Occasionally I have received papers and comments, mostly
by email, from people in various parts of the world regarding biblical
references to the Sons of God. My view of the Sons of God used to be sort
of matter-of-fact. People with God's Spirit would become Sons of God. What
was there to look into? But some of their statements appeared to be
talking about some things contrary to what I had always been taught. I
could not remember any recent sermons about the subject. Some of their
comments seemed to contradict certain scriptures, but many scriptures
seemed to support their positions. What was correct? Was it really
important or complicated enough to look into? Well, I finally decided to
explore the subject. As I did I found it a very appropriate subject for
this Feast.
Today I want to discuss the subject of "the Sons of God"
with you. I am going to try to avoid any dogmatic position but obviously
what the Bible says is what it says. I hope this sermon causes you to
meditate on and research the scriptures I'll give you, and by them be
encouraged. Motivating you is the whole purpose of this sermon.
Earlier I gave you a sermon entitled "Giants
in the Land." This sermon will begin by also mentioning them but with
a different objective. The first reference in the Bible to "sons of God"
is in the book of Genesis. Let's turn to Genesis, chapter 6:
Gen 6:1-4 (NKJV) Now it came to pass, when men began to
multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born to them, {2}
that the sons of God saw the daughters of men, that they <were>
beautiful; and they took wives for themselves of all whom they chose.
{3} And the LORD said, "My Spirit shall not strive with man forever, for
he <is> indeed flesh; yet his days shall be one hundred and twenty
years." {4} There were giants [H5303, Neph'ilim, meaning bully, tyrant
or giant] on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the
sons of God came in to the daughters of men and they bore <children>
to them. Those <were> the mighty men who <were> of old, men of renown.
Who were these sons of God? Is this a mistranslation?
Let's look at the Hebrew words used in these verses: The word "son" comes
from the Hebrew word "ben", H1121 in Strongs’. "Ben" simply means a son in
the widest sense; like a grandson, a son, a descendent. "God", of course,
comes from the Hebrew word "Elohiym". No surprises there. The Tanakh
refers to them as "divine beings", with a marginal reference to "sons of
God". The Septuagint refers to them as angels.
If they were angels or divine beings, they must have been
spirit beings. But these fellows were cohorting with human women and
siring children (Nephilim) and Jesus seemed to say that spirit beings
don't do that.
Luke 20:35-36 (NKJV) "But those who are counted worthy
to attain that age, and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry
nor are given in marriage; {36} "nor can they die anymore, for they
are equal to the angels and are sons of God, being sons of the
resurrection.
This verse refers to the resurrected saints but apparently
angels did cohort with humans in the days of Noah. Can angels manifest
themselves as real, complete people? What of the two angels who came to
deliver Lot? Weren't they real men? The people of Sodom and Gomorrah
certainly seemed to think they were. Could the angels of Genesis 6 have
been evil angels; some of Satan's gang? Before moving to a New Testament
reference to these individuals, let's look at what Josephus, the first
century Jewish historian, has to say. From Josephus, Antiquities of the
Jews, book 1, chapter 3, section 1:
Now this posterity of Seth continued to esteem God as
the Lord of the universe, and to have an entire regard to virtue, for
seven generations (but over 1000 years); but in the process of time,
they were perverted, and forsook the practices of their forefathers, and
did neither pay those honors to God which were appointed them, nor had
they any concern to do justice towards men. But for what degree of zeal
they had formerly shown for virtue, they now showed by their actions a
double degree of wickedness, whereby they made God to be their enemy;
for many angels of God* accompanied with women, and begat sons
that proved unjust, and despisers of all that was good, on account of
the confidence they had in their own strength, for the tradition is that
these men did what resembled the acts of those whom the Grecians call
Giants.
*The translator adds: This notion, that the fallen
angels were, in some sense, the fathers of the old giants, was the
constant view of antiquity.
Now what does Peter say?
1 Pet 3:18-20 (NKJV) For Christ also suffered once for
sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God, being put
to death in the flesh but made alive by the Spirit, {19} by whom also He
went and preached to the spirits in prison, {20} who formerly
were disobedient, when once the Divine longsuffering waited in
the days of Noah, while <the> ark was being prepared, in which a
few, that is, eight souls, were saved through water.
