God uses angels

Published 12:01 pm Monday, October 24, 2022

From the writings of the Rev. Billy Graham

Dear Rev. Graham: My friend tells me that God’s angels protect us from demonic power. Does the Bible teach this? – A.P.

Dear A.P.: The operation of angelic glory eclipses the world of demonic powers, as the sun does the candle’s light. Throughout Scripture, God uses angels and the Bible says, “Bless the Lord, ye His angels, who excel in strength, who do His word, heeding the voice of His word” (Psalm 103:20–21).

It is God Himself who empowers angels to do His will. Daniel the prophet called them “the holy ones” (Daniel 4:17). Angels speak. They appear and reappear. While angels may become visible, our eyes are not constructed to see them ordinarily any more than we can see the dimensions of a nuclear field, the structure of atoms, or the electricity that flows through copper wiring. Our ability to sense reality is limited: The deer of the forest far surpass our human capacity in their keenness of smell. Bats possess a phenomenally sensitive built-in radar system. Some animals can see things in the dark that escape our attention. Swallows and geese possess sophisticated guidance systems that appear to border on the supernatural.

Demonic activity and Satan worship are on the increase in all parts of the world. The devil’s demonic influence can turn many away from true faith; but we can still say that his evil activities are countered for the people of God by the Lord’s ministering spirits, the holy ones of the angelic order.

Angels have been endowed with authority by virtue of their relationship to God through creation and continuing obedience. People are not yet perfect and therefore need what the Holy Spirit alone can give. We can be thankful for God’s care over those who belong to Him, and we must always give the glory not to the angels, but to Him who empowers them.