1. When were the angels created?

 "In six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath Day, and hallowed it." - Exodus 20, 11.

 We are not told exactly on which day God created the angels, but Scripture does state that their creation fals within the six-day period.

2. What are the angels?

 "Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?" - Hebrews 1, 14.

 The angels are spiritual beings, who are without any bodily form whatsoever.  The bodies in which the angels have from tim to time appeared to men have been assumed, to convince the persons to whom they appeared of their true presence.

3. How does the Bible describe the angels?

 "I am Gabriel, that stand in the presence of God." - Saint Like 1, 19.  They are personal beings.

 They are endowed with reason, intelligence and will, capable of becoming acquainted with one another and with men.

 "My Lord is wise, according to the wisdom of an angel of God, to know all things that are in the earth." - 2 Samuel 14, 20.

 They are powerful.

 "For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven." - Saint Matthew 22,30.

 "Neither can they die any more: for they are equal unto the angels; and are the children of God, being the children of the resurrection." - Saint Luke 20, 36.

 The angels are immortal, so that their number is neither diminished nor increased.

4. How many angels are there?

 "Thousand thousands ministered unto Him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him." - Daniel 7, 10.

 This and other expressions stand for uncounted thousands of holy angels.  How great is the goodness of God, who created so many holy ministers for the benefit of man!

5. Are there different kinds of angels?

 "Angels and authorities and powers are being made subject unto Him." - 1 Saint Peter 3, 22.

 There are ranks, or orders among the angels.  Scripture speaks of the cherubim, the seraphim, the thrones, the dominions, the principalities, the powers, the archangels.

6. What is the work of the angels?

 "Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?" - Hebrews 1, 14.

 The good angels serve God in worshiping Him, doing His pleasure, and, particularly, protecting His Church and guiding His believers.

 Because of their holy service, we should highly esteem God's blessed angels, rejoice in their ministry and thank God for their protection.

7. Are all the angels good?

 "God saw everything that He had made, and, behold, it was very good.  And the evening and the morning were the sixth day." - Genesis 1, 31.

 All angels were created perfectly good and holy, but only a part of their number remained in this original state.

 "And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, He hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day." - Jude 6.

 Some angels did not remain in their original state, but of their own accord fell away from God and into sin.

8. Who are the evil angels?

 "Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do.  He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him.  When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it." - Saint John 8, 44.

 The angels who did not persevere in their wisdom and righteousness became the perpetual enemies of God and man and are now plagued with eternal toment.  They now insistently think perversely of God and divine things.

 "There was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, and prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven.  And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him." - Revelation 12, 7-9.

9 How are the evil angels at present occupied?

 "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour." - 1 Saint Peter 5,8.

 Since they are enemies of God and all His children, the evil angels are bent on destroying the works of God and in doing and promoting evil

10. How can I overcome Satan's attacks?

 "Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.  For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places." - Ephesians 6, 11-12.

 God has given us mighty weapons to overcome the attacks of the evil for: His strengthening Word, the privilege of Christian prayer, the blessed sacraments - all of which will fortify our faith and strengthen us to resist the onslaughts of Satan.

Test Paper - Lesson 5
1. Please mark out the incorrect answers(s).
 a. The angels are eternal.
 b. The angels are not eternal, but were created.
 c. The Bible states that the angels were created on the fifth day.

2. Check the following statements which are true.
 a. The angels have a bodily form.
 b. The angels are spiritual beings without a bodily form.
 c. From time to time, for special purposes, certain angels hae assumed a bodily form.

3. List any two descriptions which the Bible gives of the holy angels.
a. ..................................................................................................................................................
b. ..................................................................................................................................................

4. How many angels are there?
......................................................................................................................................................

5. Give the names of any two kinds or ranks of angels?
a. ..................................................................................................................................................
b. ..................................................................................................................................................

6. What is the work, or ministry, of the holy angels?
......................................................................................................................................................

7. Who are the evil angels?
......................................................................................................................................................

8. How can we best resist the temptations of the devil? Listy any two spiritual weapons which God has given to us.
a. ..................................................................................................................................................
b. ..................................................................................................................................................

9. Please complete the following Bible passage: "Put on ...............................................................
.................................................. that ye may be able to .................... against the wiles of ............
......................................." - Ephesians 6, 11.

10. Give the names of any two angels mentioned in Scriptures.
a. ..................................................................................................................................................
b. ..................................................................................................................................................

Make every effort to fill in the answers from memory.  If you are not sure of certain answers, you may look them up in the lesson.  Your paper will be graded according to the following standard: 10 correct: perfect; 9 correct: excellent; 8 correct: very good; 7 correct: good.