Unless otherwise noted, all scripture is from the King James Version of the Bible.

Scripture quotations marked The Amplified Bible are from The Amplified Bible, Old Testament © 1965, 1987 by the Zondervan Corporation. The Amplified New Testament © 1958, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

The Protection of Angels

ePub ISBN 978-1-60683-755-9

31-0548

© 1997 Eagle Mountain International Church Inc. aka Kenneth Copeland Ministries

All rights reserved under International Copyright Law. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the written permission of the publisher, excepting brief quotations used in reviews.

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Kenneth Copeland Publications

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For more information about Kenneth Copeland Ministries, visit kcm.org or call 1-800-600-7395 (U.S. only) or +1-817-852-6000.

The Protection of Angels

He will give His angels [especial] charge over you to accompany and defend and preserve you in all your ways [of obedience and service]. They shall bear you up on their hands, lest you dash your foot against a stone (Psalm 91:11-12, The Amplified Bible).

Did you know that one of the ways God carries out your deliverance and your protection is through angels? You literally have angels at your service.

The Bible teaches that they are sent to serve you and keep you safe as you carry out God’s will in your life. Hebrews 1:14 says, “Are not the angels all ministering spirits (servants), sent out in the service [of God for the assistance] of those who are to inherit salvation?” (The Amplified Bible).

The angel of the Lord encamps about those who fear God, to deliver them (Psalm 34:7). Your angels just set up camp wherever you are. When you move, they move. When you go to town, they go to town. When you go to the grocery store, they go to the grocery store. When you go to war, they go to war.

In 2 Kings 6 you can find a picture of how angels operate. Elisha, the prophet of God, received inside information from God on the strategies of enemy nations. He would pass that information along to the king of Israel, so Israel was never caught off-guard in any military maneuver.

When the enemy king realized that somehow information was leaking to Israel, he assumed they had a spy in their camp. “Who is telling the king of Israel our military secrets?” he demanded.

His servant answered, “None, my lord O king; but Elisha, the prophet who is in Israel, tells the king of Israel the words that you speak in your bedchamber” (2 Kings 6:12, The Amplified Bible).

So the enemy king and his entire army took off in pursuit of one man! They surrounded the city where Elisha was staying and “when the servant of the man of God was risen early, and gone forth, behold, an host compassed the city both with horses and chariots…” (verse 15).

Elisha’s servant panicked. A whole army against the two of them looked like very bad odds. “Master, what are we going to do?” he cried.

“Fear not,” Elisha told him, “for they that be with us are more than they that be with them” (verse 16).

Don’t you know that servant was counting? One…two! There are two of us and scores of them. Elisha must be losing his mind. But Elisha wasn’t looking at the natural realm. He was seeing in the spirit realm.

Elisha prayed, “Lord…open his eyes, that he may see.” Notice he didn’t say, “Lord, protect me.” He didn’t need to ask for protection, he knew it was there.

“…And the Lord opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw: and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha” (verse 17). The mountain was full of protection for Elisha! God had sent battalions of angels to protect Elisha. I’m sure the extra angels had arrived before the enemy army ever got there. I say “extra” because we have angels surrounding us all the time and those regulars can quickly be reinforced.

Fear Not!

Before we leave this account about Elisha, I want you to pay special attention to the answer he gave his frightened servant in verse 16: “Fear not.” Those were the first words Elisha spoke.

What is the very first thing we are to do in trouble? Fear not. If we fear, we open the door to the devil. If we trust God, we open the door to God.

Over and over in the Bible, God exhorts us not to fear. Psalm 91:5 begins, “You shall not be afraid.…” When angels would appear to people, “Fear not!” were usually the first words out of their mouths. That’s because fear and faith don’t mix. They cannot come out of you at the same time.

When you begin saying things that are out of line with the Word of God by speaking in fear instead of in faith, you bind the hands of your angels. You prevent them from doing their job. Psalm 103:20-21 tells us why: “Bless the Lord, ye his angels, that excel in strength, that do his commandments, hearkening unto the voice of his word. Bless ye the Lord, all ye his hosts; ye ministers of his, that do his pleasure.”

