Thank God for Heavenly Allies

Sermon for St. Michael and All Angels Day (Pent.16)                                                           Sept.29, 2019
Lessons: Dn. 10:10-14; 12:1-3; 2 Kgs.6:8-17; Mt.18:1-5,10                                                  19:2152
Theme: Thank God for Heavenly Allies

My father was born and grew up in Nebraska speaking German. So, when he was drafted in 1942 into World War II, he was assigned to the army’s intelligence unit where his job was to break German codes and uncover the enemy’s strategy. At times he was sent into “no-man’s-land,” between the armies, to gather information.
One rainy night he was in “no-man’s-land” when he heard the whistle of a bomb falling above him. He said that he had just enough time to say, “This is it, Lord,” and fell to the ground as the bomb hit. Nothing happened. No flash, no explosion, no deafening roar – nothing! Dad was still alive and offered a prayer of thanks.
The next day he asked the bomb squad the reason the bomb failed to explode. He was told that Hitler had his bombs made in Norway. The Germans and Norwegians did not get along. As the Norwegians went to the bomb factories in the morning, they filled their pockets with sand and dirt to mix with the gunpowder in the detonators. The bombs couldn’t explode. When he told the story, Dad would always end it with a smile on his face saying, “I love those Norwegians!”
That’s the kind of ally you want on your side when life is on the line! You may never see them, but they thwart the enemy’s efforts.
In this world our lives are on the line – our eternal lives. The fight is against forces superior to us – the devil and his angels. “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the world rulers of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” How then can we stand? Paul answers, “Take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to take a stand on the evil day” (Ep.6:12-13).
Martin Luther wrote in the hymn “A Mighty Fortress”: “Tho’ devils all the world should fill, all eager to devour us, we tremble not, we fear no ill, they shall not overpower us. This world’s prince may still scowl fierce as he will. He can harm us none, he’s judged; the deed is done; one little word can fell him.” God’s Word, the Gospel, defeats him every time (Mt.4).
But there’s something else to help us in the fight – God’s angels. You could call them our heavenly allies, sent by God to defend us and defuse the spiritual bombs Satan hurls at us. Thank God for such heavenly allies. Their work is the focus of our lessons today.
I. Our battle is a spiritual one. (Daniel 10:12-14;12:1-3)
1012 Then he said to me, “Fear not, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand and humbled yourself before your God, your words have been heard, and I have come because of your words. 13 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, 14 and came to make you understand what is to happen to your people in the latter days. For the vision is for days yet to come….
141“At that time shall arise Michael, the great prince who has charge of your people. And there shall be a time of trouble, such as never has been since there was a nation till that time. But at that time your people shall be delivered, everyone whose name shall be found written in the book. 2 And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. 3 And those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky above; and those who turn many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever.” (ESV)

Often it’s things not seen that win the battle – such as undercover work, intelligence gathering, spying that reveals the enemy’s plans, etc. Without help behind the scenes, many a battle would be lost.
A similar thing is true for us in the battle for our souls. We have our own secret service at work defending us, and we don’t even see it because its agents are invisible to our eyes. The battle of good against evil rages around us every day; and we are oblivious.
All the sad and frightening events that take place in our world – the turmoil in the Middle East, the threat of Iran, the murder down the street, the break-in to your house, the bullying in the schoolyard, etc., all are evidence of the battle being waged daily. These are not just sad events or unfortunate things taking place. There is more going on than meets our dull eyes.
Such things were invisible to Daniel’s eye also. So the Lord showed him in a vision what forces were at work (ch.9-12). There are a lot of unclear things here. But this you should know, everything is part of a spiritual battle taking place, and we fail to grasp it.
The battle is a ferocious one. Satan does not rest in his efforts to destroy your soul. It raged fiercely in Daniel’s day also, for Satan continually tries to attack God’s people to destroy them.
In the book of Revelation, the Apostle John describes in
prophet in Israel, tells the king of Israel the words that you speak.”
How did Elisha know? He was a prophet of the LORD, and the omniscient LORD, who knows all things, revealed it to him.
Ah, the omniscience of God is a comfort for His redeemed people who trust in Him. Here you see most clearly how God knows what our earthly and spiritual enemies are up to. And when the enemy plots to destroy us, God sends His servants, the angels to them.
The psalmist writes, “The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, and His ears are open to their cries.” And again, “The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear Him, and delivers him” (34:15,7). Isn’t that exactly what happened here?
When Elisha’s servant awoke the next morning, all he could see surrounding the city was the enemy. Fear gripped his heart. Elisha responded, “Do not be afraid. Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” Then he prayed, “O LORD, open my servants eyes that he may see.” So the LORD opened the eyes of the young man, he saw, and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.” God was protecting His people.
Dear friends, we are surrounded by dangers every day. People think we are not even safe in church anymore. We are so tempted to cry out like Elisha’s servant, “Alas, my master, what shall we do?”
Dear friend, “Lift your eyes to the hills. From where does your help come? Our help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth. He will not let your foot be moved; He who keeps you will neither slumber nor sleep” (Ps.121:1f). “He will command His angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; they will lift you up in their hands” (Ps.91:11f).
“Don’t be afraid. Those who are with us are more than those who are against us.” Thank God for Heavenly Allies. Lord, open our “eyes” to see them.

