Today I will continue my current series entitled, REASONS WHY NOT TO FEAR! Reason #11: Angelic Protection! This is actually a huge reason for me. I will make it personal in the end. Let’s get into it.
So what does this mean for you today? A few things.
1. Angels are assigned to help you.
(Hebrews 1:13,14 New King James Version)
14 Are they not all ministering spirits sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation?
(Hebrews 1:13, 14 Easy to Read Version)
14 All the angels are spirits who serve God and are sent to help those who will receive salvation.
(Psalm 103:20 New International Version)
Praise the LORD, you his angels, you mighty ones who do his bidding, who obey his word.
Another translation reads, “Angels obey the voice of His Word.”
a) Angels are real. Their activity is documented throughout the Bible.
b) Angels do the Lord’s and on many occasions, they did so at the behest of God’s people.
c) The writer of Hebrews tells us that angels are spirits who serve God and they are assigned to “help” us. The King James Version says that they “minister for” us.
d) Jesus believed in angels and their power to protect us, as humans. While he was being arrested, He said, “Do you think I cannot call on my Father, and he will at once put at my disposal more than twelve legions of angels?” (Matthew 26:53). In Biblical times, a legion was a unit of between 4,000-6,000 soldiers. Jesus was saying, “Listen, I am letting you do this. I am not afraid of you or your power. I have real power at my disposal. I can ask my Father and He will send more than 50,000 angels to protect me.” There is documented evidence in scripture as to what ONE angel can do, much less 12 legions of them. The point is that Jesus was not afraid, because He believed in angelic protection.
d) In Psalm 103, David tells us that angels obey the voice of God’s Word. This means that angels clearly obey God. But I also believe — based on what David said and what the writer of Hebrews said — that angels obey us when we openly declare either what God has decreed in His Word, or what God is saying over us. Basically, when we say what God has said, we are giving God’s Word a VOICE and angels have to obey God’s Word, whether it comes directly from God or it comes from us. This is why your words are so important. Not only is God watching over His Word to perform it (Jeremiah 1:12), but angels are as well.
e) As I close this point, I want you to consider whether or not you truly believe in angels and their power to protect. You should. The Biblical evidence is strong. If you do, your confidence in angelic protection will help you resist the power of fear. Open up your mouth. Declare the Word of the Lord. Put your angels to work. Command them to shield and protect you, your children, and your children’s children every day! They will minister FOR you!
2. You have more angels than enemies.
In 2 Kings 6, we find an awesome story. I will summarize it. The King of Aram wanted to overtake Israel. Every time he and his military commanders came up with a plan as to how he was going to attack the Israelites, God revealed the scheme to the prophet Elisha. Elisha, in turn, revealed the plans to the King of Israel and they were ready for the enemy every time. It was obvious to the King of Aram that the Israelites knew what he was going to do before he did it, so he assumed he had a traitor in the camp. When he questioned his officers about it they said, “Lord, none of us are spies, but Elisha, the prophet who is in Israel, tells the King of Israel the very words you speak in your bedroom.” (Side note: this is why revelation is better than education. You can receive insight from God that will exceed anything you could ever learn in this world or develop through your intellect).
This made the King of Aram even more upset. So he sent an army with horses and chariots to kill Elisha the prophet. Of course, God would not allow Elisha to be caught off guard. The prophet knew the attack was coming and God has reassured him of his protection, because of angels. God made it clear to the prophet that he had angelic protection. So the man of God was not concerned AT ALL.
The next morning Elisha’s servant got up and he went outside. When he did, he looked up saw that they were surrounded by a great army. He ran inside and said, “Oh no, my lord! What shall we do?” This is when Elisha said one of the greatest lines in the Bible. He said, “Don’t be afraid, for they that be with us are more than they that be with them.” The servant could not understand what Elisha was saying. He did not have the same revelation as the prophet. So Elisha prayed for God to open the eyes of his servant. God did. This time when the servant went outside, he was able to see that they were surrounded by divine horses and chariots of fire.
