Angels • Devotion 2

Angels: The Servants of God
William Kinney

I have often wondered what it would be like to get a message from an angel; would it be in a dream, in direct conversation, or perhaps in the form of signs? How would I react if an angel approached me? Would I know it was an angel from God?

As I have pondered these questions, I thought about the birth of Jesus Christ and how the angels of the Lord directed and guarded Joseph, Mary, and the newly birthed Jesus. When we look at Mathew 2:13, “an angel of the Lord” appeared to Joseph in a dream, telling him to uproot his family immediately and escape into the land of Egypt and remain there until the angel returned because Herod is looking to destroy young Jesus.

I want to pause here for a moment to take a deeper look at the angel who warned Joseph and Joseph’s response. The angel appeared to Joseph in the middle of the night, and I believe Joseph immediately shot up out of bed right after the dream ended. I do not know about you, but when I wake up in the middle of the night, I am groggy, disoriented, and downright “not all there.” Imagine being woken up by an angel having to groggily wake up your spouse and explain to them what just happened (and hope they believe you), then wake up a newborn baby (who does not dread that?), and then pack up all your belongings to travel almost 100 miles, by foot! Talk about utmost faith!

Joseph and Mary had faith that God sent that angel to guide and protect them, and more importantly, protect Jesus so He could save the world from sin and death. However, Joseph and Mary (as humans) did not ultimately know Jesus as the Messiah yet; they were only led by the faith of what the angel in Matthew 1:21 said, “For He will save His people from their sins.”

We need to realize that angels are messengers of God, and He places them in our life to protect and lead us to God’s purpose for our life. We need to have utmost faith, like Joseph, that God will provide us with messages from angels that will guide us to God’s purpose and plan for our lives.

What does that practically look like in our lives? We are called to have faith like Joseph and Mary, to trudge through the struggles of this life, and receive God’s calling in our life with a cheerful heart, no matter where or what God calls us to do. When an angel of the Lord appears to you, are you ready to hear what he has to say? Are you preparing yourself by reading the Bible daily to discern what God is trying to tell you? Most importantly, have you accepted into your heart that Jesus Christ died on the cross for your sins, was buried, and was resurrected? That is the only way to know God’s perfect plan for your life!

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