Ephesians 6:10-17
Sabine
Baring-Gould has been described as an “eclectic scholar.” He was a minister, historian, amateur
archeologist, and even song-writer.
He was one of the
first to excavate and write about some of the ancient burial mounds in England.
His grandson
William Baring-Gould wrote a “biography” of the fictional character Sherlock
Holmes. I read it years ago and had to
keep reminding myself, “this isn’t real.” Though his book was fiction, William
claimed his grandfather was Sherlock’s godfather.
I’m mentioning
this rather colorful character because in 1864 Sabine Baring-Gould wrote a song
as a processional hymn for the children in his parish in Yorkshire. You know it as “Onward Christian
Soldiers.” In the 1871, Arthur Sullivan
(of Gilbert and Sullivan fame) wrote a new tune for it and that’s how we know
it.
For over a
century, many Sunday school children have learned the words:
Onward Christian
soldiers,
Marching as to war,
With the cross of Jesus
Going on before!
Christ, the royal Master,
Leads against the foe;
Forward into battle,
See His banner go![1]
Marching as to war,
With the cross of Jesus
Going on before!
Christ, the royal Master,
Leads against the foe;
Forward into battle,
See His banner go![1]
That old hymn has
fallen on hard times. There’s a
different attitude in the church today.
Just a few years ago, in the UK there was an effort to have the hymn
banned. If they had their way, the hymn
couldn’t be played or sung in public. It
was, the critics claimed, too militant.
Some American denominations have taken it from their hymnals.
The hymn’s defenders
point out that the military images are metaphors but concede that the forces of
political correctness might not get that.
Apparently the hymn hasn’t been officially banned in the UK although a
few vicars have forbidden its use in their parishes. And the Constitution would probably get in
the way of its being banned here. Of
course, Americans being Americans, banning it might mean some congregations
would make a point of singing it every Sunday.
All the fuss over
a hymn written in the mid-nineteenth century shouldn’t keep us from realizing
that the picture of Christians as soldiers goes all the way back to the New
Testament.
Christians are
pictured as soldiers in several places in the New Testament.
Paul encouraged
Timothy to live a life of discipline, sacrifice, and purpose, like that of a
faithful soldier. “Share in suffering like a good soldier of Christ
Jesus. No one serving
in the army gets entangled in everyday affairs; the soldier’s aim is to please
the enlisting officer.” [2] The level of commitment expected of the Roman
soldier was exacting. The soldier’s term
of service was usually twenty years, during which time he was not allowed to
marry. Of course, Christian service does
not demand celibacy but Paul—who may have been facing death—wanted Timothy to
continue the commitment he had already displayed.
He saw his
co-worker Epaphroditus as a “… fellow soldier.”[3] We can imagine Paul the prisoner looking at
the Roman soldiers standing guard over him and thinking, “Epaphroditus and I
are very much like these soldiers. We
risk our lives to carry out our mission.”
They had fought together in the trenches; Paul understood they were
engaged in a common battle.
The
lengthiest picture of Christians as soldiers is this passage in Ephesians
six. Let’s review what Paul has to say.
As
Christian soldiers we need to know our enemy.
Paul takes
a moment to make sure we understand who the enemy isn’t. Our warfare isn’t against those men and women
who may oppose us. We forget this from
time to time. This is why, when we speak
of Christian soldiers, some think of the Crusaders or that strange band of
soldier-monks the Knights Templar.
Even
though Paul expressly states our warfare is not against “flesh and blood” it is
still easy to imagine that those who oppose us or disagree with us are
God’s enemies. That thinking is not only
arrogant it is counter-productive.
Treating those who may disagree with us as enemies forecloses any
opportunity to win them over, to persuade them to our viewpoint.
More
important, casting our opponents as God’s enemies may prompt us to act in ways
that will belie our claim to be like the Master.
What does
this mean practically?
I don’t
think the Christian soldier would bomb an abortion clinic or shoot an abortion
provider. These are actions of those who
have forgotten the power of God’s love.
Of course,
you don’t have to plant bombs at Planned Parenthood to be suffering from such
amnesia. It seems we are so intent of
making abortion illegal we forget that through the gospel we have the
opportunity to make it unthinkable.[4]
Don’t
misunderstand. Just because the illustrations
I’ve just used seem to focus on what might be perceived as ultra-right wing
behaviors, it doesn’t mean the Christian soldier who is on the left of the
political spectrum is free to forget Jesus’ example. That Christian soldier should stand ready to
chide that candidate who mocks things held precious to fellow believers. That Christian soldier should be guided by a
code higher than the canons of political correctness.
