Hebrews twelve and verse twenty two. But ye are come unto Mount Zion, and unto the city of the living God, to the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, and to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling that speaketh better things than that of evil. Again the Lord will bless to us this reading from his precious one. We've been discussing things that we have been brought to. We've been brought to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heaven of Jerusalem and this morning I would like to discuss with you this subject that we have been brought to myriads of angels this is absolutely overwhelming to think that God would take up you and me and bring us into alignment into contact with myriads of angels angels are a higher order of being than men. They were created, of course, before men, as you are aware. In the book of Job, they are called the sons of God. At creation's day, the morning stars they sang together, and the sons of God shouted aloud for God. There was great jubilation amongst the ranks of the angels when God created the heavens on the earth. Nehemiah calls them the hosts of heaven who worship the Lord God. They are principalities and they are powers. The Epistle to the Hebrews chapter one says concerning the angels that they are all ministering spirits sent forth to minister to them who shall be heirs of salvation. Notice how important is that word all. They are all ministering spirits. There is not one indolent, lazy angel in heaven. They are marked by alacrity and determination in the service of Jehovah. Now, brethren and sisters, you and I would do well to emulate these ministering spirits. No lethargy, no apathy. amongst that heavenly host. I suppose you've heard the story which seems to define what we really are as a people. We are a mixed people. Some are active and some are inactive. The story of the chicken and the pig. Chicken and the pig one day were walking down through a distressed area and there was poverty on every hand. And the The chicken said to the pig, Friend, I think that you and I can help here. We can supply for this hungry people bacon and eggs. Well, the old pig was a gas. He said to the chicken, Friend, it's all right for you. You only make a contribution. But for me, it's total involvement. Now that is just exactly how we seem to function as the people of God. There are some and they just only make a small contribution. But there are others, blessed be God, who are totally involved in the work of the Lord. Well, in Michigan not too long ago, a brother said to me in our assembly, we have some lily brethren. Well, I've heard of conservative brethren and liberal brethren and other kinds of brethren, but never have I heard of lily brethren. I asked for a definition. Well, he says, they neither toil nor spin. And Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But here are these heavenly beings, and God says that they are all ministering spirits. They are wholehearted in their service for the Lord. There are different orders of angels. We find one angel called Gabriel, an archangel, and there is one archangel called Michael. Now Gabriel is the Lord's minister of internal affairs, whereas Michael is his minister of external affairs. It always seems that when God has something to tell mankind regarding his thinking, his functions, his programs, he always brings into focus this archangel called Gabriel. He was his minister for internal affairs. But Michael is more militant. He is his minister of war. He is his minister of external affairs. And when there is judgment in view, you will always find that Michael is head of this militancy, this special group of angels. There are angels and some are executives of holiness. In Isaiah chapter six, we find the seraphins and they are six wings. With twain they covered their feet, with twain they covered their face, and with twain they did it fly. And their voices reverberated through the heavens, signifying the majesty on the holiness of God. And they cried, Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord of hosts. The whole earth is filled with his glory. There are some on their executives of holiness. Others are executives of righteousness. When Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden of Eden, you remember God drove Adam and Eve out. He had lost his possessions. He had lost his place in the universe as Lord of creation. And he had lost his peace because of sin. And God drove him out. And God placed at that gate of Eden a cherry of him to maintain the holy character of God and to protect the tree of life. Executives of righteousness. But Paul writing to the saints of Thessalonica, he says also that there are some and there are executives of judgment. Some holiness, some righteousness, some judgment. Our Lord Jesus Christ shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, taking vengeance on them that know not God and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. Now you and I have been brought to these myriads of angels, and I thank God every day for angels. While listening to Dr. George Davis, a minister of a church in Washington DC who officiated at the funeral of the late LBJ president Johnson in his address that morning he said that he was scared of angels and he says somehow some way the president and my path will meet again somewhere somehow as to heaven he said we do not know where it is we do not know what it is and we don't know how to get there my heart ached when I thought of a president of this great country having such a spiritual advisor I thank God for angels and so do you and we thank God that we know where heaven is and we know what it is it's very far better and we know how to get there I am the way the truth and the life, no man cometh unto the Father but by me. I sat down and I wrote to Dr. George Davis. I sent him a booklet by Mr. DeHan on how to get to heaven. So far he has not answered my letter. We thank God for angels because they are involved in our external circumstances. In every avenue of our