Chapter 2—Angel Ministry Today
Angels Guard Us
A guardian angel is appointed to every follower of Christ. These heavenly watchers shield the righteous from the power of the wicked one. This Satan himself recognized when he said: “Doth Job fear God for nought? Hast not Thou made an hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he hath on every side?” Job 1:9, 10. The agency by which God protects His people is presented in the words of the psalmist: “The angel of the Lord encampeth round about them that fear Him, and delivereth them.” Psalm 34:7. Said the Saviour, speaking of those that believe in Him: “Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you, That in heaven their angels do always behold the face of My Father.” Matthew 18:10. The angels appointed to minister to the children of God have at all times access to His presence.—The Great Controversy, 512, 513. {TA 14.1}
We know not what results a day, an hour, or a moment may determine, and never should we begin the day without committing our ways to our heavenly Father. His angels are appointed to watch over us, and if we put ourselves under their guardianship, then in every time of danger they will be at our right hand. When unconsciously we are in danger of exerting a wrong influence, the angels will be by our side, prompting us to a better course, choosing our words for us, and influencing our actions.—Christ’s Object Lessons, 341, 342. {TA 14.2}
Angels of God are all around us.... Oh, we want to know these things, and fear and tremble, and to think much more of the power of the angels of God that are watching over and guarding us than we have done hitherto.... Angels of God are commissioned from heaven to guard the children of men, and yet they draw away from their restraining influences and go where they can have communication with the evil angels. Oh, that we might all obey the injunction of the apostle (read 2 Corinthians 6:17, 18).—5MR 125. {TA 15.1}
Angels are sent to minister to the children of God who are physically blind. Angels guard their steps and save them from a thousand dangers, which, unknown to them, beset their path.—Welfare Ministry, 240. {TA 15.2}
I was today to write upon Christ walking on the sea and stilling the tempest. Oh, how this scene was impressed upon my mind.... The majesty of God and His works occupied my thoughts. He holds the winds in His hands, He controls the waters. Finite beings, mere specks upon the broad, deep waters of the Pacific, were we in the sight of God, yet angels of heaven were sent from His excellent glory to guard that little sailboat that was careening over the waves.—This Day With God, 110. {TA 15.3}
Angels Involved in Family Life
The Lord is served as much, yes, more, by the faithful home worker as by the one who preaches the Word. Fathers and mothers should realize that they are the educators of their children. Children are the heritage of the Lord; and they should be trained and disciplined to form characters that the Lord can approve. When this work is carried on judiciously and with faithfulness and prayer, angels of God will guard the family, and the most commonplace life will be made sacred.—(Australasian) Union Conference Record, September 6, 1909. {TA 16.1}
Before leaving the house for labor, all the family should be called together; and the father, or the mother in the father’s absence, should plead fervently with God to keep them through the day. Come in humility, with a heart full of tenderness, and with a sense of the temptations and dangers before yourselves and your children; by faith bind them upon the altar, entreating for them the care of the Lord. Ministering angels will guard children who are thus dedicated to God.—Child Guidance, 519. {TA 16.2}
The angels of God, thousands upon thousands, ... guard us against evil and press back the powers of darkness that are seeking our destruction. Have we not reason to be thankful every moment, thankful even when there are apparent difficulties in our pathway?—My Life Today, 171. {TA 16.3}
Angels of God are watching over us. Upon this earth there are thousands and tens of thousands of heavenly messengers commissioned by the Father to prevent Satan from obtaining any advantage over those who refuse to walk in the path of evil. And these angels who guard God’s children on earth are in communication with the Father in heaven.—In Heavenly Places, 99. {TA 16.4}
We need to understand better than we do the mission of the angels. It would be well to remember that every true child of God has the cooperation of heavenly beings. Invisible armies of light and power attend the meek and lowly ones who believe and claim the promises of God. Cherubim and seraphim, and angels that excel in strength, stand at God’s right hand, “All ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation.”—The Acts of the Apostles, 154. {TA 17.1}
Angels Enlighten Our Minds
God calls upon His creatures to turn their attention from the confusion and perplexity around them and admire His handiwork. The heavenly bodies are worthy of contemplation. God has made them for the benefit of man, and as we study His works, angels of God will be by our side to enlighten our minds and guard them from satanic deception.—The S.D.A. Bible Commentary 4:1145. {TA 17.2}
Heavenly angels watch those who are seeking for enlightenment. They cooperate with those who try to win souls to Christ.—The Bible Echo, December 10, 1900. {TA 17.3}
Your ... [ministry to] the sick is an exhausting process and would gradually dry up the very springs of life if there were no change, no opportunity for recreation, and if angels of God did not guard and protect you. If you could see the many perils through which you are conducted safely every day by these messengers of Heaven, gratitude would spring up in your hearts and find expression from your lips. If you make God your strength, you may, under the most discouraging circumstances, attain a height and breadth of Christian perfection which you hardly think it possible to reach. Your thoughts may be elevated, you may have noble aspirations, clear perceptions of truth, and purposes of action which shall raise you above all sordid motives.—Counsels on Health, 384. {TA 17.4}
I have been shown your [a physician’s] peril, and I have also been shown your guardian angel preserving you again and again from yourself, keeping you from making shipwreck of faith. My brother, lift up the standard, lift it up, and be not fainthearted or discouraged.— Testimonies for the Church 8:175. {TA 18.1}
