TOPIC:‌“Touched by An Angel”

                 by Rev. Dr. Reg Dunlap

 

TEXT:‌Acts 27:19-30

 

“For there stood by me this night an angel of God, whose I am, and whom I serve” (Acts 27:23)

 

‌In October of 50 A.D. the Apostle Paul sailed for Rome from Caesarea. It was a 2000 mile trip. Ships in ancient times had no compass so they had to navigate by the stars. Overcast weather made sailing almost impossible, especially, between September through November. Paul's ship was eventually shipwrecked on the island of Malta. But I want you to notice the comforting words of verses 23 and 24 as I read it from the New International Version of the Bible:

 

“Last night an angel of the God whose I am and whom I serve stood beside me and said, “Do not be afraid, Paul. You must stand trial before Caesar; and God has graciously given you the lives of all who sail with you.”

 

‌Now I want you to realize a very important truth found in these words. This is the last direct appearance of angels in the Bible. They are mentioned many more times, but this is the last recorded appearance to man in the Word of God. We live in a day when there is much interest in the subject of angels. People are writing about them and talking about them. As a matter of fact, at this very moment one of the most popular television programs is, Touched by An Angel, from which we get the title for this message.

 

‌Because of this present fascination with angels, we as Christians need to make certain that we don't fall victim to the many unbiblical fantasies that people have about them. Much of what we behold on television about angels is distorted and the superstitious views which many people have about them are not based on the Word of God.

 

‌As believers we need to be very careful about alleged appearances of angels. We should regard such statements with great suspicion. Let us never forget that one well-known religious cult of today got started when its founder claimed to have received divine revelation through an angel.

 

‌Because of the present day popularity of angels, and because they play an important part in the plans of God, I believe we need to examine the facts about them from God's Holy Word.

 

I.

 

‌Consider, first of all, the ACTUALITY of angels. Recall again the words of our text: “For there stood by me that night an angel of God” (v. 23). Now Paul according to these words had no doubt in his mind about the existence of this angel. He not only saw it, but the angel had a special message for him.

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