Bible Passage: Ephesians 6:10-20
Pastor: Joel Jenswold
Sermon Date: September 5, 2021

Bulletin September 5, 2021

We have all seen the images coming out of Afghanistan over the last weeks.  Certainly they are images that touch our hearts and move us Christians to pray for God’s help and healing in that chaotic part of the world.  But for the moment, I want you to “freeze” on one image you have seen.  I want you to freeze your mind’s eye on the image of the U.S soldier dressed for combat.  Can you picture it?

Let me tell you about the combat gear on that soldier.  On his head he wears a helmet that can take a bullet and can protect against the percussive forces of explosion.  He wears combat eye protection and uses special night vision gear in the dark.  There is a maxillofacial protection system that wraps the jaw and neck area.  There are vital torso protection ballistic plates worn on the upper torso.  There is a special protective outer garment worn over the waist and groin area to protect against IED blasts which often maim or cause fatal injury to this part of the body.  An M4 rifle is in the hands and an M9 9mm is in a side holster.  All in all, it combines to make the best equipped combat soldiers on the planet.  They are heavily and fully armed.

Your God has done the same for you, dear Christian.  Each day we are engaged in combat.  We will be under attack from hostile enemy combatants all day long.  And your God does not want you to be unarmed or unprotected, or even under-armed or under-protected.  So he has given you all you need to be Fully and Heavily Armed.

Now, you only really become interested in combat gear when you know there is an enemy who is going to engage you in combat.  In our text, the Lord tells you that you have an enemy who is going to engage you in combat!  In verse 11 he mentions the devil.  And then he says, For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the world rulers of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. (v. 12) 

Just the same as our soldiers spend time learning about the Taliban and ISIS-K, so also we must spend some time learning about our enemy.  This enemy is not flesh and blood.  It is not made of skin and bone.  He does not wear an identifying uniform I can see.  He is invisible to my eye.  This enemy exists in heavenly places (v. 12), that is, in the spiritual dimension.

There is a ranking officer in this army, the Devil.  He is called in Scripture the ruler of the demons. Ah, we know about him!  He is that angel who rebelled against God and was thrown into hell and who now is at war with God and all that he has made!  And this fallen angel has his underlings.  Rulers and authorities they are called.  Demons we call them.  And there are lots of them!  They are rulers of darkness and they are spiritual forces working for evil.

Friends, this is real stuff.  There is not just “bad energy” in the world, there are bad – EVIL! – spirits at work in this world, and they hate you and are at war with you!  The devil is a real being who works against God’s people.  Peter tells us to be self-controlled and alert because the devil roams around like a roaring lion looking for people to devour. (1 Peter 5:8)  In Jesus’ parable of the Sower and the Seed, the devil is the one who comes and snatches the Word away.  Satan attacked the apostle Paul. Paul called his “thorn in the flesh” a “messenger of Satan to torment me.” (2 Corinthians 12)  He works in and through those who persecute the Church.  In the book of Revelation, Jesus told the Christians in Smyrna the Devil is about to throw some of you into prison. (Rev. 2:10)  He is called the Tempter (1 Thessalonians 3:5) who tempts us to sin with the goal that we might go AWOL from Christ and surrender to sin.  He is a master of espionage and masquerades as an angel of light (1 Corinthians)  The demons do the same.  Paul warned Timothy about deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons (1 Timothy 4:1).

It was Martin Luther’s opinion that we as Christians tend to underestimate our enemy.  Would you agree with Luther?  Do you understand and appreciate that all the powers of hell have trained their weapons on you and your baptized children?  Luther also said famously, “With might of ours can naught be done, soon were our loss effected.” (A Mighty Fortress is Our God)  So how do we stand against such a formidable enemy?

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. (v. 10)   You find in Jesus heavy arms and heavy armor!  You find in him the belt of truth (v. 14).  Truth!  Here comes the devil with his lies – and as Jesus said, the devil is the Father of lies who has been lying since the beginning.  A river of lies gushes from his mouth.  It does not sweep us away for we are girded with God’s Truth!  We put on the breastplate of righteousness (v. 14).  Righteousness…Christ’s righteousness protects you from Satan’s accusations.  “You deserve to go to hell for your sin.  You WILL go to hell for your sin!”  Christ’s perfect life and sacrificial death save you from such attacks!  We put the gospel of peace on our feet like sandals.  We have good news of peace.  Jesus, forgiveness, eternal life.  The devil wants there to be anarchy and unrest in your soul!  Instead, there is sweet shalom!  Peace!  We take up the shield of faith (v. 16)  The devil shoots his flaming arrows.  Attacks designed to spread like fire.  Get some false teaching to stick and spread; get some sin to stick and spread.  Our shield with the cross on it deflects them all.  Take the helmet of salvation (v. 17)  The devil goes for the head-shot, the decisive kill-shot.  Deflected by Christ’s salvation!  “I have rescued you; you are mine,” says the Commander of the armies of heaven.  Finally, we take up the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” (v. 17)  Just the same as Jesus, when tempted by the devil, used the Word of God to cut and gash the Tempter so that he retreated in defeat , so we cut and gash the enemy with the Words of our God!

Remember, fellow soldiers, all of this is found in the Lord and in his mighty power. (v. 10)  John tells us in his first letter:  The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work. (1 John 3:8)  And it was Paul who wrote to the Colossians that Jesus disarmed the rulers and authorities, the very demons mentioned in our text, and triumphed over them (Colossians 2:15) by his death and resurrection!  It is not that we are fighting FOR victory, but that we are fighting FROM victory.  We are fighting from the position of Christ’s victory!  All our heavy weapons and armor are really the revelation and the blessings of Christ’s victory.  Truth. Righteousness. Peace. Faith. Salvation. The Word of God.  It all rubs the devil’s face in the victory of Jesus Christ!

So go forth, my friends, heavily and fully armed in Christ and his strength!  “From victory unto victory, his army shall he lead, till every foe is vanquished, and Christ is Lord indeed.”  (CW 474:1)

Amen.

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