To fight the good fight (Part three)

In preparation for the engagement with the enemy, we must first analyze the armour with which we have been issued. First of all, one must bear in mind that this is not a battle that can be fought in the realm of the natural, but only in the spiritual. As such our weapons cannot be of the natural world (II Corinthians 10:4).

Having said that, Paul assists us in understanding our ‘equipment’ by using weapons from the natural realm as metaphors for those of the spirit (Ephesians 6:10-17). It is worth recognizing how the Holy Spirit used Paul’s uncomfortable situation (6:19) of being chained to a Roman soldier to focus his mind on the identification of military equipment (cf. Romans 8:28).

Paul opens his teaching on the spiritual armour by making a two-part telling statement: “... be strong in the Lord ...”

1.    Our strength is to be sourced in the Divine, i.e. supernatural. We must permit God to enable (empower) us which requires our submission to Him and His will (cf. James 4:7&8a). The word is employed in the passive sense meaning that we receive, God imparts, i.e. an act of faith.

“... and in the strength of His might.”

2.    We are to stand upon presence of this strength by appreciating its significance in the war we are called to fight. In other words, the presence of this strength is significant to the enemy in terms of II Corinthians 10:4-6.

Paul admonishes the Ephesian believers to “put on the full armour of God”, no omissions. The believer’s necessary equipment is not left open to the whims of the individual (cf. Vs. 13) Only then, can each individual successfully combat “the schemes of the devil.”

·     ‘Schemes’ – It is vital that this definition be understood: “the following or pursuing of orderly and technical procedure in the handling of a subject.” Furthermore, “to go systematically to work, to do or pursue something methodically and according to the rules.”  [i]

In terms of this definition, one would do well to acknowledge that satan’s tactics are not haphazard and devoid of intelligent intent (cf. Ephesians 4:14; I Peter 5:8), hence the need for total compliance on the part of the believer in putting on the full armour of God.

The armour of God.

The belt of truth: This speaks of the soldier’s belt. The Roman belt would include an apron (sporran) like extension over the genital area. Both were heavily studded with metal. Hanging from this belt on the left-hand side was a short dagger. [N.B. In the first century (when Paul wrote) the sword was carried high up on the right-hand side quite separate from the belt mentioned above.]

The belt provided support and a place to loop the apron out of the way when on the move. A girded belt also speaks of one being ready for action (Acts 12:8; I Peter 1:13). It is worth noting that Isaiah mentions the symbolic clothing of the Messiah (Isaiah 11:5).

Breastplate of righteousness: This was a very flexible system of overlapping metal strips over the shoulders and plates over the chest and the back. The body portion was hinged at the back and closed over the front with studs or slots. Each of the metal strips was able to move over or under each other as the soldier moved. [ii]

This piece of armour acts as a metaphor for true righteousness which is devoid of stiff and resistant legalism (Matthew 23:13-28), while not allowing for compromise (i.e. exposure) (cf. Isaiah 59:17 - The Messiah going forth bringing justice). Furthermore, this part of the equipment protected the vital organs, including the heart. The right heart is one that is in right relationship with God (I Thessalonians 5:8).

Sandals of the Gospel of peace: Each soldier was kitted with thick soled sandals. The soles would be studded with hollow-headed hob-nails. [iii] The sandals offered effective protection from rough ground as well as secure footing (Ephesians 6:14) in the fight due to the studs in the soles of the sandals. Again this is symbolic of our task as we obey the so-called ‘Great Commission’ (Matthew 28:18-20; Romans 10:15).

Shield of faith: During the first century this was a large oval shield [iv] made of leather and ply-wood secured round the edges with metal strips. The centre boss was hollow. Inside there was a leather forearm grip for use in battle. In addition, it had a longer strap so the shield could be slung over the shoulder.[v]

The metaphor here is, once again, quite clear. Our faith is our defence (Genesis 15:1; Deuteronomy 33:29; Psalm 33:20; Proverbs 30:5; cf. Daniel 6:23). It is from behind the protective shield of faith that an effective attack with the sword can be mounted.

