Divine Protection Through Earthly Means

Earthly Miracles Bring Heavenly Blessings

The Holy Family Flees to Egypt

In Matthew 2, the wise men came to worship Jesus. Thinking that this newborn king would be found in the palace at Jerusalem, the wise men went there and asked Herod if they could see the “real” king.

News of this other king troubled Herod “and all Jerusalem with him.” (Matt 2:3)
Obviously, when Herod ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy.

Herod told the wise men to search for the child in Bethlehem and directed them to return and report when the child was found so that he could also worship the child.
Yeah, r-r-r-i-i-i-g-h-t!

Ultimately, an angel warned Joseph in a dream to flee to Egypt (Matt 2:12–14), and the Holy Family did so before Herod “slew all the children that were in Bethlehem… from two years old and under.” (Matt 2:16)

The Holy Family remained in Egypt until Herod died and then returned to Nazareth in Galilee. (Matt 2:15)

The Lord Protects the Holy Family

The method used by the Lord to protect the young child from Herod obviously worked, but I sometimes wonder why the Lord didn’t do something more miraculous given the nature of the threat—and, how can I put this—the inconvenience of moving to Egypt.

When Korah revolted against Moses in the wilderness, the Lord removed that threat when “the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed them up, and their houses.” (Num 16:32)

Now that’s my kind of threat removal.

It’s also the kind of miracle we sometimes wish for in our own lives when temporal and spiritual dangers threaten our world.

But that’s not typically how the Lord works, as we see in the Book of Revelation.

The Lord Protects His Saints

After the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, a woman representing the ancient church was “given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness.” (Rev 12:14)

This verse describes the Lord’s divine intervention that blessed the early saints—but the nature of the intervention is not what you’re thinking.

In John’s day, the eagle was the national emblem of the Roman Empire. Thus, throughout the 35-year apostolic era, the church was blessed in the Roman “wilderness”, experiencing general acceptance and tremendous growth, because Rome was generally tolerant of all religions.

When Protection Did Not Look Like a Miracle

In Revelation 12:15–16, Rome’s toleration for, and nourishment of, the woman ceased.

“The serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman…. And the earth… opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood.”

No, this protection did not come in the form of a Korah-like miracle.

The flood in these verses symbolizes the Roman Abomination of Desolation in 70 AD, when 1.1 million Jews died. All Christians in Judea would have died also—but for Christ’s warning in Matthew 24:15–16:

“When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation… let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains.”

According to Eusebius, not one Christian perished, because they heeded this warning and fled to Pella, east of the Jordan River.

Using the Means God Provides

If you think the Lord should have done something more miraculous to save the ancient church, consider Alma 60:21:

“Do ye suppose that the Lord will still deliver us, while we sit upon our thrones and do not make use of the means which the Lord has provided for us?”

The Lord expects us to use our earthly means to protect ourselves—just as the Holy Family fled to Egypt, and just as the ancient saints fled to Pella.

We should not expect miracles from heaven when we already have the earthly means to protect ourselves temporally and spiritually.

When we rely on the resources God has given, we will still see His protective miracles in our lives.

Learn More

For more on this message and its everyday applications, check out my podcasts from

🎧 December 21, 2025 – Listen here

🎧 December 23, 2025 – Listen here

(Also available wherever you get your podcasts)

🎥 From Last Week’s Vlog

John Cassinat
Unveiling Jesus Christ