolts, roll pins, shear pins and other wear items that always seem to break just as a thunderstorm is rumbling over the horizon. Every planter has its unique drive system that uses specific-sized pins, bolts or cotter keys to connect various driveshafts or couplers. Be sure to get the right size and hardness for each location. It's also a good idea to add a few roller chain connectors and half-links that will fit various chains on the planter. Considering how cheap a seed meter drive chain is, it's not a bad idea to carry a complete spare--you can rob connectors or half-links as necessary from the complete chain.
While you're stocking up on spare parts, identify any tools that would make replacing those parts easier. Roll pins or shear bolts tend to break off inside driveshaft couplers---it's really handy to have the right size roll pin punch or pin driver when you try to drive the remnants from the coupler. It's useful to have a Crescent-type wrench to turn hex driveshafts, a hefty hammer for aligning things, and a screwdriver that fits the hose clamps holding seed delivery or vacuum hoses.
Think back to last year when you had a minor breakdown with the planter that took way longer to repair than it should have, because you didn't have the correct replacement parts or tools to do the job quickly and easily. With a little planning those repairs will be fast and easy when they occur this spring. And you know they will.
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Glastonbury Festival 2013 Warm Up
Glastonbury Festival 2013 Warm Up
For now we can only speculate and frankly we're more worried about packing the geargoggles than a cagoule. Here's our pick of the one's to watch at Glasto 2013.
Best Of BritishIt's not every year that so many of the top slots go to British artists and it's great to see the Arctic Monkeys, Stones, Mumfords, Elvis Costello, Jake Bugg and Dizzee Rascal representing many eras and genres of music. Notable absences are Emeli Sande. Coldplay and Adele but you can't have it all. Our pick from the Pyramid stage though would be Californians Haim, they've had a great year so far and there's nothing quite like the live energy of a band who are well and truly on their way.
Alternative RosterOver on the other side there's some established UK heavyweights in the form of Portishead, Foals, Alt-J, The Horrors and Django Django. But if you're a true 6 Music listening, turn-up sporting, blog reading fan then you'll be hip to them already no doubt. Fortunately there's plenty of up and comers in the form of Jagwar Ma, Deap Vally, Matthew E. White and Liverpool's own Stealing Sheep.
Big guns coming from outside the UK include Major Lazer, Cat Power, Tom Tom Club, Dinosaur Jr. and Nas, surely enough to make the most hardened hipster consider listening to a band that has a back catalogue consisting of more than a single track on a private Soundcloud URL.
Acoustically Inclined
It isn't all fireworks, Marshall Stacks and bass bins however with tons of great acoustic acts playing. Whether you're a more relaxed soul or just need a break from binging on harder acts the Acoustic Stage has Steve Winwood, KT Tunstall and Stornoway, we would also recommend Calexico for something a little different. Just don't expect the hangover to improve when the Proclaimers are on, acoustic doesn't go far enough, unamplified altogether might be better.
The Celtic might of the Proclaimers
Jon Rauhouse Of Calexico Banjoing
Find our guides to the gear of the artists at Glasto in the links below.
Pyramid stageArctic Monkeys; the Rolling Stones; Mumford & Sons; Dizzee Rascal; Primal Scream; Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds; Vampire Weekend; Elvis Costello; the Vaccines; Kenny Rogers; Ben Howard; Rita Ora; Rufus Wainwright; Jake Bugg; Professor Green; Laura Mvula; Billy Bragg; Rokia Traoré; First Aid Kit; Haim;
Other StagePortishead; Chase & Status; The xx; Foals; Example; The Smashing Pumpkins; Alt-J; Two Door Cinema Club; PiL; Tame Impala; Alabama Shakes; Editors; Azealia Banks; Of Monsters and Men; the Lumineers; Enter Shikari; I Am Kloot; The Hives; Amanda Palmer
West Holts stageChic ft Nile Rogers; Public Enemy; The Weeknd; Seasick Steve; Major Lazer; Tom Tom Club; Maverick Sabre; Lianne La Havas; Toro Y Moi; Ondatrópica; Sérgio Mendes; Dub Colossus; the Orb & Indigenous People; The Child of Lov; Alice Russell; Goat; Badbadnotgood; The Bombay Royale; Matthew E. White; Riot Jazz
The Park stageCat Power; The Horrors; Fuck Buttons; Django Django; Rodriguez; Dinosaur Jr; Calexico; Steve Mason; Palma Violets; Devendra Banhart; Michael Kiwanuka; Solange; King Krule; Stealing Sheep; Tim Burgess; Melody's Echo Chamber; Ed Harcourt; Half Moon Run; Josephine; Teleman
John Peel stageCrystal Castles; Hurts; Phoenix; Bastille; Everything Everything; James Blake; Johnny Marr; The Courteeners; Jessie Ware; Tyler, The Creator; Frightened Rabbit; Miles Kane; Local Natives; The Strypes; Savages; Tom Odell; Peace; Daughter; Villagers; Toy; Jagwar Ma; Deap Vally
Silver HayesNas; Hot Natured; Disclosure; Rudimental; The Family Stone; Skream & Benga; Sub Focus; Charles Bradley; SBTRKT; Netsky; Dogblood; The Congos; The 2 Bears; Aluna George; Julio Bashmore; Wiley; TEED; Gold Panda; David Rodigan
Acoustic StageSteve Winwood; Sinead O'Connor; Lucinda Williams; Glen Hansard; Bill Wyman's Rhythm Kings; The Bootleg Beatles; Gabrielle Aplin; The Proclaimers; Martha Wainwright; Seth Lakemna; KT Tunstall; Zac Brown Band; Gretchen Peters
Avalon stageBen Caplan; Beverley Knight; Crowns; Evan Dando; Gary Clark Jr.; JJ Grey & Mofro; Josh Doyle; Lucy Rose; Mad Dog Mcrea; Molotov Jukebox; Newton Faulkner; Oysterband; Penguin Café; Shooglenifty; Stornoway; The Destroyers; The Staves; The Urban Voodoo Machine; Vintage Trouble; Xavier Rudd
Spirit of 71Robyn Hitchcock and the Venus 3; Slim Chance; Simian Mobile Disco; Terakaft; System 7 vs Eat Static; Don Letts; DJ James Monro; Gypsy Hill; Electric Swing Circus; DJ Tristan; Mixhell
Plus Arcadia; The Common; Croissant-Neuf; The Field of Avalon; Green Fields; Green Futures; Greenpeace; The Healing Field; Kidzfield; Leftfield; The Pilton Palais; Shangri-La: The Afterlife; Strummerville; The Unfairground
Introducing: The Arctic Dome; Blues; Genosys; Glasto Latino; The Glastonbury Free Press; Gully; Sonic; The Summerhouse; William's Green


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By On Feb 01, 2018 Kids Coloring
If an aspect of a project is frustrating to the child, provide assistance - try to keep things fun. Sing songs, read stories or watch shows with a similar theme as the worksheet you choose to supplement the project - again focusing on extra activities that the child enjoys to help keep them motivated.
We are in mid-September and my five-year-old has started kindergarten. So far I have felt as though I am shouting in the wilderness when mentioning the thought of slowing things down. We have a girl who wakes up a 3 AM, thinking about school and all that can go wrong. There are new pressures for all of us, but, looking around, I don't think we are in this wilderness alone.
