Joined to an Angel
**“He said on that day in the thanksgiving, ‘You who have joined the perfect light with the Holy Spirit, unite the angels with us also, as being the images.’”** — *The Gospel of Philip*
**“So if the image and the angel are united with one another, neither can any venture to go into the man or the woman.”** — *The Gospel of Philip*
The idea that believers are joined to an angelic counterpart has deep roots in both biblical and early Christian mystical traditions. The Gospel of Philip describes this union as a joining of the perfect light with the Holy Spirit. Likewise, Theodotus speaks of baptism as restoring believers to their angelic form, stating that "the angels of whom we are portions were baptized for us." In this understanding, each saint has an angelic companion, a heavenly minister assigned to them, guiding them toward divine restoration.
### **Angels as Ministers to Believers**
The Scriptures affirm that angels are intimately involved in the lives of believers. Hebrews 1:14 describes them as "ministering spirits sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation." Jesus Himself confirms this in Matthew 18:10:
**"Take heed that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that in heaven, their angels always behold the face of My Father who is in heaven."**
This passage suggests that each believer has an angel who intercedes on their behalf before God. The early church also acknowledged this reality. When Peter was miraculously freed from prison and appeared at Mary’s house, the gathered believers initially thought it was not Peter but his angel (Acts 12:14-15). Such an assumption demonstrates their awareness of a close relationship between each person and their angelic counterpart.
Even Jesus had His own angel. Revelation 1:1 states:
**"The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show His servants—things which must shortly take place. And He sent and signified it by His angel to His servant John."**
If Jesus, as the Son of God, had an angel to deliver revelation on His behalf, how much more are His followers given angelic guidance?
### **Uniting with the Angelic Image**
The Gospel of Philip describes a profound mystery:
**“You who have joined the perfect light with the Holy Spirit, unite the angels with us also, as being the images.”**
This statement suggests that believers, as images of God, are to be united with their angelic counterparts. The phrase "image" refers to the divine likeness in which humanity was created (Genesis 1:26-27). When this image is fully restored through knowledge (*gnosis*) and spiritual rebirth, the believer becomes inseparable from their angelic identity.
This idea is reinforced in *The Gospel of Philip*, where the joining of an image and an angel prevents external forces from entering a person:
> “If the image and the angel are united with one another, neither can any venture to go into the man or the woman.”
The believer who attains unity with their angelic counterpart becomes sealed, protected from the influences of the fallen world. This is a transformation not of flesh alone but of spiritual nature—a restoration to the divine image.
Theodotus expands on this idea by explaining that baptism is a means of regaining angelic unity:
**"Through baptism, we are raised up equal to angels and restored to unity with the males, member for member."** (*Excerpts of Theodotus 22:2*)
This means that the spiritual transformation brought about by baptism is not just about cleansing from sin but about realigning with the divine order, where humanity and angels exist in harmony.
### **Marriage to an Angelic Counterpart**
The *Exegesis on the Soul* describes this union in the language of marriage:
**"Then, by the will of the Father, the bridegroom came down to her in the bridal chamber, which had been prepared. And he decorated the chamber... Once they unite with one another, they become a single life."**
This reflects Genesis 2:24:
**"They shall become one flesh."**
Just as marriage unites two into one, the believer is spiritually joined to their angelic counterpart, forming a single life. The idea of an angelic "bridegroom" suggests that the human and the angelic form a unity, just as Christ and the Church are one body.
### **Receiving the Angelic Body**
A key aspect of being joined to an angel is the transformation of the believer’s nature. As Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 15:49:
**"As we have borne the image of the earthly, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly."**
This suggests that believers will receive a new, incorruptible, angelic body. Theodotus further explains that when someone is baptized in the Holy Spirit, they already begin to take on an angelic body even while still in their physical form. This process is completed at the Resurrection, when believers are fully clothed in immortality.
### **The Second Baptism: Redemption in the Name of Yahweh**
Jesus commanded in Matthew 28:19:
**"Baptize them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit."**
While many interpret this as a Trinitarian formula, a closer look reveals that the text speaks of *one name*, not three. This name is **Yahweh**, the divine name meaning "I will be who I will be." Baptism in this name signifies redemption and restoration to divine unity.
The *Excerpts of Theodotus* clarify that this baptism is a second baptism, beyond the initial water baptism:
**"At the laying on of hands they say at the end, ‘for the angelic redemption,’ that is, for the one which the angels also have, in order that the person who has received the redemption may be baptized in the same NAME in which his angel had been baptized before him."**
This shows that baptism is not just about repentance and forgiveness but about reclaiming one’s angelic identity and entering the divine fullness, the Pleroma. Through it, believers receive the power to transcend worldly limitations, as Theodotus explains:
> “Now since we existed in separation, Jesus was baptized that the undivided should be divided until he should unite us with them in the Pleroma, that we ‘the many’ having become ‘one,’ might all be mingled in the One which was divided for our sakes.”
This echoes Paul’s words in Galatians 3:28:
> "There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for you are all one in Christ Jesus."
