Guardian Angels?

. . . in heaven their angels always see the face of My Father who is in heaven (Matthew 18:10).

It was a common belief among the Jews that the nation of Israel had a guardian angel. In fact, they believe every nation on earth is assigned a guardian angel. (Daniel 10:13) But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days; and behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left alone there with the kings of Persia.

The Lord appeared to Daniel to reveal to him His plan for the ages (cf. 10:1-21). He spoke of ‘the prince of Persia’ who is “the guardian spirit or the protecting genius of the Persian kingdom, as the Rabbis and most of the Christian interpreters have rightly acknowledged” (Keil & Delitzsch). Likewise, ‘Michael, one of the chief princes’ is believed to be the guardian angel of Israel. “Michael is thus the angel possessing the unparalleled power of God. He is here said to be ‘one of the chief princes’, i.e., of the highest angel-princes (Daniel 10:21, ‘your prince’, i.e., the prince who contends for Israel, who conducts the cause of Israel” (Keil & Delitzsch). Michael is one of the most distinguished of the angel-princes or ‘archangels’ (Jude 1:9) who fights against demonic forces that attempt to destroy the Jews (Revelation 12:7).

While it is widely accepted that Scripture speaks of angels assigned to nations, it is not specifically stated that angels are assigned to individuals. The Bible does reveal that angels interact with people, but it does not affirm ‘guardian angels’ over people. So, what did Jesus mean when He said regarding the ‘little ones’ (Christians), . . . in heaven their angels always see the face of My Father who is in heaven?

While this text does not specifically speak of personal guardian angels, it does say that angels do take an interest in the welfare of God’s people. (Hebrews 1:14) Are they (angels) not all ministering spirits sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation? In other words, God the Father takes special care of those who believe in Him by ministering to them through His angels. It is comforting to know that while each Christian may not have a single guardian angel watching over him/her, there are a host of angels ministering to him/her moment by moment, day by day.

“Thank You, Lord, for Your care and protection over us by sending Your angels to minister to us. So now, what have we to fear with Your Holy Spirit living in us, Your angels ministering to us, Your church encouraging and supporting us, Your Word instructing us; we are a people greatly blessed and most fortunate! Amen.”

Pastor