Lifted by Angels: The Presence and Power of Our Heavenly Guides and Guardians [Paperback]

Joel J. Miller (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 9, 2012

Explores the relationship between people and angels, through the eyes of the early church.

Heaven is closer than we realize. Its boundaries overlap our own, and angels move in and out of our porous present, this moment that seems to us so solid and concrete. If that reality seems dim to us now, it beamed for the early Christians. Through their writings, sermons, songs, and art, the ancient faithful confessed a powerful and vivid belief that angels help carry us on our journey to God.

Rooted in the Scripture and following this ancient understanding, Lifted by Angels reveals:

• the role that angels play in the lives of people and in God’s plan of salvation
• the different ranks and functions of angels
• how Satan and his demons fell from grace and plagued humans
• the functions of guardian angels and how God assigns them to fit our personal needs
• how guardian angels help us resist evil, temptation, and the devil
• the way angels join with us in our prayers, even adding their own to ours
• the service angels provide in worship

Featuring examples of angels in ancient icons and frescoes and supported by extensive research on the early church and its pastors, poets, theologians, and artists, Lifted by Angels answers universal curiosity about angels and the unseen world, leaving readers inspired and hopeful about the nearness of God.

“Many Christians--made uneasy by New Age or neo-pagan angel enthusiasm--are reluctant to believe in angelic interventions at all. Lifted by Angels restores to us our own biblical and historical understanding: that angels are God’s servants and messengers.”
Frederica Mathewes-Green, author of The Jesus Prayer

“A beautifully written study on the unique relationship between people and angels. I found it fascinating, challenging, and inspiring. Highly recommended.”
Sheila Walsh, author of God Loves Broken People

“Joel J. Miller presents us with a vision of angels firmly grounded in salvation history: active at the creation of the world, involved in its fall, ministers in its salvation, servants to the Lord Jesus, harbingers of the age to come. He succeeds brilliantly in rescuing angels from the distorting effects of popular culture and revealing them to be ‘more exciting, more humbling, more inspiring, and ultimately more real’ than we ever imagined.”
Metropolitan Savas (Zembillas) of Pittsburgh

“In Lifted by Angels Joel Miller examines traditional Jewish and Christian angelology in rich and extensive detail. Especially valuable and inspiring are the author’s numerous citations of beautiful patristic texts. No one will think of angels in the same way after reading this book. It is highly recommended and without reservation.”

Patrick Henry Reardon, author of Christ in the Psalms

“Angels are an important part of the Bible and of Jewish and Christian traditions, yet we have virtually ignored them. We have abandoned the angels to horror flicks and saccharine television shows. That stops here. Joel Miller’s book is a necessary act of recovery.”
Jeremy Lott, editor, RealClearReligion

“There is an unseen spiritual world with which we humans have to deal, and Joel Miller is a fascinating and skilled guide into this invisible reality. Lifted by Angels will elevate your understanding of angels and their practical role in Christian spirituality.”
Todd D. Hunter, Anglican bishop; past president, Vineyard Churches USA; author of Our Favorite Sins

“We are mostly unaware of angels’ presence in our midst and their influence on our lives. What a shame! Thank God for Joel J. Miller’s Lifted by Angels, a reminder of the role that our ‘cousins’ play in guiding us and of their exalted place in creation.”
Brad Miner, senior editor, The Catholic Thing; senior fellow, Faith & Reason Institute

“Wonderfully done and provides insight into an oft-misunderstood subject.”
Fr. Stephen Rogers, senior priest, St. Ignatius Orthodox Church, Franklin, Tennessee

“If we sometimes feel alone in our spiritual struggles, it might be because we have lost touch of what Christians of old knew about the unseen angels of God. In Lifted by Angels Miller uses Scripture, Christian art, early church writings and tradition to lift the veil between the earthly and the spiritual realms. He lifts it ever so slightly, not in speculation, but just enough for us to catch a memorable glimpse of those heavenly hosts whom God has sent to comfort and aid us on our journey home.”
James M. Kushiner, executive editor, Touchstone: A Journal of Mere Christianity