lives, our bodies, they are involved in our bodies, in our journeys and in our occupations. Everywhere you and I go, we have an escort of angels. As close as we keep within the range of wisdom. The late Richard Hill, the first time I met him, was in Schenectady, New York, and I'll never forget the experience, just as a young fellow in my twenties. Richard Hill was traveling with a friend of mine in his Cadillac, and he loves to push that Cadillac, and it got up to about eighty miles an hour. And dear Richard Hill began to tremble, and he said to my friend, don't you think you're going too fast? Oh, my friend says, don't worry, brother, the angels will take care of you. He says, when you get up to sixty miles an hour, they got up. angels are wise beings and they will not jeopardize themselves because of the foolishness of men but we are involved in our external circumstances and in our journeys in World War II I was sailing back from Gibraltar and we left on the first of March nineteen forty three for three days we were attacked by German bombers And on the third evening there was no signs of any enemy bombs, which was a source of amazement to us because we were getting near Bordeaux. We were just not safe Cape Village there in the Bay of Biscay. I went down into the Meishto of Supper at five thirty on the third of March. And we had suffered then an argument developed amongst the boys as to what they would do when they got back to the British Isles. And they discussed every conceivable pleasure that you can imagine. And as I was leaving, I said, excuse me. They said, well, we want to have the radio on to listen to the news. Some wanted forces favorite, another argument, which was the pop music of the day. Finally, they agreed to have the news. So I just put my hand on the radio when there was a tremendous explosion in the engine room. I was huddled against a bulkhead. We had been struck by a torpedo. No aircraft, but the attacks of U-boats around the convoy, and they belted us from every cost. Our ship immediately broke our backs, and the captain gave the order every man for himself. We had no time to lower boats or rafts. I kicked off my sea boots. I grabbed a life jacket and jumped into the icy waters of the Bay of Biscay in intense darkness, gale wind blowing, and a sea running hard. At the mercy of the elements, not knowing whither I would ever be picked up again. Wondering if I'd ever see the motherland again, loved one. at the mercy of the earth. But when I was in the water, a verse of Scripture came forcibly to me in Psalm four verse eight. I will both lay me down in peace and safety, for thou Lord only makest me to dwell in safety. It seemed almost ludicrous to think of such a verse. I will both lay me down in peace and sleep. for thou Lord only makest me to dwell in safety. But two hours afterwards HMS Bukowski came along. She was on contraband patrol off the Spanish coast. By this time I was getting very weak in body. I was constantly growing up because of a stomach disorder in the water, plus the nervous tension. And it was absolutely miraculous how that ship seemed to turn on a way, and another way quickly backlashed, and I almost landed right on the deck of that ship. Four men grabbed me, and they pulled me alongside into the ship. Guards and angels. As I sat around the funnel trying to dry off my clothes, there were two men from another ship called the Fedra. One said to the other, I wonder how so and so go on. Oh, said his companion, his buddy, the angels would take care of him. Immediately my ears were at ninety degrees. I said, excuse me, what do you mean the angels would take care of him? Oh, they said, this was a boy. He belonged to the Salvation Army and he used to preach the gospel alone in the streets of Gibraltar. He must have been a good soldier of Jesus Christ. When I got to Londonderry in the north of Ireland, up the river foiled, I made it my business to try and find out if the angels took care of him. I went down to the Navy house, and I made inquiries, and finally I located his wife, picked up by a destroyer. Yes, the angels took care of him. We are a special people in the eyes of God. We are a privileged people. And these ministering spirits are involved in our journeys and in our activities and even in relation to our own minds. In the First Kings chapter nineteen, we find these angels functioning in the interests of the people of God. Here is dear Elijah, very discouraged and very disformed. He sat down under the juniper tree and he says, Lord, I've had enough. Just take me home. Take my life away, Lord. I can't stand the pressure anymore. And he fell asleep under the juniper tree. Suddenly, after God allowed him to have a restful sleep, an angel kept him on the shoulder. And as he opened his eyes, there was a cake baked upon the oven. There was no Aunt Jemima cake mix. The angels are very versatile. And the angel cooked this special cake for Elijah. And there was a cruise of water. And he fell asleep again. And the angel stood by patiently, waiting until he revived. And then he set before him meat. You see there is development in the things of God. And dear Elijah went in the strength of that need for top today. Angel ministering on behalf of the people of God. The sixty-eighth Psalm says they travel through the heavens like chariots. We always used to be amazed as we observed the movements of the armies in World War II. feel marshall Montgomery moving across the desert from El Alamein. But here is the forces of Jehovah, and they're just like giants. Spiritual texts. And they move through the heavens. And they move across the earth. On behalf of you. Amen. Luke sixteen is a very pathetic picture. There's that man Lazarus. He's lying at the rich man's gate full of sores. And actually the only comfort he had down here was moreover the dog. Moreover the dog came and licked his sores. But when he died, God sent a special escort for Lazarus. And these angels, they winged him into power. And I believe with all my heart, when a child of God dies, every child of God, I believe God sends a special angelic escort to wing them into the realms of endless day. We are his special treasure. and he will see to it that they go through enemy territory. The devil is the prince of the power of the air. And the spirit being released by God, the soul goes right into the presence of the Lord. Having a desire to depart to be with Christ, which is far better, says Paul. And the moment his head was decapitated, he was taken right in through the presence of the Lord. A special effort. for the people of God. Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints. In Acts chapter twelve, Peter was in very difficult circumstances. Herod was on the rampage. He executed and he put Peter in prison. James was cut down by the edge of the sword, and he takes Peter, and he puts him in prison. And in a special day, on a special occasion, he was going to make Peter the object of scorn and derision. The target for the offense of these Christ rejections. Oh, here a very insidious plan had Herod Agrippa. And there's Peter interested. His feet fast in the stops, as much as to say, this fellow is not going to get out. And the people of God began to pray. And when the church of God begins to pray, God can move mountains. And there is Peter in prison and the soldiers around him. And an angel came right into that prison, removed the shackles from Peter's feet. And Peter took a trip out of the prison, and he went down to visit his friend's place in the upper room. Angels functioning on behalf of God's people. In Acts chapter twenty-seven, Paul is facing shipwreck. He had warned the captain not to leave Crete, but they went out into the ocean, and the storm developed through the winds, the south winds, in the Aegean Sea. And it was obvious that the ship was about to be broken into it. When an angel came and said to Paul, Paul, everything's going to be alright. And he stood fast there, that dear little man, and he says, God, who's I am, and whom I serve has told me that all will be well if you stay in the ship, not one man's life. will be lost. I believe that's a picture of salvation and sovereignty. As long as they remain in that ship that was man's responsibility. And God's sovereignty. He promised he would protect them in that ship. And there are certain people today who make much about God's will, his sovereignty. that God will certain people to be lost and certain people to be damned which I do not accept. The Bible and the world says Mudi is filled with two kinds of people, the whosoever will and the whosoever won't. We have a responsibility to God and if we exercise that will in alignment with his word, he'll preserve us, he'll save us and bring us into happy fellowship with himself. Albanism is certainly not of God. This God will set in people to be lost and God will set in people to be damned. Our God is a God of love and he will give every man an opportunity for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life. So they stay within the ship. That was their responsibility. God exercised his sovereignty and not one light was lost. They are all ministering spirits sent forth to minister to them who shall be the heirs of salvation. Now you and I have been brought to this great company, marriage of angels, and angels not only minister on our behalf, but angels express the mind of God. In the book of Daniel, God was about to unfold to Daniel the future concerning that famous seventy-eighth week, the seventy weeks of Daniel. And it was Gabriel who came and expressed to him the mind of God. He says, Daniel, O men, greatly beloved. How did the angel know that Daniel was greatly beloved. Angels know many things. They know the spiritual deportment of men and women of God. Daniel, O men, greatly beloved. God has determined seventy weeks upon his people, and he explained to Daniel God's program in relation to Christ. Six to nine years he said to Daniel, and the Messiah shall be cut off. He told Daniel about Calvary and the cutting off of Christ, then the interim period, now the dispensation of God's grace, then the coming in of Daniel's seventh year. He expressed the mind of God and he said to Daniel, Daniel, do you consider the vision? It was Gabriel who expressed the mind of God to Mary. When the Saviour was about to be born, Gabriel made a special trip from heaven. And Lord is beloved, in the word of God, it says angels ascending and descending. You see, this is their sphere of activity. But they always go home to heaven for their orders. As I said last night, that is God's headquarters. It's the throne of God and of the land. And they always go back to heaven for their orders, for their instruction. Then they come back and execute these orders. And so Gabriel makes a special trip, and he comes right down, and he visits a humble maid in the hills of Judea. And he says, Blessed art thou. amongst women. Behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a child. His name shall be called Emmanuel. God with us. She was somewhat confused, and who would not be confused? But the Holy Spirit again expresses the mind of God, and he tells Mary exactly how this thing will come about. the Holy Spirit shall come upon thee and the power of the high shall overshadow thee and that holy thing that shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God expressing the mind of them and Gabriel said to Mary I've got more news for you your cousin Elizabeth is also expecting a child. The forerunner of Christ, angels know many things. It was an angel who paid a special visit to Joseph to clear up any problem that he might have relative to the conception, this abnormal, this miraculous conception. And he paid a special visit to Joseph. And then when the Savior was born and the pressure was put upon him by the devil, through the monarch who sat on the throne, the angel said to Joseph, Joseph, God has sent you this message to give to you. You take the young child and take him down to Egypt. that the scripture might be fulfilled which says out of Egypt I have called