Are We Still Being Visited By Angels Today?

Are angels still visiting us today as they were in the days of the Old Testament and New Testament?

Angels

An angel is a supernatural being created by God that has eternal life already present within them. God created angels for various reasons, but one of the main reasons God created them was to use them as messengers between Himself and believers. The word “angel” comes from the Latin word “angelus,” which means “messenger,” so in many cases, angels are messengers of God, but they don’t bring their own message, but only that which comes from God. In the Hebrew, the word for angel is “mal’āk̠ ‘ĕlōhîm,” and means “messenger of God,” so angels never work independently of God’s will. God created some angels for the express purpose of delivering messages. Michael (which name means, “Who is like God?”) is a good example. He came to bring Daniel a message. Daniel had been praying for 3 weeks before finally receiving an answer, but Michael may have been prevented from bringing the message by another angel…a dark angel, perhaps even Satan himself. The messenger told Daniel, “The prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days, but Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I was left there with the kings of Persia” (Dan 10:13), so angels are apparently engaged in spiritual warfare; or at least in some circumstances. Gabriel, another angel, brought news to the parents of John the Baptist that they would have a child in their old age (Luke 1), but also “the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin’s name was Mary. And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you” (Luke 1:26-28). The message was that she would bear the Messiah; the Savior of the world! So one thing angels do is bring messages. After all, they are called messengers.

Purpose

God created every angel for a purpose, but some angels are more special than others. One example is those who give glory to God over His throne. These angels are called seraphim, “And one called to another and said: Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory” (Isaiah 6:3), so some angels were created to give God glory! The seraphim’s that cover God’s throne have six wings, and each set of wings has a specific purpose. Isaiah writes, “Above him stood the seraphim. Each had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew” (Isaiah 6:2). Notice that they all called out to one another, saying, “Holy, holy, holy,” but why do these angels have six wings? One set covers their eyes, for even the holy angels may not be able to look upon God and live. Then, they flew with the other set of wings, but a third set of wings covered their feet, perhaps indicating they were on holy ground, for anything near the Lord is holy. Like the Mountain in the wilderness, like the ground Moses stood upon before the burning bush, and the ground upon which Joshua stood when He met the pre-incarnate Christ, the Commander of the Lord’s Army (Joshua 5:13-15). Whatever the case may be, these angels were meant to give God glory and do His bidding 24/7. That is our purpose too, just as the psalmist wrote, “Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name give glory, for the sake of your steadfast love and your faithfulness” (Psalm 115:1)!

Entertaining Angels

Angels have yet another purpose besides glorifying God and bring His messages. That would include contact with human beings. The Bible warns us that we had better “not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares” (Heb 13:2). That stranger you meet or that person in see could be an angel. That person who comes out of nowhere to help you could be an angel. The Bible clearly says “some have entertained angels” but didn’t know they were angels. Whoever we meet might be an opportunity to show hospitality to a stranger, or an angel who might look like one. The point being, we must treat everyone with love and respect. No one should be above or below us in our regard for them. That person you express your anger at might be an angel, and I’m sure that’s not entertaining to an angel.

That person who comes out of nowhere to help you could be an angel.

Supernatural Help

On one occasion, Peter, Paul, and Silas were freed from jail by an angel, so the Apostle Paul and Peter must have known angels were quite possibly in their presence. They also ministered to Jesus on more than one occasion, so with that knowledge, Paul wrote to Timothy that “In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus and of the elect angels I charge you to keep these rules without prejudging, doing nothing from partiality” (1 Tim 5:21). Paul said both the Father and Christ were in his presence in giving this charge or command to Timothy, but so were “the elect angels.” Angels have interceded for humans for thousands of years, including in both the Old Testament and the New Testament, and indeed, may still be interceding for us today…and, possibly without our even knowing it.

Conclusion

The Bible teaches that some of us may have been visited by angels without even knowing it, but sometimes people are called angels for the acts that they do, but most of us don’t generally report seeing angels every day, but God will use others to minister to the saints; even the wounded Samaritans on the side of the road (Luke 10:25-37). Our neighbor is whomever we see, whether they need help or not, but yes, I do believe in angels, and I do believe they are still present today and still ministering to the saints. I presume most angels remain invisible since they are spirit beings, but just because you can’t see them does not mean they aren’t there. We know God exists, even though we’ve never seen Him, so surely angels are around us, and they are possibly visiting us in ways we have no clue about.

Here is some related reading for you: Are Guardian Angels Biblical?

Resource – Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version^® (ESV^®), Crossway Bibles. (2007). ESV: Study Bible : English standard version. Wheaton, Ill: Crossway Bibles. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

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