How can you position yourself to experience God’s supernatural protection? This blog expounds on a powerful key to discerning angelic activity so we can partner with God’s rescue plan.

Divine Protection By Faith

This bullet came flying through our window and curtain, hitting the wall near our bedroom door. Two weeks ago, Experiencing God’s Goodness In The Midst Of Tragedy, was the first in a series about truths God has highlighted to me amid violence and tragedy. Last week, in I Will Sing Your Praise Before The “Gods,” I shared more about the dangers and threats we’ve confronted. I didn’t yet mention the cars and buses being set on fire, or when my wife was kidnapped.

I’ve read testimonies of supernatural protection and had some personal experience with it. Some people think talking about divine protection through faith disparages the faith of Christian martyrs and the persecuted church. They would accuse us of suggesting that suffering and martyred Christians lacked faith.

Yet the bible talks about the faith of those who shut the mouths of lions and escaped the edge of the sword, as well as the faith of those who were killed by the sword. (Hebrews 11:32-39). I honor the faith of those who have suffered and given their lives for the gospel. But the Bible tells of saints who experienced divine protection in real physical situations, and also those who were killed for their faith. We can’t ignore that. King David was surrounded by real armies trying to kill him. So was Elisha.

I decided to write a few posts about my experiences with God’s protection, relevant scriptures, and other outstanding testimonies of supernatural protection. In this first part, I’ll share about the fear of the Lord and discerning angels. In the next part, I’ll share some personal experiences with danger being averted through prayer or acting on God’s direction. Then we will talk about overcoming evil with God’s goodness. We’ll consider attacks averted by a sudden change of heart, by attackers falling on the ground and being delivered from demons, by believers being transported out of danger by angels, by miracles, and by a cloud of God’s glory covering the believer. Finally, we will cover protection from poison and disease, with more testimonies.

The Fear Of The Lord Brings A Heavenly Perspective To Discern Angel Armies

In last week’s post, we talked about refusing to let false gods capture our attention through fear. Instead, our attention should be captured by the Lord’s goodness. This is called “the fear of the Lord.” The fear of the Lord is a Biblical key to experiencing supernatural protection.

Psalm 34:7 (NRSV) The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and delivers them.

When we refuse to let false gods capture our attention through fear, focusing on God’s goodness instead, our perspective changes. 2 Kings chapter six tells how the prophet Elisha was surrounded by armies pursuing him. His servant was afraid, but Elisha had a different perspective:

 2 Kings 6:15-19 (NRSV) When an attendant of the man of God rose early in the morning and went out, an army with horses and chariots was all around the city. His servant said, “Alas, master! What shall we do?” He replied, “Do not be afraid, for there are more with us than there are with them.” Then Elisha prayed: “O Lord, please open his eyes that he may see.” So the Lord opened the eyes of the servant, and he saw; the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.  When the Arameans came down against him, Elisha prayed to the Lord, and said, “Strike this people, please, with blindness.” So he struck them with blindness as Elisha had asked. Elisha said to them, “This is not the way, and this is not the city; follow me, and I will bring you to the man whom you seek.” And he led them to Samaria.

Because Elisha feared the Lord, fear of enemy armies didn’t grip his attention and he was able to see angelic activity from God’s perspective. We can expect the same thing because scripture promises that the angel of the Lord will encamp around those who fear him. Even before Jesus was crucified, he could have asked and the Father would have sent more than 12 legions of angels to save him. Nobody took his life from him, but he laid it down for us!

Matthew 26:53 (NRSV) Do you think that I cannot appeal to my Father, and he will at once send me more than twelve legions of angels?

We know how to partner with what God is doing when our eyes are opened to see from His perspective. If Elisha hadn’t seen the angels but instead had been crippled by fear of the surrounding armies, he wouldn’t have confidently asked the Lord,  “Strike this people, please, with blindness.”

Violent people prey on fear. They can smell it. So can demons. But we often read in the Old Testament of God causing Israel’s enemies to fear them. When we walk in the fear of the Lord, we stop smelling like fear and the Lord causes those who would hurt us to fear us.

We know what to do when we see from God’s perspective. Sometimes the Lord may tell us to flee. Joseph was warned in a dream to flee to Egypt to escape the threat against Jesus’ life. (Matthew 2:13) Sometimes the Lord will cause our enemies to become paralyzed in fear of us, as he caused the Egyptians to fear the Israelites. (Exodus 23:27) Or God may cause us to slip through them, as Jesus simply slipped through a crowd of people who wanted to kill him. (Luke 4:28-30) God may also reveal that people intend to harm us so that the danger can be averted through prayer.

2 Thessalonians 3:2 (NIV) And pray that we may be delivered from wicked and evil people, for not everyone has faith.

2 Corinthians 1:10-11 (NRSV) He who rescued us from so deadly a peril will continue to rescue us; on him we have set our hope that he will rescue us again, as you also join in helping us by your prayers

“I Will Not Fear, Though Tens Of Thousands Assail Me On Every Side”

Recently, my wife and I wondered if we would have to flee for our lives. We weren’t sure where we could go or what we could do. We were not in a position to move anywhere else. We were in a very dangerous situation and felt distressed. Criminals were angry at us for protecting an old man who they had assaulted. In Brazil, calling the police doesn’t always offer much protection, even if they do show up.

I posted on Facebook and asked people to pray that the Lord would deliver us from wicked and evil men. As I prayed and turned to the Lord, I felt confidence and boldness spring up in my heart. I chose to sing the Lord’s praise before the gods, refusing to let fear or intimidation capture my attention instead of the Lord’s presence. I found great comfort in reading the Psalms of David, and I was reminded that David was surrounded by real, physical armies when he wrote these words:

Psalm 3:5-6 I lie down and sleep; I wake again, because the Lord sustains me. I will not fear though tens of thousands assail me on every side.

Psalm 27:2-3 When the wicked advance against me to devour me, it is my enemies and my foes who will stumble and fall. Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then I will be confident.

I could now relate to David’s words. I felt in my heart that the Lord had answered the prayers of those who prayed for us and we were surrounded by angels. I felt peace and confidence, aware of God’s presence surrounding us. Now, the attention is off of us and I believe that those who want to harm us have become afraid of us. There is still a lot of crime and violence around us, but the Lord has delivered us from the situation we were in.

Not long after this, I went to a prayer meeting on Monday night. One of the ladies there said that she saw a bright light around my daughter Rebekah and me. She saw that I was protecting Rebekah. She didn’t know of the threat we had received. Although I did not see the same thing with my physical eyes, I was aware of it as well. The Lord had sent his angel to protect us.

This post has already gotten long enough, so more next week! Meanwhile, be encouraged by the promises of scripture in Psalm 91.

Psalm 91 (NRSV)