This month our family goal has been to cut back on worry, but it's not easy. As new school groups form and back-to-school sign ups start piling up, so do the expectations and concerns. Are we teaching our kids by modeling that more stress equals success? How do we slow down and get off the merry-go-round? No sooner did I ask this than a package arrived from Colorit, the makers of adult coloring books. Excited to start creating, I made a coffee date with a friend who has been there through play dates and preschool day. Finally, our long-awaited moment had come. We get to actually sit and just catch up.
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Tonight, we're going to begin a series called "The Invisible Army," talking about angels. And I really don't have to go too far tonight because we can just whack it off. This message is one of those that's like link sausage, you know; you can whack it off anywhere and get the whole thing. So, it just comes in whatever segments it needs to come in, because basically it's theological, and we'll be dealing with theological subject matter. And so tonight, we're going to just begin to get into the message on angels, and we'll be dealing with particularly, the godly, good, holy, elect angels, as they're called in Scripture, as opposed to the fallen evil angels known commonly as demons. We've already covered them many times, and recently in our study of Jude, you'll remember, we got very deeply involved in an understanding of the organization and something of the nature of fallen angels. And so, we want to look, at least giving equal time, to the holy angels in this study.
Camille Flammarion said this, and this might help you to get an idea of what endless space means: "Then I understand that all the stars which have ever been observed in the sky, the millions of luminous bodies, suns of every magnitude and of every degree of brightness, solar systems, planets and satellites, which by millions and hundreds of millions succeed each other in the void around us, that whatever human tongues have designated by the name of the universe, do not in the infinite represent more than an island, not more than a city, in grand total of population. In this city of the limitless empire, our sun and its system represents one house; a single house among millions of inhabitants. The earth is a room in that solar house," end quote.
It's a staggering thing to realize the vastness of space. Frequently I'm asked, "Do you believe that beings exist in other places than the earth?" And my answer is always, "Yes, of course they do. The universe has a trafficking of beings, all through it." The next question that usually comes is, "Oh, you believe in UFO's." "Yes, I believe in unidentified flying objects – not swirling around like sort of glorified Frisbees. I believe that the Bible says that there are beings occupying the universe, literally millions of them, filling the void around us. Their number is uncounted, and they live in the heavenly sphere; they are amazing beings. And since the creation of man, they have mingled in human affairs."
For example, in Hebrews 13, verse 2, it says: "Don't forget to entertain strangers, because in this manner some have entertained angels without knowing it." One of the most unique men who ever lived, and a man whose biography I was rereading again this week because it touches my heart every time I read it, is John Paton, a missionary to the New Hebrides. He tells a story about some angelic care that he received in his lifetime. He said that one night wild natives surrounded his house, frantically dancing and jumping up and down in the jungle, desiring to kill John and his wife. Well, they got on their knees, realizing there was no way they could protect themselves against these wild cannibals, and they prayed. Soon after that the attackers all vanished into the jungle; they were gone. According to Paton's biographer, a year later the chief of the tribe became a Christian, and John asked him at that time, "What happened that night about a year ago when your natives surrounded our little lean-to there on the sand and near the beach, and all of a sudden they left?" And this is what the chief said. "Well, because of all those men you had with you, we left." John said, "There were no men, just myself and my wife." The chief said that they had seen men standing guard, hundreds of big men in shining clothes, with swords in their hands, totally circling his home. Did God dispatch a legion of angels to protect His servant? It wouldn't be the first time.
Second Kings, chapter 6, tells us a very interesting thing – 2 Kings 6:15: "And when the servant of the man of God was risen early" – Elisha here is in a lot of trouble. "The servant of the man of God" – the man of God is Elisha. His servant rises early, is gone forth, "Behold, an host compassed the city, both with horses and chariots." Now, here's a great army moving in. "And his servant said unto him, 'Alas, my master, what do we do? We're being besieged.' And he answered, 'Fear not, for they who are with us are more than they who are with them.'" We have more on our side than their army has. You can imagine the response of the servant: "We do?" "And Elisha prayed and said, 'Lord'" – I like this – "'Lord, I pray, open his eyes that he may see.' And the Lord opened the eyes of the young man and he saw." You know what he saw? "Behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire around about Elisha." Now that's the invisible army, folks.
During World War II, the famous story of Captain Eddie Rickenbacker, who was shot down in the Pacific Ocean, is recounted, and he himself was telling this to Billy Graham. For weeks he was lost, and you remember the story of his drifting in the ocean. Finally, when he returned, rescued from the drifting, this was his story. Quote: "And this part I would hesitate to tell except that there were six witnesses who saw it with me. A gull, a sea gull, came out of nowhere and lighted on my head in the middle of the Pacific. I reached up my hand very gently, took him, killed him. We divided him equally among us; we ate every bit, nothing ever tasted so good. I have no explanation, except that God sent one of His angels to rescue us."
Have you ever read the startling story of the White Cavalry at Bethune, France in April of 1918? Gwynn Day records it in his book The Wonder of the Word, Moody press, l957. This is what he says: "The story of the White Cavalry at Bethune is attested by thousands of Germans, and related in the words of a Prussian officer, goes like this," and I quote: "We were advancing at the head of our troops, all of whom were in excellent spirits, singing as they swung along, thinking that the British were now defeated and all that remained was to go forward without opposition and capture Paris. By my side was Lieutenant Fritz, and he suddenly seized hold of my arm, saying, 'Look, Herr Capitan, there is a large body of mounted men approaching Bethune from the other side. Why, they are clad in white and are mounted on white horses. Who can they be?' 'I don't know,' I replied. 'They may be British colonial mounted troops.' We halted instinctively and stood watching those white uniform-clad cavalry advancing quietly through the smoke, their figures clearly outlined in the shining sun.
"We saw the shells breaking into death-dealing fragments and bursting amidst their ranks with shattering crashes which shook the ground, and this was soon followed by intensive machine gun fire which raked them to and fro until it would seem impossible for anyone to survive. But the White Cavalry came quietly forward at a slow trot, and not a man nor a horse fell. Resistless as the incoming tide they advanced, and in front of them rode their leader, a fine figure of a man. By his side was a great sword, not a cavalry sword but similar to that used by the Crusaders. And his hand lay quietly holding the reigns of his great white charger, as it bore proudly forward. Then a terror seized me, and I found myself fleeing from that awe- inspiring body of White Cavalry, frightened, terrified. All around me were masses of men, formerly an army, now a rabble, broken and afraid, all fleeing from them, but more especially from that wonderful leader on his great white charger. The Oerman army is defeated, we have lost the war, and it is due to the White Cavalry."
You say, "What is that?" Maybe Psalm 34:7 explains it: "The angel of the Lord encamps round about them that fear Him and delivers them." You know what some people believed about that story? They believed that God had answered the prayers of the British people and delivered England. Had He answered prayer by sending His invisible army, and given those people at least the glimpse of His hosts? Very possible. You see, the universe is occupied by these creatures, and though usually the natural human vision cannot perceive them, they mingle in the earth all around us.
You know what is fascinating, though, when you begin to talk about holy angels, people are more skeptical than they are when you begin to talk about demons. In a dimension that we can't comprehend, they're there. Einstein said, "It is very possible that in a different dimension right now, a railroad train is coming right through the middle of this room, only we can't perceive it because it's in an entirely different dimension." This room is loaded with angels; they're all around the place, and there's probably a few demons milling around in here. And just because we can't see them doesn't mean they aren't there. They exist in a dimension that we cannot perceive, but they're there. Milton said – John Milton said, not Milton Berle – John Milton said – to make sure you understand the source: "Millions of spiritual creatures walk the earth unseen." Millions. When the natural vision of that young man in 2 Kings6 was transformed, he saw the invisible army, didn't he? He saw them.
