We are going to continue our discussion on how angels and people interact with each other in the Bible. Last week we talked about how angels are sent in rescue missions to protect God’s people from harm.

Let’s continue our look at angels and people interacting with each other. 

Angels Bring People Together

Angels do much more than simply protecting people from harm. There are times when angels will bring people together. Why? They will do this because 

1.  The Lord tells them to. 
2. Because bringing the people together will further the kingdom of God. Let’s take a look at a time when the Lord had an angel bring two men together. 

“At Caesarea there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion of what was known as the Italian Cohort, a devout man who feared God with all his household, gave alms generously to the people, and prayed continually to God. About the ninth hour of the day he saw clearly in a vision an angel of God come in and say to him, “Cornelius.”

And he stared at him in terror and said, “What is it, Lord?” And he said to him, “Your prayers and your alms have ascended as a memorial before God. And now send men to Joppa and bring one Simon who is called Peter. He is lodging with one Simon, a tanner, whose house is by the sea.” When the angel who spoke to him had departed, he called two of his servants and a devout soldier from among those who attended him, and having related everything to them, he sent them to Joppa.” Acts‬ ‭10‬:‭1‬-‭8‬ ‭‭(ESV)‬‬‬‬

Cornelius was a man who had power and authority. He was a man who loved God in all the ways he knew how. He was a man of prayer and giving. There was only one problem. Cornelius didn’t know about Jesus. What did the Lord do? He sent an angel to Cornelius in a vision to tell him to send someone to get Peter. Peter was the man chosen to tell Cornelius about Jesus the Savior. 

“The next day, as they were on their journey and approaching the city, Peter went up on the housetop about the sixth hour to pray. And he became hungry and wanted something to eat, but while they were preparing it, he fell into a trance and saw the heavens opened and something like a great sheet descending, being let down by its four corners upon the earth. In it were all kinds of animals and reptiles and birds of the air. And there came a voice to him: “Rise, Peter; kill and eat.” But Peter said, “By no means, Lord; for I have never eaten anything that is common or unclean.” And the voice came to him again a second time, “What God has made clean, do not call common.” This happened three times, and the thing was taken up at once to heaven.

Now while Peter was inwardly perplexed as to what the vision that he had seen might mean, behold, the men who were sent by Cornelius, having made inquiry for Simon’s house, stood at the gate and called out to ask whether Simon who was called Peter was lodging there.” ‭‭Acts‬ ‭10‬:‭9‬-‭18‬ ‭‭(ESV)‬‬

Something Amazing Happens

The Lord was preparing Peter to go tell Cornelius, who was a Gentile, about Jesus. The Lord used the idea of eating unclean food as the way to teach Peter that salvation is for everyone, not just the Jews. Peter was still pondering the meaning of the vision he just saw in the Spirit when the men Cornelius sent came to the door. We are told the men described to Peter the encounter Cornelius had with the angel, and Peter leaves with the men. Peter tells Cornelius and others in the room about Jesus. Then it says something interesting. 

“While Peter was still saying these things, the Holy Spirit fell on all who heard the word.” Acts‬ ‭10‬:‭44‬ ‭‭(ESV)‬‬

Before Peter even finished saying what he came to tell these people, the Holy Spirit fell on all of these Gentiles. They were all saved that day, and Peter understood in that moment that salvation was for the Gentiles AND the Jews. It took an angel sent from the Lord to bring these two men together so that one could become a son of God, and the other could learn that anyone could be a son of God. 

Angels Protected Me as a Child

When I was 12 we moved to a new house. I’m not sure why, but for years after moving there I would be scared that someone would come into my room at night and hurt me. This never ever happened to me. In fact I didn’t have any reason or framework to know what someone coming into my room to hurt me meant. While I didn’t know what that meant, I did know it was bad.

I felt like I was too old to come to my parents and tell them I was afraid of the dark, but I knew God was able to help me. Each night I would pray and ask the Lord to send angels to guard our house from harm. In my mind I would see all these angels that were as tall as our house stand guard. They would stand on the entire perimeter of our house, shoulder to shoulder with spears in hand, ready to fight if needed. I then would feel God’s peace fill my mind and I would go to sleep.  

Again, I didn’t understand what was really happening when I prayed that prayer each night. I didn’t know that what I saw in my mind was actually happening in the spirit. I just knew that I saw the same thing each night, and it allowed me to feel safe and go to sleep. 

Angels Carry Out God’s Judgement

Another job angels can have is to carry out the judgements the Lord decrees upon people. We saw this in the example of Sodom and Gomorrah. Angels were sent to bring Lot and his family out, but they also handed out blindness as part of the judgement for those men who came with lust in their hearts. 