2 Pet 2:4 (NKJV) For if God did not spare the angels who
sinned, but cast <them> down to hell and delivered <them> into chains of
darkness, to be reserved for judgment;
The word "hell" in 2 Peter is referring to Tartaroo
(G5020) which apparently means a dark place of imprisonment. This is the
only place the word is used in the New Testament. Jude 6 describes it
well:
Jude 1:6 (NKJV) And the angels who did not keep their
proper domain, but left their own abode, He has reserved in everlasting
chains under darkness for the judgment of the great day;
These verses don't seem to be talking about
run-of-the-mill demons. There are plenty of them around today. Don't these
appear to be references to the angels who were marrying and producing
children in the days of Noah? It appears that part of the reason for the
flood was to destroy the offspring of these errant angels, while at the
same time God was locking up the disobedient angels themselves. At any
rate, the sons of God of Genesis 6 appear to be angels with whom Satan was
trying to destroy mankind by use of a typical Satanic deception: to
counterfeit the divine conception whereby God the Father impregnated a
human woman, with the resultant miraculous birth of the true Son of God.
The result of the impregnation of human women by satanic angels were
children of extreme evil; while the result of impregnation by God the
Father was a man perfect in all His ways. A total antithesis.
But if the children of the evil spirits referred to in
Genesis 6 were destroyed in the flood, what of the Nephillim referred to
in Numbers 13 and Deut 1:28? Let's read that.
Num 13:33 (KJV) And there we saw the giants, the sons of
Anak, <which come> of the giants: and we were in our own sight as
grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.
Deut 1:28 (NKJV) 'Where can we go up? Our brethren have
discouraged our hearts, saying, "The people are greater and taller than
we; the cities are great and fortified up to heaven; moreover we have
seen the sons of the Anakim there."'
The spies sent by Moses to spy out the land had returned
with reports of Nephillim in Canaan. Where did they come from? How did
their ancestors survive the flood of centuries earlier? Did one of their
ancestors hide on the roof of the ark? No, I would guess other evil angels
repeated what was done in the days Noah. When Moses wrote Genesis, he
stated they were to reappear later. We read it in Gen 6:4. Let’s read it
again.
(Gen 6:4 NKJV) There were giants on the earth in those
days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the
daughters of men and they bore children to them. Those were the mighty
men who were of old, men of renown.
Is the "afterward" the days of Moses? What happened to
these Nephillim? Did they just die out? Or are their descendants with us
today as we hear of the fierce acts and statements of certain hateful
Palestinians and other Muslim extremists? What happened to the evil
angels? They were probably imprisoned, just like those before them. God is
probably not deterred by overcrowded prisons.
I think it is appropriate at this point, since we have
just mentioned run-of-the-mill demons, to compare the status of these
demons with the locked up demons mentioned in the verses we just read.
Both will face judgment, but only one is currently locked up.
Mat 8:29 (NKJV) And suddenly they cried out, saying,
"What have we to do with You, Jesus, You Son of God? Have You come here
to torment us before the time?"
Yes, all demons know their fate....and all demons know
Jesus is the Son of God.
Let's proceed. The next references to sons of God appears
in Job. Let's read them.
Job 1:6 (NKJV) Now there was a day when the sons of God
came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came among
them.
Job 2:1 (NKJV) Again there was a day when the sons of
God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan came also
among them to present himself before the LORD.
The sons of God had to have been angels. The WCG used to
say that they were arch-angels. I know of no proof of that. Do any of you?
If you want to ask Dr. Hoeh where that idea came from, you’re too late. He
died in 2004. But the only Old Testament references to sons of God we have
found so far seem to refer to angels.
In Job 38 God is describing His creation. Again He refers
to sons of God. Could these be anything but angels?
Job 38:7 (NKJV) When the morning stars sang together,
And all the sons of God shouted for joy?
Before leaving the subject of angels being the sons of
God, let's consider another related term, "the heavenly host". What does
it mean? Well, we know that the Bible refers to a host as an army. That
indicates there are more than a few, doesn't it? Let's consider the one
New Testament scripture which refers to the host and see if it applies to
the sons of God, the angels.
Luke 2:13-14 (NKJV) And suddenly there was with the
angel a multitude of the [heavenly host] praising God and saying: {14}
"Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!"
There are some scriptures which clearly describe the
relationship of Jesus Christ and the angels. Turn to Hebrews 1.
Heb 1:1-10 (NKJV) God, who at various times and in
various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, {2} has
in these last days spoken to us by <His> Son, whom He has appointed heir
of all things, through whom also He made the worlds; {3} who being the
brightness of <His> glory and the express image of His person, and
upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself
purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, {4}
having become [does this imply He didn't start off that way?] so
much better than the angels, as He has by inheritance
obtained a more excellent name than they. {5} For to which of the
angels did He ever say: "You are My Son, Today I have begotten You"? And
again: "I will be to Him a Father, And He shall be to Me a Son"? {6}
But when He again brings the firstborn into the world, He says:
"Let all the angels of God worship Him." {7} And of the angels He says:
"Who makes His angels spirits And His ministers a flame of fire." {8}
But to the Son <He says>: "Your throne, O God, <is> forever and
ever; A scepter of righteousness <is> the scepter of Your Kingdom. {9}
You have loved righteousness and hated lawlessness; Therefore God, Your
God, has anointed You With the oil of gladness more than Your
companions." {10} And: "You, LORD, in the beginning laid the
foundation of the earth, And the heavens are the work of Your hands.
