Quote from Forum Archives on September 10, 2007, 11:04 am

Posted by: bhfbc <bhfbc@...>

 

HEAVENLY SHOES

September 9, 2007

Evening Service

 

 

Text: Ephesians 6:10-20

 

 

In spite of evidence to the contrary, I do throw things away occasionally.  I was in the process of doing that the other day in my office when I came across some notes and items from my Navy Reserve days.  It has been nine years since I retired from the Reserves, which does not seem possible.  Even though it has been that long ago since participating in military training, I have not forgotten all of the lessons.

 

The notes I ran across reminded me of my first extended training with the Marine Corps.  Because Navy Chaplains provide ministry to the Marines, one of the two week training courses I attended was a Marine Corps indoctrination for Chaplains.  In the course of this training, we were reminded that the purpose of a Marine is to prepare for war.  Every Marine recruit is taught many things, but primarily he is taught how to conduct himself in time of war.  The same goes for women Marines, too.  Every Marine is a combatant.

 

Inherent in this instruction and preparation for war is the complete and total familiarization with the garb of warfare.  Everything that the Marine takes into the field with him has a purpose.  The helmet protects his head; the flack jacket offers protection to the torso; the web belt provides a way to attach and carry other gear; canteens carry water; camouflage clothing offers some protection in the field; the rifle is used as an offensive and defensive weapon; and boots provide protection for the feet.  All of this equipment and much more, the Marine knows how to use effectively.

 

This is a modern analogy to what Paul has written in the concluding paragraphs of his letter to the Ephesian church.  Paul, having been in the company of the Roman soldiers on many occasions, looked around him and saw that their preparations for war were similar to his own preparations for combat in a different realm.  Therefore, he was moved to write to the church in Ephesus the necessity of “being strong in the Lord” by “putting on the whole armor of God.”

 

As we look at this rather well-known passage, we need to remind ourselves that Paul was applying his visible descriptions to the unseen spiritual world.  “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”  Paul was not exhorting his fellow Christians to don the armor, mount the war horse, and gallop off on a crusade like those of the Middle Ages.

 

Paul is very specific in his description of the purpose and use of the armor of God.  The “rulers, authorities, and powers of this dark world” to which Paul refers comes straight out of the astrological and cultic languages of his day.  Obviously, Paul was not encouraging his readers to follow astrologers or pagan cults, but he did use the thoughts and language and images his readers could understand.  He recognized the paralyzing hold which they could have over the minds of his readers.  This is similar to us talking about the dangers of the religious cults, the ensnaring words of the astrologers of our time, or the futile efforts of “New Age” groups and reincarnationists to usher in an age of peace and prosperity via their cosmic powers.  They are nowhere close to the truth, but they still have a demonic hold on those enmeshed in their lies.

 

Included in this description of our enemy is “the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realm.”  This is a reference to the demonic forces of the spiritual realm led by satan.  For Paul, the evil he refers to is an ultimate evil.  There is not other spirit or system which is as corrupt as this enemy.  Nor is there one any more dangerous.

 

Yes, Paul makes it clear that the enemy referred to here is not flesh and blood.  But that does not make it any less real.  We are not talking about figments of our imagination or dark, hidden parts of our personality.  We, along with Paul, are dealing with real demons – with a real satan.  Too many people over the ages – Christian and non-Christian alike – have sought to play down or deny altogether the reality of a demonic kingdom.  In fact, the type of information we receive about demons today is usually steeped in a variety of mythical thinking.  Richard Lovelace wrote in his book about spiritual renewal that “…modern folklore and comic literature have trivialized the devil.  An imp with a fork in a red union suit is certainly no threat to our spiritual lives or the kingdom of Christ.  ‘The devil made me do it’ is so obviously a cop-out that it makes many Christians want to rule any such influence out of bounds.  Other literature has domesticated the devil, turning him into a con man easily outwitted by the likes of Daniel Webster.  Some horror films have given us visions closer to Biblical demonology, but these tend to frighten us.  And so when we hear about the powers of darkness, we either smile and dismiss them, or feel creepy and avoid the subject.”  (Richard Lovelace, Renewal As a Way of Life, Downers Grove, Illinois: Inter-Varsity Press, 1985,  pp. 100-101)

 

What Lovelace goes on to write is that satan and his demonic hosts are very real and very powerful.  This is in complete agreement with the teaching of the Apostle Paul.  “The enemy” enters the Biblical picture very early.  The fall in the Garden of Eden was precipitated by the appearance of satan in the form of a serpent who twisted the words of God and convinced Eve to disobey.

