By Nathaniel Burson
This is part 11 of a series; The Selves is part 1.
Can a demon repent?
And if so, can God forgive it?
And if He can forgive it, is there some promise of salvation waiting for it?
And if salvation, then is it possible for them to be heirs, like us, of the family of God?
Everyone in the world would confidently answer “no” to all these questions. But why? Why can’t any of these things be true?
Think about this; God is love. God is merciful. God is not willing that any should perish, but wants ALL to come to repentance… so why wouldn’t God save devils?
Some might say “well, God would, but a devil would never repent – they’re set in their evil ways.” But like I always say… how do you know?? And if evil spirits are so hopelessly, incorrigibly wicked… why did Jesus bother to preach to them in the time of the Flood?? (1 Peter 3:18-20)
I was raised like you were, to believe that angels were sinless and devils couldn’t repent. That they were what they were, good or evil, and they couldn’t change. But we know that the demons were once righteous angels (Ezekiel 28:15).
Which means they already changed their character once… why couldn’t it change back??
THE SALVATION OF ANGELS
All this reasoning sounds fine, as far as it goes – but extraordinary claims demand extraordinary proof. This is a radical departure from what literally every Christian on Earth believes, so that means I owe you more than appeals to reason, you deserve compelling evidence.
So where, you may be asking, is my evidence? Surely, such a major doctrine would be CLEARLY taught in the Bible, right? Yes, you’re absolutely right… it would be… and it is!
Ephesians 1:9-10 (Weymouth) when He made known to us the secret of His will. And this is in harmony with God’s merciful purpose for the government of the world when the times are ripe for it — the purpose which He has cherished in His own mind of restoring the whole creation to find its one Head in Christ; yes, things in Heaven and things on earth, to find their one Head in Him.
Think about what that actually says! Read the words, not the tape you’ve heard when this verse has been read to you in the past. What does it REALLY say??
It says His plan is to restore the WHOLE creation, specifically including the creation in heaven. How can that NOT include angels? Were the angels not created by Jesus? (John 1:3). And so if one sins… why wouldn’t God want to RESTORE it?
This is a secret to pretty much the whole world – but to those who just listen to the Bible, God’s merciful purpose is revealed – He intends to restore that WHOLE CREATION to be a part of ONE BODY, the body of CHRIST! Specifically including those things in HEAVEN which have sinned!
Colossians 1:16, 20 (KJV) For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: … And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile ALL THINGS unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or THINGS IN HEAVEN.
This is extraordinarily clear proof. So clear, in fact, that it’s hard to imagine how anyone has ever not understood this! I mean, how much clearer could he have said it? How SPECIFIC did he need to be? He plainly, repetitively, and explicitly told us that ALL THINGS are to be reconciled BY THE BLOOD OF THE CROSS… things on Earth, AND THINGS IN HEAVEN!
This cannot have any other meaning than the salvation of angels.
He said the blood of Jesus would reconcile to God both visible humans AND invisible angels! (John 3:8). Both men who sit on thrones and the angelic princes who stand behind them! (Daniel 11:1). Everything He created, including men AND angels, can be reconciled by the blood of His cross!
How much clearer could God be? If you still are on the fence about this, just imagine, for a moment, that Paul was trying to say that God intended to save angels. What more could he have said??? What part of the phrase “all things” wasn’t clear?
But we can nail this down even tighter; for one of the specific groups that Paul said would be saved by the blood of Christ was the “principalities”; translated from the Greek word arche; let’s ask Paul himself what he meant by that word, which below is translated as “authorities”…
Ephesians 6:12 (BBE) For our fight is not against flesh and blood, but against authorities [arche] and powers, against the world-rulers of this dark night, against the spirits of evil in the heavens.
And it is these same “authorities and powers,” the spirits of evil in the heavens, that Paul said have hope of salvation through the blood of Christ!
