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“Our struggle isn’t against flesh and blood.”
᛭ INI ᛭
(5. Oops!: We’re in a spiritual battle.)
We’re in the midst of a battle. (Not Ukraine or Israel.) It’s not a political fight that we’re in. It doesn’t matter who’s Speaker or who will control the White House or Congress or Senate. It’s not a culture war either, defending the way things used to be or what used to be common sense. It’s none of those things.
We’re in a battle for your life and the lives of your children and your grandchildren. It’s not political. It’s not cultural. It’s spiritual. “Our struggle isn’t against flesh and blood,” Paul says, “but against rulers, against authorities, against the cosmic powers of darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” We are in a battle, withstanding “the schemes of the devil.”
(4. Ugh!: We’ve given up the fight.)
By and large we’ve given up the spiritual fight, haven’t we? Some Christians have woken up to the true spiritual problem, the true demonic and satanic nature of what’s going on in our world, but for many of us, we’re like the French in World War 2. The resistance against the Nazis wasn’t pervasive as older movies often made it out to be. 1-3% of the people—that was it. Given our numbers gathered here today, [BLC: that’s one person or less; ILC that’s 1-3 people.] “That wouldn’t have been me.” Statistically it would’ve been. Same goes for today…
You and I were conscripted into the Lord’s army in Holy Baptism. There we were added into the division of His people. Jesus is “LORD God of Sabaoth,” as we properly sing in the Sanctus before Communion. He is the LORD God of armies: not only angels or archangels or the whole company of heaven, but you and me included. The VBS song isn’t wrong, “I’m in the Lord’s army.”
Again, you were drafted into the Lord’s army through Holy Baptism. There the Lord put His name on your forehead. You’re His! Ezekiel 37 calls the resurrected Israel, “an exceedingly great army.” John in Revelation 14 sees this army “having the name of God on their foreheads.” They are armed “with the sword of the Spirit,” which is the Word of God.
From personal experience you know that many Christians say God’s Word has final say on their behavior, yet none really read it. Church attendance is sparse across our nation and Synod, and Bible Class is even more so. And we blame the churches and its programs. “What can we do to engage people, or keep them coming?” Not much, when the fight was given up at home.
As you remember Ephesians 6 says, “Fathers, you bring up your children in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.” Or as Deuteronomy 6 says, “These words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house.” Christian mothers do the same. You remember the words of Paul, when he spoke to young pastor Timothy, “From childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures.” (2 Tim 3) Timothy knew them because of his mother Eunice and grandmother Lois. (2 Tim 1)
Over time that became other people’s responsibility (Pastors, teachers, church workers), rather than the responsibility of fathers and mothers. But when Christian fathers and mothers abdicate their God-given responsibility, and something goes wrong, then it’s someone else’s fault: the pastor, the teacher, the school or Sunday School. Confirmation used to be not much else that checking that instruction was done faithfully at home. Much like a commander inspecting his troops. In fact, the Small Catechism is my textbook for Confirmation because it’s yours! Written “as the Head of the House should teach it in a simple way to his children.”
The Word sets us in order at home, and then each team and squad (families) gather with the whole company (the congregation) to receive instruction and comfort from the commander (the pastor), who’s giving out not his own orders but the duties of Christians from the Scriptures and also the Gospel and the Sacraments to the blessing and edification of all.
(3. Aha!: Christ has already won the war.)
We’re locked in a spiritual battle with the devil. The World is demonic, the changes that have occurred in culture are as well. What the world is forcing upon us and our children is satanic, driving people to mutilate their bodies, destroy lives, and shipwreck faith in the name of power and success, acceptance and progress, pleasure and ease.
But you don’t have to be afraid. It isn’t hopeless. Christ has already won the war. He endured the temptation of the devil. His death defeated the devil. He paid for our sins. Which means when we give up the Word of God, put it behind us, don’t pay attention, sit here stoic but not act, leave it on the shelf—when we do that, we’re surrendering to a defeated enemy. We’re crossing over to the side that’s already lost!
Christ has already won you. He “purchased and won you from all sins” even the one’s I’m talking about today, “purchased and won you from all sins, from death, and from the power of the devil, not with gold or silver, but with His holy, precious blood, and with His innocent suffering and death.” The devil’s still pressing his attack, but it’s just garbage time. He can’t win. He’s already lost: Christ has died and risen from the dead.
(2. He continues to conquer by the power of His almighty Word.)
Christ continues to conquer, conquer hearts. He conquers so hearts the power of His almighty Word. His Word is always almighty. The Word is just as almighty now as it was “in the beginning.” “He spoke, and it came to be; He commanded, and it stood firm.” (Ps 33) “‘Let there be light,’ and there was light.” And all the rest. “Go, your son lives,” (Jn 4) He went and his son lived. He conquered sickness and death with a word.
The Lord continues to conquer with His Word. So, when you pick up your Bible, know that it’s God’s Almighty Word to strengthen and keep you believing in Jesus. It will, of course, guide you in behavior, but more importantly it will almightily show you your need for Jesus and Jesus Himself. Just as much as the Baptismal Word is almighty to make and keep you a child of God, so also is the Scriptures. In bringing you again and again to Christ, the Word of the Lord “is a lamp to your feet and light to your path.” (Ps 119) So it goes with communion. Where the Word of God comes again to defeat the devil, and strengthen and keep you in both body and soul unto life everlasting. For just as the Son said, “‘Let there be light,’ and there was light,” so He says, “This Bread is My Body; the Cup is My Blood,” so it is! Need the forgiveness of your sins…
(1. HIS WORD ALONE GIVES LIFE AND STRENGTH TO THOSE WHO BELIEVE IN JESUS.)
He drafts you into His army of believers. (Those who don’t believe are spies and imposters.) They’re just impersonating, posing. He keeps giving you His almighty Word because
HIS WORD ALONE GIVES LIFE AND STRENGTH TO THOSE WHO BELIEVE IN JESUS.
And because of that, His Word continues to defeat the devil and demons who are after you. For your “shield” is faith, which extinguishes every fiery arrow of the devil. And your “faith” is sustained by the Word of God, which is “the Sword of the Spirit.” With the Word of God yours and your faith you win, not because you do anything but because the Word does it all.
GOD’S WORD ALONE GIVES LIFE AND STRENGTH TO THOSE WHO BELIEVE IN JESUS.
Without His Word, there is no life, no strength. There is spiritual weakness, weak knees, and fear. There is spiritual death. A remedy for these things is only found in His Word: in your Bible, at Communion. (It’s why the devil works so hard to twist and distort these things, and put things in your life that you’ll sacrifice for instead of sacrificing your time and effort to read the Bible or take Communion.) The devil does that because God’s almighty word shuts him up and defeats him. The devil knows
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