 

The power of these forces are real, not imaginary.  They lie to us, accuse us, and attempt to make us uncertain of our faith and salvation.  They build walls between us and God, and between us and others.  They cause us to place wealth, status, and power before God and His kingdom of holiness and justice.  One of the recurring themes in fictional programs and literature is that of reawakening a dormant evil force.  Some person or group is led to fulfill a series of events which will reawaken and empower the evil being.  The misguided person is always enticed to awaken the evil force by visions of the power and wealth and control that will be given to him or her.  The person comes to believe that he or she controls the evil!

 

Always, however, it is the evil force that controls the person.  In fact, not only does the evil control, it seeks to destroy whoever is assisting it.  It has no interest in persons; its interest is only in its own evil, destructive self.  This is how Scripture portrays satan, his demonic legions, and those who follow him.  They have only one purpose: to oppose God.  The motivating drive behind the powers of darkness is their hatred of God, the loyal angels, and all other created beings.  Satan will use any means to oppose the will of God, and he will use any person even though it means destruction for that person from start to finish.

 

It is no surprise, then, that Paul instructs his beloved congregation to “put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.”  No warrior, whether in Paul’s day or our own, chooses to enter combat poorly prepared or poorly equipped.  My body cannot stop the streaking bullet or the flying shrapnel, but maybe my helmet or flack jacket will stop their penetration and thus save me.

 

Paul writes about spiritual warfare this way because we, alone, are defenseless against the powers of darkness.  We have no way of defending ourselves against them.  They are superior to us in strength, power, and cunning deceitfulness.  The most common myth in most stories and shows about demons and evil powers is that somewhere, somehow there is a superhuman human – a heroic figure – who can defeat the enemy through his or her own devices.  This is just not Biblically accurate.

 

Knowing this, Paul tells us to clothe ourselves with the attributes of God.  We do not take up our human weapons, our human thoughts, or our human abilities to oppose the demons.  They are not sufficient.  No, we wrap the armor of God around us so that we can stand our ground.

 

We stand firm with the belt of truth.  Like the Marine’s web belt which holds many items necessary for the combat zone, many things hang on this belt of truth.  We are to both uphold the truth and to be truthful.  This is sometimes threatening to us.  It is strange, but truth sometimes gets us into trouble.  Many times, great men and women of faith have been persecuted or martyred because of holding to and proclaiming the truth of God.  In fact, wasn’t Christ crucified because of the truth he clung to?  “I and the Father are one.”  Regardless of the cost, we cannot hope to carry anything else into spiritual conflict if we do not wear the belt of truth.

 

We are to stand with the breastplate of righteousness in place.  The concept of righteousness is an amazingly simple one.  It means fulfillment of a covenant by both parties.  Put aside the notion that to be righteous means being something other than human, or that it means devout piety and high moral lifestyles.  Drop the idea that it means being better than someone else.  Instead of all these false notions, it is the fulfillment of the divine covenant given by God; simply, we fulfill our part of the covenant promise with God.

 

In this covenant, God does not expect us to be anything other than human.  God does not expect us to be divinely perfect, for we are told that anyone who says they have not sinned makes a liar out of God.  Instead of all the fancy ideas imposed upon righteousness, we can be righteous by simply believing that God fulfills His covenant promises through the sacrifice of His Son for us.  We then respond to this beautiful gift of God’s love by expressing our devotion to Him.  We give Him our allegiance and life.

 

This becomes the breastplate because God uses this righteousness – His covenant – for our good.  One of God’s greatest desires of His will is to love and cherish and protect His creation.  Satan may throw his entire army at us, but he will never, ever be able to snatch us out of the hand of our Father.