Now, in spite of their reality – and there's no question about their reality – in spite of their reality, the fact is that there are millions of them, and yet people, for the most part, have ignored the holy angels. You know, perfection and righteousness isn't very interesting. We really get a lot more interested in demons than holy angels, and maybe that's one reason why we ought to study this a little bit. We have a fascination with demons, and I think the reason why, we're just kind of like everything else in the church, so much of it is riding the coattails of whatever happens to be going on in the world. And the world started an occult movement, so we jumped on the bandwagon and got concerned about demons. But did you know there are 278 references in Scripture to angels?
Now, how many times does God have to say something to make it true? Only once. If He had 273 different references to angels, I would say that that's too many to ignore, wouldn't you? Two hundred and seventy-three! You say, "Well, then why have the holy angels been ignored?" If I were to ask most Christians that I meet, "Tell me a little bit about angels," "Well, let's see, they have wings, and they wear white, and they fly around" – 273 references and we don't know much about them? You say, "Why not?" I tried to do a little thinking on this, and reading back into a little history, and checking back in my old church history books, and just kind of getting an idea of what went on in the church that would make us forget about them, and I came up with some interesting things. Let me offer you some of the reasons why I think we have ignored the study of holy angels.
Number one: as a reaction against past speculation. In the early years of developing theology, there was a whole lot of speculative theology. You know, they were arguing about really stupid little piddly things and fanciful, whimsical aspects of theology, and a whole lot of argument surrounded angels. And in the early debates of theology, they use to debate about the angels. They would debate about how many could stand at the same time on the point of a needle, or whether an angel could be two places at once, and if he couldn't, how fast were they? How long was it between their creation and fall? And Rosetti said in Dante that they fell twenty seconds after they were created. I don't know how he knew that, but that's what he said.
They argued about whether the sin of the first angel caused the sin of the rest, or whether they all sinned together. They argued about how many of them fell, and that seems to be somewhat clear from Revelation l2. They argued about whether our atmosphere is the place where the angels are now being punished. They argued about guardian angels, and whether or not you got your guardian angel when you were baptized, when you were born, or when you were conceived. And all of this dialogue, and all of this speculation, caused a reverse reaction, and true biblical scholars gave a cold shoulder to the study of angels, you see? Because they were reacting against this foolishness; and so it just kind of got shelved, and responsible scholars just walked away from it.
A second reason that the study of holy angels has suffered, in recent centuries even, is because of the early veneration of angels by the Roman Catholic Church, and Protestantism reacted against that. Did you know that along with worshiping God, and worshiping Christ, that the Catholic Church promotes the worship of saints? Veneration and worship mean the same thing. But did you know, also, that the Catholic Church has always promoted the worship since the fourth century, the worship of angels? And this has caused a reaction. For example, Ott says, Ludwig Ott, in his – it's really a text book on Catholic theology – he is a Catholic, and he writes it for Catholic people – he says: "The worship of angels by men is justified." He says, "The decision in the Council of Trent which teaches us to invoke and worship saints, also may be applied to angels." So they worshiped angels, and the number one angel they worship was Michael. In fact, did you know that in the Catholic calendar, there is an event called Michaelmas? And Michaelmas occurs on September 29. There were two churches, famous and large churches, built to glorify and honor Michael. One was built by Constantine just a few miles outside of Constantinople, or Istanbul, and the other one was built in Rome.
Now, do you know that prior to the fourth century, when the Roman Church introduced angel worship, there was angel worship, but it was a heresy? In Colossians 2:18 – and we're going to get into Colossians as soon as we're done with this series as a lead in – in Colossians 2:18, Paul warns them against worshiping angels. That's precisely what happened. Well, as a reaction against the worship of angels, the Protestant church sort of just didn't want to get involved in that whole thing, and there was sort of a reaction, a reversion to that.
There's a third reason that I think that the study of angels has suffered – and this is a little more history for you – and that I call a reaction to paganism – a reaction to speculation, a reaction to Romanism, and a reaction to paganism. Do you know that in nearly every – and I'm not sure I know of any system of religion at all that wouldn't fit into this – in all systems of religion that I know about, and all the ones that I could study about historically, such beings as angels were believed in. Do you know that in the Orient, the Chinese, you know, they have the pointed roofs, the pagoda roofs, you know why? So that when the demons slide down, it will poke them on the seat and they won't come back anymore. They believe in spirit beings. That's right. They believe in spirit beings. And you see some other strange configurations on roofs, and that's to make sure that demons have a hard time getting a footing.
The Gnostics, for example, believed in aeons, demons, demigods. There were such things as genies, right, in various kinds of religions; sub-gods, angels. Heathen philosophers talked about spiritual beings. Socrates, for example, referred to a good demon. He called him a good demon, who took care of him. And so, paganism was just loaded with the worship of all different multiple spirits and sub-gods and semi-gods and demigods and et cetera, et cetera. And with all of this confusion, the church sort of retreated and concentrated, guess on whom? On Christ; and sort of let that whole area alone because it was so confusing when it was mixed with paganism.
A fourth cause, I think, of the neglect of the study of angels is the age of rationalism and science. You know, once the world got into what is known as the industrial revolution, and everything kind of took a turn toward science, and everything kind of got rationalistic in the eighteenth century, and the mind of man became ultimate, to accept the fact that there were floating spirits everywhere just wasn't reasonable, and so it just was put out. And the age of rationalism just didn't allow for that. And it's only since the age of rationalism has ended and we're now into the age of what? Existentialism, or experience, that people have begun to allow demons back into their consciousness, or to their understanding, and angels are going to come along with them.
And I think a fifth thing, in a very modern sense, has diverted the attention of Christian people from studying angels, holy angels, and that is the occult movement that has preoccupied us with demons. Now, that's just a little background to give you an idea of why I feel that there has been an ignoring of the holy angels. And there's very little written on it. I notice that Billy Graham has a new book on the subject. And this is the first in a long time; you have to go way back to find much about angels. You can go way back into years and years ago, and find Gaebelein's old book on The Angels of God, and a few little things in systematic theologies, but there isn't very much. So I think we ought to study angels. Two hundred and seventy-three times God refers to them; that's worthy of our attention, wouldn't you think? And by the time we're done with this study, you're going to have a total sensitivity to an entire universe full of new creatures that you have never really understood before, but with whom you will spend your whole eternity. So you might as well get to know them. You're going to be mingling around with them forever. No sense in going up there and saying, "Who are you?" They were there before you came anyway. Now, you say, "What is the benefit of such a study?" Well, I think the benefit of it is going to come from many, many angles.
Number one: it's going to show you a new view of God's creative power. It's going to show you a new view of God's tremendous sovereign control over the world and the universe. It's going to increase your appreciation of God when you see what He has created in this angelic host, and when you begin to see how they work, you're going to get a whole new vision of what God is like.
Secondly, I think you're going to be thrilled to find out that all of those angels that are holy angels, God has dispatched, not only to serve Him, but in serving Him to serve you and me, and that angels are busy attending on us. That's exciting. That's probably the most thrilling thing, and I think that's what we're going to get to next week, or the week after, I'm not sure yet. So it's going to be helpful.