my son angels express the mind of God in Acts chapter eight Philip the evangelist and I love that title he's the only man in the ex of the apostles who is actually called the evangelist there were many evangelists but he especially was given the title Philip the Evangelist. He's having a very productive gospel campaign down in Samaria. Many souls are being saved, and of course he preaches the gospel that we all love. He preached Christ in Samaria. That is the death, the burial, and the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. He preached Christ. No wonder... There was a great response to the preaching of Philip the Evangelist. But when he was right in the height of his campaign, an angel came to Philip and said, Philip, there's a special journey that you must take. God was revealing to Philip the urgency regarding a soul in its individuality. He was seeing many souls saved in some end. But while God is the God of the many, He's also the God of the individual. And the black man was returning from Jerusalem very discouraged. He had come all those hundreds of miles from his native Africa, hoping to find satisfaction in Jerusalem. The city where God had placed his name. Where the morning and the evening oblation were being offered day by day. Where ritual and ceremony was in complete exposure to everyone who visited that city. Boyd in his heart. And he's going back to a very disappointed man. He's nearing the Gaza Strip. And the angel said to Philip, Go down to Gaza. And he went. And when he saw the chariot coming, the Spirit of God said to him, Now is your opportunity. And Philip ran, and he joined the dunos in the chariot at the most opportune moment. He was reading in the book of Isaiah the prophet. If he had been reading in chapter fifty-two, there would have been great difficulty. Had he been reading in chapter fifty-five, if Philip had dilly-dallyed, and he'd gone rather beyond fifty-three to fifty-four, he would find great difficulty in finding Christ. But oh, in chapter fifty-three, he got there right at the right moment when he was reading about the man who was cut off out of the land of the living. And Philip introduced the Lord Jesus Christ. or rather the black men to the Lord and the Lord to him. And he was baptized like our dear friends on Lord's day. And he went on his way to Rishash. What a climax. What a beautiful story. What a beautiful picture. But all this thing began through the energy and exercise of the angel guided by God. They express the mind of God. But not only do angels minister to all of God's people, and not only do they express, not that express, express the mind of God, but they execute the purposes of God. If it was not so serious, I think one of the most amusing pictures in the word of God it found in Numbers chapter twenty two where Barom was arguing with his donkeys on the turnpike from Moab to Israel here is this man who loved the wages of unrighteousness and he had two companions with him and they must have really wondered what was going on when they saw the argument between the Acts and Barom going at it And Judah must have headed for the hills. But there stood in front of that donkey an angel. And sometimes donkeys have more intelligent and can see better than men. The donkey saw the angel, but Balaam didn't. And the donkey made a course away from the angel standing there with his soul. And old Balaam got men. and he gave the donkey a good footing. And they came back onto the turn point, and down they go, this time between two cliffs. Again stands the angel with a sword. This time the donkey moved again, veered to the left or to the right, and he brushed the foot of Balaam against the rocks. And again he got men. Another flashing for the old donkey. And he moved on. This time there was no going to the left or to the right. And when that donkey saw the angel of God in his resplendence and with his sword, his legs just buckled underneath him. And down went, oh, Balaam and his nose into the sand. He said, if I had a sword, I would kill him. And there the donkey started to talk to him. and tell him what he thought of Balaam. They execute the purposes of God and God told Balaam you're coming for the wages of unrighteousness, you're hired by Balaam that you'll never curse my people. Never. They were the apple of his eye. They are his special treasures. In this Hundred and second psalmary, bless the Lord. O ye his angels, who excel in strength and who do his command, be an ever-willing to execute the purposes of God. Our Lord Jesus rose on the third in the appointed day from the day. But before he came out of that tomb, there in front of that tomb was a large tomb. Brother Willie gave a message at that tomb many years ago, and it's the most sacred place in the whole universe. God says it. And outside that tomb is a cutting out in the rocks. obviously for the stone in all probability in the shape of a coin. But it certainly was large enough to keep anyone in and anyone out. Now our Lord Jesus Christ did not require an angel to come and roll away this stuff. When he rose he possessed a body that knows no limitations. He could appear in the upper room without coming through a door. And that's the kind of body that you and I will have in that heavenly city. A body that knows no limitations. And the angels roll the stone away. The time is gone. The will of the Lord will continue our subject this evening. Shall we pray? Father, we thank thee that thou hast brought us to marriage of angels. We cannot see them. but we know that they are present. Thou hast told us in thy word, and we have felt the benefit of Father in our lives, time and time again, thy preserving care over us because of the ages. Now pass us with thy blessing, and do remember us for good this evening. We need thy help again in handling thy word in the name of the Lord Jesus. Amen. I think we'll just sing out for us, and that will be enough for today. For this morning he's the Savior of my soul. Jesus, Lord Jesus, he's the Savior of my soul. He's my Lord, my life, my office.