Christ died so that ALL could have an opportunity to be reconciled to Him! Because, of course He would have! If He excluded half of His creation, how could He claim to be a merciful God who desires that ALL should come to repentance!! (2 Peter 3:9).
Why wouldn’t He want the spirits of antichrist to come to repentance as well, if they will only repent and do righteousness? Is God looking forward to killing anyone for their sins? (Ezekiel 18:32). How can that not include angels?
I mean… isn’t that why He spent so much time trying to convince THE chief spirit of antichrist that it was possible to please God? (Job 1-2). Isn’t that why He preached to the evil spirits during the Flood? (1 Peter 3:18-20). Because He hopes they’ll change!
HOPELESS SLAVES
Even as a child, I had a problem with the idea that salvation is for humans alone. Because if that’s true, it means God created angels to be a slave race, bound to an eternal servitude without hope of freedom or self-determination.
The world’s doctrines cast angels as a race of glorified menial laborers with no hope of advancement, a race that lives their entire eternal existence under the threat of death for the slightest sin.
So let me put it to you this way – God is love. So how could God create angels, knowing they could, and therefore at least some would sin… and leave them no path for repentance?
The world believes that the good angels, for their reward, get to keep being servants forever… while any angels that spill God’s antimatter coffee one time burn in hellfire for eternity. Can you imagine living under that kind of pressure?
Why would God, who can do all things, create umpteen million sentient beings and promise them no future besides eternal bondage if they’re lucky enough to avoid hellfire? Everyone in the world believes that He did just that; but the Bible is clear, very, very, clear that He did no such thing.
Remember, even the worst of the devils “believe there is one God, and tremble” (James 2:19). Now David said “My flesh trembles for fear of you. I am afraid of your judgments” (Psalms 119:120). Think about that; the demons fear God.
Now if they – the devils, remember – fear God… well, Solomon said “the fear of the LORD is to hate evil” (Proverbs 8:13). Do the devils, therefore, hate evil? Because the whole point of fear is to encourage us and them to stop being evil!
Proverbs 16:6 (CSB) Iniquity is atoned for by loyalty and faithfulness, and one turns from evil by the fear of the LORD.
Note that this applies just as well to devils as to humans! Because the fear of the Lord – which the devils most definitely have – is the beginning of wisdom!(Psalms 111:10).
Now if someone fears the Lord, doesn’t that mean they serve Him – at least, they try to do so?
Psalms 2:10-11 Now therefore be wise, you kings. Be instructed, you judges of the earth. Serve Yahweh with fear, and rejoice with trembling.
These kings and judges of the Earth are the “principalities and powers” referred to in Colossians and Ephesians as the arche because they are archangels! And here they are instructed to serve the Lord with fear and trembling just as the devils do! Which is why – when they repent – God is merciful to them!
Psalms 103:17 But Yahweh’s loving kindness is from everlasting to everlasting with those who fear him, his righteousness to children’s children;
So the devils believe in God, and FEAR Him. Just like James said! And since they fear, they obey Him; for because of that FEAR, they TRY to do the right thing! And because of that fear, when they eventually learn what the right thing is and repent… God forgives them with the same blood He uses to forgive us when we do the same thing!
IMPURE STARS
If these scriptures apply – and I don’t see how they can not apply – then it casts the demons in a very different light! Not as vile monsters who are trying to hurt mankind, trying to be as evil as possible just to spite God… but as more-or-less confused servants of God who believe they are doing the best they can to obey God!
Angels and demons are not, as popularly portrayed, different “species” of being, one red, one white; they’re all the exact same type of creature, one is simply worse at their job than another (Psalms 78:41, 49). That’s why Satan can appear as a holy angel! He looks just like one because he IS an angel!
Satan was a perfect, holy angel, until the day that he sinned (Ezekiel 28:15) and became an evil angel – literally, a “bad messenger”. But he was, and still is, an angel! The same kind of being as Michael or Gabriel. The difference existed only in his heart and spirit, and was only discernible by his actions!
