424
The Great Controversy 1888
Assyrian, reproached and blasphemed God, and threatened Israel with
destruction, “it came to pass that night, that the angel of the Lord went
out, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians an hundred fourscore and
five thousand.” There were “cut off all the mighty men of valor, and the
leaders and captains,” from the army of Sennacherib. “So he returned
with shame of face to his own land.” [
2 Kings 19:35
;
2 Chronicles
32:21
.]
Angels are sent on missions of mercy to the children of God. To
Abraham, with promises of blessing; to the gates of Sodom, to rescue
righteous Lot from its fiery doom; to Elijah, as he was about to perish
from weariness and hunger in the desert; to Elisha, with chariots and
horses of fire surrounding the little town where he was shut in by his
foes; to Daniel, while seeking divine wisdom in the court of a heathen
king, or abandoned to become the lions’ prey; to Peter, doomed to
death in Herod’s dungeon; to the prisoners at Philippi; to Paul and his
companions in the night of tempest on the sea; to open the mind of
Cornelius to receive the gospel; to dispatch Peter, with the message of
salvation to the Gentile stranger,—thus holy angels have, in all ages,
ministered to God’s people.
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 naught? Hast not thou made a hedge about him, and about his
[513]
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.
Thus God’s people, exposed to the deceptive power and unsleeping
malice of the prince of darkness, and in conflict with all the forces
of evil, are assured of the unceasing guardianship of heavenly angels.
Nor is such assurance given without need. If God has granted to his
children promise of grace and protection, it is because there are mighty
agencies of evil to be met,—agencies numerous, determined, and