There is a wonderful scene in Raiders
of the Lost Ark in which the hero, Indiana Jones, finds himself faced with
a sinister figure, faced wrapped in cloth, flashing a scimitar through the
air. Jones sighs, reaches into his belt, pulls out his pistol and shoots the
turbaned villain. I'm told the scene was an ad-lib on the part of Harrison
Ford, but it gives us a point for today's lesson. Sometimes we need to
remember who has the pistol.
In today's Scripture, Paul lays
out for us the basics of Christian life in the face of Satan's attack.
(Eph 6:10-24 NIV)
Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. {11} Put on the
full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes.
{12} For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the
rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and
against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. {13} Therefore
put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be
able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.
{14} Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist,
with the breastplate of righteousness in place, {15} and with your feet
fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. {16} In
addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can
extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. {17} Take the helmet
of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. {18} And
pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.
With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.
{19} Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me
so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, {20} for
which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I
should. {21} Tychicus, the dear brother and faithful servant in the
Lord, will tell you everything, so that you also may know how I am and what I
am doing. {22} I am sending him to you for this very purpose, that you
may know how we are, and that he may encourage you. {23} Peace to the
brothers, and love with faith from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
{24} Grace to all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with an undying love.
Introduction
This is the last of this letter
to the Ephesians. It would be well to remind ourselves of what Paul has taught
us:
·
How the church is formed, and what heavenly blessings we have.
·
Our relationships one to another, starting with the church
leadership and on down to masters and slaves.
·
Now he gives us our instruction as individuals.
The Source of our Strength
He tells us to "be
strong." That's good - but not very useful in itself. For most of us are
not spiritual giants. We need to be told how to do this.
·
We are not to be strong in and of ourselves, but in the strength
of the Lord - in the "power of his might." This is the first, and
key, insight. We cannot do this in our strength; we must do it in his.
·
We do this via the "armor" of God - that is to say, we
do it by using those tools that God has provided us. We may call them weapons
or techniques, but the key point is that God provides them.
·
But if he provides them, we must put them on - put them to
use. We must also become proficient in their use, practicing on a daily basis.
The need for this strength
All this might seem unnecessary;
after all, we live in an age of peace. But Paul makes clear that our enemy,
Satan, is ever vigilant:
·
We are to beware of the devil's schemes. Should we not
take this as personal, things which Satan plots against us personally? Our
temptations, our trials and thoughts?
·
There is also this world. We are clearly taught that the
"rulers of this world" - this world in rebellion against its creator
- are the demons of Satan. The system by which the world works is another need
for this strength, for we will not be "going with the flow."
·
Finally, it will not always be peaceful. The day of evil will
come. When it does, there is no sense in wishing you were prepared. One does
not build the fire station after the fire starts.
The Whole Armor of God
Paul now begins a very visual
section. He is in chains, and it has been suggested that his imagery comes
from looking at one of his guards. That may be, but it still is a powerful
image even in this day.
Whole Armor
First note that it is the whole
armor. There is no sense taking up part of it. Satan is not stupid; he will
see the gap in your preparations for him. If you won't take all of it, you
will fail.
Belt of Truth
Truth holds the faith together.
Of all the world's religions, Christianity is the one most often challenged -
and defended - by the facts. If you do not know the truth of the faith at the
factual level, you cannot defend it.
More than that, this belt helps
distribute the load of life. Military personnel will remember the "web
belt" of the services; this is a similar device. It helps distribute the
load of your equipment over the hips, so that it is better balanced. In a like
manner, truth helps you distribute the load of life. You cannot be an expert
in everything in the faith, but you can lean on the truth, placing your load
upon it - for it will not collapse.
There is another side to it.
Remember Batman's "utility belt?" That handy strap with a
contrivance for every occasion? It is the same with the truth. You may not
know what to do in a given situation - but check with Solomon in the book of
Proverbs for a little advice.
Breastplate of Righteousness
Note that the breastplate covers
the heart. Righteousness is placed over the heart to control our passions. It
defends us against the temptations such as anger and lust. When passion wells
up, right living calms it down.
