Can you grasp what it would mean to be an angel—one who has always known the Son of God in the brilliance of His glory, the majesty of His throne, the unapproachable light of His presence? Yet, you are made to witness a mystery that shatters every category: the Ancient of Days steps into time, takes on flesh, and walks the path of humility, suffering, and sacrificial death. For the angels, every moment of Christ’s incarnation—His birth, His life, His cross—was a revelation so profound that it left them in continual astonishment. Each step He took unveiled a facet of God’s heart they had never seen.
But the mystery does not end there. The angels, who have seen the Lord face to face, now look upon the Church—upon you, a believer—as a greater marvel still. Why? Because you have received Christ, not by sight, but by faith. You have never seen His throne, never beheld His form, never witnessed His earthly walk. Yet you love Him. You rejoice in Him with a joy that cannot be put into words, a joy “unspeakable and full of glory.” This is not a lesser experience than theirs; it is a higher one, and it is the very thing that causes the angels to wonder.
“Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory."
—1 Peter 1:8
The Scandal of Faith
Let this confront you: the angels, with all their vision and knowledge, do not possess what you have. They see, but they do not share in this faith-born union. You, who have never seen, are called a son of God. You are an heir, not by performance, not by proximity to the throne, but by the finished work of Christ and your faith in Him. This is the scandal and the glory of the gospel. The angels are not the objects of Christ’s redeeming work; you are. The gospel, preached to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, brings you into a salvation so profound that even the highest angels long to understand it.
“Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into."
—1 Peter 1:12
What Is Lost If This Is Denied?
If you exchange this faith-based relationship for anything else—if you imagine that sight, performance, or angelic knowledge could ever substitute for simple trust in Christ—you lose everything. You forfeit the very privilege that causes heaven to marvel. You undermine the foundation of your sonship, your inheritance, your justification. The moment you make your standing before God dependent on anything other than the gospel received by faith, you collapse the very mystery that angels long to behold. The Church becomes just another religious institution, not the dwelling place of a salvation that astounds the heavenly host.
The Privilege Angels Envy
Do not diminish what God has given you. The angels, with all their wisdom, are students at the feet of the gospel. They peer into the mystery of Christ in you—the hope of glory—and they are left in awe. Your faith, forged in weakness, crowned with joy, is the very thing they desire to look into. This is not a secondary matter. This is the heart of the new covenant: Christ’s finished work, received by faith, producing a joy and a glory that surpasses even the vision of angels.
Hold fast, then, to the gospel preached by the Holy Spirit. Rejoice in the privilege that is yours—not by sight, not by works, but by faith alone. Let the angels wonder. Let them marvel. For you possess what they can only long to see: a salvation that is the very envy of heaven.
Read more: Romans 1-8 – Christ our Righteousness in Heaven – Our Life on Earth