Angels Help Us Do Right
Learn to trust in God. Learn to go to Him who is mighty to save. Tell the dear Saviour just what you need. He that said, “Suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them not,” will not reject your prayer. But He will send His angels to guard you and protect you from the evil angels, and will make it easy for you to do right. Then it will be much easier than if you should try in your own strength. You may ever feel like this: “I have asked God to help me, and He will do it. I will do right in His strength. I will not grieve the dear angels that God has appointed to watch over me. I will never take a course to drive them from me.”—An Appeal to the Youth, 55, 56. {TA 18.2}
If you will try to suppress every evil thought through the day, then the angels of God will come and dwell with you. These angels are beings that excel in strength. You remember how the angel came to the sepulcher, and the Roman soldiers fell like dead men before the glory of his countenance; and if one angel could work with such power, how would it have been if all the angels that are with us here, had been present? The angels are with us every day, to guard and protect us from the assaults of the enemy.—The Review and Herald, August 14, 1888. {TA 19.1}
You are not alone in the warfare against wrong. Could the curtain be rolled back, you would see heavenly angels fighting with you. This they must do; it is their work to guard the youth. “Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?” Ten thousand times ten thousand and thousands of thousands of angels minister to the youth.—The Youth’s Instructor, January 1, 1903. {TA 19.2}
I am very thankful that I could visit your school [now Oakwood College]. For years I have done what I could to help the colored people, and I have never found the work so well begun in any place as I find it here at the present time. In all your experiences, remember that angels of God are beside you. They know what you do; they are present to guard you. Do not do anything to displease them. As you work and they work, this school will become consecrated ground. I shall want to hear how you succeed. All heaven is interested in the moves you are making. Let us do our utmost to help one another to obtain the victory. Let us so live that the light of heaven can shine into our hearts and minds, enabling us to grasp the treasures of heaven.—Southern Field Echo, June 1, 1909. {TA 19.3}
Angels Aid Efforts for the Lost
When heavenly intelligences see those who claim to be sons and daughters of God putting forth Christlike efforts to help the erring, manifesting a tender, sympathetic spirit for the repentant and the fallen, angels press close to them, and bring to their remembrance the very words that will soothe and uplift the soul. Jesus has given His precious life, His personal attention, to the least of God’s little ones; and the angels that excel in strength encamp round about them that fear God.—Healthful Living, 277. {TA 20.1}
Angels are sent from the heavenly courts, not to destroy, but to watch over and guard imperiled souls, to save the lost, to bring the straying ones back to the fold. “I came not to condemn, but to save,” Christ declared. Have you, then, no pitying words to speak to the straying? Will you let them perish, or will you reach out to them a helping hand? Right around you there are souls who are in danger of perishing. Will you not with the cords of love draw them to the Saviour? Will you not cease your reproaches, and speak words that will inspire them with faith and courage?—The Review and Herald, May 10, 1906. {TA 20.2}
It is the privilege of all who comply with the conditions to know for themselves that pardon is freely extended for every sin. Put away the suspicion that God’s promises are not meant for you. They are for every repentant transgressor. Strength and grace have been provided through Christ to be brought by ministering angels to every believing soul.— Steps to Christ, 52. {TA 21.1}
Those who labor for the good of others are working in union with the heavenly angels. They have their constant companionship, their unceasing ministry. Angels of light and power are ever near, to protect, to comfort, to heal, to instruct, to inspire. The highest education, the truest culture, the most exalted service possible to human beings in this world, are theirs.—The Review and Herald, July 11, 1912. {TA 21.2}
The angels of heaven are moving upon human minds to arouse investigation in the themes of the Bible. A far greater work will be done than has yet been done and none of the glory of it will flow to men, for angels that minister to those who shall be heirs of salvation are working night and day.—Counsels to Writers and Editors, 140. {TA 21.3}
God might have committed the message of the gospel, and all the work of loving ministry, to the heavenly angels. He might have employed other means for accomplishing His purpose. But in His infinite love He chose to make us co-workers with Himself, with Christ and the angels, that we might share the blessing, the joy, the spiritual uplifting, which results from this unselfish ministry.—Steps to Christ, 79. {TA 21.4}
Angels Strengthen Our Faith
“The angel of the Lord encampeth round about them that fear Him, and delivereth them.” Psalm 34:7. God commissions His angels to save His chosen ones from calamity, to guard them from “the pestilence that walketh in darkness” and “the destruction that wasteth at noonday.” Psalm 91:6. Again and again have angels talked with men as a man speaketh with a friend, and led them to places of security. Again and again have the encouraging words of angels renewed the drooping spirits of the faithful and, carrying their minds above the things of earth, caused them to behold by faith the white robes, the crowns, the palm branches of victory, which overcomers will receive when they surround the great white throne.—The Acts of the Apostles, 153. {TA 22.1}
Among these that stand by—the hosts of the enemy, who are trying to bring God’s people into disrepute, and the hosts of heaven, ten thousand times ten thousand angels, who watch over and guard the tempted people of God, uplifting and strengthening them. These are they who stand by. And God says to His believing ones, You shall walk among them. You shall not be overcome by the powers of darkness. You shall stand before Me in the sight of the holy angels, who are sent forth to minister to those who shall be heirs of salvation.—The General Conference Bulletin, April 23, 1901. {TA 22.2}