Posted: 03/02/2016 at 10:37am
|
IP Logged
|
|
|
Paul
concludes his letter to the Ephesians with the exhortation,
“Finally,
let the Lord and His mighty power make you strong.” He
has urged the Ephesians and us to walk worthy of the calling to which
we have been called and shown us how Christ—the Head of of the body
of Christ fits us together to work in His service (Eph 4:1-13). In
that view, he exhorts us not to walk in darkness as the heathens of
the world, but to walk in the light. "For
once you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as
children of light, for the fruit that the light produces consists of
every form of goodness, righteousness, and truth” (Eph 5:8-9
ISV). Paul is very aware
of the ruler of the world, the devil and his evil forces of darkness
and their formidable influence. He knows, the
Lord God and His mighty power gives us the strength to stand against
the forces of darkness arrayed against us. Paul helps us picture how
by urging us to put on the whole armor of God. We put on this armor
by partaking of the Spirit and walking in what God made us when we
responded to the God’s call, “the divine invitation to embrace
salvation in the kingdom of God” (Thayer’s Greek Lexicon). Put
on God’s whole armor, stand tall in the Messiah and pray Finally,
let the Lord and His mighty power make you strong. Put on God’s
whole armor, and you will be able to stand against the devil’s
tricky ways. You’re not fighting against flesh and blood but
against the rulers, authorities, and lords of this dark world,
against the evil spirits that are above. This is why you should take
God’s whole armor; then you can resist when things are at their
worst and having done everything, you can hold your ground. Stand,
then, with truth as a belt fastened around your waist, with
righteousness covering you as a breastplate, and with shoes on your
feet, ready to bring the good news of peace. Besides all these, take
faith as the shield with which you can put out all the flaming arrows
of the evil one. And take salvation as your helmet, and the Spirit’s
sword, which is God’s Word. Pray
at all times in the Spirit, using every kind of prayer. Be alert and
keep at it continually as you pray for all the holy people. For me
too, that when I start to talk I’ll be told what to say and will
boldly tell the hidden truth of the good news. (for which I’m an
ambassador in chains) just as boldly as I must tell it. Ephesians
6:10-20 Standing
against the devils tricky ways We
are fighting against the schemes of the devil in a spiritual war
waged by kingdom of darkness. The devil is a deceiver. he and his
minions use ingrained fear to deceive those who rebel against God
into thinking all kinds of harmful thoughts. Cunningly, the devil
works on natural inclinations to cause the unsaved to slip, flounder,
and fall prey to his rule. Such thoughts appeal to evil lusts and
establish their ways of the world, their values and their worldview.
Fear of death is the primary tool the devil uses for his dominion of
the world. Pagans are tyrannized by the fear of death. We,
who trust in Messiah Jesus, have no fear of death. Jesus broke that
power over us. “Since therefore the children share in flesh and
blood, he himself likewise partook of the same nature, that through
death he might destroy him who has the power of death, that is, the
devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject
to lifelong bondage (Heb 2:14-15 RSV). The
devil rules the world but can’t rule over saints. We “once
followed the ways of this present world and the ruler whose power is
in the air, the spirit who is now working in the people who disobey”
(Eph 2:3). Now, we give “thanks to the Father, who has qualified us
to share in the inheritance of the saints in Light. For He rescued us
from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His
beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins”
(Col 1:12-14). You’re
fighting against rulers of darkness You’re
not fighting against flesh and blood but against the rulers,
authorities, and lords of this dark world, against the evil spirits
that are above. Ephesians 6:13 God’s
power is far, far greater than theirs. Paul
prayed to the God of our Lord Jesus Christ that the eyes of our
hearts would be opened to “the vast resources of His power
working in us who believe., It is the same mighty power with which He
worked in Christ, raised Him from the dead, and made Him sit at His
right in heaven, above all rulers, authorities, powers, lords, and
any name that can be mentioned, not only in this world but also in
the next. And He put everything under His feet, and gave Him as the
Head of everything to the church, which is His body, having all that
is in Him who fills everything in every way” (Eph1:15-23). God’s
whole armor empowers us to hold our ground The
power of the forces of darkness is formidable. “This is why you
should take God’s whole armor; then you can resist when things are
at their worst and having done everything, you can hold your ground”
(Eph 4:13). The
gospel of the kingdom prepares us for real life, which includes
righteousness, peace and joy in the midst of suffering, hurts,
wounds, heartache and death. See
Romans
5:1-5 So,
we put on God’s whole armor and take up the spiritual shield,
helmet, and the Spirit’s sword. So “When
things are at their worst and having done everything, you can hold
your ground.” Stand,
then, “with truth as a belt fastened around your waist.” The
truth helps us stand against the devil’s tricky ways. The truth is,
“In Him/Christ, you also, after listening to the message of
truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed, you were
sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise” (Eph 1:13). One
of the main reasons we don’t stand and hold our ground is because
the message of truth is only partially being proclaimed. Instead,
most pastors major on the church message—mans’ watered down easy
version of the gospel. By listening to popular messages, one easily
gets the idea no one is required to clean up, forsake former ways of
living, and put on the new self.
“But
that is not what you learned from Christ’s teachings. You have
certainly heard his message and have been taught his ways. The truth
is in Jesus. You were taught to change the way you were living.