Angels hearken to the voice of God’s Word. They respond to the Word! So when your heart is full of faith and your mouth is saying, “A thousand may fall at my side, and ten thousand at my right hand, but it will not come near me,” they put that Word into action and protect you.

But when your heart is full of fear and your mouth is speaking words of unbelief, your angels can only stand by helplessly. It’s not that they abandon you, they just have nothing to act on.

One of the most exciting scriptural examples of God’s angelic, delivering and protecting power is found in Daniel 3, where we see three of God’s people in big trouble with the government. The king of the Babylonian empire had made an image and declared that, “Whoso falleth not down and worshippeth [that image], that he should be cast into the midst of a burning fiery furnace” (verse 11).

Now these three men of God—Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego—happened to be on the king’s own staff. They were Hebrews who had been captured.

But God’s blessing was on them to such a degree they had been given great responsibility over the affairs of Babylon. They served and trusted God. So despite the king’s decree, they refused to bow down to that image.

Notice that these three men were faithful to God. They abode in Him. So when they were faced with danger, instead of crying and whining about it they spoke words of faith.

When the king threatened to throw them into the fiery furnace for refusing to bow down to his idol, they said: “If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king. But if not [even if you don’t throw us in], be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou has set up” (verses 17-18).

In other words, they refused to bow and they refused to be afraid. They said, “Our God is able to deliver us!”

That made the king so angry he had that furnace heated seven times hotter than usual. The heat was so intense that the guards who threw Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego into the furnace were killed instantly.

And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, fell down bound into the midst of the burning fiery furnace. Then…the king was astonied, and rose up in haste, and spake, and said unto his counsellors, Did not we cast three men bound into the midst of the fire?… Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God (verses 23-25).

Why didn’t Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego burn? It certainly wasn’t because the fire had no power. It had power all right. It had enough power to kill the mighty men in the king’s army who threw them into it. It just had no power over the bodies of God’s men. In fact, the Bible tells us that not even a “hair of their head [was] singed, neither were their coats changed, nor the smell of fire had passed on them” (verse 27).

What’s more, God sent His angel into the fire to watch over them while they were there.

Facing the Lions

Daniel was a contemporary of Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego. He was a member of the royal staff of Babylon just as they were. In fact, Daniel was one of three presidents of the empire, second only to the king himself.

Daniel had so much influence that other presidents and princes became jealous of his position and began to look for ways to have him removed. But the Bible says no matter how hard they looked “they could find none occasion nor fault; forasmuch as he was faithful, neither was there any error or fault found in him ” (Daniel 6:4).

Daniel was faithful. He was faithful to God and in his service to the king. Finally the officials who were trying to get Daniel fired realized the only way they were ever going to get him was to force him to choose between God and the king.

So that’s what they did. They suggested the king pass a law that forbade anyone from making petition (or praying) to anyone other than the king himself for 30 days. Anyone who broke the law would be thrown into a den of lions.

Their suggestion appealed to the king’s ego so much that he signed the law on the spot—without even thinking what it would mean to his trusted administrator, Daniel: “Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into his house, and his windows being open in his chamber toward Jerusalem, he got down upon his knees three times a day and prayed and gave thanks before his God, as he had done previously” (Daniel 6:10, The Amplified Bible).

Daniel knew about the king’s new law, but he wouldn’t compromise. He didn’t even choose to switch to silent prayer. He simply kept praying just the way he always had.

When the others reported to the king what Daniel had done, the king was grieved. He trusted Daniel and respected him. He didn’t want to throw him to the lions, but he had been tricked by his staff. He had trapped himself by his own decree and according to the law of the Medes and Persians, it could not be changed (verse 15). So “the king commanded, and Daniel was brought and cast into the den of lions. The king said to Daniel, May your God, Whom you are serving continually, deliver you!” (verse 16, The Amplified Bible).

