The Psalms are the word of Christ

[aron]

Originally Posted by OBW

Was "angel" meant to indicate spiritual being as we think of an angel, or was it "messenger" as some translations have rendered it? Whoever it was written to would need to be in true communication with at least the living humans in leadership, if not the whole assembly. Otherwise, it is like writing a stack of letters but never actually sending them.

As you've said, there are probably no absolute answers available. All I can do is make available my thinking.

First, as I mentioned, there is the direct speaking to spiritual entities behind the human person in question, amply documented in the Gospels and in the Acts. Of course writing to sprititual entities is another order entirely. I admit that.

Secondly, angels are not necessarily merely to be seen as empty messengers; rather, they seem to have power to act. Consider the angel who rebuked Zecharias for his unbelief, and said that he'd be blind for a time. The angel didn't run back to God for further orders when Zecharias was noncompliant. The angel spoke, and it was done.

Thirdly, I was referencing intertestamental rabbinical commentaries on the Book of Daniel, which posited that an angel watches over each geographical area (i.e. "the prince of Persia"). There are thus perhaps not only personal angels (cf Peter's angel in Acts 12:15; Jesus' "their angels see God's face" in Matt. 18:10) but also what we might call "geographic angels" as well.

I tend to think that since the instructions were to the actual practices of the people it has to be to someone with flesh and bones in the assembly. And since it was John who was instructed to write the words and include it as part of a longer letter to instruct living people in things that were/are to take place, then assuming that it is really to no one in particular, but rather to a non-tangible being makes its purpose truly vague. Why are you telling an entirely spiritual being that they need to "overcome"? Those words are for us, whether the direct words were intended to be to leadership or to the whole assembly. Until it reaches the church, it is pointless.

My thought is that "non-tangible beings", not people, are controlling events. For example, Witness Lee is gone, but his "controlling vision" seems to be doing fine in Anaheim, and elsewhere. And since this controlling vision is not from God, we can and should rebuke it. And given that Jesus said, "Speak to the mountain and it will be cast into the sea", maybe here John is perhaps speaking to the angel of the assembly in Ephesus.

And if we presume that the inclusion within the letter that we call "Revelation" is how the humans were to discover the content of the seven short letters, then I am unable to decipher the purpose of sending the "original" to a spiritual being who was not party to any of the actions in progress or the corrections needed.

These letters were sent to real people, and were likely read aloud to other people, in the assemblies in question. Remember that illiteracy was large, and printing was nearly non-existant. So it was usually orally disseminated to the congregation. But who heard - only people? Or people and the forces behind them? Remember that Jesus would tell the spiritual entities to "Come out of that person" and the humans heard His voice as well. I would therefore say that in the Asian assemblies physical people were hearing "non-tangible beings" being rebuked. So both parties are being served notice: angels and humans.

Some rotten teachings had come to roost in the seven assemblies in Asia, and God, through John, was addressing them, out loud and in public: "Repent." As I was telling ZNP, the rotten teachings of Lee were due not to Lee being a rotten person but to spiritual forces which were using Lee. Lee's control issues over the local churches were indications that some dark spiritual forces had controlled him. And Lee's teachings in turn became vectors to capture even more people. Lee was a pawn of dark forces.

All of which might have little or nothing to do with the angels of the assemblies in Asia. Importantly, nowhere else in the Word do I see angels themselves being told to repent. So my position may be untenable.