And of the angels which sinned, not all sinned equally. For Jesus said that a cast-out demon sometimes “goes and gets seven other spirits more evil than himself” (Luke 11:26, BBE). Now if those others are more evil, that would make the first demon less evil, right? And if some demons are less evil, they are automatically more righteous.
Thus not all angels are precisely the same level of evil or righteousness. That’s why Jesus said some demons are harder to cast out than others (Matthew 17:21). Because some are more stubbornly committed to their path than others!
Angels are symbolized in the Bible as stars (Revelation 1:20), and Job 25:4 tells us that “the stars are not pure in his sight” (see also Job 4:17-19). Because even the most righteous angels with the best intentions must make mistakes from time to time; they must fall short of God’s expectations, which is the literal definition of the word “sin.”
SINNING ANGELS
Now before you object vehemently and say “Angels are holy! They’re sinless!!” I want you to think about it for a second! Haven’t ALL sinned, and come short of the glory of God? (Romans 3:23). Why should angels be excluded from that statement?
Haven’t the angels also fallen short of the glory of God? You either believe they’re just as glorious as God… or else they’ve fallen short by sinning! Because otherwise… they’d be worthy to open the book of life! (Revelation 5:2-4).
Revelation 5:2-5 (GWV) I saw a powerful angel calling out in a loud voice, “Who deserves to open the scroll and break the seals on it?” No one in heaven, on earth, or under the earth could open the scroll or look inside it. I cried bitterly because no one was found who deserved to open the scroll or look inside it.
If there were a truly perfect angel, then wouldn’t he also have been worthy to open the seals on the book? Yet no one, not this powerful angel – no one in heaven was worthy, because none was sinless! Which is why an angel complained to Job “God doesn’t trust his own servants, and he accuses his angels of making mistakes” (Job 4:18).
Because angels, ALL angels, can and do make mistakes – they fall short of God’s expectations – they, in other words… sin. And as it happens… we have a detailed record of the sins of the archangels hiding in plain sight!
Revelation 2:1-3 (Philips) “Write this to the >>> ANGEL<<< of the Church in Ephesus… I know what you have done; I know how hard you have worked and what you have endured. I know that you will not tolerate wicked men, … I know your powers of endurance–how you have suffered for the sake of my name and have not grown weary.
People are so sure they know what it means, they can’t see what it says! Which is why I took extra care to call attention to the key word there! See, everyone is sure this was written to a church, but it plainly says that it was written to an angel!!
Why is that so important? Because if they can’t see who it was written to, they can’t hear what he – the ANGEL – was told to do!
Whose works were these? Whose labor? Whose patience? The church’s? A human minister? OR THE ANGEL OF THIS CHURCH? What does it say? Listen to God when He talks!
And this is a GOOD angel, who hates the wicked, who worked hard for God, and suffered for His name! Not a devil, but an angel!
And yet… there’s more to it than that! For if angels cannot sin, do they need to repent? Of course not! So then why does God command the angel of Ephesus… to repent?
Verses 4-5 But I hold this against you, that you do not love as you did at first. Remember then how far you have fallen. Repent and live as you lived at first. Otherwise, if your heart remains unchanged, I shall come to you and remove your lampstand from its place.
Remember: This is not written to a church. It’s written directly to the ANGEL who is over the church! Not a human minister, but to one of the seven stars of God, one of the seven spirits of God, one of the HOLY ANGELS in Jesus’ right hand! (Revelation 1:20)!
And to one of these angels – one of the best of these angels, actually – God says “I know you’ve done a lot of good things… but your works aren’t good enough! You need to REPENT because I have something against even you!
God gives a detailed review of these seven archangels over the next two chapters, and none comes out unscathed – though Philadelphia does well. Some of these seven holy archangels get chewed out properly as God reads them the riot act and makes them feel about “this” tall (Revelation 3:1-3).
