Do Believers Have Guardian Angels?
Popular Christianity Q&A
Audio By Carbonatix
By Bethany Verrett, Crosswalk.com
There are certain mysteries that people debate within the church. Some feel strongly on these topics, while others remain skeptical. The idea of guardian angels is one that is popular not just among certain denominations of Christians, but pop culture and general spiritualism as well.
For some there is comfort in the idea that a spiritual being more powerful than they are is fighting for them on the other side. Others find this ridiculous and stick to the belief that if it isn’t specifically stated in the Bible, then it should not be held as true. As believers walk the narrow road of the Christian life, it is a comforting idea that an angel walks alongside. Is it true though?
Is there Biblical evidence for the existence of guardian angels? Is the argument from silence sufficient to disprove the idea? And more importantly, why does this question matter?
Evidence for Guardian Angels
When considering whether or not there are specific angels assigned to specific individuals, one should first see what evidence exists in the Bible. There are several Bible verses that could indicate God assigns specific angels to come alongside an individual here on earth.
Some of the most commonly cited verses supporting the idea of guardian angels include:
“For he will give his angels orders concerning you, to protect you in all your ways. They will support you with their hands so that you will not strike your foot against a stone” (Psalm 91:11-12).
“See to it that you don’t despise one of these little ones, because I tell you that in heaven their angels continually view the face of my Father in heaven” (Matthew 18:10).
“[Peter] knocked at the door of the outer gate, and a servant named Rhoda came to answer. She recognized Peter’s voice, and because of her joy, she did not open the gate but ran in and announced that Peter was standing at the outer gate. ‘You’re out of your mind!’ they told her. But she kept insisting that it was true, and they said, ‘It’s his angel’” (Acts 12:13-15).
“Now to which of the angels has he ever said: ‘Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool?’ Are they not all ministering spirits sent out to serve those who are going to inherit salvation?” (Hebrews 1:13-14).
None of these verses overtly affirm the idea that God assigns each human their own angel; however, the Bible does indicate that different angels have different levels of authority and different roles in Heaven. Gabriel tells Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist, that He stands before the throne of God (Luke 1). The seraphim that Isaiah saw are eternally worshipping God before the throne (Isaiah 6). The angel sent to give Daniel a message was in battle with a principality and needed the assistance of Michael, a more powerful angel (Daniel 10).
There are some clues as to what angels do and don’t do in heaven. What we should understand is that if guardian angels do exist, they most likely do not behave like they are seen in secular pop culture or non-Christian spirituality.
Evidence against Guardian Angels
Many skeptics make what is called an argument from silence or argumentum ex silentio, meaning because it is not stated it is not true. They point to a lack of information as evidence. There are times when this kind of an argument can be made appropriately, though it can also sometimes be used inappropriately or become a logical fallacy. Many Christian apologists state the atheistic argument that absence of evidence of God’s existence is not evidence of absence.
There is some evidence in the Bible that suggests the idea of guardian angels may be a misinterpretation of Scripture, including in some of the Scriptures cited by people who believe in guardian angels. In the verse from Matthew where Jesus is speaking, the angel assigned to a child is always facing the throne of God, not walking beside them invisibly. This verse could mean guardian angels exist but do not interact with people, they only intercede for their assigned human.
Because Jesus is talking about children, the implication could be that only children have a guardian angel, and after a certain age the angel is assigned another task or person. It could also just mean that heavenly beings value children.
In the verse from Acts discussing Peter escaping captivity and death, the people assumed Peter was dead, so the reference to his angel may refer to his spirit or what may be colloquially called today a ghost. Because of the Bible’s relative silence, and the fact that the term “guardian angel” was created by people, it is as difficult to disprove the existence of guardian angels as it is to prove it.
Why Does All This Matter?
When determining if an issue is crucial doctrine or something that people can agree to disagree on, there are certain criteria we should use. The most important things to understand are doctrines on salvation and the fundamentals of God’s nature, which can be summed up in the apostle’s creed:
“I believe in God the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth. And in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord; Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead and buried. On the third day, He rose again from the dead. He ascended to heaven, and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence He will come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy universal church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.”
Beyond these basic principles of the faith, other issues become more secondary, or even tertiary. For example, the question of the style of worship would not be a crucial issue for salvation or properly understanding God.
When considering the question of the existence of guardian angels, whether or not they exist and if we should believe in them or not, we can see that this does not prevent someone from getting saved. It is not a crucial doctrinal point about the salvation of souls. In fact, perhaps God refrained from putting extensive information about angels in the Bible so that people would not obsess about them or worship them.
Angels are incredible beings, and the people who encounter them in the biblical record are awed by them. Just as God buried Moses himself, potentially so it would not become a place of idolatry for the people of Israel, perhaps He also deemed people too inclined to idolatry to know more about angels during their mortal lives.
For people who believe in the power of a guardian angel, it helps them feel closer to God and to grow in their faith. The primary goal for believers either way should be to grow closer to the Lord, to evangelize about Jesus’ path to salvation to non-believers, and to become sanctified into the image of Christ. If belief or lack of belief in guardian angels gets between someone and the Lord, they may need to evaluate their spiritual priorities. A Christian should be praying to the Lord, not their guardian angel.
In the book of Revelation, when a messenger angel shows John incredible visions of the Marriage Supper of the Lamb, the Bible records, “Then [John] fell at his feet to worship him, but he said to [him], ‘Don’t do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers and sisters who hold firmly to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God, because the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy’” (Revelation 19:10).
Whether you believe in guardian angels or not, it is important to remember the message of the angel to the Apostle John. Angels are servants of the one who truly deserves worship and praise, and who ultimately desires a personal relationship with each person. This relationship with Him should be each Christian’s first priority.
Sources
The Catechism of the Catholic Church. 2nd edition. 2012.
Jovanovic, Pierre. An Inquiry into the Existence of Guardian Angels. English Translation. New York City: M. Evans and Company, Inc., 1995.
Heppe, Heinrich (2008). Reformed Dogmatics. Wipf and Stock Publishers.
Photo credit: Unsplash/Gavin Allanwood
Bethany Verrett is a freelance writer who uses her passion for God, reading, and writing to glorify God. She and her husband have lived all over the country serving their Lord and Savior in ministry. She has a blog on graceandgrowing.com.
