The Truth About Angels and You

By Brother Dave

According to a Christian research firm,* roughly four out of every ten self-identified Christians believe that spiritual forces such as angels and demons can influence humans. That means that most people, including some Christians, are oblivious to the reality of angels playing an active role in their life.

In this article, you will learn little known practical realities concerning our fellow servants in the Kingdom of God. You will be surprised to learn just how involved they are in our lives and how important it is to recognize this. If you are a born-again Christian, you may be startled to learn that you have had encounters with angels and not even realized it! To prepare you for your next encounter, I have even provided the clues you'll need to recognize it. Please be encouraged by the truth; we are not alone--God has provided angels to help us in this journey!

* Year in Review Perspective, 12/09, Barna Group, www.barna.org

Angels Are Alive and Well Today!

It was about 1990 and I was reading a passage from the Bible involving angelic beings. I had become a born-again Christian only a few years earlier. I paused to meditate on this interesting subject. I accepted, by faith, the fact that angels existed in Biblical times and that they appeared to certain chosen servants of God. What I could not understand, however, was why I couldn’t see any angelic activity in the present time. So I asked God: “If you are the same yesterday, today, and forever, why don’t I see any angelic visitations taking place today?” The answer was immediate; the Holy Spirit took control of my memories and directed me to certain time periods in my life where I had had angelic encounters, though I had not realized them. Needless to say, this was a defining moment in my Christian walk.

As a result of the above experience, I realized that God’s angels had not retired but were continuing to interact with humans, including common folk like me. This experience re-energized my relationship with God and solidified even further my confidence in the reliability of the Bible. Personal experiences with the supernatural spiritual realm tend to have that effect on people. This is why I encourage believers to pursue their own supernatural Kingdom experiences and revelations. Personal experience is a wonderful teacher!

Are they (angels) not all ministering spirits sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation?

Matthew 18:10 (NKJV)

Truth is Stranger Than Fiction:
Angels Are Interacting With Us All the Time

Despite the fact that we don’t usually recognize angelic encounters, they are happening on a regular basis. Think about that for a moment. Powerful, supernatural beings the Bible calls angels have been sent by God to help us (especially those who are obedient) in this often difficult journey we call life. Their job is, in part, to be a witness of our obedience (or lack thereof) toward God. They also are involved in ensuring we have adequate food, shelter and clothing. Additionally, they are involved in protecting us from harm as well as occassionally relaying divine revelation.

A very important point to remember about angels is that they are servants of the Almighty Living God. The New Age movement would have you believe angels are our personal servants; some of this has crept into the church. The truth is they serve God; yes, they minister to us and our basic needs but at the end of the day, they take their orders from God, not us. Our prayers should always be directed to God, not our fellow servants (angels) in the Kingdom of God.

In the report on my angelic encounters (see the end of this article), I share information and insight I’ve learned from personal experience about angels. For now, let me say that the greater our commitment to the Kingdom of God, the greater God’s blessings will be--including intervention through the agency of angels.

What Do Angels Look Like?

Our God is a God of infinite creativity. Many, including myself, have seen angels appear in a variety of forms; from winged giants close to 10 feet tall to those of various human-like heights. They can appear in their majestic Kingdom glory or they can appear to be no more than the average “street” person. Just as any group of humans will have individual and distinct physical features, so too will angels. I have found that the most common angelic encounter today invovles a being that is indistinguishable from an ordinary human being.

Roland Buck pastored a church in Boise, Idaho, for three decades. He wrote a very interesting book about an extraordinary season in his life when he was allowed to fellowship with angels. The book, Angels on Assignment, is reviewed in our resource section (see link at page bottom). Here is what Roland reports in his book about angelic appearance:

“No two of them look alike! They are different sizes, have different hair styles, and completely different appearances. Chrioni (the name of one of his angelic visitors) has a hairdo much like many men have today, and he looks about twenty-five years old. I do not know what he would weigh in earthly pounds, but my guess would be close to 400 pounds. He is huge, seven or more feet in height, and often wears a brown pull-over shirt and is casually, but neatly dressed in loose-fitting brown trousers. His shirt laces at the top with what looks like a shoelace. Gabriel (the one mentioned in the Bible!) often appears in a shimmering white tunic with a radiant gold belt about five inches wide, white trousers and highly polished, bronze-colored shoes. His hair is the color of gold!”

