Trinity 21
Dear friends in Christ! In our text St. Paul is revealing/ unmasking the great spiritual battles that we as Christians all face and endure. What we as Christians are day in, day out enduring—perhaps even silently and obliviously—is spiritual warfare. There is a true battle going on for our souls. That’s what this part of the Church Year, this part of the Trinity season—St. Michael’s Tide—we are in is all about: we are being reminded that we, as Christians, are engaged in a true battle for our souls. We do not see soldiers, weapons, artillery and tanks, but there is a true war going on in and around us for our soul. That’s what St. Paul reveals to us in our text: For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. We are engaged in this hidden battle and that’s why we hear the Apostle: Put on the whole armor of God.
As we examine our text today from the Blessed Apostle we will see that we Christians are engaged in a hidden battle for our very souls. It is a hidden battle because our enemy is hidden and our power/ our weapons/ our armor with which we fight are also hidden; but in Christ ours is the victory—and now that, too, is hidden but will one day—on the Last Day—be clearly revealed.
1. The vital thing for us to remember is that our enemy is hidden. Much like these drones the government has flying overhead firing its weapons to eliminate terrorists and various targets are not noticed by the target until they are hit—so are our spiritual enemies: they are around us millions times more than drones over terrorists. Just because the drone is not noticed doesn’t mean it’s not there; doesn’t mean it’s not lethal.
What, as Christians, are our enemies? Our “drones” against us? …The rulers, … the authorities, … the cosmic powers over this present darkness, … the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. All around us the devil has his evil angels arrayed against us. Our battle is not against enemies that we can see, against flesh and blood, but ultimately against the devil and his evil angels. To be sure, we face hostility from the society and culture when we hold fast God’s word and proclaim His truth. But our real enemy is not the anti-Christian culture or government. Behind the Church’s earthly opponent—whatever form it takes—are the forces of Satan. And, dear Christian, what we especially have to be on guard against is that the devil has an ally within each one of us—our old sinful nature. Our old sinful nature that we were born with and which stays with us until our dying breath, works together with the devil and his evil angels to expel the Holy Spirit and thus faith from our hearts, and so to bring us back into the devil’s kingdom of slavery to him, to sin, to death and hell. The evil angels seek our life and soul. The battle we are engaged in is a matter of winning/ losing heaven. Even though we are always in the midst of the battle, we do not/ cannot see our opponent. They are spiritual.
For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Because the enemy is a hidden enemy we should expect constant attack; let us never think that the devil and his evil angels are far away. That is why we pray and hold fast to the 6th Petition of the Lord’s Prayer: Lead us not into temptation in which we pray that God would guard and keep us so that the devil, the world, and our sinful nature may not deceive us or mislead us into false belief, despair, and other great shame and vice.
The entire thought, effort, seeking of the devil and the evil angels is to destroy the works of God. –And foremost among them is our Lord’s dear Christians. In the waters of holy baptism God washed away our sins, brought us into His holy family, created that new self, the Christian, within us, gave us His Holy Spirit; in short, in baptism we have become a new creation. And especially this marks us as the devil’s enemy and that work of God he all the more wants to destroy. Also notice, that once God has created us anew in the waters of Holy Baptism, He doesn’t put a force field around us that deflects any assaults and attacks of the devil on us. In fact, it’s just the opposite. Our baptism marks the true beginning of the battle.
We read something similar in our Lord’s life. Right after St. John the Baptizer baptized Jesus in the Jordan River, the holy Evangelists record [Mk. 1.12; Mt. 4.1]: And immediately the Spirit drove [Jesus] into the wilderness. And why? To be tempted by the devil. Jesus went right away into battle against the devil and his temptations. Jesus faced the worst temptations the devil could throw His way—and Jesus won, never once sinning. Our baptism begins the devil’s battle against us in earnest. The Lord in His infinite, divine, holy wisdom allows the devil to attack us/ wage war for our soul. So, yes, our enemy is hidden—we don’t see him; but the battle is real and our enemies—the devil and his evil angels—have a dread power.
2. And that’s why St. Paul in our text speaks about our weapons for this battle. But, just like our enemies are hidden: For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places, so too are our weapons for this battle. We don’t use fists, swords, spears, guns, drones against our spiritual enemies. Instead, what does the Apostle here say: Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil… Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day. Our power, our strength for the victory in this battle for our souls, is not in ourselves but it is in the Lord.