Now, the third thing that I think is meaningful about this study is that it's going to force us to study the Scripture, and that's good, right? Because the only thing we know about them is in the Bible. Now, obviously we can't study all 273 references, so we're going to have to pick and choose a little bit, but it's going to drive us into the Word of God.
In his book, Angels: God's Secret Agents, Billy Graham says this – it's a helpful statement. "I am convinced that these heavenly beings exist, and that they provide unseen aid on our behalf. I do not believe in angels because someone has told me about a dramatic visitation from an angel, impressive as such rare testimonies may be. I do not believe in angels because UFOs are astonishingly angel-like in some of their reported appearances. I do not believe in angels because ESP experts are making the realm of the spirit world seem more and more plausible. I do not believe in angels because of the sudden world-wide emphasis on the reality of Satan and demons. I do not believe in angels because I have ever seen one, because I haven't. I believe in angels because the Bible says there are angels, and I believe the Bible to be the true Word of God."
That's a helpful statement, isn't it? And that pulls it right down to where it belongs. We believe in them because the Bible mentions them 273 times. And when our study is complete, I really feel you're going to have a clear, meaningful knowledge of these wondrous, powerful, holy, beautiful creatures, who serve God and serve us. Now, I want us to look basically at three things. And don't worry about writing this down because it's – it's not that critical, just to keep it in mind as we go. We're going to find out who they are, what they are, and how we're to respond to them. Who they are, what they are, and how we're to respond.
Let's look, first of all, at who they are, and point one, the existence of angels. And we'll just go a little ways into this and then we'll pick it up next time – the existence of angels. Now, there have always been people who didn't believe in angels. You say, "Even in biblical times?" Yes. "You mean even people who knew the Old Testament?" Yes. There were some leaders in Israel who didn't believe in angels. Listen to Acts 23:8, I'm just going to read it to you, listen: "For the Sadducees say that there is no resurrection," that's why they were so sad, you see? "There is no resurrection" – I thought that was pretty good. It took me about three days to come up with that.
Okay, "the Sadducees" – you'll never forget it, I'll promise you that. "They say there is no resurrection, neither angel nor spirit." Now here were the rationalists, here were the materialists who denied angels. Were they right? No. They were dead wrong. You say, "How could they be Jewish? I mean how could they" – well, they were Jewish liberals. They didn't accept the resurrection, and the Old Testament taught that, even from the oldest book in the Old Testament. Job said: "Yet though worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God, whom I shall see for myself and not another, though the rains be consumed within me." And so he had a knowledge of resurrection. They were dead wrong. There is far too much evidence in the Word of God to say there aren't any angels. There are angels.
In fact, the Old Testament presents angels as personal beings, who are the messengers and the ministers of God. You read the Old Testament – and I've been reading it in connection with our reading for this year – and woven all through the narrative of the Old Testament, angels are everywhere. They're everyplace. If you were to just take all of the angels out of the Old Testament, you would have a mess. You would have inexplicable events. You would have gaping holes in the narrative. You would have events that had no possible way of occurring. You would have problems without solutions if you removed angels. They're too busy in the Old Testament. They're everywhere. And you know what? You'd put God in the same boat with everybody else, God would be having hallucinations like everybody else who thought they saw angels. Cause if there aren't any angels who was God sending all the time?
What about the New Testament? If you look into the New Testament, you'd have to reject the New Testament totally. Who would announce the birth of Christ? Who told the shepherds where to go? Who was it that came to Jesus at His temptation after He had fasted for forty days and ministered unto Him, if the angels didn't? Who came to the grave and announced the resurrection? Who is going to come to gather the elect from the four corners of the world? Who is it that freed Peter and John? I mean how could they walk out of a jail with the locks on, the door shut, the guard still there and them gone? Angels did it. Marvelous interventions by supernatural beings would be reduced to lies in the New Testament. There would be no spiritual warfare in the Christian life, because there wouldn't be any angels, there wouldn't be any demons, there wouldn't be any demons, there wouldn't be any Satan – whoopee. What are we doing? We're just concentrating on something that isn't there. Christ would have only imagined His conflict with Satan, then He too was deluded. And try the book of Revelation without angels. All you have is the chapter headings. They're everywhere. From the beginning of the Bible to the end of the Bible – there are angels everywhere.
I really feel that the greatest single testimony to the existence of angels is the testimony of Jesus Christ. Do you know that? Because I believe what He says. And Jesus in His own teaching talked about angels. In Matthew 22 He said: "They're like the angels in heaven." He was talking about angels. In Matthew 24 He talked about angels. In Matthew 26 He talked about angels. In Matthew 18 He talked about angels. And that's just a – a little smattering of the dozens of times that He talked about angels. Angels exist. I believe it because the Bible says it, but I'll tell you something else. I believe it because I've encountered them. I've encountered the fallen ones and known it, and I've encountered the holy ones and haven't known it – to perceive them. I know they're there. The Bible says so. And I've encountered Satan. Haven't you? And his hosts. And so the existence of angels is fairly well established.
Now let's look secondly at the origin of angels. Once upon a time there were no angels. Now what does that mean to you? That angels were what? Created. They're creatures. Colossians 1:16 says: "For by Him," talking about Christ, "by Him were all things created that are in heaven, that are in earth," now watch this, "visible and" what? Invisible." Now there have been some things created in heaven. You say, "Well, what are they?" Angels. You say, "Well, I can understand the things in earth, that's us. And I can understand the things that are visible, that's us. But the invisible things in heaven, what are they?" Those are angels. And here are different names for angels: thrones, dominions, principalities, powers. All things created by Him, for Him. He created angels. And they're called by different terms – thrones, dominions, principalities. Powers, they're also called authorities. Those are names of angels – ranks of angels in the invisible army. And the invisible army is organized. I'm telling you, that army is super-organized. It's all cataloged and ranked. They were made by God. It says right there they were created by the Lord Jesus Christ.
Back in Nehemiah, chapter 9 and verse 6, I'll show you a couple of passages here. Nehemiah 9:6: "Thou, even Thou" art Lord alone." Now listen, "Thou hast made heaven, the heaven of heavens with all their host." And there is the idea that God created not only heaven but those who occupy it, the angels. "And the earth and all the things that are in it." You've made heaven and everything in it. You've made earth and everything in it. That is You've created angelic creatures and earthly creatures. Now, it's clear from just those passages that angels were created. Another indication, I think, is in I Timothy – don't look this up, I'll just mention it – I Timothy 6:15 says: "The King of kings and Lord of lords, who only has immortality."
The only immortal being who ever exists is whom? God. And if God is the only one who has immortality, then angels don't. Right? They were created. They had to be created, that's I Timothy 6:15 and 16.
Now, Psalm 148, verse 2: "Praise ye Him, all His angels. Praise ye Him all His hosts. Praise ye Him sun and moon. Praise Him all ye stars of light. Praise Him, ye heaven of heavens and ye waters that are above the heavens. Let them praise," that's clouds, "let them praise the name of the Lord" – watch, "for He commanded and they were created." Angels in verse 2, they were created by the command of God, just like everything else. Like the clouds and the earth and the sun and the moon and everything else.
You say, "John, when were they created?" Well, I don't know when. They were created apparently before time began. They were created before man and the earth, because they had fallen by Genesis chapter 3, hadn't they? So that Satan could be in the garden already to tempt Eve. But in Job 38:7 it says: "When the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy." Now what are these angels singing about? What are all these angels shouting about? I'll tell you what they're shouting about. Verse 4: "Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? Declare if you have understanding. Who hath laid the measure of it, if you know? Who has stretched the line? Where upon are its foundation fastened? Or who laid its cornerstone when the morning stars sang together?" You see, you've got the – the angelic hosts singing and shouting at the creation, so they had to be created before the creation, so they predate the earth.
