To be touched by an angel

Luke 1:26-38  In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee,  (27)  to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary.  (28)  The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”  (29)  Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be.  (30)  But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God.  (31)  You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus.  (32)  He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David,  (33)  and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.”  (34)  “How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”  (35)  The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.  (36)  Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month.  (37)  For nothing is impossible with God.”  (38)  “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May it be to me as you have said.” Then the angel left her.

There is great awareness in our society today regarding the subject of angels. People buy books and mementos and cards advising them on how to connect or communicate with their angel. They have stickers and necklaces and charms and bracelets, and they even hang angel figurines from their rear-view mirrors in their cars. Some have even gone so far as to engrave (that is tattoo) angel figures onto their bodies.

What is it that makes people to be so fixated with angels? Two reasons come to mind: protection and direction. The Bible intimates towards children having guardian angels when Jesus says in Matthew 18 vs. 10 that their angels – that is the little children’s angels – are in heaven and that these angels see the face of God. Some have read into the context of that Scripture and concluded that it is not only the children who have guardian angels, but all peoples, including adults. And so we pray that our guardian angels would help us and our children to remain safe, to protect us.

The second reason that the world is so fixated on angels, is because they believe that the angels can give them advice and direction for their lives. And this is where the bigger problem lies. You see, instead of praying to God, people are now praying to angels. Instead of seeking to experience the power of the Holy Spirit, they want the experience the power of the angels. And there are some that instead of wanting to learn what they must do differently – what they must change – are wanting to command the angels to do their own bidding.

Yes, God does use angels to communicate and give instruction to us humans. But most of these times, the message that they deliver, is not an easy one. Normally, the message that they bring to the person, is one that requires of that person, a great deal of courage and faith.

In this passage, the angel comes to Mary and tells her amazing things. He tells her about what is going to happen to her, what God has got planned for her life, what she must do. He gives her direction for her life.

But notice that she is not filled with awe and delight. Rather, she is troubled, indeed greatly troubled. Mary is filled with worry and doubt, even fear. How could these things be? How could she be pregnant without having been with a man, a husband? What are people going to think? What are they going to do to her? Surely this will lead to her death! How could this be? She might have even thought, “This is not the type of direction I am looking for for my life.”

But the angel responds: “For nothing is impossible with God”.

The messages that angels bring will always seem insurmountable and impossible, something that only an all-powerful God can achieve. And yet when we respond as Mary did, we partake in Him achieving it: I am the Lord’s servant, May it be to me as you have said.

my name is darryl
and this is what i have to say