About the Author

Joel J. Miller has worked as a writer and editor for more than a decade. As the author of three previous books, including The Revolutionary Paul Revere, his work has been acclaimed as “lively” (World), “vibrant” (William J. Bennett), “well-researched and bitingly written” (Publishers Weekly), and “powerful” (The Washington Times). Joel’s articles have been featured in Reason, The American Spectator, National Review, RealClearReligion, and other outlets. He blogs about faith and spirituality at JoelJMiller.com. Joel and his family live in Nashville, Tennessee. You can contact him at JoelJMiller.com or via Twitter: @JoelJMiller.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“A beautifully written study on the unique relationship between people and angels.”
—Sheila Walsh, author, God Loves Broken People

“Miller presents us with a vision of angels firmly grounded in salvation history: active at the creation of the world, involved in its fall, ministers in its salvation, servants to the Lord Jesus, harbingers of the age to come. He succeeds brilliantly in rescuing angels from the distorting effects of popular culture.”
—Metropolitan Savas (Zembillas) of Pittsburgh

“Lifted by Angels will elevate your understanding of angels and their practical role in Christian spirituality.”
—Todd D. Hunter, Anglican bishop and past president of Vineyard Churches USA

--This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

About the Author

Joel J. Miller is the author of several books including The Revolutionary Paul Revere. His writing has been featured in The American Spectator, Reason, Real Clear Religion and elsewhere. He blogs on faith and spirituality at joeljmiller.com. He and his family live in Nashville, Tennessee.

Product Details

• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: Thomas Nelson (October 9, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1400204224
• ISBN-13: 978-1400204229
• Product Dimensions: 0.6 x 4.8 x 7.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (40 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #105,018 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 22 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Fascinating Study of Our Celestial Siblings October 2, 2012

By Susan M. Heim VINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback

I've read quite a few books about angels, but "Lifted by Angels: The Presence and Power of Our Heavenly Guides and Guardians," by Joel J. Miller, is the first I've read that really delves deeply into ancient beliefs and teachings about angels. Angels are not the baby-faced, cartoonish characters often depicted in popular media. They are living, "ministering spirits," as the apostle Paul refers to them, who are constantly present in the world in which we live. Miller examines not only the Bible, but the words of ancient religious scholars, such as Augustine, John Damascene, and Gregory Nazianzen.

We learn from these teachers that angels perform many roles. They are "celestial stewards" who provide angelic protection. They are central figures in the story of Jesus and the formation of the early church. As guardian angels, they attend to us on earth. They assist us in worship and prayer, and accompany us from our world to the next when we die. Through this book, it is Miller's hope, I believe, that people will come to know angels in the same way that the ancient believers did.

Regardless of your religious affiliation, you'll find "Lifted by Angels" to be a fascinating study of our "celestial siblings." As Miller notes, "Most [people] wander through life unaware of their spiritual surroundings and their angelic neighbors." "Lifted by Angels" may just crack open the door between this world and the next as we learn more about God's messengers and guides, and welcome them into our presence.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing source of angelic knowledge October 8, 2012

By Stuart Dunn

Format:Paperback

I received this book from Thomas Nelson's program BookSneeze. In exchange for the book, all I have to do is provide an honest review on my blog and a website like Amazon. This program is primarily a Protestant book source, but occasionally you find a Catholic or Orthodox Gem, and Lifted By Angels definitely falls into that category.

This 150 page book is a quick read as it is only 7 chapters long and each of them is more fascinating than the next. He starts by explaining how the angelic realm makes and our world make up one big world with so much interaction between the two, whether we are aware of it not. We next get a picture of fallen angels and how we as humanity fell too. After that we get chapters on who angels are, what their jobs are, and how they interact with us and watch over us. The whole book has Bible passages, Apocryphal passages, and Early Church Fathers teachings woven throughout.

