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Matthew

Matthew 
Day 
Day 356

The Doctrine of Angels - Matthew

Text: Matthew 28 : 1 - 20

Matthew noted the presence and ministry of angels in his Gospel right from the start. His writing reflected his personal belief in the ministry of angels.

Angelic Ministry Via Dreams

Angels may minister in a number of ways. One of them was to appear in a dream to a person.

“An angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying,
‘Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you
Mary your wife…'”
MATTHEW 1:20

Joseph recognized that this dream was from the Lord. An angelic word was to be obeyed.

“Then Joseph, being aroused from sleep, did as the angel
of the Lord commanded him and took to him his wife…”
MATTHEW 1:24

Either the same or another angel appeared to Joseph to warn him that Herod the Great was planning to kill all babies under the age of two in their district.

“An angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying,
‘Arise, take the young Child and His mother, flee to Egypt,
and stay there until I bring you word…'”
MATTHEW 2:13

True to his promise, the angel came to Joseph while he was in Egypt to inform him of the death of Herod.

“Now when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord
appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying,
‘Arise, take the young Child and His mother, and go to
the land of Israel, for those who sought the young Child’s life
are dead.”
MATTHEW 2:19-20

THE DOCTRINE OF ANGELS – LUKE

Matthew was not alone in his belief of angels. Luke also noted the presence and ministry of angels in his Gospel.

The Angel Gabriel

Luke not only mentioned the ministry of angels, he specifically mentioned the name of the angel who appeared to Zacharias and Mary.

“And the angel answered and said to him,
‘I am Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God,
and was sent to speak to you and bring you these glad tidings.
But behold, you will be mute and not able to speak until the day
these things take place, because you did not believe my words
which will be fulfilled in their own time.”
LUKE 1:19-20

“Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God
to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to
a man whose name was Joseph…”
LUKE 1:26-27

A Multitude of Angels

Individual angels were mentioned in the Gospels. Luke also noted that there were many angels in heaven. These sang as the birth of Jesus was announced to some shepherds.

“And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of
the heavenly host praising God and saying:
‘Glory to God in the highest,
And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!’ ”
LUKE 2:13-14

MINISTRY BEHIND THE SCENES

The ministry of angels may not always be so clear and direct. Only when it serves God’s purposes would we see special appearances of His angelic beings. However, let us be assured that there are angelic beings and they normally minister to us behind the scenes.

Matthew noted that angels ministered to Jesus in the wilderness.

“Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came
and ministered to Him.”
MATTHEW 4:11

Luke noted that an angel was sent to minister to Jesus as He prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane.

“Then an angel appeared to Him from heaven,
strengthening Him.”
LUKE 22:43

It should not surprise us that an angel was sent to break the seal and to roll away the huge stone that covered the mouth of the garden tomb. The birth of Jesus and the resurrection of Jesus were momentous events and we may expect angels to attend.