Ultimately,
the problem is not just on one side.
Here in
the US elections have become volatile. Our
elections have always been lively but recently your morality, decency, and
compassion have been judged by how you vote.
The left demonizes the right; the right demonizes the left. It’s true the left and the right are sharply
divided over crucial issues, divided in ways Democrats and Republicans have
never before been divided in history, but a new element has been introduced. I no longer see my candidate as right and your
candidate as mistaken; I see your candidate as evil and my candidate as
messianic.
All of
this makes us confused about who the enemy is.
Paul helps
clear up that confusion when he says, “We wrestle…against the rulers,
against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness,
against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” He helps but
maybe doesn’t completely clear it up.
Good Christians disagree
about what he is saying. Certainly, Paul
seems to be suggesting that there are sinister forces at work in the
world. Some commentators believe Paul is
talking about demons and have sometimes written books on the hierarchies of
these hoards from hell, others believe he is talking about political and
economic forces in the world and have sometimes used this to justify
revolutions. There is an element of
truth at the core of both perspectives.
Paul seems to be saying Christian soldiers face powerful evil forces
that have influence over every aspect of human experience. As a consequence, the Christian soldier knows
that much evil in the world can only be explained by pointing to a malevolent
being that is more than human, has his own spiritual forces at his command but
doesn’t hesitate to use humans in his work.
Don’t let me lose
you here. When Paul mentions “the
devil’s schemes” it’s clear he is talking about Satan. Before you relegate such ideas to the
pre-modern world, remember Verbal’s words in The Usual Suspects, “The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was
convincing the world he didn't exist.”
When the
Bible speaks of Satan, it doesn’t speak of a being with horns and a
pitchfork. It pictures a “master
strategist”[5]
who uses fear, hate, pride, disunity, and ambition to trip-up men and women. Often his schemes involve twisting the good
into something evil. His schemes are
subtle and crafty.
A pastor
once slipped into the sanctuary to pray.
Not long afterwards, the music director stepped into the sanctuary and
heard the pastor pray, “O Lord, I know I am nothing.” He prayed like this for a
while and inspired the music director to join him and he began to pray, “Lord,
I know I am nothing.” This went on until
the janitor came into the sanctuary to clean and he heard both men continuing to
tell the Lord they were nothing. Moved
by their humility he joined them and prayed, “Lord, I know I am nothing.” At this point, the music director whispered
to the pastor, “Now, look who thinks he’s nothing.”
This enemy can be very effective.
As Christian soldiers we need the resources
God has made available to us.
Several
times in recent years, we’ve heard reports that our troops in war zones have
not had proper body armor. Because of
this lives were lost. Let’s hope that is
never again true.
Paul calls
on us to “put on the full armor of God.”
The phrase is repeated to underscore its importance. The word “panoplia”
is the source of the English word “panoply” which refers to “a complete set of arms or suit of armor.”
Paul
wanted his readers to know the armor of God protects in whatever way we need
protection.
*
We can
testify to the effectiveness of the breastplate. It protects the heart. We need such protection because the battlefield
is a place of temptation. The righteousness
that protects in this battle is not seen simply in what we do, it is part of
who we are. Not only are we to do right,
we are to be right. This righteousness
is ours through Christ.
*
We can
testify to the effectiveness of the boots which give sure footing. The Roman boot had heavy, studded soles. It gave mobility yet prevented the foot from
sliding on the battlefield’s rough terrain.
This is a multifaceted image. In
linking the boots to the “gospel of peace,” Paul is telling us that we can have
a peace that allows us to face the most terrifying battles. At the
same time, remember the Greek words translated “the devil” means “the Accuser”
and the Revelation calls him “the accuser of the Christians,” a reminder that
he constantly wants to undermine our confidence. The gospel allows us to negate his charges. Finally, at peace in their own hearts, those “boots”
allow the Christian soldier to carry that message of peace to the wider world.
*
We can
testify to the effectiveness of the shield that protects from the enemy’s
assault. The Roman shield could protect
an individual and used to create a solid wall when standing with others. The Christian warrior has a shield to
extinguish the flaming arrows of the enemy, keeping those arrows from spreading
wildfires of doubt, depression, dread, and despair. That shield is our faith.
*
We can testify to the effectiveness of “the
belt of truth.” The heavy belt worn by the Roman soldier held all his body
armor together. Paul’s idea seems to be
that it guards our integrity. If we
claim to serve the Lord but live without integrity we won’t be very effective Christian
soldiers.
