Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
(Ephesians 6:11-12)
We must beware of diminishing the aspect of warfare when thinking about the Christian life. We are prone to think that nothing we can do is of cosmic importance, and that we need not take life so seriously as all that. How can the actions of one person matter very much in the grand scheme of things?
But consider -- you are a soldier. When you came to Jesus for salvation, you became His servant, you acknowledged His Lordship, and you enlisted in the army of God. Now you must think of yourself as a soldier. This means that you must be watchful at all times. You must keep up your training and sharpen your skills by continual practice. It means that you must stand your ground, even should all around you be cut down, or should they flee in panic. You are a soldier! It does not matter that you can only personally engage one enemy at a time. It does not matter that you cannot win the battle all by yourself. You are a soldier! Act like one!
This means, you must stop whining and complaining about the conditions of your warfare. No one asked you what conditions you would accept when you enlisted. They are probably not going to be what you would like. A soldier's life is not one of ease. Get used to it!
Realize that you are in a war, and wartime conditions can be -- humanly speaking -- intolerable. You can die of sheer exhaustion, of disease or starvation before you ever get into an actual battle. You can get captured by the enemy and treated very roughly. And in a real battle, you can find yourself fighting for your life, needing literally all the courage and strength and wit that you can muster, for as long as it takes to win!
You are a soldier. You may as well face the facts. Your only choices are to fight manfully on to the end, or to disgrace yourself by cowardice and flight. Just remember that your choice will have eternal consequences.
It may seem to you that all this talk about the Christian warfare is just a metaphor -- that it is not real. I assure you, this is not so. It is, if anything, more real than the wars of this world! The battle is not merely a matter of life and death, as earthly conflicts are: it concerns the eternal destinies of men! It is not for the glory of our nation only; but for the glory of our God and savior Jesus Christ.
A metaphor! That is what Satan wants you to believe! The enemy lies hid, hoping by his cunning to lull us to sleep; that he may find us helpless when he attacks! Do not believe it! You are in the war; and you cannot escape! You are really in it! The war is real; and you must fight or die!
The enemy we face is no less real because he is invisible. He is a seven-headed monster, well-armed, with sharp teeth and claws and immeasurable strength! We could not hope to defeat him by our own strength! The soldier's handbook tells us what we must do whenever we face him:
...take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints; (Ephesians 6:13-18)
We are soldiers! Let's act like it!
(Ephesians 6:11-12)
We must beware of diminishing the aspect of warfare when thinking about the Christian life. We are prone to think that nothing we can do is of cosmic importance, and that we need not take life so seriously as all that. How can the actions of one person matter very much in the grand scheme of things?
But consider -- you are a soldier. When you came to Jesus for salvation, you became His servant, you acknowledged His Lordship, and you enlisted in the army of God. Now you must think of yourself as a soldier. This means that you must be watchful at all times. You must keep up your training and sharpen your skills by continual practice. It means that you must stand your ground, even should all around you be cut down, or should they flee in panic. You are a soldier! It does not matter that you can only personally engage one enemy at a time. It does not matter that you cannot win the battle all by yourself. You are a soldier! Act like one!
This means, you must stop whining and complaining about the conditions of your warfare. No one asked you what conditions you would accept when you enlisted. They are probably not going to be what you would like. A soldier's life is not one of ease. Get used to it!
Realize that you are in a war, and wartime conditions can be -- humanly speaking -- intolerable. You can die of sheer exhaustion, of disease or starvation before you ever get into an actual battle. You can get captured by the enemy and treated very roughly. And in a real battle, you can find yourself fighting for your life, needing literally all the courage and strength and wit that you can muster, for as long as it takes to win!
You are a soldier. You may as well face the facts. Your only choices are to fight manfully on to the end, or to disgrace yourself by cowardice and flight. Just remember that your choice will have eternal consequences.
It may seem to you that all this talk about the Christian warfare is just a metaphor -- that it is not real. I assure you, this is not so. It is, if anything, more real than the wars of this world! The battle is not merely a matter of life and death, as earthly conflicts are: it concerns the eternal destinies of men! It is not for the glory of our nation only; but for the glory of our God and savior Jesus Christ.
A metaphor! That is what Satan wants you to believe! The enemy lies hid, hoping by his cunning to lull us to sleep; that he may find us helpless when he attacks! Do not believe it! You are in the war; and you cannot escape! You are really in it! The war is real; and you must fight or die!
The enemy we face is no less real because he is invisible. He is a seven-headed monster, well-armed, with sharp teeth and claws and immeasurable strength! We could not hope to defeat him by our own strength! The soldier's handbook tells us what we must do whenever we face him:
...take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints; (Ephesians 6:13-18)
We are soldiers! Let's act like it!
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