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UFOs, Aliens and God’s Word (Part 2)

  Last week, we acknowledged that most Unidentified Flying Objects (UFOs)/Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UAP) are explainable, 95-98% of them. We also thought through what the Bible tells us about the universe. I ended by giving you a passage to answer this question: Has God created intelligent, powerful, non-human life (descriptors often thought of with regard to aliens)? Here’s the passage, “The Lord has established his throne in the heavens, and his kingdom rules over all. Bless the Lord, O you his angels, you mighty ones who do his word, obeying the voice of his word! Bless the Lord, all his hosts, his ministers, who do his will!” (Psalm 103:19-21) Yes, God has created such life, and we call those beings angels!

  Angels (and their evil counterparts, demons) are spiritual beings created during the six days of creation. They were made to serve God. However, many of them rebelled against God, led by Satan, himself a fallen angel. So now there remain good and evil angels, and they align with many of the characteristics of UAP throughout history.

  Angels and demons can be visible or invisible. They can take different forms and aren’t limited by space or the laws of physics as we are. Therefore, they can appear to move in ways that would be impossible for a human (because of g-forces). They can also exert influence on people (while most cases of ��lien abduction” can be attributed to sleep paralysis, some compelling accounts of encounters with alien beings involve communication or influence).

  Let’s also look at the encounters in Scripture which most resemble UFOs/UAP. Ezekiel witnesses a vision, described in Ezekiel 1, which describes objects and creatures we might consider alien-like. The chapter moves into a clearer description of angels (wings, etc., like Isaiah 6), and then focuses on God’s throne. The implication is that this vision is all about illustrating the glory of God’s revealed word coming to Ezekiel. But if you look up artistic renderings of that vision and show them to an unbeliever, they’ll likely say it looks like UFOs.

  Angels also cause unease, confusion, and fear when they encounter people. Even when good angels come to deliver a message, their first words are, "Do not be afraid.” Some Christians over the years have believed the star that led the magi to Bethlehem was an angel (note how it identified the house where Jesus was, Matthew 2:9-11). Angels and demons focus their attention on humans, in keeping with the fact that UFO sightings happen near humans and not in our observations of outer space. If UFOs are intelligent life from elsewhere in the universe, why don’t we see them coming or going?

  Those genuinely unidentified aerial phenomena are less likely to be entities from other planets as beings from another realm. Like the ancients who witnessed UAP, we should see them as spiritual forces. Ephesians 6:12 takes on a new light, “We do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.”

  As interesting as UAP may be, however, our focus should remain with Christ. God doesn’t delve into all the mysteries of the angels and demons in Scripture. He lays out much more clearly our fallen human condition and his merciful work in Christ to redeem, justify, and someday glorify us. He doesn’t tell us to seek out aliens in space, but to look after the resident alien, the fatherless, and the oppressed in our midst (Jeremiah 22:3). As we remember the 9/11 terrorist attacks—with all the sacrifice, bravery, and heroism that occurred—we might choose not to remember the paranoia, racism, and discrimination that cropped up afterward. We don’t need to spend our time fretting over the potential of an alien invasion from outer space. We have enough to do to overcome the conflicts we have with the humans who may seem alien to us.

  So view the works of angels and demons, or signs in the sky, as signs of the spiritual world, signs that this creation will come to an end, and signs that we need God’s help and mercy continually. Keep this focus so that we would receive with joy the one aerial phenomenon that will not be unidentified by anyone: our returning Lord, descending from the clouds, ready to raise our bodies and bring us into the new heavens and new earth with him.