### **Entering the Pleroma Through Redemption**
The ultimate goal of being joined to an angel is entry into the **Pleroma**, the fullness of divine presence. Theodotus describes this as becoming "equal to angels," echoing Jesus’ words in Luke 20:36:
**"For they cannot die anymore, because they are equal to angels and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection."**
The second baptism marks the believer’s final passage into the Pleroma, the eternal realm of divine truth and presence. The *Gospel of Philip* captures this reality:
> “You who have united perfect light with holy spirit unite the angels also with us, as images.”
This prayer embodies the culmination of divine redemption—uniting believers with their angelic nature as reflections of divine harmony. The journey from earthly existence to divine fullness is completed in the name of Yahweh, through which all things are restored.*
This reveals that Jesus' mission was to restore humanity to divine unity, bridging the gap between heaven and earth.
### **Conclusion**
To be joined to an angel means to be restored to the divine order, where believers are no longer bound to the limitations of the flesh but are united with their angelic counterparts. Through baptism, believers regain the image of God, taking on an incorruptible body and becoming "equal to angels." This is not merely a future hope but a present reality, as the Holy Spirit sanctifies believers and prepares them for the fullness of the Pleroma.
He said on that day in the thanksgiving, "You who have joined the perfect light with the Holy Spirit, unite the angels with us also, as being the images." The Gospel of Philip
So if the image and the angel are united with one another, neither can any venture to go into the man or the woman. The Gospel of Philip
If we look at Hebrews 1:10, we can see that the Angels are our ministers. That is, each saint has his/her own personal angel, which ministers to him/her. This is not merely a fairy story taught to children as the world would have us believe, but it is clear Scriptural teaching. Consider these words of Messiah:
“take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you, that in heaven, their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven” (Mat. 18:10).
The disciples who become as children before their Father have their own angels. We must not despise one of these little ones, for their Angel stands in the presence of God in heaven.
The Lord had his own Angel, spoken of in the book of Revelation:
“The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John (Rev. 1:1).
It is evident that the Apostles believed that they each had an Angel. When Peter was released from prison, he came to Mary’s house, and knocked on the gate. A young damsel “when she knew Peter’s voice, she opened not the gate for gladness, but ran in, and told how Peter stood before the gate.
And they said unto her, Thou art mad. But she constantly affirmed that it was even so. Then said they, it is his Angel” (Acts 12:14-15). Thus, not believing that Peter had been released, in seeking for an explanation, they said “it is his Angel”. Mat. 18:10; 2:13, 19; Psa. 34:7; Heb. 1:14 (Diag.).
He said on that day in the thanksgiving, "You who have joined the perfect light with the Holy Spirit, unite the angels with us also, as being the images."
He said on that day in the thanksgiving, "You who have joined the perfect light [having received the knowledge of the truth i.e. conceived to the son by having “Christ in you”] with the Holy Spirit, unite the angels with us also [the veil is now rent within our hearts and we can see that we are one with “elohim” having the “power to become sons”], as being the images [of our heavenly Father and not of the world “in His image” humans are images of God and of the angels]."
So if the image and the angel are united with one another, neither can any venture to go into the man or the woman.
So if the image [of God i.e. the heart of “man”] and the angel [holy spirit] are united with one another, neither can any venture to go into the man or the woman. (Philip 48) [Hence “What God has yoked together, let no man put asunder”
Excerpts of Theodotus 22 And when the Apostle said, “Else what shall they do who are baptised for the dead?” . . . For, he says, the angels of whom we are portions were baptised for us. But we are dead, who are deadened by this existence, but the males are alive who did not participate in this existence.
“If the dead rise not why, then, are we baptised?” Therefore we are raised up “equal to angels,” and restored to unity with the males, member for member.
Through mystical experience or gnosis, "we are raised equal to angels, restored to the males, member to member, to form a unity" (Excerpts of Theodotus 22:2).
Exegesis on the Soul Then, by the will of the father, the bridegroom came down to her in the bridal chamber, which had been prepared. And he decorated the chamber.
This marriage is not like carnal marriage, in which those who make love with each other become satiated in their lovemaking. And as if it were a burden, they leave behind the annoyance of physical desire. They turn their faces from each other. In this marriage once they join they become a single life. As the prophet said about the first man and woman, They will become a single flesh.
One is said to be joined to an angel just as a bride is joined to her bridegroom so that "once they unite with one another, they become a single life" (Exegesis on the Soul 132: 34-35 cf. Genesis 2:24).
A human being is born again when he is given an angelic body. This can occur without him realising it and whilst he is still in his human body. Or it can occur when he is resurrected from physical death. When a human is baptised in holy spirit, spirit sanctified, becomes a saint, he gains an angelic body.
For every physical body (which is owned by a spirit), there exists a spiritual body, an angelic body, which may or may not yet be owned by that spirit. The point is that said angelic body will already be in existence as soon as the spirit enters into the physical body.
No comments:
Post a Comment