 

We take up the shield of faith.  Similar to righteousness, we are armed in the faith that God is for us, and that He has provided our avenue of approach to Him through Christ.  It mean to trust and obey.  There are many reasons hurled at us by satan to convince us of the folly of faith.  For some, faith means death; for others, it means ridicule.  At times, we are confused by double standards and ethical dilemmas.  We are attacked on every front and from every angle.  We are told that faith is a psychological crutch, or that it is an indefensible intellectual position.  Satan would even have us believe that if we become the least bit doubtful or inquisitive that we have lost all faith.  Yes, he has many flaming arrows.

 

But that is why Paul exhorts us to carry the shield of faith.  We carry it and hold it up in obedience to God.  Our faith is not in ourselves, our family and friends, our pastors and teachers or anyone else; our faith is in God.  It is at this point of belief and obedience that satan finds his flaming arrows extinguished.

 

We are given the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.  Again, we are armed with the spiritual devices given by God.  They are heated and forged not in human foundries but in the crucible of the cross.  Satan thought he had triumphed until the third day – that great day of resurrection.  Instead of advance, he is now in retreat, for God’s salvation and His Word was set loose into the world as never before.

 

We have been given many weapons with which to withstand satan and all of his forces.  But maybe nothing is as important as that given in the fifteenth verse: “…and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.”  Other translations describe them as shoes that are able to speed us on as we preach the Good News of peace with God.

 

Combat boots are a vital part of any Marine’s personal gear.  I have been warned time and time again: “Don’t go into the field without breaking in your boots!”  The common Marine recruit is given instructions on how to care for his boots and his feet.  Poor care of his feet will incapacitate the Marine as much as many a combat injury and make him worthless as a fighting man.

 

Combat boots may not be our first impression of the heavenly shoes issued to us as part of our spiritual armor, but the analogy works.  We are not part of a sit-back and do-nothing outfit.  God is worthy of more than that.  So we are issued the shoes to do the job.  Scripture speaks of readiness to tell the Good News.  It has been said many times that the best defense is a good offense.

 

Our offensive mission is to spread the Gospel with word and action.  The great commission is given by the resurrected Lord himself: “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded.  And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

 

For such a journey and mission, we need a good pair of shoes.  This road can be very rough.  It is often uphill and rocky.  There are threats along the way.  But our feet are fit with a readiness that allows us to endure.  No one can make us such a shoe to endure the treacherous path except for Christ.  He makes them by underlaying and lining them with the peace of the Gospel.  So what if our way is set with sharp stones and slippery footholds?  As long as the heavenly shoes go between the Christian’s feet and those dangers, they cannot much be felt.

 

The idea of spiritual warfare is often confusing to us.  It is difficult to comprehend fully the type of warfare going on between the forces of God and His enemy.  So, most of the time, we fancy ourselves to be silent spectators, powerless to join in the conflict.  Indeed, we are powerless in the face of both the glory of God and the evil of satan.

 

But we are not helpless bystanders, for we have been given the means and the power to withstand all that the tempter can fling at us.  The love of God is the conquering force over all the evil and hatred which satan can muster, and the love of God invites us to put on the whole armor of God.

 

The hymn “Onward Christian Soldiers” reminds us of the warfare in which we are engaged.  It is a hymn of praise and triumph, as reflected in its verses:

Crowns and thrones may perish,

Kingdoms rise and wane;

But the Church of Jesus

Constant will remain;

Gates of hell can never

‘Gainst that Church prevail;

We have Christ’s own promise,

Which can never fail.

Given such a promise and such security, how can we fail to accept the invitation to be clothed with the whole armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, we can stand our ground?  Don’t forget your combat boots – those heavenly shoes.

 

 

 

Rev. Charles A. Layne

First Baptist Church

PO Box 515

170 W. Broadway

Bunker Hill, IN 46914

765-689-7987

bhfbc@bhfirstbaptist.com

www.bhfirstbaptist.com

 

 

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