Now, there was no procreation among angels. There aren't mother and father angels, and a whole lot of little angels. They were all directly created by God. They have no capacity to reproduce. In Matthew, chapter 22, when our Lord was discussing this very issue, He put it simply this way: "Jesus answered and said unto them, You do err not knowing the Scriptures nor the power of God, for in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage but are like the angels of God in heaven." The angels of God in heaven don't marry and they're not given in marriage. That's what He's saying. There is no procreation. God instantly commanded – just think of it, people, just think of this – God instantly commanded and millions of creatures came into existence, each one independently created. They do not reproduce, there is no increase in the number. They do not die. So there's no decrease. The only change came when Revelation 12:4 says, "Satan come out of heaven like a dragon, and his tail took a third of the stars with him." Apparently a third of those angels fell and became demons, but they're all going to live forever – some in hell, some in heaven; amazing angels, created instantly by God, and every one created independent of another.
You know what I believe? I believe they're like snowflakes. I don't believe any two are alike. People always want to say, "Well, what are the angels like?" I suppose whenever you see a scene – have you ever noticed this – any kind of a painting, all the angels look the same. All the angels look the same. You see a whole string of angels, they're just like bang, bang, bang, bang, like rubber stamp angels – they all look the – like God said, "Okay, I'll take a million with this thing and that," bang, you know and there they all were. All the cherubim - boomp -all came out looking the same. No. I don't believe that. And another thing that I believe, and we'll get into this as we study, I believe that, in a sense, they were created in the image of God. They were created with capacities that we understand, like intelligence, and emotion, and will. And they were created as individual as every one of them. I believe that God, by one command out of His mouth, spoke into being millions of creatures that occupy the universe, and every one of them was different than every other one. Listen, if God does it with snowflakes, he can do it with angels – millions of them. They were unique.
People say, "Well, how many were there? How many are there? They're the same. They've been around a long time; they've seen a lot of things. How many were there when God made them? How many are there now?" Same amount. It's hard to know how many. It doesn't tell us how many. There's a whole lot of talk and speculation about it. Let me just give you some thoughts, though. At the birth of Christ it says "there appeared a multitude of heavenly host," right, "singing and praising God and – praising God and saying," I should say. There was a multitude. Now, that wasn't all of them. That was just part of them in Luke 2. At His arrest, Jesus said, "If I wanted to, I could call on" what? "Twelve legions." In the Old Testament, one angel slew 185 thousand. When those natives ran back in the jungle, they did right. The only thing, you don't want to mess with God's angels, they are something.
Now, some say, "Well, boy, how many legions are there?" I don't know how many legions there are. Now, other people have offered an interesting possibility. Matthew 18:10, Jesus here is talking about His own, and how He loves them, and how He cares for them. He says an interesting thing. "Take heed," Matthew 18:10, and He's been talking about little ones, "Take heed that you despise not one of these little ones, for I say unto you, that in heaven" – here's the interesting phrase – "their angels do always behold the face of My Father who is in heaven." Don't mess with these, because the angels assigned to them keep reporting in what's going on. What, isn't that interesting? You mean everybody's got a group of angels assigned to them? Well, if that's true, some say that there would have to be at least as many angels as there are people, and if it's a plural there, there's going to be more angels than people. That would mean there's billions of them.
Others say, "No. There are the same number of angels as there are stars." You say, "How many stars are there?" That doesn't help at all. We know this - there's at least billions. Right? At least billions. You say, "Why would they equate them with the stars?" Because often the terms are used interchangeably; they're called the heavenly hosts, and sometimes the stars are called the heavenly hosts; and so they're used interchangeably. But there is one verse that helps us to get some idea, and I don't think this is even all, but it's a stab at it. Revelation 5 – now just think about this, folks, this is a lot of angels: "And I beheld and I heard the voice of many angels." Now, does it say I heard the voice of all the angels? I heard the voice of most of the angels? I heard the voice of almost all the angels? No, just of what? Just many, just a few, you know, some of the many. And how many were there? "And the number of them was 10 thousand times 10 thousand and thousands of thousands."
And you say, "Well, is that how many, what percentage?" I have no idea, folks, but there's plenty. And if every little child has a group assigned to them, there's a lot, because there are other things to do except take care of little children. I believe that there are billions of angels all over the place in the universe. In Hebrews 12:22, we put the issue to rest. This is what it says: "You are come to mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem and to an innumerable company of angels." Too many to be what? Counted; can't number them; beyond counting. Think of it. Think of it. Millions of angels, beautiful, mighty, performing the commands of God, sweeping with great speed through the heavens and the earth, better organized than the armies of Caesar, the armies of Alexander, or Napoleon, or Patton, or anybody else; cherubim, seraphim, living creatures, thrones, dominions, principalities, authorities, powers, the archangel Michael, the warrior, the champion, the supporting Gabriel. All of this fantastic host of angelic beings called in the Scripture "sons of the mighty" in Psalm 89:6; called sons of God in Job; called gods, as they are literally attached to the supernatural divine level; called holy ones in Psalm 89. They're called stars in Job 38:7; called princes in Daniel 10, these fantastic beings. And all that mighty army created by God in a split second, as He wished them into existence. What a God. What a creative God.
You study the Bible and you'll find them in the third heaven, the third heaven is where God lives. You'll find them in the second heaven, traversing the universe. You'll find them in the first heaven, which is the atmosphere of the earth. They're in every one of those strata in the revelation of God. Sometimes they're before the throne of God. Sometimes they're in transit like Daniel, chapter 10. In Revelation 4 and 5, they're by the throne of God. In Daniel 10, they're in transit through the universe. And many times they're on the earth. We see it all throughout the Old and the New Testament, don't we? Angels in earth, mingling with men; fantastic beings.
I'm going to close with some thoughts on what they're like. Thirdly, the nature of angels, just quickly let me give you this. What are they like? First of all, they're personal, they are personal. You say, "You mean that they're not just sort of supernatural robots?" No. They're persons; they have personality. You say, "Well, what are the attributes that make up personality?" Intelligence, emotion, and will. You say, "Are angels intelligent?" They're intelligent, all right; they certainly are intelligent. In Ezekiel 28:12, in describing Lucifer, the son of the morning, who was the highest of angels, it says, "He was the sum of beauty and full of wisdom." Angels are intelligent. In Matthew 28:5, "The angel answered and said to the women, 'Fear not, I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified.'" That angel figured out what they were doing. He was intelligent. Intelligence communicates. It has conversations. It talks.
In Revelation 17, it is very clear that angels understand the plan of God; they unfold it. "There came one of the seven angels," in 17, "who had the seven bowls and talked with me. And this is what he said: 'Come here and I'll show you something.'" That's intelligence, the ability to communicate. Now, they don't know everything, they're not omniscient like God. In fact, in I Peter, chapter l, and verse 12, it says that "the gospel is something which angels desire to look into." There are some things they don't understand. There are some things they have not yet knowledge in. But they're intelligent. Their intelligence is limited, but they're intelligent.
