The Lutheran Hour
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"Stand Firm"
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Text: Ephesians 6:10-20
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Grace, Mercy, and peace to you – in the name of our Lord and Savior; Jesus Christ. Amen.
Let us begin with a word of prayer. Please join me. Good and Gracious Lord, we are deeply grateful that You are our God, who has promised to never leave us or forsake us. We trust Your Word that nothing shall be able to separate us from Your love which is in Christ Jesus, our Lord.
Father, keep us from temptation. We know that Satan will not stay away from us and that the example of this evil world is a constant entice. Dear Lord, you know our sinful heart, which so easily depart from You. As soldiers of the cross, we ask that You forgive us-and enable us to confidently do battle with the wicked one-and in the end, to stand firm. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
The year was 1861. The place: just outside Washington D.C. The Confederate Army was coming up on the Union Army, and they were going to have a battle. A group of townsfolk heard that there was going to be a confrontation, so they decided that on Sunday, they would gather together and go watch the glorious was. And they did just that. After church was over, they grabbed their supplies and prepared for an afternoon picnic.
They climbed the hill overlooking that valley where the first battle of Bull Run was to take place. They set out their blankets and baskets-and they waited. Eventually, both armies met in that valley and they fought and fought. War was waged. And while men were fighting, and bleeding, and suffering, and dying, others were relaxing on a hillside, sitting on quilts, sipping lemonade, and enjoying a picnic lunch. The spectators were too far removed to see what was really going on. They failed to realize just what was actually taking place.
In a similar way, we too can be just like those townsfolk when it comes to spiritual conflict. We may not realize the severity of the situation. However, today, God’s Word states that there is such a battle and the fighting is fierce. It’s called “spiritual warfare.” The battle is against the devil and the untold number of demons at his command.
When we think of the devil, often an image comes to mind-of one with horns and pointed beard. He holds a pitchfork and is dressed in red. Don’t believe it. That would not be very deceptive, would it? Satan is the master of disguise and he is not a costume and he’s not a cartoon. And please, don’t think for a second that he doesn’t exist. That’s one of the devil’s most powerful tactics – convincing people that he and his demons are not real, that they are “make believe.” If he can do that, then he can continue his evil work without interference or opposition.
Furthermore, don’t imagine for a moment that you will be spared from fighting in the battle. There are no spectators in this war. It is a war that includes every man, woman, teenager, and child.
The battle involves us all. There is no safe distance from which to watch. And, interestingly enough, those picnickers watching the Civil War, they found this out the hard way.For sure, their plan started out safe enough, watching from a distance. However, by late afternoon, the townsfolk found themselves directly in the path of the advancing Confederate Army as the Union Forces fell back towards Washington. The route produced quite a panic and civilians had to flee in the terror as the battle threatened to engulf them. They soon realized their distance wasn’t safe after all.
Oh, we know that feeling, don’t we? How many times have we tried to maintain a safe distance from sin only to quickly find ourselves in the very thick of it? We often get too close and our inability to steer clear of its path is a constant threat. When it comes to temptation, we struggle and often lose that fight. We are weak and we need help. Perhaps a pep talk from a seasoned warrior would do us well.
His name is the Apostle Paul and he speaks to us today from Ephesians chapter 6 saying: “be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.” Satan has wicked plans and he delights in them and you don’t have to look too hard to see that his evil schemes are working.
Consider Satan’s attack on what God values: Life, marriage, family, His Church. Satan seeks to destroy them all. He is hard at work in every big city and every small town-from Paris, France, to Wahoo, Nebraska-he’s got it covered. His handiwork is easily found on TV and comes at us through the computer. His dealings result in the tragedies that make up our violent headlines, as well as those secret, private, and personal sins found within the human heart.
Jesus spoke of this is the gospel of Mark, chapter 7, saying: “For from within, out of men’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance, and folly. All these evils come from inside and make a man ‘unclean.'” We are under attack from the devil, and we are under attack from our own sinful selves. We are part of a great spiritual struggle between good and evil, light and darkness, faith and unbelief, Christ and Satan. Also noteworthy is that, on our own, you and I are incapable of standing strong in this fight.
We need a Champion on our side. For you see, although the war is over, the battle yet remains. Indeed, the war has already been won! Christ has died. Christ has risen. Christ now reigns! However, the losers haven’t given up yet. The devil and his demons still fight in a last ditch effort to get you on the losing side before Christ appears in great triumph.
Even though the victory has been won and death has been swallowed up, the enemy still prowls around like an enemy sniper, setting his sights on the unaware. And the devil never takes a holiday. He never rests. If he’s beaten, he tries again. If you send him away, he comes back. Satan still battles even though the war IS over. Jesus finished it on Good Friday and victory was declared Easter morn.
Christ has won the war and in His grace, freely gives the victory to all who believe in Him. Through baptism, God grants eternal victory over sin, death, AND the devil. Soldiers of the cross can be confident in Christ and the final outcome. But like I said, although the war is over-the battle yet remains.
