Ephesians 6:10-20
Pentecost 13B, August
26, 2012
Grace to you and peace from God
our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
War
is all around us. You can’t listen to or watch the news without hearing about
war and conflict. Nation against nation, countries tearing themselves apart in
civil war, age old battles over land continue to take new lives, murders in the
street and domestic violence fill the media.
The
Bible even records the accounts of many wars just like these. Even in the New Testament,
which we often think of as the tame end of the Bible, St. Paul talks about a
battle that is raging in this world. This war is a battle the devil wages
against the disciples of Jesus.
The
reason for this battle takes us back to the beginning of the Bible. God created
humans to live in perfect harmony and peace with Him and with each other. God
also created angels for the same purpose, but some of those angels rebelled
against God and rejected His love. These angels are known as unclean spirits, demons
and devils, and their leader is Satan.
Satan
loathed the peace and love that existed between the first humans and God, so he
tempted them to rebel against God and His Word by eating the forbidden fruit. This
was the beginning of the war between the devil and man, and thus, between
humans. Confronted with his sin Adam first blames Eve then God for his actions (Genesis
3:12).
Filled
with guilt and stained with sin God had to cast Adam and Eve out of the garden
so they could not eat of the tree of life and live forever in their wicked sinful
state (Genesis 3:22-24).
However,
God didn’t cut man off completely. God gave them clothes and blessed them with
children and livestock even while the war between humans worsened (Genesis
2:4:1-4). The witness of the Bible is that God continued to
speak to His people, for in the early pages of Genesis we read about Adam and
Eve’s descendants trusting in the Word of the Lord.
Satan’s
attacks on God’s people continue to this day. He loathes the love that God has
created between Himself and you. The devil wages war against you, attacking
your faith by tempting you to sin, then accusing you of sinning in a way that
is unforgivable so that you enter into despair and fall away from God. Adam and
Eve could not win in their fight against the devil, neither can you.
This
is why in the closing words in his letter to the Ephesian church, Paul says be strong in the Lord and in the strength
of his might, not in your own strength. We cannot win against Satan. He is
far too strong and he is a master at his trade. He has been leading God’s
people into sin and death since the beginning. You won’t win if you fight him.
The Good news is that you don’t have to. The most important words Paul speaks in
this section of his letter is ‘stand’.
Put on the whole armor of God,
that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.
Three times he tell us to stand.
Why? Because the battle is not ours, it is Jesus battle and He has defeated the
evil foe for you.
Jesus
has defeated the devil by His cross. In what looked like a defeat, God’s Son in
human flesh died on the cross of Calvary. But any victory cry Satan and his
devils had was soon turned to torment, for on the third day Jesus rose from the
grave, again taking up all His divine powers and ascended to the right hand of
the Father to rule over all things.
Jesus
has won the battle against the devil for all people and those who are baptized
and believe in Christ Jesus receive His victory as their own. By faith in
Christ God counts you sinless and perfect, just as His Son is sinless and holy.
Living
as a holy child of God is not easy. Yet it is not the stuff that we can see
that poses our greatest challenges. It is the unseen forces of evil that are
our greatest threat. Paul describes the war this way; 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.
The Armor of God
The
armor that Paul talks about here are the tools that God gives so that you are able to stand against the schemes of the
devil. The picture here is of an occupying soldier, not a combat warrior.
The warriors fight at the front line battling the enemy and vanquishing them.
The occupying troops come in behind the front line crack troops to live in the
conquered territory and establish order. Even the sword the occupying soldier
carries is seldom used because the battle is over, but is a sign of the
authority he has been given to keep the peace.
Another
way to understand Paul’s picture is think of the Queens Guards at Buckingham Palace;
the soldiers with the big fluffy hats and bright red jacket. They are dressed
in full uniform and carry a loaded weapon, but rarely use it.
The
armor of God is not designed to resist physical enemies. It won’t keep a cold
at bay or stop a bullet. They are spiritual weapons given to protect God’s
children from spiritual attackers.
1)
The
belt of truth. Satan is the father of lies. Jesus is the way and the truth and the life (John
14:6). The truth is that Jesus was won the battle for us, the
devil has lost. The truth is you are counted as a winner with Jesus by your
Baptism. These truths alone can defeat the lies of the devil when he whispers
them in your ears.
2) The
breast plate of righteousness. The breast plate covers the
vital organs of the soldier. You are covered with Christ’s robe of righteousness
given to you in Baptism and held in place by faith. Trust God at His Word, in
Christ you are a new creation (2Corinthiains 5:17).
3)
Shoes fitted with the gospel of peace. Ironically it is the
Gospel of peace with God that both brings us under attack and prepares us for
it. If Jesus had not died for our sins, we would still be in our sins and remain
fully under Satan’s control. But Jesus did give Himself into death. The price
of all sins has been paid and by faith in Jesus as our Saviour from sin, death
and the devil, we come under attack. Yet the Gospel prepares us for the battle,
because nothing can separate us from the
love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans
8:39).
4) Shield of faith.
Arrows were dipped in tar and set alight. To defend themselves, Roman soldiers
dipped their leather covered shields in water before battle to extinguish the arrows.
This is an allusion to the refuge we have in our Baptism. The shield of faith
is only of value if we use it against the devil’s attack, read God’s Word and
go to the Divine Service and receive God’s grace in the Absolution and Holy
Communion. In the Large Catechism Luther pleads, ‘If you could see how many knives, darts and arrows are every moment
aimed at you [Ephesians 6:16], you would be glad to come the Sacrament as often
as possible (LC, V 82).
5)
Helmet
of salvation. God has granted you salvation. He will not let
you fall from grace but day and night reminds you of His love in Christ.
6) Sword of the Spirit…
the word of God. It is the Spirit of
God that gives power to the Word of God by which we find peace with our Lord,
the assurance of God’s grace and power to resist the devils temptations. Think
of how Jesus resisted Satan’s temptations with only the Word of God (Luke
4:1-13).
We also pray to God according to the His Word by
the power of the Holy Spirit, knowing He will hear and answer our calls for
help. It is the Spirit that also prays for us when we are weak and do not know
what to pray (Romans 8:26, 27).
All
this talk of cosmic powers, present
darkness and spiritual forces of
evil can create fear in our hearts and minds. Fears that we will be lost in
battle, fears that we will be crushed, or fears that Jesus is not strong
enough. Behind this bad news of wars in this world and spiritual forces at work
seeking to overcome us, is the Good News the Holy Spirit brings us. The Spirit
announces rescue and victory through the cross of Christ. In Word and Sacrament
the Spirit delivers Jesus’ victory. You can rest in Christ the conqueror,
because He has defeated Satan and his cronies, and He is taking care of the
evil powers and cosmic forces right now.
God
gives His armor to protect your faith in Christ so that you would not fall for
Satan’s schemes and lies. And if you do fall into temptation and sin, God’s Law
will reveal that every power of your own is worthless against the devils tricks,
and His Gospel will turn your eyes to Jesus to trust in the forgiveness and He
supplies. The risen Christ once said to Paul when he was struggling in his
weakness, “My grace is sufficient for
you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2Corinthians
12:9).
So
Stand with Jesus and His sure victory. Stand when on the Rock temptation comes.
Stand on the evil day. Stand firm in faith that God will protect you by His
all-conquering Son. Stand with Jesus, for where else can you go for protect and
peace, He alone has the words of eternal life. Amen.
Let’s pray. Almighty God, send Your Spirit to
strengthen our faith that we would remain standing on Christ, our Rock and our
Redeemer, and when our faith falters hold us in Your hands that we do not fall
away from You. Amen.
The peace of God, which passes all
understanding, guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.