In
the epistle to the Hebrews it is written about the angels of God: “Are not
all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit
salvation?” (Hebrews |
The
angels of God are sent by God to His children to foretell them some events
(the birth of someone, the death of someone, a war, a famine, etc.). For
example, the angel Gabriel was sent by God to Zechariah to foretell him the
birth of John the Baptist (Luke 1:11-20); and in the six month that same
angel was sent to Mary, a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, to
foretell her the birth of Jesus Christ, the Son of God (Luke 1:26-38). God
sent an angel to John to show him many things that are still to come (Read
the Book of Revelation). Sometimes God sends His angels to give His servants
some special orders, as in the case of the evangelist Philip, as it is
written: “Now an angel of the Lord spoke to Philip, saying: Arise and go
toward the south along the road which goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza. This
is desert” (Acts |
Some
other times, God sends His angels to comfort and strengthen, as in the case
of His Son, while He was in the Gethsemane, as it is written: “And there
appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him” (Luke 22:43), or
in the case of the apostle Paul, while he was on the ship, as it is written:
“But after long abstinence from food, then Paul stood in the midst of them
and said: Men, you should have listened to me, and not have sailed from |
God
sends His angels to protect His children and deliver them from peril and evil,
as it is written: “The angel of the LORD encampeth round about them that fear
him, and delivereth them” (Psalm 34:7 – The IBDV reads ‘gli angeli del Signore,
that is, ‘the angels of the Lord”), and again: “Because thou hast made the
LORD, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation; There shall no
evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. For he
shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways” (Psalm
91:9-11). In the book of Acts we have two examples of how God delivered some
of His children through His angels. The first is that of the apostles of the
Lord, as it is written: “Then the high priest rose up, and all they that were
with him, (which is the sect of the Sadducees,) and were filled with
indignation, And laid their hands on the apostles, and put them in the common
prison. But the [an] angel of the Lord by night opened the prison doors, and brought
them forth, and said, Go, stand and speak in the temple to the people all the
words of this life. And when they heard that, they entered into the temple
early in the morning, and taught” (Acts |
The
angels of God will accompany Jesus Christ when He comes in glory, (Matthew
25:31), and He will send them with a great sound of a trumpet to gather
together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other (Matthew
24:31). |
The
angels of God are sent also to lead unbelievers to salvation, which is in
Jesus Christ. In the Scripture we find the example of Cornelius, to whom God
sent an angel to tell him to send men to Joppa and call for Simon Peter, who,
when he had come into Cornelius’ house, told him words by which Cornelius and
all his household were saved (Acts 10:1-6; 11:13-14). And last but not least,
the angels of God are sent by God to execute His judgements on the wicked.
For instance, we read the following story in the book of the Acts of the
apostles: “And Herod was highly displeased with them of Tyre and Sidon: but
they came with one accord to him, and, having made Blastus the king's
chamberlain their friend, desired peace; because their country was nourished
by the king's country. And upon a set day Herod, arrayed in royal apparel,
sat upon his throne, and made an oration unto them. And the people gave a
shout, saying, It is the voice of a god, and not of a man. And immediately the
[an] angel of the Lord smote him, because he gave not God the glory: and he
was eaten of worms, and gave up the ghost” (Acts |