Verse 8 is quoted from Psalms 45:6.
In each of the scriptures we have looked at, the word
"sons" (plural) has been translated from the Hebrew word "ben".
Now let's turn to Daniel 3.
Dan 3:25 (NKJV) "Look!" he answered, "I see four men
loose, walking in the midst of the fire; and they are not hurt, and the
form of the fourth is like the Son of God."
This, of course is the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and
Abed-nego who were thrown into the furnace. But here we have a (singular)
"Son of God" with them. How could King Nebuchadnezzar have known that the
fourth person in the furnace was like the Son of God? Had he ever seen Him
before? The word "Son" in this scripture is from the Hebrew word "Bar",
H1247, and means a specific son or grandson. This is a different
word than the general word for "sons" we have been reading of so far. This
is a different Son than all those angels. We know, of course, that this
was he who the Jews call Adonai, or the future Messiah, Jesus, Yeshua.
The use of "Son" as translated from "Bar", H1247, is shown
in one other scripture you would be interested in: Turn to Daniel 7.
Dan 7:13-14 (NKJV) "I was watching in the night visions,
And behold, <One> like the Son of Man, Coming with the clouds of
heaven! He came to the Ancient of Days, And they brought Him near
before Him. {14} Then to Him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom,
That all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him. His dominion
<is> an everlasting dominion, Which shall not pass away, And His kingdom
<the one> Which shall not be destroyed.
But we used to be told that the God-head consisted of two
beings of equal rank, two co-equal Gods (binitarianism), until Adonai
agreed to become subservient to God the Father and be born as a human
being. That was the opinion of HWA himself. It is still the position held
by the Global, Philadelphia and United churches today. But here in the
book of Daniel, long before Adonai allegedly agreed to become subservient,
we find reference to the Son (singular) of God and the Son (singular) of
man. Are there any other indications of Adonai's eternal position relative
to the Father? And what of the saints? How can they ever be defined as
future Sons of God? We'll find out in a moment as we study the days of
Christ on Earth.
Jesus Christ, in His prayer before the apostles during the
last supper said:
John 17:3 (NKJV) "And this is eternal life, that they
may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have
sent.
Jesus Christ acknowledged the only true God and
stated clearly that God the Father had sent Him. He didn't just create Him
in the womb of Mary. He sent Him. Jesus had to have existed before to be
able to have been sent. You can't send something that doesn't exist yet.
In John 7 Jesus again states that He was sent. But this
time He adds another wrinkle.
John 7:26-29 (NKJV) "But look! He speaks boldly, and
they say nothing to Him. Do the rulers know indeed that this is truly
the Christ? {27} "However, we know where this Man is from; but when the
Christ comes, no one knows where He is from." {28} Then Jesus cried out,
as He taught in the temple, saying, "You both know Me, and you know
where I am from; and I have not come of Myself, but He who sent
Me is true, whom you do not know. {29} "But I know Him, for I am from
Him, and He sent Me."
The verb "sent" in Greek is related to the noun "apostle".
You can look that up in Strongs’ number G649. This emphasizes the fact
that God the Father, who is and has always been greater, sent His Son.
John 10:29-30 (KJV) My Father, which gave <them> me, is
greater than all; and no <man> is able to pluck <them> out of my
Father's hand. {30} I and <my> Father are one.
But, if the Father is greater than all, why, in verse 30,
does Jesus say that He and His Father are one? To answer that, let's look
at two scriptures. First let's turn to Phil 2:9.
Phil 2:9-11 (NKJV) Therefore God also has highly exalted
Him and given Him the name which is above every name, {10} that at the
name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on
earth, and of those under the earth, {11} and <that> every tongue should
confess that Jesus Christ <is> Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Now let's return to John 10, verse 34.
John 10:34-38 (NKJV) Jesus answered them, "Is it not
written in your law, 'I said, "You are gods" '? {35} "If He called them
gods, to whom the word of God came (and the Scripture cannot be broken),
{36} "do you say of Him whom the Father sanctified and sent into the
world, 'You are blaspheming,' because I said, 'I am the Son of God'?
{37} "If I do not do the works of My Father, do not believe Me; {38}
"but if I do, though you do not believe Me, believe the works, that you
may know and believe that the Father <is> in Me, and I in Him."
