STANDING FIRM
Ephesians 6:10-20
10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his power. 11 Put on the whole armour of God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12 For our struggle is not against enemies of blood and flesh, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. 13 Therefore take up the whole armour of God, so that you may be able to withstand on that evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. 14 Stand therefore, and fasten the belt of truth around your waist, and put on the breastplate of righteousness. 15 As shoes for your feet put on whatever will make you ready to proclaim the gospel of peace. 16 With all of these, take the shield of faith, with which you will be able to quench all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
18 Pray in the Spirit at all times in every prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert and always persevere in supplication for all the saints. 19 Pray also for me, so that when I speak, a message may be given to me to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it boldly, as I must speak.
Standing firm in the faith is no easy task. Using apocalyptic imagery (far more familiar to first century Christians than us) to dramatize the struggle, Paul focuses on the conflict we all have within ourselves to hold on to our values. The ‘wiles of the devil’ assail us. “For our struggle is not against enemies of blood and flesh, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” The language may be unfamiliar, but the struggle is universal.
Pick any activity or belief that is ‘good for us’ and you will discover temptations within and without to veer away from the good. It is difficult to maintain good eating habits; it is difficult to maintain good exercise habits. It is far more difficult to be constantly mindful, to turn the other cheek, to forgive, to reconcile, and to stand for peace. And it is nearly impossible to love our neighbors as we love ourselves. Simple habits, like calling our friends regularly, are difficult enough without the additional command to expand our understanding of ‘neighbor’ to those different and even hostile to us. The battle within us to hold to our stated beliefs is never ending. We must be ‘made strong’, we must recognize our foe, intentionally protect ourselves and finally, we must draw upon spiritual resources.
We often know what is good for us; but what is it that makes it so difficult to live that way? Psychologically, it is our desire for instant gratification. It is so easy, in the moment, to say ‘Why shouldn’t we indulge? Life is short. It can’t do that much harm.” Dessert, a piece of chocolate, an extra glass of wine wins out an embarrassing amount of time. Biologically, our brains really like a dopamine rush. It is directly tied to our motivation and focus. On the downside, opioids and alcohol stimulate that same rush. When that happens, the hunger grows and can become unmanageable. Evolutionarily, we are hard wired to preserve self. In its best use, preservation of self allows our species to survive. In its worst use, it leads to a competition for resources which shows no regard for others. Or worse still, encourages exploitation of others. In each case, we may know the ‘good’ but psychology, biology we and evolution trump our logic and good intentions. These forces are a natural part of our creation, but it is also true that there is nothing we can use that cannot be misused. In this context, it is supernatural (or unnatural) to consider long term consequences for self and the good of all.
This passage was the first century acknowledgement of that struggle. Theologically, we call the internal forces which divert us from what is good for us “Original Sin.” In its simplest form, sin is our diverting from the good. It is turning away from God. We can know the good but doing it is another problem all together. Original sin acknowledges that part of our creation is to put ourselves and our immediate gratification first. Instead of judging that reality as good or bad, we need to look at consequences and seek to make better choices.
Unfortunately, it is nearly impossible not to be reactive to the language of sin and original sin. My daughter complained that she didn’t like church because it was always telling her how bad she was. She could not distinguish between the reality that we all struggle to do ‘what is best for us and others’ with the label that losing such struggles meant she was bad or evil. We get stuck imagining God as a judge and score keeper rather than seeing God showing us a path to be our best selves. And if we insist on that view of God, our certainty will prevent us from learning anything new about God. And even then, our brains are like self-sealing tires. A new idea can get in but is often sealed off to be relearned over and over.
Paul addresses this dilemma by saying: “Be strong in the Lord” but in the Greek, the language is passive not active. It reads “Be made strong in the Lord.” The struggle against the misuse of our created selves requires the strength of the Lord. We need examples that such strength is possible. For us, that example is Jesus. He was like us in every way—except sin. He cleaved to God, even when he did not want to and even when he was rejected and crucified.
Paul goes on to say we should “Take up the whole armour of God.” There is a subversive irony to this imagery. We worship a God of Love, Peace and Reconciliation yet are told to take up the appearance of Roman strength. The strength of the Lord is that power resides in vulnerability not control; that when we are mindful of all, all of us benefit; that each of us can be all that we are created to be when all of us matter; that coercion and love cannot exist in the same place; that God wants us to be our best selves. And perhaps most importantly, God does not hold our sins against us. He grieves the harm we self-inflict. He waits for and welcomes any attempt to follow Him—no matter how inadequately.
We believe God’s path works for each of us and for all of us. Holding on to such faith will mean we are in constant battle within ourselves and with the forces of this world that are self-serving, exploitive and ‘win at any cost.’ To that end Paul closes with a call to prayer. We need to connect to God and each other to hold fast to that which is good. The call to prayer is general and specific. It is general when he calls us to: “Pray in the Spirit at all times in every prayer and supplication.” It is the Spirit which connects us to God and each other. We should never imagine we are islands. We must always pray with the mindfulness of our connections to one another. We need to care about and pray for the ‘saints’ – the individuals who are ‘fighting the good fight’ to follow the Lord. Then Paul asks for prayer for himself. He is a prisoner with an uncertain future. He needs support. He wants to hold fast and he knows he cannot do so alone.
Stand firm in what we stand for. Don’t think for a minute that such a stance will be easy. Loving another human being is often inconvenient and difficult. Peace and reconciliation are hard to come by. But remember the way of the Lord, trust that God knows how often we fail and does not hold our sins against us. He wants the best for us. Offer and seek support. Let it be so