Here are a few quick points you can glean from this:
a) You have angelic protection. You may not see them. You may not always feel their presence. But rest assured, don’t be afraid, they that be with us are more than they that be with THEM! You have nothing to fear!
b) When you are spiritually aware of the angelic protection God has provided, fear has no power over you. While Elisha’s servant was “freaking out”, like many are today, Elisha was completely at peace. This is a reminder that you can be at peace in the middle of chaos, when you know God is your protection and His angels are ‘round about you.
c) God can give you insight that will prepare you against any attack and actually enable you to thrive while others are failing. The methods the King of Aram was trying against Israel had worked before, against other adversaries. But they were not working against Israel, because God kept giving Israel the insight required to thwart every attack. The point I am making is that in this season, while the world’s norms are changing, and people are full of fear and uncertainty, it is an opportunity for the church to thrive and shine. God can give you insight and wisdom, in this season, that will cause you to stand out as a person of influence. God can give you ideas that will help your business or job prosper, while others are failing. God can shine His light on you and favor you to the point where you have more influence today than ever have had in the past because you are seemingly thriving while others are in despair. This is not a time for believers to shrink or pull back. This is our time to shine. This is a time for the church to rise up. This is a time for you to operate in divine confidence. God is with you. His angels are around you. Make sure you act like it! If you do, the world will be drawn to you, your influence will increase in this season, and God will be glorified through you.
3. You have an angelic hedge of protection.
(Psalm 34:7 New International Version)
The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them.
In this last point, I will make it personal. One of the greatest things the Lord did for me when I first gave my life to Him, was an episode I had with God where He talked to me about angelic protection. God literally took me back over my life and He pointed out the many times He protected me with angels.
I grew up in East New York, Brooklyn. ENY in the 1970s and 1980s was “the murder capital of the murder capital” of the United States. Growin up there I had been shot at a few times, once even with a sawed-off shotgun. When I was 11 years old, I had a .357 magnum placed to my head. I have had knives placed at my throat. And many times, as a kid, I did stupid things that placed me in unnecessary danger, and every time, I somehow came out of it unscathed. I thought I was “lucky”. While living in the Dominican Republic, things like this happened so many times to me that my friends called me, “El Santo”, or “The Saint”. I always had a sense that God was somehow protecting me for my purpose, but I was not sure. The day I am talking about, which happened back in 1995, God showed me how incident after incident, when I thought I was “lucky”, it was actually His angels who protected me.
As a side note, let me mention the importance of prayer. While it is true that God was protecting me for my purpose, even before I knew Him personally and intimately, God made it clear that my mother and my grandmother had prayed for me. God even shared with me that my paternal grandmother (who had died by this point) had prayed prayers that were still being answered, even though she was dead. Her prayers outlived her.
In Psalm 34:7 David tells us that God’s angels literally encamp around those who fear Him. I’m a witness. It is as though God’s angels are pulling guard-duty to ensure we are protected. Most people only quote that part of the verse. The latter part of the verse tells us why they do it. It is “to deliver us.” Angels are here to shield and protect us from harm.
I don’t know of the countless times where angels have protected me without my knowledge. It could have been a driver that wasn’t looking that barely missed me, or a piece of equipment that God kept operational long enough for it not to put me in danger, or… the list could go on. I believe in angelic protection. I am convinced of it. God shielded me before I was saved, and many times since. My confidence in angelic protection enabled me to sleep on helicopter flights all over Iraq, even in the early years, when things were truly dangerous. When you truly believe angels are around you, you enter into God’s rest and you are at peace. This is a critical time for you to remind yourself of God’s angelic protection.
Declaration of Faith:
Father, You are my shield. You are my strength. You are my rock. You are my place of safety. I am not afraid of the dangers that lurk in this world. Your faithfulness is around me like a city wall. You give, and I give, Your angels charge over me, to keep me everywhere I go. Your angels are encamped around me. They pull guard duty around me and my family to keep us safe from all harm and to deliver us from every attack of the enemy. I have no need to fear. Listen to me now angels, who excel in strength, I align my lips with God’s will. I declare what God has already decreed over me. I declare that You protect me, me children, and my children’s children, today and every day! I declare this by faith! In Jesus’ name. Amen!
This is Today’s Word. Apply it and prosper!
