“Knowing your enemy”
By Rev. Michael Stonhouse
Meditation – Saturday, January 21, 2023
Ephesians 6:10-24 (Forward, p. 84) CEV p. 1226
We human beings seem to delight in coming up with various conspiracy theories. Certainly, we have seen a rise in this phenomenon of late, but this is nothing new. In the Middle Ages, the Jews were seen as authors of a worldwide conspiracy; later on, it was the Roman Catholic Church, Freemasons, the Club of Rome and the Illuminati. During the American McCarthy era it was the Communists and now, in the United States at least, it is the radical left, or depending on your point of view, the radical right—or for some, Islam. And, of course, conspiracies were spawned in abundance following the early and tragic deaths of Lady Diana and John F. Kennedy. All in all, we humans seem to delight in trying to identify some human factor, individual or group as being to blame for things.
The apostle Paul lays to rest any such notions. He tells us that we do not wrestle ‘against flesh and blood’, that is, our fellow human beings, but against powers and principalities in the heavenly realms, against forces and authorities and against rulers of darkness and powers in the spiritual world—that is, to say, demonic forces. Yes, these forces may ‘use’ human beings as their pawns to serve their purposes, but these human beings are not ultimately the real enemy or the real problem. It is the forces behind them that should be the focus of our concern. So, the question becomes, ‘how then should we deal with them?’
It is here that ‘knowing your enemy’ becomes a matter of the greatest importance. Seeing as our enemy aren’t human, merely human strength won’t ultimately ‘do the trick.’ Instead, we have to rely on the mighty strength of God to give us the ability to be strong, defend ourselves and persevere to the end. Furthermore, we need to depend upon, and make use of, the mighty armour that God gives us for this fight. However, as we examine these various pieces of equipment that God provides we should especially look at how they are described:
-truth is seen as a belt. In the ancient Middle East where long, flowing robes were the norm, a belt functioned in two ways:
-firstly, to stop the robes from ‘getting in the way’
-and secondly, to gather up the robes for hard work or for actions such as running or fighting (as in ‘gird up your loins’)
And certainly, if you think about it, mistruth or lies have a rather inevitable effect of tripping you up and leaving you defenseless or least, vulnerable, to the attacks of the enemy.
-righteousness, or right dealings or a right relationship ‘with God and man’ (justice in the latter case), is seen as a breastplate to guard our internal organs from harm
And certainly, this makes sense as well, for how can we stand up to the attacks of our enemies if the centre of our being, our whole ground of being, is being undermined by defects in our character or in our vital relationships with either God or our fellow human beings.
-Interestingly, a readiness to proclaim the Gospel of peace is described as a pair of shoes, something that most surely would a stable and firm footing while under attack. Think: a preparedness to give reason for the hope that is within us (see 1 Peter 3:15)
-faith, our trust in God, is described as a shield to deflect all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Here, think not just of temptations but also, harrowing and frightening situations. Surely here a trust in God would be most vital, trusting that God is there for us and will help us.
-moving ahead, salvation is seen as a helmet to protect our head, our thinking and cognitive functions and our bodily coordination and control. And yes, our salvation does keep us safe in this way.
-finally and lastly, comes the word of God, which is described as a sword, given, wielded and empowered by the Holy Spirit. Here it is most instructive to remember that Jesus, in His trials against the devil in the wilderness, used only the Scriptures as His defence. Surely, if Jesus did this, we cannot go far wrong in doing the same thing! But, nevertheless, we need to know it thoroughly and, as with a real-life sword, learn how to ‘handle’ it correctly (here see 2 Timothy 2:15: ‘rightly handling the word of truth’)
As we read through this list we should notice two things. Firstly, to notice that there is no armour for our ‘backside’, for the rear portion of our bodies.
That means that we are to stand up to the enemy and face it head on. We are not to retreat before it or turn tail. It is therefore obvious that it isn’t going away easily, or soon.
And secondly, notice that every single one of these weapons, save one, are defensive weapons. Only with the sword of the Spirit are we on the offensive, but then, what an offence that is, the same defence that Jesus Himself used in the desert!
In all this, it is quite evident that the apostle Paul is quite clear as to who the enemy is and what the enemy is like. Yes, indeed, there is a conspiracy, but it is far larger, pervasive and dangerous than any human one. For that reason, then, he gives his readers two other pieces of advice:
-firstly, to remain constant in prayer, knowing what kind of enemy you are facing, to pray for all of God’s people and to pray especially for himself.
-and secondly, to keep alert and never give up. In other words, this isn’t a battle that is going to be over easily or quickly. We need to be in it for ‘the long haul’, to be prepared to fight it out on an ongoing basis, indeed, for our entire lifetimes. Such is the enemy that we face. Fortunately, we have God’s help in this, just as did Paul. Thanks be to God. Amen.
Forward notes: “As shoes for your feet put on whatever will make you ready to proclaim the gospel of peace” (verse 15).
Commemoration: Saint Agnes
“I attended a kindergarten named after Saint Agnes, so I’ve considered her a patron saint. Agnes was martyred as a child in Rome around 304 CE. She was born to a wealthy Christian family and received many offers of marriage but chose to consecrate her virginity to God. It is said her enraged suitors handed her name over to the authorities, who carried out the Roman Empire’s last and bloodiest persecution of Christianity under the reign of Diocletian. Tradition tells us that Agnes was twelve years old.
“In today’s reading, Saint Paul walks us through putting on the armour of God. While the other pieces are listed by name, our shoes are instead described as whatever will make us ready to proclaim the gospel of peace.
God’s peace is something for which we prepare, but it will not always be what we expect. As Saint Agnes’s life shows us, the good news sometimes looks foolish compared to the world’s ideas of success or prestige.”
MOVING FORWARD: “What do you put on for your ‘armour’ of God?”