And I say unto you, whosoever shall confess Me before men, him shall the Son of man also confess before the angels of God. Luke 12:8
A young woman had been hired to work for our company, although she had never been anywhere near our operation. Our vice-president and department head had interviewed her at a trade convention in California, and decided to hire her based on her excellent credentials and warm personality. Delighted at being hired, this young woman, in the month before she arrived in our offices, learned everything she could about our company, and told everyone she encountered about the wonderful place she was going to work. One of our clients contacted us and told us about her warm praise of us, and described her as a good ambassador for the company. It is little wonder that when she arrived to begin work, she was given a warm welcome and was highly praised for her attitude about the company. It is also little wonder that Christians who are a good testimony for their Lord are to receive high acclaim in a coming day. In fact, as our text declares, they are receiving it now.
Because they operate in the sinless environment of Heaven, angels are perfect in their worship and service. They were created to serve God in a multitude of ways, many of which we do not understand. Because of God’s keen interest in the affairs of earth, much of the angels’ ministry has to do with fulfilling God’s purposes here. But many if not most of the angels function entirely in Heaven itself, fulfilling God’s purposes there. There is much that they do not know about humanity, having never experienced sin nor redemption from it. Because these joyfully obedient beings know nothing about disobedience, they must be deeply shocked by the depths of disobedience to God’s will that mark the citizens of earth. At the same time, these angels must be deeply impressed when there is obedience to God’s will on the part of any human beings. That is why the angels are so fascinated by the preaching of the Gospel (1 Peter 1:12), to which repentant sinners respond in obedience. That is also why angels are so drawn to God’s Assemblies, as they view a measure of obedience to the Word of God. The same applies to those Christians as individuals whose lives are an open witness for the Lord Jesus. It is God Himself Who points out such individuals to the angels.
We know that the angels join the rejoicing in Heaven over each sinner who repents (Luke 15:7). Our text today adds to that the rejoicing they experience over the faithful witness of each saint, the words and the life that tell those around that the child of God is indeed a child of God. As we examine our lives, let us take note of what portion of our time is spent in dabbling with the playthings of earth, and what portion is spent in proclaiming the lordship of Jesus Christ.
Have the angels been given reason to rejoice at our faithful witness today? -Jim MacIntosh