There are many examples of angels handing out judgements in the Bible. Many such examples are found in the book of Revelation. 

Revelation 8 tells of the seven Trumpet Judgements. We are told, 

“Now the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared to blow them.” Revelation‬ ‭8‬:‭6‬ ‭‭(ESV)‬‬‬‬

Then each angel blows its trumpet and a judgement is given to the earth. The judgements range from hail and fire to darkness and pests. The Lord gives each of these angels the command to blow their trumpet at the right time so the judgment will be released upon the earth. 

Other Judgements

Later in Revelation we are told another group of angels are commanded to release their judgements upon the earth and the people. These judgments are even worse than the first set of judgements. However, all of these judgements are meant to bring people to salvation. It’s because of the love of God that he allows these things to happen to the earth and the people living there. It’s his grace that there is anyone or anything left after the judgments are complete. 

 “Then I heard a loud voice from the temple telling the seven angels, “Go and pour out on the earth the seven bowls of the wrath of God.”” ‭‭Revelation‬ ‭16‬:‭1‬ ‭‭(ESV)‬‬

I used to think that the Lord created these awful things to happen to the earth and the people. Now, I have come to think that many if not all of the judgements are actually the consequences of the things people have done to the earth and themselves. Yes, the Lord tells the angels to release each judgement, but maybe it really is more like he’s telling them to stop holding back the consequences of the actions of the people on the earth. “Allow the people to feel the full effects of the choices they have made in caring for the earth and their bodies.” the Lord could be saying. 

Herod Faces Consequences

We see a great example of this reaping the consequences of your choices in the book of Acts. 

“On an appointed day Herod put on his royal robes, took his seat upon the throne, and delivered an oration to them. And the people were shouting, “The voice of a god, and not of a man!” Immediately an angel of the Lord struck him down, because he did not give God the glory, and he was eaten by worms and breathed his last. But the word of God increased and multiplied.” ‭‭Acts‬ ‭12‬:‭21‬-‭24‬ ‭(ESV)‬‬

Herod was so full of pride he allowed people to worship him and proclaim he was the voice of God. God didn’t like this. He disliked it so much so that he sent an angel to kill Herod. People can never replace or even be close to an equal to God. There is one God and you and I are not him! 

Angels Worship the Lord

Angels love to worship the Lord. We see over and over in the Bible that angels are in the throne room worshiping the Lord. In Revelation we see many times where people and angels worship the Lord. 

“After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying, “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen.”” ‭‭Revelation‬ ‭7‬:‭9‬-‭12‬ ‭‭(ESV)‬‬

Can you even begin to imagine what this will be like? People from every tribe, every nationality, every language is there worshiping the Lord. However, these people aren’t alone. There are angels with them worshiping the Lord. What an amazing time this will be! 

We Must Not Worship Angels

One of the most important things we need to remember when talking about angels is this: Angels are created beings just like us. They were created for a purpose just like you. Their desire is to be servants of the Lord. We should never ever worship them or put them on a pedestal. When we do this we are creating an idol. Angels do not want to be our idols. They know there is one God and only he is worthy of worship. Everytime a person bows down to worship an angel in the Bible, the angel tells the human not to do that because they are fellow servants of God. One such example is found in Revelation 19: 

“And the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” And he said to me, “These are the true words of God.” Then I fell down at his feet to worship him, but he said to me, “You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God.” For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.” Revelation‬ ‭19‬:‭9‬-‭10‬ ‭‭(ESV)‬‬‬‬

Furthermore, Paul tells the people in the book of Colossians to, “Let no one disqualify you, insisting on asceticism and worship of angels, going on in detail about visions, puffed up without reason by his sensuous mind,” ‭‭Colossians‬ ‭2‬:‭18‬ ‭(ESV)‬‬‬

People Can Work With Angels

We as people can and should work with the angels to further the kingdom of God. We can and should ask the Lord for direction in working together with his creation to help bring God’s kingdom to the earth, as said by Jesus himself. 

The Lord may direct you to send angels out to gather in people who in bondage. They are called retriever angels. They love to retrieve people from being trafficked and kidnapped. 

The Lord may tell you to send out protector angels to guard the borders of your town from enemy forces coming to destroy the work being done by God there. Maybe there are riots going on in the world and the Lord wants to send out peace angels to calm down the atmosphere in those areas of the world. 

Alternately you may be led to ask the Lord to send connector angels out to connect you with other people who the Lord wants you to partner with in ministry and life. 

There are endless ways angels can be utilized by the kingdom of God to bring his will to earth. Ask the Lord how to partner with Him and his angels to bring heaven to earth. You will be amazed at what you will learn and the results of these prayers. 

Part 1