God Uses Both Christians and Angels to Accomplish His Plan
In my last post, I went over three of the seven ways Christians and angels are similar. Let’s go over the final four now.
1. Both are Called to Obey and Enact Christ’s Word (that is, the Logos of God)
David tells us about angels in Psalm 103: “Praise the LORD, you his angels, you mighty ones who do his bidding, who obey his word” (Ps 103:20).
John tells us what Jesus said about us: Jesus replied, “Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching [Greek: logos: i.e., word]. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them” (Jn 14:23).
The Holy Spirit enables us to do, or possess, at least six things: (1) Our Speech: “For the one whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives the Spirit without limit” (Jn 3:34). So, the Holy Spirit allows our speech to be in alignment with God’s Word; (2) Our Authority: “And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus” (Ep 2:6). Therefore, we have authority given us though the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in us as we yield to his control; (3) His word to not return void: “It [my word] will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it” (Is 55:11). Therefore, if we speak God’s words, they will also not return void; (4) His word to not fail: “For no word from God will ever fail” (Lk 1:37). So, if we speak his words, they also will not fail; (5) Us to remember His words: “But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you” (Jn 14:26). We can rely on the Holy Spirit to bring to our minds God’s words appropriate for whatever occasion we need them, as long as we have stored them in our minds; and (6) Us to have the mind of Christ: The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things, but such a person is not subject to merely human judgments, for, “Who has known the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ” (1Co 2:16). Therefore, the Holy Spirit will help us to think like Christ does.
Scripture (words of God) impacts both us and angels. When we pray Scripture, we are giving voice to God’s Word causing angels to respond. Angels will serve us: “Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?” (Hb 1:14). Therefore, they minister for us because they obey God’s word. If we have the mind of Christ, then we will be praying his words which will be effective and enable angels to act on our behalf. This does not mean we are praying to angels, but we are aligning our thoughts and desires with those of God. And angels act on God’s words. The Holy Spirit allows us to do this. It is amazing how the Trinity works in concert in our lives.
We influence angels according to Scripture because angels observe us. Paul tells us, “. . . We have been made a spectacle to the whole universe, to angels as well as to human beings” (1Co 4:9). We should therefore be conscious of our actions because not only are others looking at us but so are the angels. Are we teaching the right things to those who observe us?
We help angels understand salvation. Peter tells us, “Concerning this salvation . . . Even angels long to look into these things” (1Pt 1:10-12). Salvation is an awe and mysterious thing to angels. We should not take it for granted for, indeed, it is awesome and a mystery. While the angels had a choice to make, they did not have multiple opportunities as we do or have their status change by choosing Christ over Satan as has been done for us. We are now joint heirs with Christ. That is not true for angels.
What can praying scripture do for us? It aligns our thoughts and will with that of God. We cannot be effective if we are not in his will. It gives us confidence in our prayers because they are aligned with the word of God. Only his word is powerful and effective; ours is only if they repeat back to him his words or our words are spoken according to his will. It increases our faith because God cannot go back on his word so we can pray with confidence in his response. His words will not return to him void.
God’s word is powerful. Scripture tells us: “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart” (Hb 4:12). His word changes us inside and out. Scripture also tells us: Praise the LORD, you his angels, you mighty ones who do his bidding, who obey his word (Ps 103:20). His word sends angels into action.
2. Both are to Fight Against Evil
Paul tells us in Ephesians: “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” (Ep 6:12). We often forget this and make our struggle with other individuals forgetting the dark forces which are manipulating many human beings. We need to focus on the spiritual. God’s angels also fight these dark forces. Scripture tells us that Michael the archangel helped to defeat a principality of Persia so another angel could get a message to Daniel (Dn 10:13); Michael will defeat Satan in the end (Rv 12:7-8).
Angels fight for us and with us. We have examples in Scripture of this to encourage and strengthen us. In one example, the king of Aram, a country in Mesopotamia where the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers are located, which is today’s Iraq, went to capture the prophet Elisha because he was telling the King of Israel how to evade the Aramean army. The king of Aram thought he had a spy in his army but was told the prophet Elisha was telling the King of Israel his own battle plans. He therefore sent his army to the city of Dothan in Samaria where Elisha was staying so he could capture him and thereby prevent him from speaking further to the king of Israel.
