The Festival of St. Michael and All Angels – Pr. Anderson sermon
St. Matthew 18:1-10 “The Angels Always see the Face of The Father”
September 29, 2024 | Christ Lutheran Church
In Nomine Iesu
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Heavenly Father, we thank you for your great mercy in sending your One and only Son to be our redeemer. It is through Him alone we are saved as He destroys our enemies of sin, death and the power of the devil. While our enemies can never separate us from your love, we confess their temptations can be greater than what we can bear. We ask for your forgiveness and that you would continue to send your holy angels to protect us from harm and danger so we may safely follow you and live according to your Word. We pray this in the name of our Savior who is our way of salvation. Amen.
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. (Rom. 1:7, etc.)
The sermon text for today is taken from the 18th chapter of the Gospel according to St. Matthew. We read selected verses in Jesus’ name:
“Woe to the world for temptations to sin! For it is necessary that temptations come, but woe to the one by whom the temptation comes! And if your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life crippled or lame than with two hands or two feet to be thrown into the eternal fire. And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into the hell of fire.
“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.”
These are Your words, heavenly Father. Sanctify us by Your truth, Your Word is truth. Amen. (Joh. 17:17)
In Christ Jesus, who commands His angels concerning you, to guard you in all your ways, dear fellow redeemed:
How special are angels? This is a topic many love to explore. It is ranked pretty high when it comes to topics for Bible study. Now while Scripture tells us about God’s creation of angels and what their purpose is, sometimes we tend to get distracted from their purpose in Scripture compared to the purpose the world has for them. It’s not hard to see this is true when we look at all of the stories, television shows, movies, and games about angels. The world unfortunately doesn’t see how special angels are because they put on blinders to Scripture. People want to see angels working and fighting for God in “real life.” Now there are a few different ways to handle this topic of angels. The easiest though, is to dive into Scripture. Even though we don’t know when we have seen an angel, we don’t need to doubt their existence or simply think they are insignificant. God created them for a reason. They help protect us without our knowledge so that we can strive to share the message of Salvation. They don’t just sit around. Angels always see the face of the Father.
Now before we dive head long into the topic of angels, we first must hear why Jesus is going to tell His disciples about this topic. It begins in a not so angelic way. The boys once again are fighting. At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” I don’t mean to beat a dead horse, but we easily see how pride is so hard for us to shake. The disciples are with the Messiah. The chosen One who came down from heaven. The most important figure in history. And they are caring about a rank they believe they will have in heaven. Now Jesus does tell them they are special because they are following Him, but they have missed the point. They haven’t done anything to be special among men on earth or in heaven. Jesus has called them into a role of service.
So, Jesus is going to show them just how important they are when it comes to the way their minds are thinking. And calling to Him a child, He put him in the midst of them and said, “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.” Ouch. This is a burn that would leave a mark. As they have these arguments about who is the greatest and they try to lift themselves above each other, Jesus goes and sits them down in the dirt. Of course, Jesus did not do this to ridicule them. He is very serious when it comes to this matter. There is no such thing as good pride. All pride can do is build you up to prepare you to fall flat on your face.
If that consequence didn’t scare you into what pride can do, Jesus points out how important the little ones are to Him. “Whoever receives one such child in My name receives Me, but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea.” Jesus continues to reveal the reality of our sins and there is no joking about the consequences. It can be easy to brush off minor sins. The disciples didn’t even realize the severity of their thoughts and there are many times we do not realize the severity either. Just by causing a child to sin, something so small, and Jesus says, “it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea.” To send a child down the wrong path toward destruction is no better than someone forcing their own death.
Jesus doesn’t just stop there with this harsh law. “Woe to the world for temptations to sin! For it is necessary that temptations come, but woe to the one by whom the temptation comes! And if your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life crippled or lame than with two hands or two feet to be thrown into the eternal fire. And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into the hell of fire.” I doubt any of us will be picking up the hack saw, but the picture Jesus paints is gory. This gory image is meant to wake up the disciples and us. There is so much more to following Him than a place of honor. This is the danger of our sins. Instead of being with the angels in heaven near the face of the Father, we will be suffering the most painful of punishments in hell.
Now as the world falls to sin, Jesus doesn’t leave the people to just sit there with the hack saw. There are many battles taking place the world doesn’t see. In the spiritual realm, God is taking care of His children by the means of His holy angels. “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.” This passage is where people get the idea that each person has a guardian angel. Scripture does not say how many angels everyone gets, but Scripture reveals there is a lot of them and they serve the Lord for our good. Even the little ones have angels who protect them.
Jesus has pointed out to the disciples what is most important than worrying about who will be the greatest in heaven. It isn’t about a ranking, but the one who believes and serves. This is what children and angels have in common. They have genuine faith in Jesus as the Savior and they care for others. They will soon realize at the end of Jesus’ ministry. He tells them He could call down legions of angels to fight for Him if He needed them, but He doesn’t need them. He is the Savior who dies on the cross. As angels go before the Father, they also rejoice in the lamb who is slain for the sins of the world.
For the angels to have this unique job of protecting us, we must be worth protecting. This can only happen if we are saved by the death and resurrection of the Savior, as Jesus says, “Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.” Jesus presents to us what that looks like. It is a selfless act. While we attempt to put others first and struggle many times with pride in the way, Jesus put the entire world before Himself. As He does this for the world, He of course is elevated to the place of most importance. Because of His gracious death on the cross and resurrection from the dead, He is seated at the right hand of the Father in the throne room of heaven. He is in this glorious seat for our benefit. He inserts His life in place of ours and then He sends His legions of angels to come and protect us from the old evil foe.
It is through Scripture you know this to be true as the Psalmist writes, “For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways. On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone” (Psalm 91:11-12). The angels protect you on orders from on high. They protect you because of the message you hold dear too. Without this message, you would need to cut yourself to pieces. In humility and the ultimate love, Jesus brings forgiveness and salvation. The angels do His bidding as the writer to the Hebrews writes, and to which angels has he ever said, “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a foot stool for your feet”? Are they not all ministering spirits sent out to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation? (Hebrews 1:13-14).
The world would answer the question putting more stock in the angels who go out to war. Their job is not supposed to be a Hollywood epic. Angels are sent to protect those who follow and believe the Gospel. They do not add to the Gospel. It is a serious matter for the angels to defend you all hours of the day. Have you ever experienced a day without the temptation of sin? The devil and His forces bring you under constant assault. While the angels protect you, Jesus is the only way to salvation. He died in your place, taking the punishment you deserved. It is only through this active work of your Savior you can have faith you are under a watchful eye of the angelic hosts. The writer to the Hebrews enforces the Words of Jesus in our text. Let brotherly love continue. Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares (Hebrews 13:1-2). They are among you and protecting you; you are not alone. And as they guard you and the little children, seeing the face of your Father, know His face smiles on you because of the salvation won by your Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Ghost; as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, forevermore. Amen.
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