Helmet of salvation: The helmet was made of bronze and fitted with a skull cap of leather or cloth lining. Its design afforded maximum protection, comfort and vision. There was no frontal visor but there were hinged cheek protectors tied beneath the chin. A brow-ridge gave protection to the nose and eyes. The back of the helmet was swept back affording protection to the neck. [vi]

Our salvation constitutes us being right with God. As the word ‘faith’ means ‘a reasoned belief based on evidence’, the mind (including the will, emotions, imagination, etc.) is a vital component in our walk with God (Romans 8:7, 12:2; Ephesians 4:23; Philippians 2:5; Colossians 1:21; cf. Joshua 1:8; I Samuel 12:24).

Sword of the Spirit: The sword was designed for close-quarter fighting. It was about two feet long with a broad double-edged blade. On the end of the handle was a weighted pommel that afforded effective balance. All Roman metalwork underwent hammering and tempering and was, as a result, very tough. It was carried high on the right side so as not to get entangled with the legs or with the movement of the shield. The short sword was characteristic of the confident, attacking soldier. [vii] The writer to the Hebrews more than adequately sums up the value of this weapon (Hebrews 4:12; cf. Revelation 1:16, 19:15).

The sword is the only offensive weaponry with which we are issued. Thus, it only by the Word of God that truth can be ‘proven’ in any debate and times of uncertainty. In this conflict, being armed in this way, it is vital to discern between the enemy and those he uses (cf. Matthew 16:21-23). For the sword is not for the slaying of our brethren or the unbeliever, but for satan and his dominions.

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[i] Zodhiates, Spiros. The Complete Word Study New Testament. Chattanooga. AMG. 1991. Pg. 935.

[ii] Webster, Graham. The Roman Army. Chester. Grosvenor Museum. 1956. Pg. 27.

[iii] ibid. Pg. 28.

[iv] Lane Fox, Robin. The Classical World. London. Penguin. 2006. Pg. 474.

[v] Webster, Graham. The Roman Army. Chester. Grosvenor Museum. 1956. Pg. 28.

[vi] ibid.

[vii] ibid.

To fight the good fight (Part two)

Spiritual warfare, as the ‘good fight’ has come to be termed, is a conflict between a defeated foe – satan, and a victorious King - Jesus Christ (Ephesians 1:20-22) and His people who are learning to live in that victory (Romans 16:20).

The foundation stones of this conflict were laid centuries ago in the Garden of Eden. There man enjoyed perfect fellowship with God made possible by the interweaving of the spiritual and natural realms (Genesis 3:8).

Satan’s successful duping of Eve resulted in the fall from that relationship and fissuring of the two realms into parallel realities. This resulted in a permanent state of tension within human beings. An individual person is a spirit created in the image of God but merged for a time with a body of flesh and all that that brings with it. We lack unity because long ago that gap fissured open between our mortal and immortal parts, as well as between God and man.[i]

God, in His mercy, knew the misery that would result from this ‘break’ and thus made it impossible for mankind to physically live forever in a world dominated by the consequences of his rebellion (Genesis 3:24; Proverbs 1:30-32).

It is these ‘consequences’ that satan ‘employs’, with varying degrees of success, against the regenerated (John 3:3) children of God. It is from this point of understanding that one can see why evil exists in the earth.

One of the most potent elements in the conflict is that of personal choice (Ephesians 4:27). It was personal choice that caused satan to be able to speak to Eve in the first place and then to have Adam become complicit in the rebellion (Genesis 3).

It is of vital importance that the following fact be remembered: Man is a freewill being (Joshua 24:15; Proverbs 1:29&30; Matthew 23:37; Hebrews 11:25). Therefore, evil is in the earth because of the choices of mankind (Romans 5:12).

The question that now arises is: If God is a loving God can He not intervene? No, He will not. Evil is allowed to remain in the earth, because the banishing of evil is not as valuable as the maintenance of free will (that which was used to cause the problem in the first place). Free will lies at the very base of God’s original intent: A relationship with man based on choice.

Furthermore, God is just. He cannot stop one evil (generally speaking, the one that most bothers us personally) and not all. So, God’s desire for free will relationship and His justice precludes any easy answer to the finite challenges present in this creation (cf. II Peter 3:10-13). Having said that, the tragedies connected with such evil do touch His heart (Psalm 78:40; Isaiah 63:10).

