LESSON # 94 IN HIS SERVICE January 28, 2014 GENESIS: 19: 10-11 ANGELS OUR PROTECTORS 10) But the men reached out their hands and pulled Lot into the house with them, and shut the door. 11) And they struck the men who were at the doorway of the house with blindness, both small and great, so that they became weary trying to find the door. Lot himself is about to be abused by all this crowd, but angels pull him in the door and smote them with blindness. Ps. 34:7 “The angel of the Lord encamps all around those who fear Him, and delivers them”. Ministering angels… David Jeremiah tells us: “Scripture is rich with testimony about good angels who are messengers of God and the tragic rebellion of bad angels (demons) who serve Satan in his attempts to undermine God, His purposes, and His people. In fact, the OT mentions angels more than 100 times and the NT mentions them 160 times. Hebrews 1:14 gives us one of the clearest statements about the purpose of heaven’s angels: “Are they not all ministering spirits sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation?” Angels help to ensure that God’s will on earth is done. They were present at the giving of the law to Moses (2:2; Acts 7:38). An angel rescued the apostles from prison (Acts 5:17-20). In Revelation, John is led by an angel to see his vision (Rev. 17:1; 21:9; 22:6), and angels play a key role in dispensing God’s judgment upon the earth in the end times (Rev. 8:2; 14:17-20; 15:1; 16). Angels also appeared to the mothers of Samson (Judg. 13:2-6), John the Baptist (Luke 1:13), and Jesus (Luke 1:26) before each child was born. Angels played an important role during the earthly life and ministry of Jesus as well-from announcing His birth to the shepherds (Luke 2:10-15), to strengthening Him after the wilderness temptation (Matt. 4:11; Mark 1:13) and in Gethsemane (Luke 11:43), to rolling the stone from His tomb (Matt. 28:2). They will also accompany Him at His second coming (Matt. 25:31). Not surprisingly, when angels in their true form come face-to-face with humans on earth, the humans often are told, “Do not be afraid” (Matt. 28:5; Luke 1:13). A close encounter with a supernatural being startles the beholders. (Even Balaam’s donkey was shocked by the appearance of an angel in the road (Num 22). Yet angels are created beings too (Ps. 148:2-5; Col. 1:16)-something people are prone to forget. This means they have limited capabilities (Matt. 24:36; 1 Pet. 1:12). They are also not equal to God or superior to Jesus, as some have claimed. The writer of Hebrews shows Jesus to be superior to the angels, for only He is God’s Son and the reflection of God’s glory and character (1:3). However, because angels are supernatural beings-created on a higher plane than humans (2:7, 9; Ps. 8:5)-they are able to help us. Psalm 103:20 says angels “excel in strength” and “do [God’s] word, heeding the voice of His word.” For God and His ministering angels, their greatest adversary is Satan and his army of demonic angels. Satan is sometimes called God’s opposite, but God has no true opposite. Only God is uncreated, all-powerful, independent, infinite, and eternal. Satan, on the other hand, is none of these. Satan has been allowed a limited rule over all the earth (1 John 5:19). The time in which he and his evil forces have in which to operate, however, is already running down. During Jesus’ earthly ministry, our Lord “went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil” (Acts 10:38). When Christ cast out demons, it was a sign that God’s kingdom had already invaded the rule of Satan to bring it to an end (Matt. 12:28). Satan and his angels do operate in the physical realm, but their battleground is primarily the mind and spirit, where they seek to deceive God’s people into disbelieving and disobeying Him. Christ is an advocate for those Satan accuses. He defends His people with His own shed blood (Rev. 12:10, 11). He has paid the price for our sin and made Satan’s accusations groundless. Jesus has already won the victory (Eph. 1:20, 21) so that even in the present we can overcome Satan and his demons by the means God Himself has provided: the armor of God-truth, righteousness, peace, faith, salvation, and Scripture (Eph. 6:10-18).” (For further Reading: Ps.91:11; Eph. 1:20, 21; Jude 6; Rev. 12:10, 11; 20:10) Now its important to notice that the only action taken by these angels against the citizens of Sodom to this point involved this defensive act of self-protection to prevent these men from finding a way into Lots house. This was clearly necessary because even after these men lost their sight; it says that they still wore themselves out looking for the door. This tells us just how relentless these men were in trying to satisfy their lust. When we walk in faith and obedience, God sends His angels ahead of us to make sure we arrive at His place of blessing for us. Praise His Holy Name!!!! NEXT: STILL LOT HESITATES!
Posted on: Tue, 28 Jan 2014 12:44:59 +0000
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