III. For God has sent them to serve us. (Matthew 18:1-5,10)
1 At that time the disciples approached Jesus and asked, “Who then is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” 2 Jesus called a little child, had him stand in the middle of them, 3 and said, “Amen I tell you: Unless you are turned and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Whoever humbles himself like this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. 5 And whoever receives a little child like this one in my name receives me….10 See to it that you do not look down on one of these little ones, because I tell
figurative language this battle that rages daily. He writes: “War arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon. And the dragon and his angels fought back, but he was defeated and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent who is called the devil and Satan – the deceiver of the whole world….And when the dragon saw that he had been thrown down, he pursued the woman (the Church)….But the woman was given the two wings of the great eagle so that she might fly from the serpent….Then the dragon became furious with the woman and went off to make war on the rest of her offspring (believers), on those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus” (Rv.12:7ff).
Again you hear of the arch-angel Michael. He is Jesus’ right hand commander who fights against Satan to defend us. Because Michael and his angels fight for us, Satan cannot overcome the Church. Still, Satan tries his hardest to drag with him as many believers as possible.
Because of that it is great to know that God daily sends His angels into this spiritual battle in our behalf. But what is most comforting of all is to know that Jesus eternally defeated Satan on the cross when He paid for our sin and won our forgiveness. Trusting in His work of salvation for us, you can never be lost, unless you turn away from Christ. The devil cannot defeat you. But he will not quit trying; he didn’t in Daniel’s day; he won’t quit in our day either.
When Daniel looked at the circumstances of his life and the situations that existed in the world of his day, he got depressed. We, as modern-day believers, get depressed too. The devil can raise such havoc in our worlds. Evil runs rampant around us. We struggle to think what we can do. And we come up with few answers.
In the process we fail to recognize that all is a spiritual battle being waged and the devil’s intent in everything is to drag us away from God. We can’t fight him with ordinary human weapons. Guns and bombs don’t work in spiritual battles. But the Word of God does and Jesus gives us promises, like He gave Daniel to comfort him. It’s comforting to know that Satan’s attempts to overturn God’s saving plan ended in utter failure. Christ triumphed over him. “It is finished; the victory is won!” And it’s good to know that God daily sends His angels, led by Michael, to fight for us until at the last we, in steadfast faith, shine like the stars forever and ever above. God will prevail for His people who continue to trust in Him.
The battle is a spiritual one. Thank God for Heavenly Allies.
II. Lord, open our eyes to “see” them. (2 Kings 6:8-17)
8 Once when the king of Syria was warring against Israel, he took counsel with his servants, saying, “At such and such a place shall be my camp.” 9 But the man of God sent word to the king of Israel, “Beware that you do not pass this place, for the Syrians are going down there.” 10 And the king of Israel sent to the place about which the man of God told him. Thus he used to warn him, so that he saved himself there more than once or twice.
11 And the mind of the king of Syria was greatly troubled because of this thing, and he called his servants and said to them, “Will you not show me who of us is for the king of Israel?” 12 And one of his servants said, “None, my lord, O king; but Elisha, the prophet who is in Israel, tells the king of Israel the words that you speak in your bedroom.” 13 And he said, “Go and see where he is, that I may send and seize him.” It was told him, “Behold, he is in Dothan.” 14 So he sent there horses and chariots and a great army, and they came by night and surrounded the city.
15 When the servant of the man of God rose early in the morning and went out, behold, an army with horses and chariots was all around the city. And the servant said, “Alas, my master! What shall we do?” 16 He said, “Do not be afraid, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” 17 Then Elisha prayed and said, “O Lord, please open his eyes that he may see.” So the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw, and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. (ESV)

Look up and around you. What do you see? What do you see in the pew beside you? What do you see in our Ozark hills? What do you see in the yard around your house? What do you see in the seat next to you in the car? What do you see standing at your bed at night? Child of God, what do you “see?” Are you “blind” like Elisha’s servant so that you don’t know what is always around you?
The king of Aram was at war with Israel. After conferring with his officers behind closed doors in a war counsel, he determined how he was going to march against Israel. Secretly, he planned to set up camps in Israel in areas not known to Israel’s king. But every time he arrived at the spot, Israel’s king was already there. Time and time again it happened. Enraged because his plot to overthrow the country always failed, he called his officers together, “Who is our traitor?” he cried. The officers responded, “None of us, my lord, but Elisha, the you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father who is in heaven.

Who’s the greatest before God? His “little children,” no matter what age, 2 weeks old to 100, His children are all who believe in Him
In faith you are attached to Christ in a way that even the holy angels aren’t. You hold a position as a son, an heir of heaven. They don’t hold that. What a wondrous, astonishing truth of grace that is.
One would think that the angels, who haven’t lost their high position that God gave them from the start, one would think that surely they are attached to Him in a high and glorious way. And they are, as His holy servants. But the fact is that they are God’s servants, sent by Him to serve us. The book of Hebrews (1:14) says, “They are ministering spirits, sent to serve those who will inherit salvation.”
You see, dear friends, the astounding part of grace is that in Christ you, by faith, are the heir. An heir holds a totally different position from the servant.
Earthly servants carry out the bidding of their masters. A servant might nobly carry out his orders and be commended. A servant, through faithful service, could rise to a high position as manager of the estate. A servant could be thought of so highly that the owner would confer on him important matters and would entrust all affairs to his care (e.g.,Eleazar; Joseph). But there is one thing about such a relationship that never changes for the servant, even if he is so great in his service that the owner can’t do without him. The estate would never belong to him because the servant is not the heir – the son is.
And the Bible says concerning heavenly things, “You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. And since you are a son, God has made you also an heir” (Ga.3:26;4:7) The angels are great in their service. But the fact of grace is that the son is the heir.
When I think of such matters of grace, it astounds me. It goes beyond my present human understanding. But I believe it, and one day we shall all, in faith, thrill to understand this whole matter as God intends it. Even now this much I know: Christ is great for He is the Savior who died for us. He calls His “little children” who believe in Him “greatest in the kingdom of heaven.” And the angels whom God sent to serve us are great for they are holy and carry out His saving plans for us. Thank God for such Heavenly Allies.
God grant us peace and joy in these truths; for Jesus’ sake. Amen.