Secondly, they have emotion. I know they have emotion because in Job 38:7 it says they sang together. And singing is a response to emotion, is it not? They have the emotion of joy. Do you know that the angels respond when one soul comes to Christ? There is joy in heaven over one sinner that repents. They experience joy. Another thing that I think is an emotion is worship. And angels, for example in Isaiah 6, what were they doing? "They were standing near the seraphim, with their feet covered with two wings, and with two wings they'd fly, and two wings covered their face, and they cried out, 'Holy, holy, holy.'" That's an expression of worship, and that's an emotion. Angels have the capacity for emotion, and that's a trait of personality.
And thirdly, they have the capacity for self-determination or will. God appeals to their wills. For example, in Hebrews 1:6, and again He brings in the first-begotten into the world, He says, "And let the angels of God worship Him." He says, "Angels, worship that child that is born." The very fact that He invites the angels to do something indicates they had a will to do it. In fact, that's how Satan got into trouble, wasn't it? "I will, I will, I will, I will, I will," five times in Isaiah 14. So they are personalities. They're not just sort of ethereal, aerial spirits floating around without personalities, sort of a squishy robot. They are persons. They have personality. Every one is different from every other one. They're unique. And they're different from men, and that's obvious, because it says in Hebrews 2 that: "Jesus Christ became a man and was made a little lower than" what? "Than the angels." They occupy a higher state than we do, for this time anyway. Someday we're going to rule over angels. I Corinthians 6:3 says we'll rule the angels. In Christ, we'll be exalted. Why? Because we'll be joint heirs with Christ, we'll be equal with Christ in His inheritance. We are in Christ. We are one spirit with Christ. So we in the Kingdom and we in eternity will reign over angels, because we'll reign with Christ. Remember in Revelation he says, "You'll sit with Me in My throne." But for this age and for this time, we are a little lower than the angels. They're different than we are. Now, both of us are creatures, both limited by time and space, both dependent on God for existence and well-being, both responsible to God and accountable to Him, yet we differ.
Now, do you know that their life and their world is just as involved, and just as active, and just as complex as ours is? And it's going on all around us. The difference is we can't see it, but they can see ours. They are spirits, and that's the key difference, Hebrews 1:14, "Are they not all ministering spirits?" And verse 13 says He's talking about the angels. "Are they not all ministering spirits?"
People say, "Do angels have bodies?" No, they're spirits. They do not have fleshly bodies like we do. But listen: is your body your personality? No. Your personhood is in your body. And angels are the person without the flesh and blood that we know. You say, "Well, do they have some kind of stuff that – what are they? Are they a sheet, or you know, with nothing under it, like we think of a ghost – what are they? Well, you know what I believe? I believe they have some kind of localized capacity. I think they're something – they're a spirit something. It isn't a material fleshly body like ours, but they have spatial limitations, they're not like God. God is a spirit, right? But God is everywhere. Is that true? Omnipresent. His spirit fills infinity. Angelic spirits are sort of little spirits. And they're stuck in one spot at a time, and they got to go places, which means they have some kind of form. It's a form that I can't see and perceive, but nevertheless, they have some kind of form. They fly through the heaven in Daniel 9, and Daniel 10 they're shooting around up there, having arguments in space. They're going from one place to the next.
They also have time limitations. Now, they're often pictured with wings. Now, I'm not convinced that those are literal wings, but that those wings represent speed, that they are symbols of swift obedience, that angels fly to obey the will of God, that they are swift to obey the will of God. Not so much that they're literally flying beings as that in their spirit capacity, they can move; and they speedily move in obedience to God.
Now, I don't know what kind of form they have, but I believe they have some kind of thing, and someday we'll be able to go up and say, "So that's what it is." But I don't know – that's when we get to heaven. But in the meantime, I don't know. You say, "Well, what makes you think they have anything like that?" Well, I Corinthians 15:44 makes me think that, because it says this: "There's a natural body and a spiritual body." Oh; a natural body and a spiritual body – well, they must have a spiritual body then, they don't have a natural one. They have some kind of spiritual, celestial bodies. Now, when they do appear, and sometimes God chooses to let them be manifest, they always appear as a man. There's a possibility of one exception, but it's only a possibility. We don't have enough evidence in interpreting the passage to be sure, but every other occasion they always appear in a masculine form. And the masculine pronoun is always used to speak of them. So, sometimes they do – like in Genesis l8, you remember, and Genesis 19, when the angels came to visit Abraham, and when they went to the city of Sodom, now they were just handsome men. They sat down with Abraham. They ate. They walked. They talked. They were made visible and took on some kind of visible form.
In Matthew 28:3, the angel that appeared there, it says: "His countenance was like lightning, and his raiment was as white as snow." His face was like the sun, like lightning. Now that's unusual. And sometimes they appear as men, sometimes they appear as very unusual men. But whenever they appear, their presence produces amazing effects. For example, the natives in the jungle - they ran. The soldiers in the German army that I read from you - they were panicked. Mental turmoil came on Mary when Gabriel announced the news of the virgin birth. She was shaken. When Zechariah was told that he was going to have a son by the angel, he panicked, and terror gripped his heart – Luke l. The shepherds to whom the angelic messenger announced the birth of Christ, it says: "They were sore afraid." They panicked when they saw this host of beings. The Roman soldiers, it says in Matthew 28, who saw the angel roll back the stone, fell over and became like what? Like dead men when they saw that angel. Now, these are different beings. And when they're around, strange responses occur, because it's a – it's a trip into the other world, so to speak, something very abnormal. Well, we're going to learn a lot about these glorious realities. Let's pray.
Thank You, Father, for just helping us to get a little introduction tonight into this host of beings that You've set aside to serve Yourself and to minister to us. I don't know who the angels are that are attached to me, but I want to thank You for the ministry they've had in my life, even unknown to me. And I want to thank You for opening the Word to us in this area, that we might better understand the kind of God You are, and what You're doing in this universe, now centered as if the earth were the stage in the redemptive plan, and You sent Your angels to bring it to pass. Thank You, our Father; praise You for our fellowship tonight in Jesus' name. Amen.
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The Rev. Freddie Smith has weathered many storms during his 82 years on Earth, and so has the church he's pastored the last 44 years– Galilee Baptist. This Collinston church, currently with 200 members, has undergone being rebuilt twice – once when it was relocated and another after a tornado destroyed it.
The church was originally built in 1899 on Patey Road, the road which the Morehouse Parish Jail – Collinston Division, is now located. In 1947, the church was relocated and rebuilt in its current location, under the leadership of the Rev. R. S. Stewart. Smith said the church's reason for relocating was that it rested on a local farmer's land, and its members wanted a place to call their own.
Nearly four decades later, the church witnesses more change, when in 1983 it was destroyed by a tornado.
"I had been telling the congregation that we needed to rebuild, even before the tornado I was telling them that," Smith said. "The church was beginning to look weathered and worn down and needed many improvements, but my members at the time said, 'No Pastor, we can't rebuild right now.'"
GBC members knew they had no choice but to obey their pastor's wishes of renovating the church, especially after the tornado ultimately left them no choice.
"The tornado caused the entire roof to cave in, all except for my office," Smith said. "I still use my original furniture today because it was never harmed."
GBC was rebuilt in 1984. Since then, the congregation has purchased the old Collinston Central Elementary and the five acres it sits on, across from the church. Some of Collinston's older residents say the school was built between the late 1940's and early 1950's. The land on which it sits was purchased by three African-Americans, Leon Tennant, Handsome Williams and Peter Jones, so that African-American students in the area would have a local school to attend.