I truly loved this book, and at first I was disappointed that it was only 150 pages long. I was thinking this book should be way longer, but Mr. Miller points out excellently in his book that we can make a cult of angels. So yes, angels are here to help us and assist us on the path of salvation, but we are not supposed to make gods of them or worship them. That would indeed be in error.

This book also made me want to reach out to my guardian angel. I talked to my guardian angel after reading this book. I thanked him for always being there for me, even when I didn't deserve it, and for watching over me. I also apologized to him for the things which I did wrong and that offended him, because these are creatures that see God, and for them to look upon us in our sin and fallen nature must make them very sad.

I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to learn more about angels, no matter how much knowledge they have about angels. This book is packed full of information, but is written in a way that makes it easy to read and easy to understand. I give this book 5 stars easily, and recommend everyone buy it and read it. Check out my other reviews at stuartsstudy(dot)blogspot(dot)com.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Help! Angels Keep Touching Me! October 19, 2012

By James R. V. Matichuk

Format:Paperback

My view of angels is complicated. I was raised in an evangelical home and have always believed in angels and the part they played in the biblical story; however I was taught to be suspicious of tales of modern day angelic visitations, and to doubt the lore which was built around angels, because so much of it was New Age, Mormons, or Muslim. As a child I was tucked in with a prayer that asked God to send his angels to look after me, but if anybody started talking about experiencing angels, that was a good indication that they were a heretic or they needed to up their medication.

When I was in college, I attended a charismatic church which affirmed the experiential reality of a super natural God-everything God did in scripture was for today and that included angels and angelic visitations. I remember one guest speaker at our church explaining that he felt the presence of `angels in the room' by a sensation he had in his sinus cavity(yep, I kid you not). Others saw angels, or `felt them.' I did feel the reality of God's presence at that church but the lack of critical thinking about spiritual experiences was disturbing.

Joel Miller has written a book on angels which deftly guides readers past the extremes of supernatural suspicion and belief in anything and everything `angelic.' Drawing generously on Biblical and patristic sources (early church theologians), he gives an account of how the early church thought and taught about angels. He asserts that `the image that forms from these sources is, I think, more exciting, more frightening, more humbling, more inspiring, and ultimately more real than our popular conceptions.(2)' Miller discusses the early church's reflections on the nature and origin of angels, their fall from grace (in the case of Satan and his demons), the ways God used angels to nurture and protect Israel, Christs victory over the demonic, the role of guardian angels in nurturing and protecting us, our participation with the angels in the worship of God, the role of angels in the eschaton.

This is a lot of ground to cover for a short book (the main text of the book is 152 pages excluding footnotes and bibliography); nevertheless Miller succeeds admirably well in delineating the understanding of angels bequeathed us from the early church, even demonstrating the way our understanding of angels has developed over time. Certainly there are some aspects of early church angel-ology where I disagree or would want to parse biblical texts which deal with angels differently. But there is no denying, the tradition has a lot to teach us. I would recommend this book for those who have an interest in angels (whether that manifests itself as an unhealthy fascination or dismissive suspicion). Part of navigating how we are to understand something so mysterious and etheral as angels is by submitting ourselves to a biblical understanding of angels and drawing on the rich resources of theology. Miller does both.

The question that the discerning reader may have is, "how does ancient exegesis shape our understanding of angels?" Just because ancient Christians thought and taught something, does not necessarily make it right. This is a popular level study and does little in way of evaluating its sources. Miller simply sites church fathers he is sympathetic to(while noting theological diversity and doctrinal development). The belief in the fall of Lucifer is found in the ancient church, but when you read Isaiah in its historic, literary context, the Biblical data doesn't seem conclusive. There seems to be mysteries here that even the ancient church does not fully untangle for us, but I am grateful for the ways in which they affirm the angels and delineate a proper understanding of them.

Practically speaking, the presence of angels reminds us of the world beyond that which we apprehend with our senses. I think this a great book for sorting out what place angels should have in our theology.

Thank you to Thomas Nelson for providing me a copy of this book (via Book sneeze) in exchange for this review.