“He shall give His angels charge
over you, to keep you in all your ways” (Psalm 91:11)
The Bible is full of references to amazing and wonderful
creatures that inhabit the realm of the Spirit. Included are angels, beings far
more powerful than humans. The activity of just one of them is recorded in 2
Kings 19:35 and its context: “It came to pass on a certain
night that the angel of the Lord went out, and killed in the camp of the
Assyrians one hundred and eighty-five thousand; and when people arose early in
the morning, there were the corpses – all dead!” The devastation was so
complete that the great Sennacherib, king of Assyria, ended his military
campaign suddenly. It is reported he “departed and went
away, returned home and remained at Ninevah” (2 Kings 19:36). Just ONE
“angel” was so powerful he frightened the mighty Sennacherib into running to his
home.
In the Garden of Gethsemane, when Jesus was about to be
taken captive, one of his disciples (Simon Peter – John 18:10) pulled out a
sword and swung it, cutting off the ear of the servant of the High Priest. The
writer, Matthew, heard Jesus say, “Put your sword in its
place, for all who take the sword will perish by the sword.” Jesus
continued, “Do you think that I cannot now pray to My
Father, and He will provide Me with more than TWELVE legions of angels?”
(Matthew 26:51-53). ONE angel killed 185,000 Assyrians. A typical Roman Legion
consisted of between 6,000 and 12,000 fighting men. If ONE angel could do so
much, think about the “twelve legions” Jesus spoke
about – It’s wonderful to know that beings so powerful are protecting YOU right
this minute.
Angels provide assistance and safety to us, as we can
see in today’s Scripture: “He shall give His angels charge
over you, to keep you in all your ways” (Psalm 91:11). Those angels can
“see” us; otherwise they could not respond to the call of God, to either help or
otherwise intervene for your safety. When your door is closed and you think
you’re alone – you’re not! The angelic realm usually operates through something
like a one-way mirror. They always see us, but God’s will for the most part, is
that we do not see them.
They are “invisible.” That’s hard for us to conceive or
accept, because invisibility is thought to be only in the realm of science
fiction or fantasy. We can write books about invisibility, but we can’t do it,
and what we can’t do is generally thought to be impossible. Since angels are so
seldom seen, many do not believe in them, deciding that, “If you can’t see,
touch, or hear something, it doesn’t exist.” Isn’t that amazing? – we are taught
to not believe in something or someone we cannot see! It is a belief system that
stifles our creativity and it leaves us open to the danger of not believing in
that which is real.
Many have had trouble believing in prophetic sections of
Scripture that have not yet been fulfilled. In Books such as Revelation, whole
cities suddenly go up in smoke (Revelation 18:19), which was thought to be
impossible until World War II, when it was shown that one bomb could destroy an
entire city. The idea that “every eye shall see Him”
(Revelation 1:7) was thought to be ridiculous until the advent of television,
allowing people all over this earth to see the same event simultaneously. And
now invisibility is going from the impossible to the probable, and then to the
likely; all within the next few years.
Here’s a recent Associated Press article, entitled “Future
of Invisibility Becoming Clear”: Scientists are developing “metamaterials…”
(that) can be tuned to bend electromagnetic radiation,
radio waves and visible light for example – in any direction. A cloak made of
those materials, with a structure designed down to the submicroscopic scale,
would neither reflect light nor cast a shadow. Instead, like a river streaming
around a smooth boulder, light and all other forms of electromagnetic radiation
would strike the cloak and simply flow around it, continuing on as if it never
bumped up against an obstacle. That would give an onlooker the apparent ability
to peer right through the cloak, with everything tucked inside concealed from
view. ‘Yes, you could actually make someone invisible as long as someone wears a
cloak made of this material…’ said…
a Northeastern University physicist and design engineer at
Chelton Microwave Corp. in Bolton, Mass.” This isn’t science fantasy
because, as the article states, the technology is just around the corner.
This changes things. No longer can we declare that
something or someone does not exist just because we can’t see it (or him).
People have so often said they don’t believe in GOD because they can’t see Him.
“If only I could see Him, THEN I would believe,” they say. And yet, remember the
historical account of 2000 years ago, when God the Son, DID appear to the people
of this earth, openly and visibly. What was our response? Humanity tolerated Him
for awhile, but as soon as we could, we killed Him. I say “we” because it wasn’t
the Jews, it wasn’t the Romans; it was your sins and mine that put Him on that
cross. God views us individually, but also corporately, and we are not “nice”
like we think we are. We need God’s grace and those “angels” to help us – right
now!
God is invisible to us. Yet He has left us clues, not
only to His existence, but also to His involvement with humanity: “For
since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being
understood by the things that are made…” (Romans 1:20). God is clearly
seen by His creation. The intricate nature of a leaf or a human eye shouts there
is a Creator. “So,” Scripture continues, “they”
(you and me) “are without excuse.” Jesus Christ
that “is the image of the invisible God…” (and) “by
Him all things were created” (Colossians 1:15-16). By reading the
Scriptural accounts about Christ, you are “seeing” all that any of us need to
see in order to believe in God.
Throughout most of history, God, who always sees us,
even our thoughts (Psalm 139:1-4), has chosen to remain invisible to our
inspection, and for good reason: If He was always appearing before us, many
would honor Him falsely, by pretending to worship Him when our hearts are
actually far away. The religious people of Jesus’ day, were like that, demanding
“a sign from heaven” before they would believe and
Jesus refused them (Matthew 16:1-4). He began to explain the hypocrisy of such
people to His disciples, but THEY didn’t get it either, and He said to us all: “O
YE of little FAITH” (Matthew 16:8). God protects us constantly, both
directly and through His holy angels, who “keep you in all
your ways” (Psalm 91:11), and especially we are being kept for the
purpose of creating circumstances in which we will BELIEVE in God through His
Son.
Lord, thank You for Your protection. Thank You that
we don’t have to see in order to believe. We do believe in You, Lord, and we
trust in You right now. Forgive us and save us. Thank You, Lord. We praise Your
Holy Name. In Jesus Name. Amen.
Ron
Beckham, Pastor
Friday Study Ministries
First Church On The Net
www.FridayStudy.org
Ron@FridayStudy.org "While
we were yet sinners, Christ died for us"
(Romans 5:8)
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Donations to this ministry are greatly appreciated
and may be sent to:
Friday Study Ministries
P.O. Box 92131
Long Beach, CA 90809-2131 USA