"These three men paid for the property and the government funded the construction of the school," Smith said. "Before that, the school was located beside the old church. After the church came to this location, the school followed not too long after."
Smith said he and his congregation are currently discussing their plans for the newly purchased property.
"We're not all in agreement yet, but I have a vision for that land," Smith said. "I'd like to see houses over there. Houses for the elderly or less fortunate. I'll continue talking to my members about it. I don't have any plans of retiring. I've been here for so long already, I don't plan on leaving any time soon."


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In a world where free anti-virus software is commonplace for pretty much every platform, the likes of Trend Micro need to offer comprehensive coverage if they want consumers to fork out money for a similar service.
The latest refresh of Trend Micro's Titanium Maximum Security suite has done just that, combining a series of both preventative and post infection measures to keep not only your PC or Mac virus safe, but also your Android device.
It comes in two versions, one with a three device license for AU$109.95 (£69.95, $US89.95), and another for five devices, worth AU$129.95 (£79.95).
Trend Micro's main strength is as a preventative measure against infection. Maximum security protects your computer against all kinds of internet nasties, from viruses, spyware, worms and trojans through to identity theft, as well as pre-emptively blocking dangerous websites.
Additionally, Maximum security also tries to be the one stop shop for online security by offering parental controls and letting you control the privacy settings of all your social networks.
You also get 5GB of online storage in Trend Micro's SafeSync vault, which is a 5GB drop over last year's release for Australians. At the same time, Trend also has the Premium Security suite offering 25GB in the cloud for a premium price, which explains the storage drop.
Installation and Use
Installation should be a relatively simple affair, but getting the software onto a Mac offered some unexpected hurdles. The Trend Micro software required us to delete some old, free antivirus software from the machine in order to install. Unfortunately, the only way we were able to completely remove the older software was to go into Terminal.
This is hardly Trend Micro's fault, but it could pose problems for any consumer looking to make the step up from free anti-virus software to a paid version.
Fortunately, once installed, the software is designed not only for simplicity, but to be on in the background without requiring constant feedback from the user.
The app's settings page offers four tabs: Overview, Web, Scans and Logs, which is where customers can control what the software is doing, how often it does it and what it has done in the past.
Even when running a full scan of the computer's hard drive, there's no noticeable performance degradation. But the true strength of this software is in its design as a preventative measure as opposed to fixing a machine that's already got problems.
That's not to say that Maximum Security can't actually fix a malware-ridden machine. You can manually opt to scan at any stage, with regular scans generally scheduled every month.
But as the proverb says, prevention is better than cure, and thanks to things like a toolbar on your web browser that allows real time detection of web-threats, the chances of infection are greatly reduced with the software installed.
Parents will find the parental controls useful, although they are slightly more confusing to implement in this year's release.
With so many free anti-virus offerings on the market, it's become a bit harder for companies to convince users that an annual subscription is worth the money.
Trend Micro is hoping that by being comprehensive across multiple devices, it will offer enough to convince people to sign up. The good news is that the software does everything it says on the box.
All features are easy to control without being overwhelming. The software runs best in the background, only alerting you when you are about to click on something dangerous.
But is that worth $130 every year? That's a good chunk of change when you can get a large percentage of the features for free using a variety of rival applications.
- We've also highlighted the best antivirus software in this roundup


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Claire Danes stepped onto the red carpet at the 'Time' 100 Gala wearing a pair of strappy metallic gold sandals.
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Claire Danes looked avant-garde at the Time 100 Gala in this rich red leather sheath dress.
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HUDSON FALLS, N.Y. (AP) — A World War II veteran from New York whose account of liberating Holocaust victims from a Nazi train led to reunions with the survivors 60 years later has died.
Matthew Rozell, a friend of Carrol Walsh, tells The Associated Press that Walsh died Monday at his home in Sarasota, Fla. The retired New York judge was 91. A cause of death wasn't immediately available.
Walsh and other American soldiers liberated 2,500 Jewish concentration camp prisoners from a Nazi train at the end of World War II.
His story was posted on a website Rozell created for the history class he teaches at Hudson Falls High School in upstate New York.
That led to a series of reunions involving veterans and train survivors in New York, South Carolina and Tennessee.


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NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — The U.N. refugee agency says 55 people have drowned or are missing after an overcrowded boat capsized off the Somali coast.
UNHCR said the incident late Tuesday represented the biggest loss of life in the Gulf of Aden since February 2011, when 57 Somali refugees and migrants drowned while attempting to reach Yemen.
The U.N. says five people survived Tuesday's accident. The survivors said the boat was overcrowded and capsized 15 minutes into its journey. Twenty-three bodies were recovered; the rest are presumed to have drowned.
Bruno Geddo, the UNCHR representative for Somalia, said the deaths are a reminder of the risks Somalis take to flee their country. Geddo said the Gulf of Aden is the deadliest route for people fleeing conflict and rights abuses in the Horn of Africa.


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By Michael Smith
Raleigh, NC Feb. 20, 2013 – Inevitably, injuries on sports teams lead to open roster spots which, in turn, lead to opportunities for other players.
Patrick Dwyer has taken his opportunity and run with it.
With hip surgery possibly sidelining Tuomo Ruutu for the remainder of the regular season, a top-six forward slot became vacant.
Head coach Kirk Muller has tried a few different options alongside Jordan Staal and (mainly) Jeff Skinner, with Zac Dalpe, Chad LaRose and Dwyer.
Dwyer, who has swiftly worked his way up the depth chart this season, is the one that has stuck.
"He has an opportunity to play with Jordan and those guys here, and he's reliable and dependable," Muller said. "He's taking advantage of the opportunities. He's capitalizing, and he's scoring. He's been arguably our most consistent player so far this year."
Muller, initially searching for a winger who could be a defensive safety valve of sorts for Staal and Skinner, plugged in Dwyer on the right wing. It's a role the 29-year-old is familiar with, as he spent the majority of the 2011-12 season playing on the Canes' shutdown line with Brandon Sutter.
As it turns out, he's also had a chance to flex his offensive muscle, recording two goals and an assist since his second-line promotion on Feb. 4. With four goals already this season, he's halfway to his career-best of eight, set in 2010-11.
"Those guys make plays," he said. "With Staal's size and Skinner's skill, it opens up a lot of ice for me to make plays and to be able to do things I'd like to do regularly."
His ice time has also surged, hovering around 17 minutes per game. He logged a season-high 19:04 against New Jersey on Feb. 12.
It hasn't been an easy road, by any means, for the Spokane, Wash., native, who, after four years at Western Michigan Univeristy, cut his teeth in the AHL for six seasons. But Dwyer, a fourth-round draft choice of the Atlanta Thrashers in 2002, has made the most of his time with the Hurricanes.
In his first full season with Carolina, he posted career highs in games played (80), goals (8), assists (10) and points (18). He saw his average ice time per game jump nearly three minutes in 2011-12 (from 12:34 to 15:22), as he cemented his role as a reliable defensive forward with a deceptive bit of speed.
"Last year, first and foremost, it was go out there against their top line and don't get scored on," Dwyer said. "If you keep their top line off the scoreboard, then we did our job. Points were extra bonuses at that point."
He assumed his role would remain the same this season, but injuries beget opportunities.
"I'm trying to do what I do on any line," Dwyer said. "When you look up and the play's there, that's the time to make it. When you look up and there's any doubt in your mind, you just have to make the smart play – get it deep or cycle it back down and let the plays come to you. You'll see the plays when they're there."
