And the angel answering said unto him, I am Gabriel, that stand in the presence of God; and am sent to speak unto thee, and to shew thee these glad tidings. Luke 1:14
A number of songs, mostly among the Negro spirituals, refer to the angel Gabriel blowing his trumpet to call the Christians to Heaven. But the Bible does not tell us that it is Gabriel who blows that trumpet; this detail is just a piece of folklore. Gabriel is also not identified in the Scriptures as an archangel on the level of Michael, as the Catholics claim. But he is a most interesting being, a very special angel in the purposes of God’s dealings with humanity. Gabriel appears three times in Scripture. The first time is in the book of Daniel, when he is sent to provide Daniel with interpretations of visions. Our text – his appearance to Zacharias in the temple – is the second occurence. And the third is later in this chapter, verse 26, where he is sent to announce to Mary that she is to be the mother of Jesus. As with most angels, Gabriel’s role is as a messenger. In his appearance to both Zacharias and Mary, he is sent directly by God to carry his messages. In fact, he indicates that his regular occupation is to stand in the very throne room of Heaven, in a place where he knows the very mind and purpose of God. He has intimate knowledge of God’s purposes, apparently more so than most other angels. So he is a very special angel. And his message must also be very special.
In sending Gabriel with his messages to Zacharias and to Mary, God was also sending those messages to us by having these accounts recorded in the Scriptures. We receive an indication of God’s purposes in Gabriel’s messages. God wants us to know these things. And He wants us to believe them. In fact, Gabriel deprived Zacharias of speech for a time, because he doubted the message. Gabriel’s message is to be trusted and appreciated. In each of the occasions in this chapter, he brings good news of great importance, not just to Zacharias and to Mary but also to you and me and all of mankind. Only a tiny portion of humanity has believed Gabriel’s words and appreciated them.
I have never seen an angel, that I know of. Neither, I suspect, have you. But we don’t need to see angels ourselves to receive their messages. Gabriel’s message is on record, and we believe it, just as we believe everything else that is written in the Scriptures. It should have every bit as much impact on us as if an angel actually spoke to us. Because the entire Word of God is a special message that God has sent to you and me. – Jim MacIntosh