But look what happened to Daniel:

And a stone was brought and laid upon the mouth of the den, and the king sealed it with his own signet.… Then the king went to his palace and passed the night fasting; neither were instruments of music or dancing girls brought before him; and his sleep fled from him. Then the king arose very early in the morning and went in haste to the den of lions. And when he came to the den and to Daniel, he cried out in a voice of anguish. The king said to Daniel, O Daniel, servant of the living God, is your God, Whom you serve continually, able to deliver you from the lions? Then Daniel said to the king, O king, live forever! My God has sent His angel and has shut the lions’ mouths so that they have not hurt me, because I was found innocent and blameless before Him; and also before you, O king, [as you very well know] I have done no harm or wrong. Then the king was exceedingly glad and commanded that Daniel should be taken up out of the den.…and no hurt of any kind was found on him because he believed in (relied on, adhered to, and trusted in) his God (Daniel 6:17-23, The Amplified Bible).

Daniel’s protection and deliverance wasn’t just a one-time thing God did because He liked Daniel better than most other people. It wasn’t something God did so He’d have an interesting story to put in the Bible. God delivered Daniel because He always delivers those who abide in Him in faith.

You can trust God with your life. He’ll do the same thing for you that He did for Daniel if—I said if—you abide in Him in faith…trusting, expecting and confessing His protecting and delivering power.

Supernatural Troubleshooters

Some people seem to think angels aren’t around much anymore. But they are! They were present throughout the Old Testament—and they haven’t gone on vacation since then.

If you want a New Testament example of their activities, read Acts 12. It tells of a very dangerous time in the history of the early Church. Peter had been arrested and “therefore was kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him. And when Herod would have brought him forth, the same night Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains: and the keepers before the door kept the prison” (verses 5-6).

It sounds like Peter was in a maximum security situation, doesn’t it? In the natural, there was no possibility of escape. But God’s people were praying and believing God for his protection and: “Behold, the angel of the Lord came upon him, and a light shined in the prison: and he smote Peter on the side, and raised him up, saying, Arise up quickly. And his chains fell off from his hands” (verse 7).

That’s the wonderful thing about God’s protection. You could hire a hundred natural men to protect you, but they’d be limited by natural things. When you’re dealing with angels, you’re dealing with the supernatural.

That angel didn’t have to have a key made. When he showed up, the chains that bound Peter just fell off. (If you’ll read the rest of the chapter, you’ll find it was easier for Peter to get out of prison than to get into the prayer meeting!)

I want you to notice something else about this situation. Peter wasn’t staying up moaning and groaning about being executed. He was sound asleep. In fact, he was sleeping so soundly that the angel had to hit him to wake him up:

And the angel said unto him, Gird thyself, and bind on thy sandals. And so he did. And he saith unto him, Cast thy garment about thee, and follow me. And he went out, and followed him; and wist not that it was true which was done by the angel; but thought he saw a vision. When they were past the first and second ward, they came unto the iron gate that leadeth unto the city; which opened to them of his own accord: and they went out, and passed on through one street; and forthwith the angel departed from him (verses 8-10).

The angel of God just took Peter out of the prison. He had no problems with guards, chains, keys or city gates. He simply woke Peter up, got him out and sent him home.

I could tell you story after story where angels have intervened to drastically alter the outcome of situations in the Bible and in our day as well. Some time ago, for example, one of our ministry employees was riding to work on his motorcycle when suddenly a big truck pulled across the road right in front of him.

It happened so quickly there was nothing he could do. He didn’t have time to think. He didn’t have time to speak. He didn’t have time to do anything.

Many times that’s how things happen. Suddenly, trouble is upon you. It doesn’t tell you in advance that it’s coming so you’ll have time to fast and pray. You have to be ready. You have to live every day believing God. You have to say continually, “The Lord is my refuge and my fortress.” Because at those moments, you don’t have time to say it.

That’s how it was with that fellow on the motorcycle. All of a sudden there was a truck in front of him.