Because ALL angels have problems… some are just worse than others. Because even the stars – ALL of the stars, including the brightest of them – are not perfect in His sight – and these two chapters are a LIST of the mistakes those stars have made!
ENEMIES IN YOUR MIND
But why are all the stars imperfect in His sight? Is it because they are inherently evil, rebellious against their Creator? Well, you may consider yourself #goldenruled… for they are imperfect precisely, and I mean precisely, for the reasons YOU are imperfect in His sight!
After Paul said that ALL things, including the invisible heavenly powers, could find salvation through the blood of Christ, he went on to tell us why:
Colossians 1:21-22You, being in past times alienated and enemies in your mind in your evil works, yet now he has reconciled in the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and without blemish and blameless before him,
These beings whom Christ is trying to save – literally every sentient being in the universe outside of the Godhead – Paul calls “enemies in their minds.” And who has the “enemy of God in their mind,” if not those beings whose unruly fractions have led them away from God? (Romans 8:5-7).
Those who are led by the heart, those whose spirit is a servant of the selfish heart – “carnally minded” people who cannot be subjected to the law of God; these are what God must save! Which means those in heaven have the same problem as we do on Earth – a selfish heart and a stubborn spirit!
And with the angels as well as we, though we do bad things, even though some of us and some angels conspired to murder Him, Jesus realized that “they knew not what they did” (1 Corinthians 2:8). And so when they realize their sins, Jesus allows them to join “the body of His flesh through death”, because they “did it ignorantly, in unbelief” (1 Timothy 1:13).
Which is why Jesus must help them reconcile their arrogant spirits and proud hearts by teaching them how to rule their fractions in His house! Just as He does for us! By helping them to “die daily” and “mortify themselves”… which is how they become “holy and unblameable and unreproveable in His sight”! Through a living sacrifice of their own selfish nature! (Romans 12:1-2).
Which means the “holy angels” Jesus spoke of in Mark 8:38 aren’t holy because they have never sinned… rather because they, like us, became holy because they joined the body of His holy flesh through some form of symbolic death just as we must!
BAPTISM OF FIRE
For humans, we join the body of Christ through symbolic death by baptism. That is how we all take part of HIS righteousness: by becoming part of HIS body (Titus 3:5-7). Which, since He is holy… makes us holy, because we become a part of Him! (1 Peter 1:16).
Now think about it… if God can do this for us… why can’t He do it for them? Isn’t Jesus’ sacrifice ample to pay for the sins of all of His creation, not just the humans? (Hebrews 3:3-4). And if so, why wouldn’t He want to do it for them??
This makes sense, because it’s what the God we serve SHOULD have done! Of COURSE He would have taught the gospel to ANYONE who would listen, man or angel alike, and the Bible clearly says He already did!
Colossians 1:23(KJV) …the hope of the gospel, which ye have heard, and which was preached to every creature which is under heaven…
And if EVERY CREATURE under heaven has heard the gospel… how can that not include them? Are not the fallen angels, by definition… creatures UNDER HEAVEN? (2 Peter 2:4). And they’re obviously interested in the gospel!
1 Peter 1:12 (GWV) …made known to you by those who spread the Good News among you. These are things that even the angels want to look into.
So no, the salvation of angels is not a secret. It’s not a fringe doctrine that relies on a few dubious verses. It’s all over the Bible. The claim is shocking, I admit, because of the ignorance of Christians about the Bible; but the proof is extraordinary.
So why does no one know this today? Because you can’t teach someone who already has all the answers!
Christians are so sure they know what angels and demons are, they can’t hear when God says very plainly that all creatures in heaven and Earth have sinned, all creatures in heaven and Earth have heard the gospel, and all creatures in heaven and Earth have access to salvation by the blood of Christ!
Who was the firstborn of every creature, not the firstborn of MAN alone! (Colossians 1:15)
…which is why every creature, visible and invisible, flesh or spirit, angel and demon, can find salvation in the same family!
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