It is these consequential challenges that form the basis of the conflict in which we find ourselves embroiled. So, in facing the inevitability of evil and its consequences, each believer needs to know the following:

All things work together for the good ... (Romans 8:28).

If God is for us ... (Romans 8:31).

Jesus Himself intercedes for us (Romans 8:34b).

Who will separate us from the love of Christ?

Tribulation? Distress? Persecution? Famine? Nakedness (poverty)? Peril? Sword (war and violence)? (Romans 8:35).

No matter what we (if we choose to) overwhelmingly conquer (Romans 8:37).

At this point the question, “Ah, what about the demonic?” will be asked. Let us allow Paul to continue: “For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor PRINCIPALITIES (Ephesians 6:12 – A.V.) nor things present, nor things to come, nor POWERS (Ephesians 6:12), nor height, nor depth, nor any other CREATED thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:38&39).

While God has always remained sovereign, man has continuously had to deal with the powers of evil, i.e. satan. As if to confirm that such a state of affairs would prevail through the dispensation of the New Covenant, Jesus faced satanic evil in the wilderness (Matthew 4:1-17). The Old Testament offers an interesting parallel. The nation of Israel had all the disobedience and unbelief removed from them during their forty year sojourn in the wilderness.  For Israel of old the wilderness was, firstly, a place of death. There the grumbling, bitterness, fear and frailty perished. It was also a place of life; it was the place where a new generation was born and nurtured.[ii]

The tactics employed by Jesus were as simple as they were effective: On each occasion Jesus merely applied the Scripture as an effective counter-punch to each temptation levelled against Him (Matthew 4: 4, 6, 10).

Being in Christ is not the equivalent to living behind bulletproof glass (I Peter 4:12&13). Furthermore, such suffering is to be considered a matter of joy (James 1:2-4; cf. Romans 5:1-3).

From all of the afore-going it should have become apparent by now that our own individual attitudes to evil, and its varying manifestations, go a long way to determining how successful satan will be in his conflict with each believer.

Satan’s tactics in the wilderness (Matthew 4:1-11), what can we learn?

Vs. 3 – Satan will seek to make the needs of the natural body more important than those of the spirit of man. Please bear in mind Jesus’ physically weakened state after forty days of fasting in a desert environment. The carnal within mankind always seeks to fed ahead of the spiritual, hence Jesus’ reply in vs. 4.

Vss. 5&6 – The kingdom of darkness will always encourage acts of self-promotion over waiting on the perfect timing of God.

Vss. 8&9 – The quest for personal power and influence enjoys great kudos in the world system. Satan therefore will tempt all who pose a threat to compromise their worship standards to accomplish what surely must be a good thing ... in the end.

So, the three temptations placed before Jesus on this occasion were:

1.       Personal provision for the satisfaction of physical need.

2.       Self-promotion.

3.       Power, authority, influence and profile.

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[i] Yancey, Philip. Finding God in unexpected places. Colorado Springs. Waterbrook Press. 2008. Pg. 264.

[ii] Sherman, Dean. Spiritual Warfare. Seattle. YWAM. 1995. Pg. 146. 

To fight the good fight (Part one).

 [When considering the issue of spiritual warfare, such contentious issues as territorial spirits, local covens, and the like leap immediately to mind. The validity, or otherwise, of these things will be raised later in this series. What we want to concentrate on for now is what the Bible definitely mentions in terms of the good fight in which we are called to be combatants.]

II Chronicles 7:14 is an oft repeated verse when praying for a physical nation. However, is this a valid use of the verse? The context of this verse is the dedication of Solomon’s temple and God’s response to Solomon’s prayer at this event. The land in question was Israel. In the New Testament context, what constitutes the ‘land’? The Body of Christ as the visible manifestation of the Kingdom of God on earth. The Church at large, throughout history, has a woeful record of civil war, strife, division, etc. and is in need of healing and restoration. Thus have the battle lines have been drawn. The battle cry in this ‘good fight’ is, “Lord, heal our ‘land’.”

In I Timothy 1:18&19 Paul makes joining the good fight a command, albeit one he entrusts to Timothy. The platform for this fight were the prophecies that Timothy had received concerning his future (at the time of receiving) life and ministry. The word ‘prophecy’, in this instance, referred particularly to that which is foretold rather than forth-told. The latter being the declaration of the will of God into a present-tense situation.