The law Jesus referred to in verse 34 is Psalm 82:1,6.
Let's read it.
Psa 82:1 (NKJV) God stands in the congregation of the
mighty; He judges among the gods.
Psa 82:6 (NKJV) I said, "You <are> gods, And all of you
<are> children of the Most High.
Psalm 82:1 and 6 seem to be describing the world today
where God's people, with the guidance of the Holy Spirit are able to judge
the actions (not the destiny) of others around them from the standpoint of
God's word. Verses 2-5 show that we do not give enough concern for the
poor and needy. That is certainly a tendency in the church today, which
would rather focus on some minor detail of the Law and let the government
take care of the poor and needy. That these are saints before their
resurrection is born out in verse 7 which says they will die like men.
(Some feel these verses also refer to the fate of Satan and his angels, as
described in Ezekiel 28:14,19.) In Luke 20, Christ indicates the
resurrected saints can not die.
Luke 20:36 (NKJV) "nor can they die anymore, for they
are equal to the angels and are sons of God,
being sons of the resurrection.
Psalms 82, verse 6 seems to say "You are gods and
all of you are children of the most High" but notice that the words
"are" are in italics. It seems likely that the word should be translated
"shall be".
for they shall be equal to the angels and
shall be sons of God, being sons of the resurrection.
Another point to be gleaned from verse 36 is that if the
saints shall be equal to the angels and shall be sons of God, then the
angels must be sons of God too. It's a mathematical law: If A=B and A=C,
then B=C.
Other scriptures which support Psalms 82 are:
Mat 13:43 (NKJV) "Then the righteous will shine forth as
the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears to hear,
let him hear! (If you are interested, pay attention.)
1 John 3:1-2 (NKJV) Behold what manner of love the
Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God!
Therefore the world does not know us, because it did not know Him. {2}
Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been
revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we
shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.
We are now the unborn children of God but there is a
powerful being out there who would love to abort us. But as Christ said,
no one can take us out of the hand of God and Christ. No one but
ourselves. We just read John 10:29 and 30 but now let's reread that
scripture in regards to how we permanently belong to God.
John 10:28-29 (NKJV) "And I give them eternal life, and
they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My
hand. {29} "My Father, who has given <them> to Me, is greater than all;
and no one is able to snatch <them> out of My Father's hand.
In Matthew 16:15, Christ asked His disciples who they
thought He was and Peter told Him, "You are the Christ, the Son of the
living God." Christ responded by telling Peter that he could only know
that because God the Father had revealed it to him, not because he just
naturally figured it out by himself.
Having set the foundation, let me now give you some more
scriptures supporting what we have covered already.
John 3:18 (KJV) He that believeth on him is not
condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he
hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
The words "only begotten Son of God" comes from the Greek
"monogene huios Theos", G3439 plus G5207 plus G2316.
But those who heard his words and witnessed his deeds knew
he was the son of God. They took his admonition to judge him on the works
which he did, which the Scribes, Pharisees and Sadducees rejected. (John
10:38)
John 11:27 (NKJV) She said to Him, "Yes, Lord, I believe
that You are the Christ, the Son of God, who is to come into the world."
She recognizes him as the son of God. The focus is on "the
son who comes into the world."
Gal 4:4-5 (NKJV) But when the fullness of the time had
come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the
law, {5} to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive
the adoption as sons.
This verse says it all. We see here the purpose of sending
God's Son: To buy back those of us who have broken the law so that we
can also be adopted by our Father as sons. What a loving gift!
Let's look at a few more scriptures which describe the
relationship Christ had with His Father:
John 8:19 (NKJV) Then they said to Him, "Where is Your
Father?" Jesus answered, "You know neither Me nor My Father. If you had
known Me, you would have known My Father also."
Christ was challenged for two reasons: First they wanted
to imply Christ was a bastard. Second they wanted Him to say that He was
the Son of God so they could charge Him with blasphemy. Christ's reply
reinforced His statements that God was His Father and was greater than He.
But His statement was also a lead-in to His statement in verse 38, which
we will read in a moment, as to who their father was.
In verse 28, Christ makes the point that He was taught by
God and depended totally on Him for all that He did on earth.
John 8:28 (NKJV) Then Jesus said to them, "When you lift
up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am <He>, and <that> I do
nothing of Myself; but as My Father taught Me, I speak these things.
The words "lift up" are from the Greek word "hupsoo",
G5312, which literally means to exalt or lift up. The words "lift up" here
may literally refer to Christ being lifted up during the crucifixion or to
exaltation. Hupsoo is used to describe Moses lifting up the snake in John
3:14 and as exaltation in Acts and other places. Now we need to ask the
question, "Was Christ taught only while on earth"? Let's turn to verse 38
to find out.