The team's structure is also different this season. Instead of having a designated shutdown line, the top two lines are often matched up against the other team's top six. Dwyer still finds himself playing against the league's best, though he admits getting the benefit of mismatches is a nice perk.
"Now, playing with these guys, not only can we not get scored on, but we have to put a few in the net. That's where it's nice having Skinny and Staal because they're pretty good at that," Dwyer said with a smile. "This year, we've got four lines that can play, and we're running them. There's not necessarily that direct match-up that we've had in the past."
Dwyer credits playing with Team USA in the World Championship last summer in boosting his on-ice confidence coming into this season. In eight tournament games, Dwyer posted a goal (a wraparound scored against Cam Ward) and two assists as a first-time Team USA member.
"I think a big step with Patty was overseas last year in the World Championship," said Muller, who was an assistant coach for Team Canada. "Not putting words in his mouth, but I think that was a big confidence builder for him. He was playing against elite players, and he had a great tournament."
"Being selected to play for your country is a huge honor, and there's confidence in that. You get on that big ice against the best players in the world, and you learn that the Olympic ice actually allows you more time to make plays," Dwyer said. "You come back to the smaller sheet, and you know where the play is and how to make it. It forces you to develop skills you wouldn't necessarily use as much over here, so that's helped a lot."
Dwyer has seamlessly ridden that international high into this season. And he's getting rewarded for it.
"I came in this year feeling good about the way things are going," he said. "I'm confident right now."


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The NHL season has crossed the quarter pole, so it's time to grade each Bruins player before they start the season's second quarter in Atlanta Sunday night.
Boston's defense corps definitely was not immune from blame for the offensive troubles that plagued the team all of last season. With Zdeno Chara, Matt Hunwick and the rest suffering a drop-off in their output, the Bruins' defensemen did little to help the forwards' cause.
So this season the challenge was going to be to muster more scoring from the back end while maintaining the high level of defense that has been the hallmark of Boston's Claude Julien-coached teams.
Well, boosted by the best goaltending in the league, the Bruins' defense is No. 1 in the NHL at 1.9 goals allowed per game. The players in front of Tim Thomas and Tuukka Rask should get their share of the credit for that. Although the shots-against totals have sometimes climbed a little high, the Bruins's blueliners have done solid work to keep those shots on the perimeter when they're not blocked.
As far as offense, the Bruins still need better transition and more contributions from those on the back end to get the team into the top half of the league in scoring.
Here are the grades:
Zdeno Chara: A
While the captain could still stand to make more happen on the ragged power play with his rocket slap shot, he has bounced back after his off season in '09-10 with 10 points in 21 games and a plus-11 rating. He took it upon himself to go after Chris Neil when the Ottawa forward declined Shawn Thornton's invitation. The likes of Alexander Ovechkin and Phil Kessel have found out the hard way that Chara is back in top ferocious defensive form.
Dennis Seidenberg: B-plus
The Bruins' team leader in blocked shots and hits by a defenseman has come on after a sluggish first handful of games this season. His defensive-zone coverage has been excellent. However, as a fixture on the power play he has produced just seven assists and no goals. More will be expected of Seidenberg in the next three quarters of the season.
Matt Hunwick: C
There are two schools of thought when it comes to Hunwick and power-play time: you can say he receives it undeservedly or that he has to get it because that's his best chance to help the team. However, the fast-skating blueliner has produced just three points (one goal) all season and hasn't been able to handle top-four minutes when they've been granted to him. He often looks like his confidence level is low and panics under pressure at both ends with the puck on his stick. It's been a disappointing start to what was supposed to be a breakout year for the diminutive D-man.
Johnny Boychuk: B
This grade could've easily been an incomplete considering a broken arm cost Boychuk all but 11 games. Since his return, he's been relegated to the third pair and has looked a tad off in his timing and positioning. He started strong with three assists in his first five games, but he has to put that bazooka slapper to better use and give the Bruins a lift with some offense — or at least the threat of goal-scoring.
Andrew Ference: B
It's hard to grade someone when they're so miscast. Ference struggled early this season as part of Boston's bottom pair, where he should be playing. Ever since Boychuk's injury, Ference has been Chara's partner on the top pair. That means a lot of ice time and a lot of matchups against the toughest scorers around. All he has done is post a plus-12 rating and limited his mistakes to just a few egregious ones. You'd still like to see him pitch in with more than just two assists, especially when his ice time is up. But he has been more aggressive joining the rush and it's more important that he do the things necessary to let Chara play his game.
Mark Stuart: B-minus
There have been a few nights Stuart was a difference-maker with a handful of bone-rattling hits and sound transition play, but he has too often struggled getting out of his own end — regardless of who he has skated with. This is supposed to be Stuart's big breakout year and he still has time recover. Recently he has been skating in the top four alongside Seidenberg. But the Bruins need more from him at both ends of the rink.
Adam McQuaid: B
It'd be tough to ask more from the rookie, who skated in 10 solid games and even notched an assist after he was scratched from the season's first six games. Back on the sidelines as the seventh defenseman, McQuaid should help the Bruins again down the road when they decide they need his brand of simple play and toughness in their lineup again.


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Saturday, 04 January 2014 09:19 PM
A third person has died from an explosion and fire at a Minneapolis apartment building on New Year's Day that also left at least 13 others injured, medical examiners said on Saturday.
The latest victim was Abdiqani Adan, 29, who died in a hospital from injuries sustained in the incident, the Hennepin County Medical Examiner's office said in a statement.
Investigators have been looking into a gas leak as a possible cause for the blast and fire that destroyed the three-story building with a ground-floor grocery store and 10 apartments. The building was located in a community of mainly Somali immigrants.
The roof and upper floors of the 1886 building collapsed, leaving unstable ice-caked exterior walls and rubble.
Demolition of the building was completed on Friday and fire officials believe that everyone who was in the building has been accounted for, the department said in a statement.
The cause of the blast remains undetermined.
Reporting by Kevin Murphy; Editing by Jon Herskovitz and Dan Grebler
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No political corruption in building clearance: Goa CM
Panaji, Jan 7 (IANS) Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar Tuesday said there "did not appear to be any political corruption" in the clearances accorded to a five-storey building which collapsed Saturday claiming at least 17 lives.
As many as 12 bodies are believed to be still buried in the rubble.
Addressing a press conference at his official residence, Parrikar blamed a senior planner in the town planning department for fudging records and facilitating the controversial Ruby Residency project in Canacona town, 80 km south of here.
One under-construction building in the new phase of the project came down crashing Saturday.
"There appears to be no political corruption in this case, only bureaucratic corruption. If there is, let the investigation show it. We will take action against everyone," Parrikar said.
The chief minister was responding to charges levelled by the opposition, both the Congress as well as the Nationalist Congress Party, who claimed that permissions for the project were granted during the BJP regime.
The opposition also claimed that state Sports Minister Ramesh Tawadkar owned two flats in the same project and had backed the illegalities in the same.
"These are rubbish charges. All the main permissions were granted in 2010, when the Congress was in power. Our government was sworn in in 2012," the chief minister said.
Parrikar also said bodies of five of the 17 labourers, who died after they were buried under the debris, would be airlifted to Jharkhand.
"A principal secretary from Jharkhand is camping in Goa. He will airlift the dead back. The Jharkhand government will bear the cost," Parrikar said.