The person you used to be will ruin you through desires that deceive
you. However, you were taught to have a new attitude. You
were also taught to become a new person created to be like God, truly
righteous and holy” (Eph 4:20-24 GW).
Stand,
then, “with righteousness covering you as a breastplate.” “Become
new in the spirit of your minds, and put on the new self, which is
created to be like God, righteous and holy in the truth” (Ephesians
4:24). “Once
you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as
children of light, since light produces everything good and righteous
and true” (Ephesians 5:8-9). Stand,
then, “having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of
peace”
These
shoes indicate preparation for war. We are prepared with the gospel
of peace. “And He/Christ Jesus “came with the
good news of peace to you who were far away and to us who were near,
since by one Spirit He enables both to come to the Father” (Eph
2:17). Stand,
then, “take faith as the shield with which you can put out all the
flaming arrows of the evil one.” For
the church, ‘the shield of faith’ means total commitment to and
dependence on Jesus Christ (not on homeland defense or some ‘-ism’
or even ‘Christianity’). Personal relationship with the living,
liberating Jesus shared in kingdom community is the best defense
against ideology. Howard Snyder, Community
of the King You
are saved by a gift of grace which you get by faith. You didn’t do
it. It is God’s gift. It isn’t because of anything you have done,
or you might boast. He has made us what we are, creating us in Christ
Jesus to do good works, in which God long ago planned for us to live.
Ephesians 2:4-10 For
this reason I kneel before the “Father” from whom every group in
heaven and on earth gets the name of ‘family’ and ask Him, as He
is rich in glory, to give you this; that His Spirit will inwardly
strengthen you with power, Christ will live in your hearts by faith,
and you will be firmly rooted and built up in love, Ephesians
3:14-17. Stand
then, “take salvation as your helmet.” The
helmet of salvation is the headgear that protects our mind, emotions
and will. With a renewed mind, we know for sure, we are saved by
grace. God
has called us, invited us, to embrace salvation in His kingdom. We
can stand sure of our salvation, for when we embraced salvation in
the kingdom of God, He made us accepted us in the Beloved/Jesus. See
Eph 1:3-7 We
can be sure of our salvation, for God has given us the inheritance of
the kingdom and sealed, guaranteed, His gracious gift to the heirs of
salvation with His Spirit. “In Him/Christ, you also, after
listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your
salvation—having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the
Holy Spirit of promise, who is given as a pledge of our inheritance,
with a view to the redemption of God’s own possession, to the
praise of His glory” (Eph 1:13-14 NASB). So,
we take salvation, which gives us the determination to stand against
the worst the devil and his dominions can deliver. Stand
then and take “the Spirit’s sword, which is God’s Word.” God's
Word here is translated from the Greek word rehma ,
meaning
that which is or has been uttered by the living voice.
When Jesus’
was
tempted by the devil, He answered, “Man
shall not live on bread alone, but on every word/rehma that
proceedeth
out of the mouth of God”
(Mt
4:4 KJV).
True, many of God’s words spoken first through the prophets were
later recorded and became part of the written word or holy
Scriptures. But here, the emphasis is on a specific word from God as
spoken by the Spirit through the mouth of a believer. An
utterance of God supplied directly and immediately by the Spirit
becomes the sword which can rout demons. This is one of the
surprising facts taught in the Bible. The gift of prophecy,
manifested in the power of the Holy Spirit, can reveal the secrets of
a man’s heart and humble him before God (1 Cor 14:24,25). A word of
wisdom or of knowledge spoken with charismatic force can pierce the
resistance of the most hardened sinner and bring deliverance to his
captive soul. Even the written word or Bible only becomes effective
against the devil when we speak a portion of it against him in the
authority of Christ and in the power of the Spirit.2
We
take up the sword by digging into God’s grace/charis speaking
forth a word of God quickened by the Holy Spirit.
Martin
Luther wrote “A
Mighty Fortress Is Our God,” the battle hymn of the
Reformation, in which we sing “The Prince of Darkness
grim, we tremble not for him; His rage we can endure, for lo, his
doom is sure, One little word shall fell him. Pray
at all times After
urging the saints in Ephesus to put on the whole armor of God, Paul
exhorts “pray for all the holy people. For me too.” Yes,
we should pray for all the saints. Thus, God empowers us collectively
as we grow up in all ways into Messiah Jesus. This is extremely hard
for lone, straggling, individual Christians. We gain encouragement,
resolve and strength in numbers. God has made us His people, His
saints to work and fight together as the community of the King. It is
not just between the Lord and me; it is us gathered together in the
Messiah. Therefore, we pray for all the holy people. Paul’s
farewell You
should know what what is happening to me and how I’m getting along.
And so Tychicus, our dear fellow Christian and loyal helper to the
Lord will tell you everything. I’m sending him to you to let you
know about us and to encourage us. Ephesians 6:21-22 Paul’s
sealing blessing
Peace
be to the brethren, and love with faith, from God the Father and the
Lord Jesus Christ. Grace be with all them that love our Lord Jesus
Christ in sincerity. Amen. Ephesians 6:23-24 KJV Unless
otherwise noted, all scripture quotations are from An American
Translation.
__________________ Bill Bremer Kingdom Relationships http://billbremer.org
billbremer04@yahoo.com
|