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On Angels as God’s Appointed Watchmen

On Angels as God’s Appointed Watchmen

On Angels as God’s Appointed Watchmen.

“All night, all day, angels watching over me, my Lord. All night, all day, angels watching over me. Now I lay me down to sleep, angels watching over me My Lord. Pray the Lord my soul to keep, angels watching over me.” (African American Spiritual).

The Watchman. In the biblical era when there were walled cities, the citizens would always make sure there was a watchtower built onto the wall, at which would be posted a watchman. This person would be responsible to be on the lookout for the approach of a friend, enemy or stranger to the city. This watchman would need to listen to the instructions of the ruler of the city to distinguish between those three possibilities. And then if there was any threat or danger that approached the city, the watchman would blow a trumpet or sound an alarm. The watchman would also be on the lookout for the approach of good news as well, and would shout out to the citizens they could welcome that was coming their way, including the announcement of the new day at each sunrise.

The Lookout. The Hebrew word for watchman was “mishmereth,” which means one who looks out in order to protect, to guard, to keep safe. The good watchman needed to have particular abilities: the mental discipline to be constantly alert, attentive and focused; to be fearless, calm and composed; to be shrewd and not easily fooled; to have acute hearing and eyesight; to be extremely observant and aware of surroundings; to be ready for anything, expectant, poised to act when called upon; to be someone who is able to wait patiently; to be able to discern the good from the bad, the welcome from the unwelcome.

“For God will order His angels to protect you wherever you go. They will hold you up with their hands to keep you from stumbling and falling.” (Psalm 91:11-12).

Angels as Watchmen. This psalm underscores the reality that angels have always been used by God for our protection during spiritual warfare. This entire psalm is about divine protection of our soul during demonic attack. In verse 13, three of the great symbols of satanic power are mentioned by name: lions, snakes, and dragons. But we needn’t worry about demonic spirits capturing our souls or hurting us in any way spiritually, because, as the Orthodox Christian church has stated, “Believers can walk unharmed among the fiercest powers of darkness.” The psalmist’s opening verses clearly declare that only those who dwell in God, who abide in faith to the Almighty God as refuge and fortress, will remain safe and protected from the demonic realm. Our soul is fiercely defended, and the victory is sure. Much of that spiritual protection comes from God’s angelic hosts. God has assigned His warriors to watch over us, to surround us with protection. As the Message puts it, “God ordered His angels to guard you wherever you go. If you stumble, they’ll catch you; their job is to keep you from falling.” Rabbinic teaching has consistently maintained that guardian angels protect God’s people, even from demonic forces (David Stern). As David wrote in Psalm 103:20-21, “Bless the Lord, you His angels, mighty in strength, who perform His word, obeying the voice of His word. Bless the Lord, all you hosts, you who serve Him, doing His will.”

The Judging Watchmen are Guardians of Righteousness at the End. Angels are mighty spiritual ambassadors created by God to serve His purposes on earth and in heaven, including the final judgment. In the parable of the fishing net in Matt. 13:47-50, God sends angels to separate the good from the bad at the end of the age, much as they did in the earlier story of the wheat and weeds (Matthew 13:39-43). In these stories of Jesus, angels are responsible for partnering with God come Judgment Day. “Then He will send out His angels, and will gather together His chosen ones from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the sky.” (Mark 13:27).  We see them in that role many times, including the judgment of Herod in Acts 13:23, and the judgment of Satan in Revelation 20:1-3. But angels do much more that deliver God’s punishment. Jesus said a number of times that the angels will be present at the Judgment throne, when He will “come in glory with His angels and render to everyone according to his deeds.” (Matt. 16:27). At God’s judgment, “Everyone who acknowledges Me among the people you meet, the Son of Man will also acknowledge before the angels of God; but he who disowns Me in the presence of others will be disowned in the presence of God’s angelsWhoever is ashamed of Me, the Son of Man will likewise be ashamed of him when He comes in His Father’s glory with the holy angels.” (Luke 12:8-9; Luke 9:26; Mark 8:38).

