PART 37: BATTLE

Ephesians 6: 10–18 “And that about wraps it up. God is strong, and he wants you strong. So take everything the Master has set out for you, well-made weapons of the best materials. And put them to use so you will be able to stand up to everything the Devil throws your way. This is no afternoon athletic contest that we’ll walk away from and forget about in a couple of hours. This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his angels.

Be prepared. You’re up against far more than you can handle on your own. Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has issued, so that when it’s all over but the shouting you’ll still be on your feet. Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation are more than words. Learn how to apply them. You’ll need them throughout your life. God’s Word is an indispensable weapon.” (The Message)

Comment:

Movies love to depict epic battle scenes of violence, blood, chaos, victors and heroes. Paul in his parting words wants us to understand that if we have centred our lives on Jesus we are in a battle. But it is not a battle like those in the movies, it is not a battle against people.

Rather Paul wants us to understand that we are in a battle, that is spiritual, where the victory has already been won.

In centreing our lives on God, who is love, we need to also remember that we are centred on one who is supernatural. There is therefore a supernatural/spiritual part to our lives being centred on God. Paul desires to keep our eyes open to this spiritual part.

Paul wants us to understand that there is one who is against us because they are against God. One who is in battle with God and therefore with us. One who is spiritual who is always seeking to counterfeit who God is, seeking to usurp God’s authority and seeking to accuse all who centre their lives on God…that one is the Devil.

Paul wants us to understand that the one who is against us, the Devil, isn’t one to fear, as God is stronger and the battle has already been won through Jesus’ life death and resurrection. However the Devil is a sore loser and is out to inflict as much damage as he can in his defeat.

In this battle Paul highlights the weapons we have at are disposal. The weapons of…

…truth of who God is and how he relates to us…standing against the lies of the accuser

…righteousness that God has declared over us. That reveals we are unconditionally accepted…standing against any and every accusation that says we are not acceptable

…peace in who we are and what we do…standing against the unrest of am I good enough

…faith that gives us confidence in the God we trust in…standing against the vulnerability and fear of being alone

…salvation given wholly by God calling us to relationship, that Jesus is enough…standing against the vulnerability that we can do nothing to save ourselves

Paul therefore brings the perspective of the battle we are in, not to cause us to fear, but rather to know hope.

When we find ourselves in a battle with the one who is out to accuse, lie and ultimately usurp God’s authority…we are to remember, we are not alone, we have an armoury like no other at our disposal.

PAUSE…there is a battle are we using the armoury.

Questions to ask yourself:

How do I live with the perspective of the battle we are in?

Do I need to draw on the armoury at my disposal at the moment?