Just as little as we can rely on physical weapons to defeat our spiritual enemies in this spiritual warfare, so, too, we dare not rely on ourselves and own strength. Instead, the blessed Apostle tells us to be strong or “to keep being strengthened” in the Lord, that is, to be connected with, in communion with the Lord. There, as we are intimately connected with the Lord, does He gives us the strength and the weapons to defeat our spiritual enemies. That close, intimate connection with the Lord is faith. Faith is that hand that holds to the Lord and receives Him and all His gifts and strength to fight the spiritual battle.
St. Paul here uses the lovely phrase: Put on the whole armor of God. To put on, that is baptismal language. Elsewhere, for example, St. Paul writes [Gal. 3.27]: For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. In baptism we are clothed with Christ; we are in Him and He is in us. There is that glorious abiding—we in Christ and He in us. We are joined to Christ—the very Christ who after His baptism went into the desert to face the devil and his temptations and to defeat him—the battle He fought and won for us. In baptism we are joined to Christ’s death—in baptism we died, Christ’s death for our sin is also our death. But Jesus rose from the dead and as baptism joins us to His resurrection we have that new heavenly spiritual life. Our strength in this battle is Christ Himself. Finally, be strong [not in yourselves but] in the Lord and in the strength of his [not your] might.
Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. That full armor of God is His gift to us and one which we by faith receive. What do we do in the battle? We stand against the schemes of the devil. “Standing”—we stand as the devil attacks, as he throws his worst at us. Standing is a defensive position. Let the devil attack us. We have Christ. Christ defends us. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. The picture the blessed apostle paints is of the individual soldier withstanding the assault. Each of us will face the evil day; each day has its own many and varied assaults—the different trials, hardships, temptations, so in a sense, yes each day is an evil day. But when Paul talks here of the evil day, he is emphasizing that there will be times in our lives that it seems the devil is especially gunning for us, with temptations seeming so great, with trials seemingly beyond endurance, with times of such doubt and despair that it seems impossible to keep faith intact. But what to do especially in those times? Therefore take up the whole armor of God. Receive in faith, trust the weapons and armor the Lord has given you. And there is a promise here: and having done all, to stand firm. The promise is that holding to the Lord, be[ing] strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. [Having] put on the whole armor of God… and having done all, that is, “having forced down/ cut down” we will stand firm as victors. He, by His Spirit and strength protects us, gives us the victory. May we trust what He gives us for the battle.
3. Dear Christian by virtue of our baptism and our Christian faith, know that we become the object of the hidden enemies’ attacks. So what are we to do? St. Paul here says: Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. We don’t cower in fear at the battle; we don’t run from it. Instead, we Stand–upright and firm. We know it’s coming and in the boldness of faith, with our strength in the Lord we know the victory is ours—already now.
We have fastened on [us] the belt of truth, that is, we have the true faith and are led by the Holy Spirit and take hold of God’s word and direct our lives by it. Strengthened and empowered by Him, we fight sin and strive to do the Lord’s will. We have on us the breastplate of righteousness, that is, a righteous life—a good conscience. As we see our life of good works, we know the Holy Spirit is at work in us and that gives confidence and joy to our heart. A godly, pious life is vital in this battle—a godly life led by the Holy Spirit empowering us to strive out of love to do our Lord’s holy will, His Ten Commandments.
In the midst of the fierce battle our Lord strengthens us, assuring/ giving us of His peace, the forgiveness of sins—the gospel of peace. That strengthens us to bear all things patiently and to plod on/ continue on in the battle. As shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace.
Dear Christian, the battle we fight against our hidden/ invisible spiritual enemies —the devil and his demonic forces is a real battle which is our duty to fight. If we don’t fight it, if we give in/ surrender to the devil and his host, if we don’t by faith put on the spiritual armor the Lord gives us and stand, we will not obtain the treasure of heaven. The enemy is hidden but real; our weapons/ armor are hidden to the naked eye but real and powerful; our victory is hidden under mounds of our sin. But in it all, remember dear Christian, the victory is certain and sure for us. Christ won it for us by His holy life and His innocent suffering and death. Now in His Holy Word and Sacrament He gives us His victory—the forgiveness of sin, victory over sin, death, devil and hell, peace/ reconciliation with God, heaven. That victory is ours through faith, no matter how much Satan throws our way and how much we may falter—as long as that simple, humble Spirit-worked faith is in our heart, even if it is only a spark. The victory in this spiritual, invisible/ hidden battle constantly going on in and around us is assured us as we continue in the grace of God and His holy Word and Sacraments—for then the Holy Spirit has opportunity to work in us with His divine power and continues to strengthen us in the battle that we may continue to stand and hold the field. INJ Amen.