Entertaining Angels

Hebrews 13;2 says -

"Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unaware."

This passage from the bible has been cemented in my mind for many years. I've always been fascinated with angels and I believe that they are sometimes among us for whatever purpose God may have for them...or us. 

During the early years of my career as a police officer a local pastor of a large church that I attended asked me into his office one day with a puzzled look on his face. He explained to me that another police officer from the metro area recently came into his office, shut the door and described an event which had just taken place in his patrol car and he seemed very shaken up. The officer told the pastor that during routine patrol he encountered a man standing alongside a city street. The officer was compelled to approach the man, whom he described as dirty, unkempt with long hair, a beard and apparently homeless. The officer gave the gentleman a ride to the next city limits several miles south. What happened during this ride would make an impact on the lives of this police officer, the pastor, and me for many years.

The officer advised that the man was seemingly quiet during the duration of the trip, only answering basic questions but the man also spoke about God, and apparently attempted to engage the officer into a conversation about his (the officers) own personal relationship with The Lord.

The officer explained that while slowing down alongside the highway at their destination he heard the man make the following statement, "The Son of God is standing at the gate, and the Angel is preparing to sound the trumpet." As the officer came to a complete stop he turned in the direction of the passenger seat and to his amazement, the man was gone.

The officer jumped out of his vehicle to check to see if the man may have exited without his noticing, even though the child safety locks were engaged on the patrol cars doors, but the man was nowhere in sight.

I have to add here that at this point in my life and career, I was no longer gullible but skeptical and suspicious of most people. But I believed every word of the event that my pastor had just described to me. And I knew the pastor well enough to know that he too, was not a gullible man and he had enough respect for his friend, the police officer, to believe his story.

This police officer was confused as to why God, or this angel, would choose him to give his message to. 

That was many years ago and I don't know what became of the police officer but I'm sure he hasn't forgotten his experience with an angel that day. Perhaps the angel made such a spiritual impact on the officers life that he may have become an evangelist, spreading the gospel. I know the story made an impact on my life the day I heard it.

Since that time I began looking at not only homeless people, but all strangers in a different way. After making my way up the ladder during my career, I encouraged other officers in my charge to also look at those less fortunate in a compassionate way because they may be "entertaining angels unaware."

We never know when God may test our own compassion.