[0:00] You are listening to a message from Southwood Presbyterian Church in Huntsville, Alabama. Our passion is to experience and express grace. Join us.
[0:12] We're going to be in Ephesians chapter 6 this morning. As I mentioned earlier with the kids, we're to the armor of God passage in Ephesians.
[0:22] It's right at the end of this section of the book where Paul's been doing applied theology, talking practically, giving instructions to the church.
[0:34] He's talked about marriage, family relationships, how to engage in the workplace. And in the midst of all of that, right in the midst of the mundane of life, Paul says there's war.
[0:48] It's been weighty for me this week, partially because of the subject matter when you talk about spiritual warfare. Partially because God has been doing a lot of work in me, showing me my sin in new and deep ways as I've wrestled with this.
[1:08] But I want to tell you how excited I am about this passage this morning. It is one of the more convicting, at least for me and I think for many of us, and challenging passages in this letter.
[1:19] It's also one of the most encouraging and hopeful. So we need to hear it this morning. Ephesians 6, beginning at verse 10. Let's give our attention to God's holy word.
[1:31] 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. 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.
[1:55] Therefore, take up the whole armor of God that you may be able to withstand in that evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. 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.
[2:17] In all circumstances, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one. And take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit with all prayer and supplication.
[2:34] To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints. And also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth, boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly as I ought to speak.
[2:54] Pray with me. Holy Spirit, I'm well aware this morning that Satan does not like the truth about himself, or the truth about Jesus, to hit home in our hearts.
[3:13] To be something that is more than just something we hear, but is something we embrace, and something that changes our lives.
[3:24] Holy Spirit, fight for us this morning. As we open your word, would you use it in powerful ways in our hearts and in our lives.
[3:35] We humbly ask it in the strong name of Jesus. Amen. Amen. The Queen Mary is a massive ship over three football fields long that has now been turned into a museum in Long Beach, California.
[3:53] It was a luxury liner that was built in the early 1930s to be the absolute best way to get across the Atlantic. It was traveling in style. People like Winston Churchill and Bob Hope, and lots of celebrities.
[4:09] Clark Gable all traveled on this because they wanted to be traveling in style as they crossed the Atlantic. When World War II began, though, everything changed.
[4:21] This ship that had been the standard in travel with extravagant amenities that it was known for was turned into a troop transport ship. It used to be you could only put up to 2,000 people on it because they wanted the space.
[4:38] They wanted to be able to travel in luxury. They turned it into a troop transport ship where up to 16,000 troops were packed in at one time. Look at some of these pictures. There's a picture of the ship, beautiful.
[4:51] Look at how they packed troops onto it. Packed them in because there was a war going on and they needed to get across. There were things that needed to be done. If you go to the museum that the ship is now, you can actually go and see the contrast between the two arrows that the ship served.
[5:09] You can see right up against each other, part of it's set up for peacetime with this beautiful china and more forks around it than I know what to do with when I sit down at dinner.
[5:20] Set up for dinner right next to, on the other side, the mess hall where with your one metal tray, you're packed in there next to each other. I love the contrast of this next picture.
[5:32] Over here, your perfect hotel-like accommodations with ruffled bed skirts. That's my favorite part of the picture. And then all of a sudden the war hits and bunks packed in up to eight high.
[5:46] So men just slamming in there up against each other. The contrast of what it looks like when the war hits. That's the difference in how you live during wartime and peacetime, isn't it?
[6:00] It's not just about soldiers on ships. Priorities change. Sacrifices are made. The realities of war impact everyone, right?
[6:10] War changes life for all involved. Talk to someone who lived through World War II if you didn't. On the home front, kids who used to be in class were planting victory gardens and gathering trash from trash heaps in order to salvage it for munitions.
[6:28] Food was rationed to make sure soldiers had enough to eat. And so when you're in the midst of war, peacetime lifestyles seem completely inappropriate, don't they?
[6:39] You would never ask one of these guys to put a ruffled bed skirt on his bunk, would you? It wouldn't make sense for 15,000 plus soldiers to sit down to every meal with three forks.