That’s the last thing he remembered. He saw the truck and everything went blank. The next thing he knew he was walking around on the side of the road. A few yards away, his motorcycle lay underneath the truck.

A girl who was driving right behind him saw the whole thing. She said when the motorcycle slid under the truck, the man who was riding it went up in the air, did a flip and landed safely on his feet by a fence nearby. His only injury was a scratch on his arm.

I can’t imagine anything that could make that happen except angels. But here’s the point. That fellow was ready. He didn’t have time to grab his Bible and brush up on the 91st Psalm. He was already prepared.

That’s how it has to be. You can’t wait until the last minute and start memorizing scripture when disaster strikes. You need to “say of the Lord” now. You need to stay ready!

Prayer for Salvation and Baptism in the Holy Spirit

Heavenly Father, I come to You in the Name of Jesus. Your Word says, “Whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved” (Acts 2:21). I am calling on You. I pray and ask Jesus to come into my heart and be Lord over my life according to Romans 10:9-10: “If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” I do that now. I confess that Jesus is Lord, and I believe in my heart that God raised Him from the dead.

I am now reborn! I am a Christian—a child of Almighty God! I am saved! You also said in Your Word, “If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: HOW MUCH MORE shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?” (Luke 11:13). I’m also asking You to fill me with the Holy Spirit. Holy Spirit, rise up within me as I praise God. I fully expect to speak with other tongues as You give me the utterance (Acts 2:4). In Jesus’ Name. Amen!

Begin to praise God for filling you with the Holy Spirit. Speak those words and syllables you receive—not in your own language, but the language given to you by the Holy Spirit. You have to use your own voice. God will not force you to speak. Don’t be concerned with how it sounds. It is a heavenly language!

Continue with the blessing God has given you and pray in the spirit every day.

You are a born-again, Spirit-filled believer. You’ll never be the same!

Find a good church that boldly preaches God’s Word and obeys it. Become part of a church family who will love and care for you as you love and care for them.

We need to be connected to each other. It increases our strength in God. It’s God’s plan for us.

Make it a habit to watch the Believer’s Voice of Victory television broadcast and become a doer of the Word, who is blessed in his doing (James 1:22-25).

About the Author

Gloria Copeland is a noted author and minister of the gospel whose teaching ministry is known throughout the world. Believers worldwide know her through Believers’ Conventions, Victory Campaigns, magazine articles, teaching audios and videos, and the daily and Sunday Believer’s Voice of Victory television broadcast, which she hosts with her husband, Kenneth Copeland. She is known for Healing School, which she began teaching and hosting in 1979 at KCM meetings. Gloria delivers the Word of God and the keys to victorious Christian living to millions of people every year.

Gloria is author of the New York Times best-seller, God’s Master Plan for Your Life and Live Long, Finish Strong, as well as numerous other favorites, including God’s Will for You, Walk With God, God’s Will Is Prosperity, Hidden Treasures and To Know Him. She has also co-authored several books with her husband, including Family Promises, Healing Promises and the best-selling daily devotionals, From Faith to Faith and Pursuit of His Presence.

She holds an honorary doctorate from Oral Roberts University. In 1994, Gloria was voted Christian Woman of the Year, an honor conferred on women whose example demonstrates outstanding Christian leadership. Gloria is also the co-founder and vice president of Kenneth Copeland Ministries in Fort Worth, Texas.

Learn more about Kenneth Copeland Ministries by visiting our website at kcm.org

Materials to Help You Receive Your Healing by Gloria Copeland

Books

* And Jesus Healed Them All

* God’s Prescription for Divine Health

* God’s Will for Your Healing

* Harvest of Health

Words That Heal (gift book with CD enclosed)

Audio Resources

Be Made Whole—Live Long, Live Healthy

God Is a Good God

God Wants You Well

Healing Confessions (CD and minibook)

Healing School

DVD Resources

Be Made Whole—Live Long, Live Healthy

Know Him As Healer

* Available in Spanish

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