But there is another meaning:
sometimes Satan accuses us directly. He says, "You can't be anything to
God - look what you've done in your life." Then the Christian can defend
himself with the breastplate of righteousness - the righteousness of Christ.
"My defense is not my righteousness - but the righteousness of Christ,
given to me at the Cross."
Feet fitted with the Gospel of
Peace
The image is a bit obscure here.
The Roman soldier armored his feet (getting your foot stabbed with a spear is not
pleasant). Paul may mean one or both of these:
·
It may be the active sense - the feet of those spreading the
Gospel.
·
It may be in the defensive - the sense of standing on the peace
that passes all understanding.
The shield of Faith
This is a stunning image of
faith. Faith, in contrast to truth, involves that which you do not know -
yet.
·
You cannot see through the shield. You cannot see through
Faith. So there will come a time when Satan throws temptation at you and
you cannot see how you will defend yourself. You do not have to see; you
do need to have faith.
·
If the shield is properly maintained, however, it does not matter
what the nature of the threat might be. It is a defense against anything Satan
can throw at you.
·
Note the verb: quenching. It's like putting our a fire by
drowning it. Faith not only stops the attack, it prevents it from flaring up
again.
The Helmet of Salvation
If there's one area you want to
protect most, it's your head. A helmet is now mandatory in almost all contact
sports, for example. Paul amplifies this thought in another passage
to refer to the helmet as the "hope of salvation." The one thing you
need most is salvation from sin. This is the most important part of the armor,
and thus Paul portrays it as the helmet. It's interesting to note that the two
most important defensive pieces are the helmet, which is salvation, God's work
alone; and the breastplate, which is righteousness, which is our work with Him.
The Sword of the Spirit
There is a curious possibility
here. The "sword" is the word of God. It is likely that the fall of
Jerusalem has not yet happened. So we are not sure if John the Apostle has
moved to Ephesus yet. But if he has, this sword could be taken to be Jesus
Christ himself. Our offensive weapon is none other than the Lord.
More commonly, however, this
refers to the Scripture. Note, please, that armor is put on; weapons,
however, are used in practice. If we are to be effective Christians we must
practice the use of the sword of the Spirit. So it is that we should read the
Bible regularly, studying it, knowing its precepts. Then we can take the
offensive.
Pray
Paul ends his letter with the
injunction to pray. This is often taken somewhat like a benediction, and
ignored, but it should not be. Note his instructions:
In the Spirit
We are to pray in the Spirit. We
are not to attempt anything on our own strength, but rather do things in the
Spirit of God, using his strength. We are to do this
·
At all times - not just when we feel the need
·
For all kinds of things - not just those that are socially
acceptable.
·
In so doing, we are to be alert. Pay attention to what's going
on around you; ask the questions.
For all the saints
It is not given to us to pick and
choose which saints are on our prayer list. God may (and does) present certain
ones to us for our particular prayers, but the church is one. Note also the
phrase, "keep on." It implies that they have already been doing so -
and that we should do so continually.
For their ambassador
A particular object of prayer for
all Christians should be those who preach the Gospel - whether at home or on
the mission field - as a leader of the faithful. In particular, we should ask
God for two things:
·
That this leader will be given the words God wishes spoken. Not
his own words, or his own theories, but the words of God himself.
·
That he will speak fearlessly. There is an interesting side note
here. Sometimes a local preacher must consider not only how to say something,
but what to say - for fear of giving offense. These delicate decisions are
made much easier when he knows that his congregation is praying for - and
expects - his fearless preaching.
The leader, in return, must
encourage his flock. Paul, in chains, does this by sending Tychicus.
So ends the letter to the
Ephesians, a people Paul loves personally. It is fitting that we use his last
words as well:
(Eph 6:23-24 NIV)
Peace to the brothers, and love with faith from God the Father and the Lord
Jesus Christ. {24} Grace to all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with an
undying love.
For anyone who teaches or
preaches, here are three things we would wish to give to all who hear us:
·
Peace to the brothers
·
Love, with faith
·
Grace to all who love our Lord Jesus Christ.