“Are they not all ministering spirits sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation?” (Heb 1:14)

I was shocked the other day when that “still, small voice” asked me if I was a Sadducee. Remember them? They were the typical wealthy, aristocratic religious community who claimed to believe in God but did not believe in the spirit world or the supernatural. Please take note – there is a danger of explaining away the truth of God’s Word because of its being abused by extremists at either end.

One of the ignored benefits of being a child of God is knowing that our Father assigns His angels to minister for us. These angels are quite powerful. In the reign of King Hezekiah of Judah, the angel of the Lord slew 185,000 Assyrians in one night! Mark 1:13 tells us that while Jesus was there in the wilderness, angels ministered unto Him. If Jesus, as Son of Man, was assisted in some way by angels, how much more do we need and should welcome their help?

Angels will participate in the harvest. Angels will accompany Jesus at His second coming. Are you feeling a bit insecure today? Let me ask you a question: Do you fear the Lord? If you replied yes, turn to Psalm 34:7 and hold on to that promise of angelic protection.

Psalm 103:20 tells us that God’s angels obey His words. They, or at least one of them, was sent to shut the lions’ mouths when Daniel was in the den. We see the prophet Zechariah having an interesting conversation with an angel in Zechariah 1:7-21. I wonder how many we’ve entertained unaware.

Did you know that some angels have a ‘prison ministry’? See Acts 5:19 and 12:7. Since people are not to take the glory or credit that God alone deserves, He sometimes uses ‘smiting angels’. As powerful as angelic beings are, they can’t separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus, our Lord.

The Word cautions us about deceptive angelic preaching (Gal 1:8) which promotes Satan’s ‘light show’ (2 Cor 11:14). To worship angels is forbidden. Since angels are commanded by the Father to worship Jesus, the Jehovah Witness doctrine of Jesus being Michael the Archangel is untrue. Yes, the Lord will descend with the voice of the archangel because the angels will accompany Him when He returns. God’s angels watch over us, and they are “an innumerable company” subject to Jesus.

However, there are evil angels headed by Lucifer, for apparently a third of all angels fell with him. While some are chained until judgment, others are still “on the loose”, necessitating spiritual warfare. We must be careful when dealing with these beings, but we need never doubt the outcome.

In glory, angels declare the Lamb is worthy. One can hardly turn a page in the Book of Revelation without noticing angelic activity during the Great Tribulation. For one thing, angels will preach during the tribulation. But guess who wins the ‘battle of the angels’ at the end of the age?

Some hold that each church has an angel and use Revelation 1:20 as the proof text. I don’t mind having them around one bit! Angels are not beings of the past. They still exist today, unless of course you’re a Sadducee.