*
We can
testify to the effectiveness of the helmet.
Paul may be thinking of the need for a sense of security in the midst of
battle. We have that in the full
salvation Christ provides.
Until this point, we’ve been talking
about protective armor. But Paul also
mentions a weapon for the Christian soldier.
As
Christian soldiers we need an effective weapon.
The Roman soldier carried other weapons
but Paul mentions only one weapon for the Christian soldier. It is “the
Sword of the Spirit which is the word of God.”
The term he uses refers to the short, two-edged, cut and thrust sword
used in close combat. Some of the
imagery can be found in Hebrews.
For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper
than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between
joint and marrow….
Generally we equate “the Sword of the
Spirit” with the Bible. I think that’s
appropriate. Wherever the church has
been truest to the Bible it has been most effective in transforming society.
The Bible allows us to show light to the misled, offer hope to the despairing,
present salvation to the unbeliever, and reveal Christ to the curious.
Still, I think we might be able to
offer a broader meaning to the phrase “word of God.” Without granting any of these things the
authority of the Bible, I think the “word of God” can be conveyed through the
preaching of the church, the singing of the congregation, an evangelistic
letter from a shut-in believer, and the verbal witness of the individual Christian.
The passage from Revelation I
mentioned earlier seems to underscore the power of the church’s witness. John depicts Satan being cast from
heaven. The account explains.
For [Satan] the
accuser of our brothers and sisters has been thrown down to earth—the one who
accuses them before our God day and night.
They won the victory over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the truth which they proclaimed.[6]
They won the victory over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the truth which they proclaimed.[6]
This victory is linked to the death of
Christ—the Lamb—who died for our sins.
When the Christian soldier testifies to this truth, the accuser is
silenced.
As
Christian soldiers we need to know we do not enter the battle alone.
In Baring-Gould’s song there is a
great line that says, “We are not divided, all one body we, one in hope and
doctrine, one in charity.” Who was he
kidding? What church was he talking
about?
At the time he wrote, the English
church was divided between the established church and the free churches, the
evangelicals and the Anglo-Catholics, and the evangelicals were divided between
the Calvinists and the Arminians. “Not
divided,” indeed.
One of the saddest realities of church
history is that Christian soldiers have long had a tendency to fight in the
barracks. We readily wound each other
before we ever set foot onto the real battlefield. It’s time we discovered where agree and
stress our common ground, while learning how to disagree christianly.
If we do not, we cheat ourselves of
fellowship and support from our larger Christian family. The Lord’s Supper testifies to this larger
fellowship, one that transcends our differences.
Note that Paul uses the word “We” when
he speaks of our involvement in the spiritual battle. All around us are fellow Christian soldiers—in
the work place, at school, in the neighborhood.
All across the world there are Christians engaged in the battle: In North Korea where Christians are fearful
of the future, in the inner cities where storefront churches try to counter the
impact of poverty, crime, and anger, on the campus where naturalism rules and
short-circuits the call to consider God’s claims, in the suburbs where
materialism makes us think having it all is all there is.
Wherever Christian soldiers strive,
the war is one war. World War II was
fought in several theaters, but it was one war.
Paul is calling Christian soldiers to engage in this one war and to know
we do not fight alone.
Nor is our Commander remote. This passage begins “be strong in the Lord.” The Revised English Bible renders it this way
“find your strength in the Lord.”
That’s only possible as we stay near him. When we Christian soldiers struggle against
temptation, injustice, indifference, doubt, impiety, materialism, racism or
anything else that would impede God’s Kingdom our Commander is with us.
Conclusion
In the mid-seventeenth century William
Gurnall wrote a two volume study of this passage. I haven’t touched on all he talked about.
But I’ve been successful if you go away
appreciating your identity as a Christian soldier. My purpose has not been to instill you with Christian
jingoism that causes you to run roughshod over those who do not share your
faith.
I want you to know that you stand in a
long tradition of men and women who have found an eternal purpose.
[2] The Holy Bible: New Revised Standard Version.
1989 (2 Ti 2:3–4). Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers.
[3] The Holy Bible: New Revised Standard Version.
1989 (Php 2:25). Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers.
[4] The contrast between making abortion illegal
and making it unthinkable is not original.
Although it is attributed to several writers, I first encountered it in
an essay by Randall Balmer.
[5] Scottish New Testament scholar, A. M. Hunter
(no fundamentalist) wrote, “There is no metaphysical reason why the cosmos
should not contain spirits higher than man, who have made evil their good, who
are ill-disposed to the human race, and whose activities are coordinated by a
master strategist.”
