Do you think that I cannot appeal to My Father, and He will at once put at My disposal more than twelve legions of angels?
–Matthew 26:53
“He is not here; He has risen, just as He said…” – Matthew 28:6
The Bible tells us that the angels were eyewitnesses to Christ’s sacrifice on the cross. In his article “Christmas As the Angels Saw It,” Colin Smith imagines, “What must the angels have thought as they witnessed his death on the cross? What must they have thought as they heard him be accused? And what must they have thought when they who had worshiped him in heaven saw the mocking worship of the people who put a reed in his hand and said, ‘Hail, king of the Jews’? And what must have gone through the minds of angels as they saw someone taking a briar of thorns and weaving it together: ‘Surely they will not put that on his head?’ And what must the angels have thought of our human race when they saw the Son of God nailed to a cross?”
The Bible tells us what the angels were doing at that very moment. Matthew 26:53 says the angels were standing on the precipice of Heaven, awaiting the order from God to deliver His Son. But that order never came. Jesus said in Matthew 26:53 to His accusers, “Do you think that I cannot appeal to My Father, and He will at once put at My disposal more than twelve legions of angels?” But Jesus never made that request, because He understood His purpose for coming. Jesus said, “The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45). Christ came to make the only acceptable sacrifice for our sins, and the angels witnessed the whole episode.
But it did not stop there. Three days later, the angels were also eyewitnesses to Christ’s resurrection from the dead. On that Easter Sunday morning, a violent earthquake occurred. And at that moment, an angel came and rolled the stone away. The angel sat upon that stone, and the women came to find the Lord. Just picture that angel, sitting on that stone, with his arms probably crossed as if to say, “So much for the power of the grave!” The women inquired where the Lord was, then the angel said, “Do not be afraid; for I know that you are looking for Jesus who has been crucified. He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said” (Matthew 28:5-6).
We are presented the story of Lazarus:
Man rolled away the stone!
Here in the instance of The Lord Jesus Christ, it was not tarried! The angels are unchanging!
While shepherds watched their flock be night, the angel of The Lord came down and glory shone around…
At the birth of Christ, there was no holding them back!
When Herod looked to slay “The King” that had been prophesied to the 3 wise men, who themselves were warned in a dream to depart in secret. an angel warned Joseph to flee. The flight into Egypt is a story recounted in the Gospel of Matthew (Matthew 2:13–23) and in New Testament apocrypha. Soon after the visit by the Magi, an angel appeared to Joseph in a dream telling him to flee to Egypt with Mary and the infant Jesus since King Herod would seek the child to kill Him.
Weeks later, when the Lord in His resurrected body was about to ascend into Heaven, the Bible says the angels were not only in Heaven watching the event, but two angels were also on earth watching the event. As Jesus ascended into Heaven, the crowd was gazing into the sky. And those angels said to the crowd, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven” (Acts 1:11).
Hebrews 12:1 says, “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.”
Here the writer to the Hebrews exhorts all who profess faith in Jesus Christ, the “author and perfecter of our faith” (v. 2), to do two things. First, we are to remove or put off any burden that keeps us from Christ-likeness, especially sin because sin ensnares us and keeps us in bondage to itself. Second, we are to persevere, patiently enduring all things until we grow and mature in the faith. James reminds us that trials serve to strengthen our faith and bring us to maturity (James 1:2-3).
Hebrews 12:1 is reminding us to persevere through those trials, knowing that, by God’s faithfulness, we won’t be overwhelmed by them (1 Corinthians 10:13).
So who are the “cloud of witnesses,” and how is it they “surround” us? To understand this, we need to look at the previous chapter, as evidenced by the word therefore beginning chapter 12. Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and the rest of the Old Testament believers looked forward with faith to the coming of the Messiah. The author of Hebrews illustrates this eloquently in chapter 11 and then ends the chapter by telling us that the forefathers had faith to guide and direct them, but God had something better planned. Then he begins chapter 12 with a reference to these faithful men and women who paved the way for us. What the Old Testament believers looked forward to in faith—the Messiah—we look back to, having seen the fulfillment of all the prophecies concerning His first coming.
We are surrounded by the saints of the past in a unique way. It’s not that the faithful who have gone before us are spectators to the race we run. Rather, it is a figurative representation and means that we ought to act as if they were in sight and cheering us on to the same victory in the life of faith that they obtained. We are to be inspired by the godly examples these saints set during their lives. These are those whose past lives of faith encourage others to live that way, too. That the cloud is referred to as “great” indicates that millions of believers have gone before us, each bearing witness to the life of faith we now live.
We are Known, better even than we think to know ourselves. Our stories have been written; the script is cast
The Bible says in Isaiah 48:10 – “Behold, I have refined you, but not with silver; I have tested you in the furnace of affliction”. Our Almighty God has not drop the pen that he is using to write yours and my story and so keep the faith and walk with the Holy Spirit for better understanding of your purpose.
Jesus had a purpose – you! You have a reason, find it!