Mary K. Baxter is another believer who has had some fascinating spiritual experiences in the Kingdom of God. In her book, A Divine Revelation of Angels, she describes their appearance as follows:

“I have seen many angels in many different forms. The angels whom God has permitted me to see in the visions and revelations He has given me are amazing creatures to behold. The way they looked always corresponded with the mission they were on. Sometimes I see angels in their spirit forms, and sometimes I see them in “human” form. In their spirit forms, angels appear to me to be transparent, with the outline or shape of a human being. Physical walls are no barrier to them. Light floats around them and through them, and many times this makes it difficult for me to see their facial features distinctly. Often, I see spirit angels like these. Sometimes, however, I see angels with visible wings working with the spirit angels to fulfill the Word of the Lord.”

My Personal Observations

As far as my own experiences go, I have seen angels appear in a translucent state as well as dressed in white robes and also in a completely human form. In their translucent state the best comparison I have is to the movie “Predator.” In that movie the alien had technology which allowed him to blend into his surroundings and become almost invisible. When the alien moved, you would notice the outline of his body because of noticeable distortion caused by light waves. It isn’t the same with translucent angels, but it is the closest I can come to describing how they appeared. On one occasion I was allowed to see a room filled with angels in response to a prayer request. They all wore white robes, had distinct human appearances and were all staring intently at me. On four occasions I've had angelic encounters where they appeared in a variety of human forms; everything from businessmen types to street beggars. They have appeared to be of various human ancestries (e.g. black, white, Hispanic) and belonging to various age groups. In other words, there was no way to tell the difference between them and a regular human, until they disappeared into thin air!

Angelic Rankings

Just as individual angels have unique physical appearances, different groups of angels have specialized purposes. There appears to even be a hierarchy or ranking system involving these awesome beings. I will be brief on this topic because I see no real practical benefit to us of understanding this angelic hierarchy. To me, it seems to be just interesting information. In the book Angels on Assignment, Roland says his angelic visitors told him about the different types of angels. They explained that there were praise angels, worshipangels, ministering angels and warring angels. They explained that regardless of an angel's designated function, their highest purpose is to exalt the name of Jesus! When that name sounds in heaven or here on earth, they fall face down and worship him because He is so exalted!

What Role do Angels Play in Your Life?

In one sentence, the purpose of angels is to perform God’s will. God’s will includes expressing His love toward us on Earth in a variety of ways. God uses the agency of angels to participate in our protection, provision, divine revelation, and correction (i.e. discipline). Just as we are called to participate with God in His creation, so too are holy angels. Following are some interesting insights into the practical role angels are playing in our every day lives.

Testing Our Obedience

One of the more startling insights from my own angelic encounters is that angels, appearing as humans, are occassionally deployed for the sole purpose of testing our obedience to God! This happened to me on one occassion when what appeared to be a "street person" asked me for a handout. I go into more detail on this in my report, but I realized he was an angel only after he disappeared into thin air. I believe the "test" in this enocunter, for the benefit of heavenly witnesses, was my obedience to Matthew 5:42 ("give unto him who asks..."). Consider this the next time someone asks you for a handout!

Protection and Correction

Another interesting insight is that when we are walking in obedience to God (especially when ministry or Kingdom business is involved) angels will be standing by to protect us. By the same token, when our behavior turns selfish or rebellious, those same angels will "stand down" or even dispense appropriate disciplinary measures. Remember, God loves us enough to discipline us, even if we don’t enjoy it. This reality brings new meaning to Psalm 91:11 ("He shall give His angels charge over you to keep you in all your ways"). Consider this reality the next time you think you can "get away with" something you know better than to do. If you would like more information about angelic encounters I've had or researched, click here.

