Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints,
[Rev. Dwight Yoo]
For those who have been Christians for a long time, you should be able to follow along. You go through a time of blessing. We get all excited and then right afterward, we fall on our face. Nothing changes.
Background on Ephesians
Chapters 1-3 in Ephesians speaks of Christ. Who is He? What He done for us? Chapter 4 explains what our new life in Christ looks like. It explains how our new life changes everything, our relationships, our work, our character.
The Reality of our Battle
This is not about physical battle. "For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood" The gospel doesn't tell us to take over the government. It doesn't tell us to bomb and throw paint at people who go to the abortion clinics. There is more to the story than naturalistic fixes. Not just fixing our physical ailments with drugs or medicine. Not just fixing the government.
What does this say about Christians who are unaware that there is a spiritual battle going on?
They don't have a chance. They get creamed.
It is like those Predator drones we have flying over Afganistan and Iraq. There's a guy in Colorado watching the terrorists. The terrorists are scheming. They can't see us. But we can, because of these technologies. They step outside and without warning, two missiles make them nothing more than a bloody spot on the sand. Only the devil is the one who is hunting us... and we don't see him, but he sees us. Why are we surprised when our plans for God get interrupted and obstructed?
The Art of War by Sun Tsu is a well respected piece about warfare. It is still useful. A large portion of the book is dedicated to knowing your enemy. The deployment of spies and ways to exploit your enemy. Satan knows our weaknesses and our hearts' desires. He knows how to distract us.
The Nature of our Battle
Our struggle is incessant. "wrestle" is intensely personal. If you let your guard down for a second, you may find yourself choking. Or maybe one of your elbows or knees locked by your opponent.
How to Win the Battle
"be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God" This isn't about being strong in our own strength. It isn't a game of willpower. It is about tapping into God's power. The devil is strong, but not as strong as God. The power that resurrected Christ is the one that defeated death & sin. This is the power available to us through Christ. The power of God comes through the graces of Jesus.
Application
The power of God comes in the form of:
- The Word
- Faith
- Prayer (The Spirit)
- Truth
- Gospel
- Righteousness
- Salvation
We are saved through Christ. The devil cannot take that away. But there is more at stake. God has saved us and kept us here to do God's work. To share the gospel.
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