Spiritual Forces (part 2)

ByFlint Fenton

Another spiritual being described in the Bible is an archangel. Michael is the only being called an archangel who is called by a name. Having a proper name is very rare among angels with only two to four named depending which terms are to be taken as proper terms (Michael, Jude 9; Gabriel, Luke 1:26; Lucifer, Isaiah 14:12; Apollyon, Revelation 9:11). Despite the name archangel literally meaning “chief messenger,” Michael never appears in the Bible carrying a message. The archangel Michael is likely connected to the prince Michael in the book of Daniel.  Michael contended with demonic powers to allow an angel to bring a message to Daniel (10:12-13). 

Spiritual Forces (part 1)

ByFlint Fenton

The Bible positively affirms that creation includes more that just the material world. This is hard to grasp considering the overall materialistic outlook of the 21st century world. Our excessively material outlook is in large part an overreaction to the medieval superstitions. In the Dark Ages, everything that happened on earth had a spiritual cause; milk spoiled because an evil spirit visited you, and walking under a ladder would disrupt the trinity, giving bad luck. Today, the intellectual consensus is that all things can be explained on a strictly physical level and therefore spiritual things do not exist.