THE GREAT SALVATION by Geo. W. Reaser

Pacific Press Publishing Company · Mountain View, California · Jan 16, 1907

THE GREAT SALVATION

By Geo. W. Reaser

By GEO. W. REASER.

ANGELS AS BODY-GUARDS.

Angels Versus Soldiers.

"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 which is in heaven."

IN the days of Elisha the prophet the king of Syria warred against Israel. This heathen monarch called councils of his staff officers, and laid plans on numerous occasions to ambush the armies of Israel. Elisha was kept fully informed of the details of all of these war measures by an unseen messenger, and conveyed the intelligence which he received to the king of Israel, thus repeatedly saving God's people from overthrow and complete destruction. This procedure greatly mystified the king of Syria, and he inquired of his counselors if one of their number had not acted the part of a traitor. Being assured that all of these men were loyal to him, and that Elisha the prophet was responsible for the gloomy failure of his army in the campaign, he inquired as to the place of residence of Elisha, and sent out a strong detachment of his army to seize him.

They came by night and surrounded the city wherein was the abode of the prophet. His servant arose early in the morning, and discovering the presence of the armed host, and seeing no avenue of escape, was filled with dismay. Revealing his fears to Elisha, he was assured that there was no occasion for consternation, "for," said the prophet, "they that be with us are more than they that be with them." Then breathing a brief prayer to Heaven that the eyes of his servant might be opened, the young man saw, "and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire, round about Elisha." The soldiers were stricken with blindness, and, instead of taking God's prophet captive, were all led captive by him.

Altho our physical eyesight may not enable us to comprehend the presence of heavenly messengers, in the hour of danger, faith, stronger than sight, says, "the angel of the Lord encampeth round about them that fear Him, and delivereth them." If our eyes were "opened," we could daily see the presence of guardian angels.

Jacob's Ladder.

One of the most vivid and beautiful examples of the ministration of angels, appears in the history of the life of the patriarch Jacob. Fleeing from the wrath of his brother Esau, he tarried at nightfall at a certain place, and with his head pillowed upon a stone, fell into the slumber which comes alone to the weary. His sleep was not dreamless, for he saw, "and behold a ladder set upon the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven; and behold angels of God ascending and descending upon it." Thus an illustration is brought within our mental grasp of the glorious fact that heavenly angels are in constant communication with earth, and we are told that all blessings are sent from God to man thru the virtue of Christ, by the ministration of these heavenly beings.

An angel preannounced the birth of Samson; stayed the hand of Abraham when he was in the act of slaying his son; met Balaam in the way, and warned him against cursing God's people for reward; brought water to Hagar and Ishmael to prevent their perishing in the desert.

Angels Announce the Birth of John and Jesus.

The time in the history of the world when the great Deliverer was due to appear on the stage of action was at hand. One husband and wife were walking blamelessly before the Lord, and He had a great blessing in store for them. They were well advanced in years, but childless. While Zacharias, the husband, ministered in the temple before the Lord, Gabriel, Christ's angel, appeared to him and conveyed the joyful intelligence that he should have a son, who should go before and, in the spirit and power of Elias, announce the Messiah.

A few months elapse and the same heavenly messenger appears to another member of our human family,—a submissive servant who bore the name of Mary. The announcement was made to her that she should have a Son who should bear the name "Jesus," who was also to be the Son of the Highest. At His birth a group of shining angels, forming "His star," guided the wise men to Bethlehem and to the stable attached to the inn, while an angel made the announcement to the shepherds, and a multitude of the heavenly host joined in the glad acclaim, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth, peace, good-will toward men."

We can but feebly appreciate the joy of the sinless angels when it was committed to them to proclaim to sinners that unto them a Saviour was indeed born.

When Satan would "devour" the child Jesus, God sent an angel to warn Joseph to flee into Egypt, and when the threatened danger was past, an angel guided the infant Saviour back to the land of His nativity.

Heavenly attendants accompanied the steps of Christ from the manger to the cross, and would have interposed to prevent the shameful scenes of Calvary had it not been for the necessity of Christ's yielding up His life for our redemption.

It may be of interest to note that ten thousand angels were in attendance with the Father and Son when the law was proclaimed from Sinai. The heavenly host are obedient to this law, which is God's rule in the judgment, on which occasion more than one hundred million attend. One instance is given where the angel of the Lord addressed all of the children of Israel in one vast audience, in reproof of sin, with the result that the whole congregation wept.

The host entire is composed of "mighty angels," all of whom are commissioned to exercise the power of Christ. There is not a feeble one among them. They have corporeal bodies, and the food of which they partake is called the "bread of the mighty." Their guardianship formed a "hedge" round about Job which Satan himself could not penetrate. In very truth this is the case with each trusting child of God; for upon whom the Lord bestows His affection, upon the same does Satan look with the most violent hatred, and one of the names which he most appropriately bears is Apollyon, "destroyer." Were it not for angelic protection, he would sweep the earth with a besom of destruction, destroy every worshiper of the Most High. One angel has ample power, which will be gladly employed when the divine command is given, to take Satan alive and bind him a thousand years.

Since angelic ministration was so fully manifested in the olden days, there is every reason for believing that these beings are engaged in the same work now as of old, even tho unseen by mortal vision. In fact, we are assured that we are brought by the Gospel to an innumerable company of angels, and they are all "ministering spirits sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation." "How shall we escape if we neglect so great salvation?"