Angels are Guardian-Warriors for His People. The book of Daniel is full to overflowing with the presence of angels. It’s no wonder that King Nebuchadnezzar was inspired to use the term “holy watchers” for angels, since his dream in Daniel 4 was full of references to them. Sure enough, later on Daniel himself had many personal encounters with a holy watchman named Gabriel that was “beyond his understanding.” His experience with Gabriel was so awesome that upon seeing this angel, he fell to his face, fainted, and was “exhausted, laying ill for several days afterwards.” (Dan. 8:15-27).   Soon after, Gabriel again appeared “in swift flight” to Daniel as he was earnestly praying in confession concerning his sins and the sins of his people. (Dan. 9).  It appears that when we pray, the angels are summoned into action, praise God. Father Reardon, among others, have said that a believer never prays without being accompanied by angels, that every time we pray, it is “in the sight of angels.” (Ps. 138:1).  Something even more astounding happened to Daniel after praying and fasting for three weeks in chapter 10. Daniel had a personal encounter with Jesus, described exactly as He appeared to John on Patmos in Revelation 2, and this ‘Man’ explained to Daniel that his prayers had been heard in heaven right from the start, but there was spiritual warfare in the atmosphere above for 21 days which delayed the answers to Daniel’s prayers. The angels were busy fighting the “Prince of Persia” with archangel Michael leading the fight. This ‘Man’ left archangel Michael to continue fighting against this spiritual resistance above so He could talk to Daniel about what will happen in the “final days.” There is no question we don’t know half of what is spiritually occurring in the atmosphere above us. There is much spiritual warfare going on in the unseen world, and so it is vital that believers continue to pray that His Holy Spirit will fill the atmosphere and drive away all spiritual opposition.

Angels watch over believers. “In speaking of the angels, God says, ‘He makes His angels winds, His servants flames of fire… Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?” (Hebrews 1:7,14). As they watch over the earth, angels are the first to rejoice when a new believer enters into God’s sheepfold (Luke 15:10). We see this watchman role demonstrated many times in both the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament as they remain constantly alert to what is happening on the earth. They fed Elijah (1 Kings 19), they stopped the sacrifice of Isaac (Genesis 22:11), they came alongside Jacob and appeared to him a number of times (Gen. 28, 31, 32), they shut the lions’ jaws for Daniel (Dan. 6:22), and they intervened at many important moments in biblical history. God orders His angels to be our watchmen, to guard and protect us wherever we go (Ps. 91:11 and Ps. 34:7), and to patrol the earth (Zech. 1). In the New Testament, an angel provided the escape for Peter in prison (Acts 12:7), rescued all the imprisoned apostles (Acts 5:19), and came alongside Paul in a dangerous storm at sea to speak words of encouragement (Acts 27:23). Jesus even mentioned in the parable of Lazarus and the rich man that angels were responsible to deliver us to paradise upon our death. (Luke 16:22).

Angels watched over Jesus. Angels spoke personally and powerfully to Mary, to Joseph, and to the wise men in order to protect Jesus in His vulnerable state. They announced Him in full angelic choir to the shepherds in a mind-boggling way. They ministered to Jesus at critical times, including during the wilderness temptations (Matthew 4:11) and the agony of Gethsemane (Luke 22:43). It is implied in Scripture that they were always with Him during His life and ministry, ready to serve Him at any time as directed by the Father in heaven. It is clear that angels were poised to serve Jesus at any time, as He said to Peter, “Do you doubt that I couldn’t ask my Father, and He would even now send me more than twelve legions (literally 72,000) of angels?” (Matt. 26:53). Jesus also offered a glimpse of His glory on the Cross as He explained to His disciples early in His ministry, “Most certainly, I tell you all, hereafter you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.” (John 1:51).

Angels watch over children. Jesus made a special point that God has appointed guardian angels over children. “In heaven the angels of these children are always in the presence of my heavenly Father.” (Matthew 18:10). Angels are definitely a major aspect of the heavenly support system of children here on earth, regardless of the child’s age. A parent can be certain that angels will minister to their adult children as well.

Angels carry God’s special messages to people on earth. This is seen countless times in Scriptures, from Genesis to Revelation. One fascinating example is when three angels bring vital messages to the world at large in Revelation 14. It’s very interesting that the common perception among the Jews is that the Lord used His angels to deliver the Law to Moses on Mt. Sinai. That fact is mentioned in Galatians 3:19Hebrews 2:2, and Acts 7:38 and 53. God may have written the Law on the stone with His finger (the Holy Spirit), but He undoubtedly used angels as mediators to deliver the Law to His people.

Angels are watchmen whose primary job is to watch their God in heaven, eternally worshipping Him, without ceasing. Angels are sinless, pure spiritual beings, undefiled servants of the Lord who are privileged to be constantly in His presence in glory, as witnessed by Isaiah in his glimpse of the throne room in heaven, “I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of His robe filled the Temple. Above Him were angel-seraphs, each with six wings: with two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. And the angels were calling to each other: ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of His glory!’ At the sound of the angels’ voices the doorposts and thresholds shook, and the Temple was filled with smoke.” (Is. 6:1-4). The ongoing worship of the angels in heaven was revealed to John too in his vision of heaven: “And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living beings. And they fell before the throne with their faces to the ground and worshiped God. They sang: ‘Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and strength belong to our God forever and ever! Amen.’” (Rev. 7:11-12). 

Florida Mass Choir – All Night All Day (youtube.com)

(For articles on the “Angel of the Lord” refer to “Christophanies” in blog posts; for article on the “Fallen Angel” refer to “Divine Disgust: The Occult.’)