John 8:38 (NKJV) "I speak what I have seen with My
Father, and you do what you have seen with your father."
Again, Christ lays it on the religious leaders. Christ
states that He was taught while He was seen with His Father, but he also
accuses them of being taught by their father, HaSatan, the adversary.
Let's pick it up in verse 42.
John 8:42-47 (NKJV) Jesus said to them, "If God were
your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and came from God;
nor have I come of Myself, but He sent Me. {43} "Why do you not
understand My speech? Because you are not able to listen to My word.
{44} "You are of <your> father the devil, and the desires of your
father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and <does
not> stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he
speaks a lie, he speaks from his own <resources>, for he is a liar and
the father of it. {45} "But because I tell the truth, you do not believe
Me. {46} "Which of you convicts Me of sin? And if I tell the truth, why
do you not believe Me? {47} "He who is of God hears God's words;
therefore you do not hear, because you are not of God."
We know that Christ was with God the Father before He was
sent to live as a man. What was His position at that time? I don't
think anyone knows. He was certainly part of the Host. I think we can be
sure of that. But in what capacity? What were His duties? We could ask the
same question about the 24 Elders. Are they advisors to God the Father and
Jesus Christ? Where do they fit in the organization? I personally picture
Christ's role as similar to what we today would call an Executive
Assistant or Chief of Staff. But I don't really know.
Now let's look at some scriptures which describe the
saints as sons of God.
John 1:12-13 (NKJV) But as many as received Him,
to them He gave the right to become children of God, to
those who believe in His name: {13} who were born, not of
blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of
God.
How are the saints born of God? Because God called them,
they responded to God's call as we just read, and He gave them His Holy
Spirit so they would be motivated to obey Him.
Rom 8:14-23 (NKJV) For as many as are led by the
Spirit of God, these are sons of God. {15} For you did not receive
the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of
adoption by whom we cry out, "Abba, Father." {16} The Spirit Himself
bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, {17} and
if children, then heirs; heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ,
if indeed we suffer with <Him>, that we may also be glorified together.
{18} For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not
worthy <to be compared> with the glory which shall be revealed in us.
{19} For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the
revealing of the sons of God. [The physical creation is waiting for us.]
{20} For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but
because of Him who subjected <it> in hope; {21} because the creation
itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the
glorious liberty of the children of God. {22} For we know that the whole
creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now. {23} Not
only <that>, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we
ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the
redemption of our body.
These verses describe it perfectly, don't they? They also
tie into the coming convulsions of the earth as described in the book of
Revelation. Let's read a few more.
Phil 2:14-16 (NKJV) Do all things without complaining
and disputing, {15} that you may become blameless and harmless,
children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse
generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, {16}
holding fast the word of life, so that I may rejoice in the day of
Christ that I have not run in vain or labored in vain.
1 John 4:10-15 (NKJV) In this is love, not that we loved
God, but that He loved us and sent His Son <to be> the
propitiation for our sins. {11} Beloved, if God so loved us, we also
ought to love one another. {12} No one has seen God at any time. If we
love one another, God abides in us, and His love has been perfected in
us. {13} By this we know that we abide in Him, and He in us, because He
has given us of His Spirit. {14} And we have seen and testify that the
Father has sent the Son <as> Savior of the world. {15} Whoever
confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in
God.
1 John 5:1-5 (NKJV) Whoever believes that Jesus is the
Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves Him who begot also loves
him who is begotten of Him. {2} By this we know that we love the
children of God, when we love God and keep His commandments. {3} For
this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His
commandments are not burdensome. {4} For whatever is born of God
overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the
world; our faith [trust]. {5} Who is he who overcomes the world, but he
who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?
But the born again sons of God must be spirit. To be born
again we must be resurrected from death just as Christ was. Before the
first death we are only fetuses waiting to be born, but born into being a
brother of Christ and spiritual Son of God.
In conclusion, let's reconsider the main points we have
covered.
1. Pre-crucifixion references to the sons of God include
all the heavenly host; all the angels.
2. Old and New Testament references to the singular Son
of God refer to Christ.
3. Post-crucifixion references to the Sons of God refer
to the resurrected saints; the people God has chosen to be His Sons.
The Feast of Tabernacles which we are here celebrating
pictures the Kingdom of God when His resurrected Saints will be the Sons
of God.
This sermon has only scratched the surface. The scriptures
we have covered today and many others contain all kinds of meaning we need
to meditate on and apply. I hope you are motivated to do just that.