Providing For Our Needs

Concerning God's provision for us through angels, let me share an excerpt from Suzanne Freeman’s book, Through the Window of Life. This book discusses divine revelation Suzanne received concerning the end time tribulation. In this excerpt a small band of people are struggling through the wilderness to escape enemy forces. A godly man in their group, Walker, reassures them of the presence of angels around them:

“There are men (i.e. angels in the form of men) on the Lord’s errand who are not only here to gather the righteous, but are also here to take care of those who have faith. If humble people need food, or medicine, or any other thing, and ask for it in righteousness, these men will see that they get whatever they need.”

In my free report, I describe a personal example of provision through an angel.

Divine Revelation

In regard to God’s angels providing us divine revelation, here is an excerpt from Angels on Assignment. The author, Roland, is talking with the angel Gabriel:

“Gabriel spoke to me about the enormity of the spirit of iniquity which is working overtime in the world today. There is a sinister attempt by deceiving spirits to get God’s people sidetracked from the living Christ. He wants to be a living, pulsating person to every one of us, but because of these enemy forces, some people have taken their eyes off of Jesus and started looking to teachers. Some of these teachers dissect and categorize the Bible until it loses its life. Gabriel said, ‘Read the Word, feed on it, let it become the Living Word to you, not just columns of truths and opinions of men.’ He referred to Christ being known as a blackboard Christ, a diagrammed Christ, a printed Christ, or even as a flannel-graph Christ. He said that Jesus wants to be known as the Living Christ, coming out of the pages of the Bible to us!

…He added that though study sounds spiritual, some people would always be learning, and never doing, because by the time they acquired knowledge of one type of a study or doctrine, it was out-of-date and they had to start all over again! He said, ‘Feed on the Word.’ He repeated, ‘Feed on the Word!’ Don’t settle for the dissected Word torn into little bits and analyzed by sections. Keep it the Living Word!"

How to Recognize an Angelic Encounter

“Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some have unwittingly entertained angels.”

Hebrews 13:2 (NKJV)

Most angelic encounters recorded in the Bible were of the type that would be hard not to recognize. Although many people living today have such unmistakable encounters, the vast majority of encounters are so subtle they are hard to recognize. These involve angels that look just like a human being. Based on my research and personal experiences I’ve identified four characteristics of the less obvious angelic encounters. This information will help you identify your own angelic encounters which you’ve previously written off as “coincidence.” Better yet, I hope this helps you recognize an encounter while its occurring! Of course, I want to hear about it!

Here are your clues:

1. The person (i.e. the incognito angel) seems to come on the scene out of nowhere, at just the right time, at just the right place, and provides needed assistance (this usually happens in response to a prayer for help).

2. After providing the assistance needed, the “person” will promptly exit. Sometimes he/she exits around a corner, through a door or sometimes you momentarily look away and when you look back, they’re gone!

3. The “person’s” face might seem to beam with joy, or profound peacefulness. Their eyes may reveal a profound sense of knowledge and understanding and their gaze will tend to be unusually intense or focused.

4. The “person” will often drop hints of his or her true supernatural nature. This will occur through comments which later turn out to be prophetic, or by casually mentioning something of personal importance to the human contact.

Curiously, "in the moment" it is hard to catch these hints. It seems that they are recognized only upon later reflection upon the encounter. Hopefully, you have a heads up now and will be able to catch them in the moment.

If the above clues begin to line up in a situation where you are being helped by someone you've never seen before, be bold and ask him/her point blank if they are an angel of God! How cool will that be if they say "yes", remember, they won't lie. Then go ahead and start asking them some questions about this life but be sure to tell them Brother Dave says "Hi", ok?

If you’d like my free report on angelic encounters, click here.

If you’d like to check out some of the books mentioned in this article, go to our resource area by clicking here.

If you would be kind enough to give me some feedback on this article, please click here.

To return to the "Angels and Demons" page from this "Angels and You" article, click here.