Therefore, we must be prepared for enemy attack. Satan still tries, still deceives, and still threatens. Thankfully, believers in Christ can rely on their Champion who promises to never leave nor forsake those who call on His Name. He also offers might armor and weaponry with which to do battle.
St. Paul tells of the equipment needed so that one may stand strong in the hand-to-hand combat against the old evil for. Stand firm, he encourages; with the belt of truth Buckled around your waist, with the Breastplate of Righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the Gospel of peace. In addition to this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.
There are five protective pieces that make up the armor. When attacked, these pieces work as sure defense. But Paul also mentions a weapon of offense that the Christian soldier can use – the Sword of the Spirit – which is the Word of God! Armed with the Word, you can take your stand at whatever the devil may throw your way.
The Word of God is the exact weapon needed to take on the schemes of the Tempter. Recall when “the father of lies” launched into his full scale attack against Jesus. The deceiver tried to tempt Jesus to turn stones into bread, and to jump off the temple’s highest point-to bow down and worship him. Jesus responded with the Word of God. Every time Satan tempted, Jesus countered by quoting from the book of Deuteronomy. Using the sword, He answered: “It is written: ‘Man does not live on bread alone’…It is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve him only’…It is written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.'”
Martin Luther spoke of the mighty power of God’s Word by saying: “If you take hold of the Word of God and cling to it in faith, the devil cannot win, but must run. If you can say: ‘My God says this; on this I take my stand,’ you will see that he slinks away. But the devil is tricky; he will not have you put your trust in the Word and he tries to wrestle it out of your hand. If he can make you lazy, the sword will soon be his. So how are we to fight? Cling to the word by faith. When Satan comes, take hold of the Word of God which promises forgiveness of sins and take that to heart and then soon he must leave.”
Cling to the promises that are found in His word. Take your stand on the 1 John 4:4 which says: “God’s Spirit who is in you, is greater than the devil who is in the world.” Cling to and take your stand on 1 Corinthians 10:13 which declare: “God is faithful; He will not let you be tempted beyond what you cannot bear.” Cling to and take your stand on Jesus’ promise: “I give them eternal life and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of My hand.”
Oh, the amazing power of God’s word. To illustrate, I’ll tell a true story of which I read from a book entitled Deliver us from Evil. In it, the author writes of how God’s Word came to his friend’s rescue.
This account begins in 1971, shortly after Vietnam fell to the Communists. A civilian Christian, named Hien Pham was working as a translator and interpreter. Although he had no official or military responsibility, Pham was arrested-he was accused of aiding and abetting the Americans. Pham was in and out of prison for several years. During one long jail term, the sole purpose of his jailers was to indoctrinate him against anything which was of the West – and especially against the Christian faith. He was cut off from reading anything in English and could only read communist propaganda written in Vietnamese. The daily overdose began to take its toll.
Pham began to buckle under the onslaught. “Maybe,” he thought, “I have been lied to. Maybe God does not exist. Maybe my whole life has been governed by lies. Maybe I have been deceived.” He decided that when he awakened the next day, he would not pray anymore or even think about his Christian faith ever again.
The very next morning, Pham was assigned to clean the latrines of the prison. It was the most dreaded of chores, shunned by everyone. And so with much distress, he began the awful task. As he cleaned out a waste can overflowing with garbage, his eye caught what he thought was English printed on one piece of paper.
He hurriedly slipped it into his pocket, planning to read it later that night. He had not seen anything written in English for such a long time. He anxiously waited for a free moment. Under his mosquito net that night, after his roommates had fallen asleep, he pulled out a small flashlight. Shining it on the crumpled piece of paper, he read the top corner, Romans, chapter 8. Literally trembling with shock, he especially took in these portions:
Verse 28: “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to His purpose.” Verses 31 and 32: “If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but gave Him up for us all – how will He not also, along with Him, graciously give us all things?”
And then verses 35 through 38: “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written: ‘For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered sheep to be slaughtered.’
“No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present or the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
He wept, for he knew his Bible and he had not seen one for so long. Not only that, he knew that there was not a more relevant passage of conviction and strength for one on the verge of surrendering to the treat of evil. He cried out to God and asked for forgiveness-for it was to have been the first day in years that he was determined not to pray. Evidently, Pham’s Champion had other plans.
A short time later, he was released. He escaped to Thailand and eventually made it to the United States. How amazing is the grace of God, which has proven again and again, that His Word brings light into a dark place and defeats the schemes of Satan.
The victory has been won, proven the day Jesus triumphed from the grave. And that victory will joyfully be trumpeted the day Jesus appears again in great glory. But in between that first Easter Sunday and Christ’s return-there are days of battle-days of evil and days of testing. However, Christian soldiers need not be afraid. The enemy cannot penetrate the full armor of God-and armed with the Word, one holds a mighty sword indeed. If you believe and are baptized, you will be saved. You have everything you need. You’re equipped in Christ to do battle with the evil one, and in the en, to stand. Amen.
Now, may the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, guard and keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, our Savior, and our Champion. Amen.
