Of Battles And A War

"Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. 11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil."
Ephesians 6:10-11

To just comment on the first part of this passage would be enough. It is an encouragement and an instruction at the same time. "Do not try to be strong in your own strength, the strength of your own flesh," Paul is saying, "but be strong in the Lord. Be strong in the power of His might, not your own." How many times have I rushed out the door to face the battles of the day in my own strength? How many times have I rushed off in my own strength, without spending the time to prepare for battle?

That is what this is. It is a battle cry, for us to prepare for battle. But it isn't a grand once-and-for-all battle. Every day we live, we are to get up, and prepare for battle. We have an enemy out there, and he wants to take you and I out of action. He is kind of like, and I apologize for the analogy, one of those suicide bombers in the Middle East. They don't care who they take out, they just want to do as much damage as possible. Satan is like that. He doesn't care if he takes out your family and friends in the process of getting you to fall. In fact, that would delight him. So be sober about this my beloved brothers and sisters. We are in a war. It is serious, and it is deadly.

Now, in saying all of that, don't go away thinking that your daily walk is serious all the time and there is no place for joy and laughter. I didn't say that. But when the shooting starts, you can be sure that our soldiers defending our country aren't laughing and telling jokes. We are in a spiritual war, and it is deadly and serious. The winner gets your soul. So we are preparing for battle everyday, making sure that we walk in the strength of the Lord and the power of His might, not our own strength.

But then, the instruction is to put on the whole armor of God. Again, this in preparation for battle. As a soldier makes sure all of his gear is on and in working order, so too, you and I, each day, get up, and prepare for battle. Failure to prepare for battle means certain defeat. It isn't an option. We sometimes are too cavalier about our attitude towards the battle and the war. We get up, we spend time in the Word and in prayer, and listen to God, to what He is whispering in our ears and writing on our hearts. That is when we are equipped to head out into the day. And once we have put on the armor of God, which we will probably speak about tomorrow, then we will be able to "stand against the wiles of the devil."

To stand, means to be ready, to be attentive to what is before us. It is a position of strength, in a battle. It is a position of accountability, and we are instructed many times throughout the New Testament, to stand. And here, too, we are to instructed to put on the armor of God, and then, to stand, to oppose, to come against, "the wiles of the devil." What are the "wiles" of the devil? you ask. Glad you did.

The wiles of the devil are the schemes the devil uses to entrap and entice us. The original language uses a word from which we get our word "methods." The wiles of the devil are the methods the devil employs against us to take us down, and wipe us out. And we can stand, in strength and power, against him, if we stand in the strength and power of the Lord's might, not our own. We are in a battle; we are in a war. Let us make sure that each day we are prepared for battle. Amen.