But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit."
(Matt. 1:20)
The Word of God carries great revelation in every verse. The Bible is full of spiritual truths. Such is the case with the story of Jesus.

Have you ever thought about the reality of what happened to Joseph? Joseph was going to secretly put Mary away when he found out she was pregnant. He was going to do this because he was a good man and because he loved her. Because of his goodness and love he did not want to bring embarrassment and shame to her family. However, an angel appeared to him in a dream.

All through the Old Testament angels appeared to men of God and gave them direction and understanding from God. Many times they appeared as angelic beings in the sky and many times they appeared walking on the ground as men.

In fact, you may remember that Lot had an encounter with angelic beings in the city of Sodom and these angels looked so much like men that the people who lived in Sodom thought they were men.

But the angel that appeared to Joseph did not appear as a creature in the sky or as a man on the earth. Somehow the angel entered into Joseph's dream and inside of his dream this angel explained to Joseph that he should not put Mary away, but that he should marry her and take her as his wife. The angel told Joseph that the seed inside of Mary was not from an earthly man but from the Spirit of God.

Let me ask you something. Why is it that an angel of the Lord entered into the dream of Joseph and spoke to him 2000 years ago but rarely does it happen today? God has not changed and neither has His plan. Angels still exist and they are still messengers from God. But the message throughout God's Word is this.

We only receive what we believe.

If you believe that Jesus is the Son of God and that God raised Him from the dead and you receive Him as your personal Savior, you are saved or born again. If you do not believe He is Lord, you do not receive Him. We are told that we receive miracles and the Holy Spirit and prophecy through faith.

Believing is the key component to faith.

I truly believe the main reason many people do not receive angelic visitations either outwardly or in a dream is because of their lack of belief that it will actually happen to them. We must increase our level of belief so that we can receive a greater level of manifestation of God's presence and glory and all that He has for us.

But always remember this: We should seek Him and not the manifestation. However, when we seek Him, he will manifest Himself to us.

Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some have unwittingly entertained angels.
(Heb. 13:2)


And behold, there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat on it. His countenance was like lightning, and his clothing as white as snow.
(Matt. 28:2-3)

Jesus said to him, "If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes."
(Mark 9:23)
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