LUTHERAN HOUR MAILBOX (Questions & Answers) for September 6, 2009
Topic: Is the Bible a Moral Guide Book?ANNOUNCER: Now Pastor Ken Klaus answers questions inspired by the interactive congregational workshop known as Equipping to Share. I’m Mark Eischer.
KLAUS: For those who don’t know, Equipping to Share helps people learn how to share their Christian faith with others.
ANNOUNCER: In the course of our first “go around” of questions, people responded and wanted us to amplify some of those points we made. A few listeners want to know: Why all this emphasis on the Bible? Isn’t the Bible just one of many instruction manuals that tell us how to live moral and upright lives?
KLAUS: Good question, one we can answer very easily. Yes, the Bible is one of many instruction manuals that tell us how to live a moral, upright life.
ANNOUNCER: But that’s not really the answer I was expecting.
KLAUS: Yes, but it’s true. If you read the Bible, it will tell you how to lead a moral life. For example, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” Goodness, if everybody followed that, the world would be a much better place. Then, of course, we could talk about the instructions about loving your enemies, or honoring your father and mother, or not stealing, or lusting, or envying. There’s a lot of advice in the Bible on how to lead a moral, upright life.
ANNOUNCER: And I suppose the same could be said for other books?
KLAUS: Absolutely. Bookstores have shelf after shelf of books that will tell how you can have a better life, how to treat your spouse, your children, your employees, your guests. These books, too, for the most part, are telling us how to lead good, upright lives.
ANNOUNCER: I still thought you would give a different answer.
KLAUS: Yes, but I answered the question. Of course, it’s probably not the right question.
ANNOUNCER: And why not?
KLAUS: Because using the Bible only for moral guidance in this world is like using a diamond engagement ring to scrape labels off a baby food jar. It’s like using a Corvette to spread fertilizer. It’s like using a fine bottle of champagne to pound a nail.
ANNOUNCER: So then, using the Bible only for moral guidance is not the best use of God’s Word.
KLAUS: Good, you’ve got it. If you want to find out that humankind is sinful, that we are evil, inconsiderate, hateful, and nasty, you can watch the evening news, or read the newspaper headlines. Humanity is nasty, and we need to try and get better.
ANNOUNCER: And that’s where the Bible comes in?
KLAUS: No, not exactly. The Bible doesn’t tell us how to get
better. It tells us that sinful human beings can’t get better. It tells us that we are helpless and hopeless.ANNOUNCER: So then, what is the proper use of the Bible?
KLAUS: Well, it can tell us that we are all the nasty, sinful things I just listed. It tells us that, on our own, we are lost. But it doesn’t give us the power to become moral enough or good enough to please God.
ANNOUNCER: That’s not very encouraging.
KLAUS: No, it’s not. But that’s not where the Bible stops. You see, the Bible, along with telling us of our sin, also tells us of God’s grace.
ANNOUNCER: Grace means to get something good that you don’t deserve.
KLAUS: I should have said that. Thank you, Mark. The Bible, unlike any other book, tells us that God, looking at our helplessness, decided to do something. He decided to send His Son into the world to take our place- to live a perfect life of obedience to all of God’s commands, to resist temptation, to bear the punishment for our sins, to live, to suffer, to die, and then to rise again for us.
You will note, Mark, that what I’ve described here means the Bible is not a mere self-help book. The Bible doesn’t just direct our life and our morality- it tells us what God has done to forgive our total and complete failure.
ANNOUNCER: So the Bible gives us good news and bad news.
KLAUS: Right. The bad news is that we are sinners who can’t keep God’s moral law.
ANNOUNCER: And the good news is that God sent His Son to save us by His sacrifice in our place. That’s the Gospel.
KLAUS: Right. Good news and bad news.
ANNOUNCER: But, our questioner would probably want to know, “Aren’t there a lot of other books that do the same thing?”
KLAUS: “Ah-ha!” he said. That, my friend, is the point. There is no other book that I have ever read, or heard of that does what the Bible does.
The Bible is unique because the idea of God coming to earth to save His sinful children is unique. There is no other book like it. It is the very Word of God and the Holy Spirit works through that Word to actually give us faith in Christ. Every other book is just what the original question said: “a self-help book.”
ANNOUNCER: Thank you, Pastor Klaus. This has been a presentation of Lutheran Hour Ministries.
Music selection for this program:
“A Mighty Fortress” arranged by John Leavitt. Concordia Publishing House/SESAC
“The Whole Armor of God” by K. Lee Scott. From The Wind of Heaven by K. Lee Scott (© 1991 K. Lee Scott / VQR Digital) MorningStar Music Publishers
“The Strife Is O’er” by J. Wayne Kerr. From Songs of Praise by the Choirs of St. John’s Lutheran Church, Racine, Wisconsin (© 1999 St. John’s Lutheran Church) Concordia Publishing House
“Stand Up, Stand Up, for Jesus” by Timothy Moke and Georg Masanz. From Magnificent Christian Hymns, vol. 3 by Timothy Moke and Georg Masanz (© 2006 T. Moke Recordings)