We find what happened in 2 Kings chapter 6: “When the servant of the man of God got up and went out early the next morning, an army with horses and chariots [of Aram] had surrounded the city. ‘Oh no, my lord! What shall we do?’ the servant asked. ‘Don’t be afraid,’ the prophet answered. ‘Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.’ And Elisha prayed, ‘Open his eyes, LORD, so that he may see.’ Then the LORD opened the servant's eyes, and he looked and saw the hill full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha” (2Ki 6: 15-17). God had his angels to protect Elisha with an entire angelic army and in greater number than the king of Aram could muster in the physical.
Angels fight other angels of Satan. An angel fought a demon to get an answer to Daniel concerning his prayer (Dn 10:12-14). Angels fight against human foes as well. A large host of angels came with God to Mt. Sinai (Dt 33:2) and provided protection to Israel (Ps 68:7, 17). As we just mentioned, an angel army surrounded Elisha when the Arameans came to take him (2Ki 6:17). Jesus had access to more than twelve legions of angels at his beck and call (Mt 26:53). We would likely be surprised at what we would see if we could visualize what is going on around us in the spiritual realm.
3. Both Have Abilities to Fight and Serve
Not all angels are of the same rank and purpose, and, therefore, have different missions in how they follow and obey God’s purpose, whether it is to deliver messages, protect, or to fight against the enemy. Christians are given different gifts of service and ministry for fighting spiritual battles as well. All Christians have access to the armor of God (Ep 6).
Angels do God’s bidding on our behalf. There are many examples in Scripture of this as well: Angels visited Lot and his family in Sodom to keep his promise to Abraham (Gn 19:1); an angel helped Eliezer, Abraham’s servant, obtain a wife for Isaac (Gn 24:40); an angel guarded the children of Israel along their way (Ex 23:20); an angel kept Daniel safe from the lions (Dn 6:22); an angel fought a demon to get a message from God to Daniel (Dn 10:13); an angel rolled the stone away from Christ’s tomb (Mt 28:2-7); an angel opened the gates of the prison for Peter to escape (Ac 5:19); and an angel caused Herod Agrippa to be struck with a sickness causing him to die quickly (Ac 12:23).
We are also equipped to do God’s bidding. God has given us both defensive and offensive weapons (Ep 6): the belt of truth holds the armor together understanding that Jesus Christ and his words are the only truth in this world; our minds are protected with the helmet of salvation as the knowledge about our present and our future is based upon what Christ did for us on the cross; we have the breastplate of righteousness which we have only because of Christ’s blood which he shed for us. God who is above any and all declares us righteous. Anyone who says otherwise are in error to the One True God. We have the shield of faith which is strong enough to defend anything the enemy sends our way because we are solid in our belief in what Christ has done for us. And we have the Sword of the Spirit; the Word of God; which wields only truth and is sharper than any two-edged sword which penetrates to the very essence of one’s thoughts and world perspective to deliver that truth. All of this is accomplished through the footwear which delivers the Gospel of Peace beyond all comprehension to all those who we come in contact with: both friend and foe alike. All of this makes us truly powerful in our spiritual battles with the enemy.
4. Both Encourage Each Other
We are told in Psalms: “For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways” (Ps 91:11). While this is also a prophetic psalm about Christ, the psalmist is also stating what is true about his followers.
The psalmist also tells us: “The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them” (Ps 34:7).
Peter tells us: “Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when he predicted the sufferings of the Messiah and the glories that would follow. It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you, when they spoke of the things that have now been told you by those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Even angels long to look into these things” (1Pt 1:10-12).
We need to be more mindful of our actions because the spiritual realm is listening, watching, and being taught by us. Next time, we’ll look at some cautions we need to consider as we partner with angels to follow God’s commands.
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Visit Books & Words to Inspire by Randy C. Dockens