Paul’s choice of the word ‘war’ also throws additional light onto the issue at hand. Here it literally means to serve in military campaigns (cf. Ephesians 6:10-17). Figuratively this speaks of the execution of the ministry with all of its arduous duties and functions (II Timothy 2:3; cf. II Corinthians 11:21-29). This call would also include the necessity of contending with carnal inclinations which oppose all believers. 

[For the purposes of this series the term ‘carnal’ will be used for those things which oppose holiness in the life of every believer. The word ‘flesh’, on the other hand, will refer to the natural aspect of humanity.]

It is interesting that Paul calls this war a “good fight”. The word ‘good’ means constitutionally good without necessarily being benevolent. What Paul is inferring here is that the war is good because of the its purpose. To act in love, as when dealing  with a fellow human, is not necessary given the opponent. However, let us be clear as to the identity of the opponent. While the Church at large, throughout history, has a woeful record of civil war, the true opponent is clearly identified in, inter alia, II Corinthians 10:3-6.

Paul makes it clear that while we live out our natural lives in bodies of flesh and bone, our war is not against such (c.f. Matthew 16:21-23 - Jesus was not at war with Peter but the demonic spirit influencing Peter. Note to whom the initial rebuke is addressed). Consequently there is nothing in our natural constitution (flesh and bone) that can be of any use in this warfare to which Timothy, and us (John 17:20), are called.  

I Timothy 1:19  gives clear instruction on what is to be maintained while conducting this war, we are called to:

"Keep the faith" 

Keep = to have, to hold, hold on, to count, consider, regard.

Faith = to be persuaded, a reasoned belief.

"a good conscience"  

Good = benevolent (benefitting others), profitable, useful.

Conscience = to know together with. Here it must be remembered that as believers indwelt by the Holy Spirit our conscience will seek to be in sync with Him (II Corinthians 1:12), thus “to know together with.” To fail in either or both of these is to invite shipwreck.

The ravages of this war will include the attempted/actual erosion of our faith. To that end we must give due consideration to our faith, i.o.w. we are to keep the faith received (Romans 10:17) in good repair as one would maintain a house or a vehicle. The only sort of faith that can come through this conflict is an intelligent and reasoned belief based primarily upon the Scriptures (Romans 10:17) and confirmed by godly experience (Romans 8:28; Exodus 16:6; Isaiah 41:17-20).

The enemy also seeks to make our conscience ineffective ( c.f. I Timothy 4:1-5) for our conscience enables us to know together with the Holy Spirit that which pleases God.

While this goal may seem unattainable, we have an example in Paul himself (II Timothy 4:7; cf. Philippians 4:11-13).

I Timothy 6:3-5 - Here Paul gives snapshots of some of the ways in which the war manifests itself in the life and ministry of the Body of Christ.

1) Those who would oppose three aspects of ministry: (i) Advocating a different doctrine; (ii) disagreeing with sound words of Christ; (iii) godliness.

2) People who are conceited (excessive pride) without understanding,  having morbid (abnormal or an unhealthy interest in unpleasant subjects) interests, those who are focussed on controversies and disputes concerning definitions.

3) Such manifestations will cause, in varying degrees, envy, strife, abusive language, evil suspicions, constant friction, seeking material gain, lack of contentment.

Vss. 6-10 -The issue of gain, material or otherwise, is often the focus of debate within various aspects of the Body of Christ. What Paul is wishing the Church to avoid is seeing godliness as a means of acquiring wealth or status. However, godliness that is partnered with contentment (Philippians 4:11) will result in useful and lasting gain.

Vss. 11&12 – here Paul issues a four-fold command to his son in the faith:

1.       Flee (to run away, to shun) from all the negatives discussed from verse 3 onwards.

2.       Pursue (as if persecuting) that which is of God.

3.       Fight  (to struggle, contend with an adversary, compete for a prize) the good fight of faith.

4.       Take hold (to seize) of eternal life.

Each of the above actions require acts of the will, determination and commitment.

Vss. 13-16 - Live in the expectation of the coming of Christ (Hebrews 9:28). It is with this attitude of mind and battlefield stance that the Church is best set for ongoing victory.