The
Guardians
“For he will command his angels concerning you
to guard you in all your ways; they will lift you up in their hands, so that
you will not strike your foot against a stone” (Psalm 91:11-12).
After the fall of Adam and Eve, they were
no longer able to stay in the garden that they once called home. They had
fallen into temptation by listening to the serpent’s lies, and were, therefore,
ordered to leave the Garden of Eden with the knowledge that they would never be
able to set foot in it again. Sin was not allowed to exist in God’s holy garden,
and they could no longer be allowed to eat from the Tree of Life. To ensure
that they could never return to the garden, God placed angels called Cherubim
to guard the entrance to the garden. The Bible says, “So the Lord God banished him
from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had been taken. After
he drove the man out, he placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim
and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of
life” (Genesis 3:23-24). These Cherubim ensured that even if Adam and Eve
tried to return to what was once their home, they would have been prevented
from doing so. They were what you may consider as the first security guards who
stood on duty to prevent any unauthorized access to the place called Eden.
As
seen with the story of the Garden of Eden, one of the roles of angels is to
serve as guardians. After the Children of Israel had been delivered from
enslavement from the Egyptians, God promised that they would enter into a land
flowing with milk and honey. But first, there were enemies of Israel that the
Lord would have to deal with. Therefore, God promised to send an angel to be
their guardian, but they had to be faithful in obeying him, for he would be
God’s mouthpiece and would not tolerate insolence. The Bible says, “See, I am sending an angel
ahead of you to guard you along the way and to bring you to the place I have
prepared. Pay attention to him and listen to what he says. Do not rebel against
him; he will not forgive your rebellion since my Name is in him” (Exodus
23:20-21). God promised to help them be victorious over their enemies
as long as they did not worship the heathen gods of other nations and follow
their evil ways. God did not want the other nations to even live amongst them in
order to keep them from falling into idolatry. He ensured the Children of
Israel that an angel would go ahead of them and lead them into enemy
territories, but He would destroy them with a mighty blow. The Bible says, “My
angel will go ahead of you and bring you into the land of the Amorites,
Hittites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hivites and Jebusites, and I will wipe them
out” (Exodus 23:23). The angel was their guide and guardian to prepare
the way.
The
Bible tells the story of the Prophet Elijah, who had a showdown between himself
and the priests of Baal and Asherah. After God showed Himself stronger than Queen
Jezebel’s heathen gods, Elijah had all the priests killed which angered the
wicked queen. She threatened to kill him in retaliation for her priests’
execution, so Elijah, taking her threat seriously, fled to the desert. Upon
arriving, he went to sleep because he was tired, hungry, and discouraged. Nevertheless,
the Lord had been watching and sent an angel to give him food. The Bible says, “Then
he lay down under the bush and fell asleep. All at once an angel touched him
and said, “Get up and eat” (1 Kings 19:5). The angel had provided some
hot bread and water for Elijah to eat. After he ate, he fell asleep again and
the angel awakened him so that he could eat again to gain strength for the
remainder of his journey. The Bible says, “The angel of the Lord came back a second
time and touched him and said, ‘Get up and eat, for the journey is too much for
you.’ So he got up and ate and drank. Strengthened by the food, he traveled
forty days and forty nights until he reached Horeb, the mountain of God” (1
Kings 19:7-8). The angel was Elijah’s guardian and had been assigned to
take care of his physical needs. Similarly, we too have guardian angels
assigned to us who keep watch over us day and night. When we see a baby smile
as he or she sleeps, there is a good chance that they are seeing the face of
Jesus or that of their guardian angel. The Bible says, “See that you do not despise one
of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the
face of my Father in Heaven” (Matthew 18:10).
During
a part of Israel’s history, they had been taken captive by the Babylonians due
to their rebellion. The king, Nebuchadnezzar, destroyed the city and the temple
after taking the artifacts inside. Despite having been in captivity, there was
a remnant who had been faithful to God and was blessed during this time. The prophet,
Daniel and his friends were amongst a few of them. Eventually, Babylon had been
overthrown and King Darius of the Medes took control. Daniel had favor with
this king as he had with King Nebuchadnezzar. Nevertheless, there were those
who were jealous of Daniel and tricked the king into creating a law that landed
Daniel into a den with lions. Despite their wicked schemes, God did not allow
Daniel to die. He sent a guardian angel to close the lions’ mouths so that they
could not hurt Daniel as he spent the night. The Bible says, “At first light of
dawn, the king got up and hurried to the lions’ den. When he came new the den,
he called to Daniel in an anguished voice, “Daniel, servant of the living God,
has you God, whom you serve continually, been able to rescue you from the
lions?” Daniel answered, “May the king live forever! My God sent his angel, and
he shut the mouths of the lions. They have not hurt me, because I was found
innocent in his sight. Nor have I ever done any wrong before you, Your Majesty”
(Daniel 6:19-22). The angel served as Daniel’s guardian and prevented
the lions from eating him throughout the night, and he was rescued from the den
the following morning. However, his enemies were not so fortunate and became a
meal for the lions instead.
The
apostles had encounters with angels, who rescued them from jail after they had
been placed there for preaching about Jesus. The Bible says, “But during the night an angel
of the Lord opened the doors of the jail and brought them out. ‘Go, stand in
the temple courts,’ he said, ‘and tell the people all about this new life’”
(Acts 5:19). The jail was unable to contain them because their guardian
angel was sent by God to release them for others to hear the Good News about
the Risen Savior.
After
the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost, the Apostle Peter had
been imprisoned for preaching the gospel. Nevertheless, the saints prayed
continuously for his release. The night before he was to go to trial, an angel
awakened him and led him safely out of his prison cell. The Bible says, “Suddenly an angel of the Lord
appeared and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke
him up. ‘Quick, get up!’ he said, and the chains fell off Peter’s wrists. Then
the angel said to him, “Put on your clothes and sandals.” And Peter did so.
“Wrap your cloak around you and follow me,” the angel told him” (Acts 12:7-8). Peter
was not fully awake and at first thought that he was in a vision. After the
angel left, he finally realized that God had sent a guardian angel to lead him
safely out of his captivity.
The
Bible tells us that in the end times, Michael, the Archangel, who is the
guardian of His people will arise. This means that those who are of God do not
have to fear their enemies because Michael will come to their rescue and defend
the children of God – His holy nation. The Bible says, “At that time Michael, the archangel who stands guard over your nation, will arise.
Then there will be a time of anguish greater than any since nations first came
into existence. But at that time every one of your people whose name is written
in the book will be rescued. Many of those whose bodies lie dead and buried
will rise up, some to everlasting life and some to shame and everlasting
disgrace. Those
who are wise will shine as bright as the sky, and those who lead many to
righteousness will shine like the stars forever” (Daniel 12:1-3).
Angels
are always present to keep watch over God’s chosen people. They provide safety,
guidance, and perform rescue missions constantly all throughout the world. We may
never know the many times that God prevented harm to come to us by way of an
angel until we get to Heaven. Nevertheless, while we are here on earth, we can
be sure that we all have angels assigned to us who keep watch over us day and
night. Whereas man’s methods of safety can fail, the power that God has given to
His guardians is incomparable to any earthly intervention. The Bible says, “Taste
and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him”
(Psalm 34:8).
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