Guardians - Pt 1

[Jesus said] “See that you do not despise one of these little ones. For I tell you that in heaven their angels always see the face of my Father who is in heaven. What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go in search of the one that went astray? And if he finds it, truly, I say to you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine that never went astray. So it is not the will of my Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish. (Matthew 18:10-14 ESV).

Our reading today has been one of the most encouraging and yet misunderstood passages containing the teachings of Jesus. Jesus speaks of the “angels” that “always see the face of my Father who is in heaven” (v. 10). John Piper wrote that Jesus meant: Let the magnificence of every unimpressive Christian’s entourage of angels silence our scorn and awaken awe at the simplest children of God. To really understand this concept of “guardian angels” we need to first clarify who “the little ones” are. They are true believers in Jesus, viewed from the standpoint of their childlike trust in God. They are the heaven-bound children of God. We know this because of the immediate and wider context of the Gospel of Matthew. This section in Matthew 18 began with the disciples asking, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” (Matthew 18:1). Jesus answers, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 18:3-4). In other words, the text is not about children. It is about those who become like children, and thus enter the kingdom of heaven. It’s about true disciples of Jesus. The “little ones” are those “who believe” in Jesus. Therefore, in our reading, when Jesus refers to “these little ones” whose angels see the face of God, he is talking about his disciples — those who will enter the kingdom of heaven — not people in general. Now, as we shall see tomorrow, this service does not increase or decrease our safety. Being the children of God means that we have God Himself, in the presence of the Holy Spirit, within us. There is no greater power anywhere than that! Our safety is in His hands. Nothing can overcome that power (cf. Romans 8:31-38). The service of these angels does, however, give us pause. Only royalty requires the service of others. To think that these mighty celestial beings are in our service should serve to remind us of the incredible position we have in Christ. The next time you begin to doubt how blessed and privileged you are, think of the angels that serve you. We are children of the King of kings and Lord of lords. No greater position exists than that which we occupy!