[6:54] It doesn't make sense, does it? You don't sit around twiddling your thumbs when lives are at stake. It wouldn't make sense. So you read a passage like this one this morning that asserts quite clearly that we live in spiritual warfare, that we are at war.
[7:13] And I look at my own life and I wonder if it makes sense. Am I even consciously aware of being engaged in war at all? If so, does the way I'm living make sense with that?
[7:28] I've asked myself that a lot this week. Does the way I live make sense with the truth I'm told that I'm constantly engaged in spiritual warfare? Does the way I approach spiritual matters in my life look like I'm living in wartime or peacetime?
[7:46] I pray. Mostly when I get needy enough or tired enough. I see myself excusing sin in my own heart and in the way I treat my wife and my girls because it's not as bad, it doesn't look as bad as somebody else's.
[8:06] So I mean, it's just a little sin, right? It's really no big deal, just a little sin. You know, nobody noticed. I love being comfortable.
[8:17] Not having cable during football season feels like a sacrifice to me. I love being comfortable. More than that, I love things being peaceful. I like for everybody to be happy.
[8:29] Anybody else like this? If everybody would just be happy and not complain, nobody be upset, everybody be happy around me, I'm going to be thrilled. Even if that means not addressing things that need to be addressed.
[8:43] Even if there's conflict, maybe, that shouldn't be ignored. Just be happy. Ignore pain and heartache and conflict as long as I can. Ask yourself that about your own life and the life of the church.
[8:58] Does the way we approach spiritual matters look like we're living in wartime or peacetime? We gather for worship when it's convenient.
[9:11] You know, it's just a little refueling anyway, right? I mean, I'm going to be fine. Take it or leave it. I'm good either way. We come to God's Word when it fits our schedules or when something really upsetting happens and we need it.
[9:26] We pray, but we don't plead very often. We give generously, but not sacrificially.
[9:37] I mean, we wouldn't want to do anything unwise or unreasonable. We encourage people. We say nice things to them about themselves in order to build them up. Their self-esteem, we want them to feel good and we think they'll like us if we say nice things, but we rarely encourage them about their faith in Christ and their hope in Him.
[9:58] We all too easily cut each other down as though we're not dependent upon each other for protection. We share the good news of the Gospel, don't we?
[10:08] At least we talk about it. We'll share the good news when it's really a perfect opportunity. When there's not any risk of embarrassment or failure involved. I mean, it's not like, after all, this is a matter of life or death or eternity or anything like that, right?
[10:27] Wartime or peacetime? What do you think? Take a step back. Be honest. Size us up. How do we approach our spiritual lives?
[10:38] What do you see in our urgency? In our sacrifice? In our commitment? Haven't we become very comfortable with the idea that there might be an occasional skirmish here or there and we'll jump in when needed?
[10:54] Something might come up. Life's not perfect but pretty much things are just fine as they are. We're pretty comfortable with that. And Paul says it's a dangerous place to be, to be living like peacetime in the midst of warfare all around you.
[11:09] He says, beware. And this passage says that's exactly what we face every day. Spiritual warfare. The kind most Presbyterians in Huntsville, Alabama would like to deny is actually going on.
[11:23] And God says don't deny that. Don't ignore these words of warning this morning. Because we live in spiritual warfare we must stand firm in Christ.
[11:36] It's absolutely vital to our spiritual survival Paul says. It's absolutely vital to the eternal survival of others. We must awaken church.
[11:46] Listen, we've got to wake up to the reality of what we face every moment of every day. It's clear what this passage tells us to do.
[11:57] We're told to stand, aren't we? Four times it's in here. Stand, stand, stand. That's what we're supposed to do. Well, how? In order to stand in this battle first, we must acknowledge our real enemy.
[12:15] look at verse 11. It says we're standing there at the end of verse 11 against the schemes of the devil. That's what we're standing against.
[12:28] For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against whom? Who is it that we're standing against? Who's the real enemy? The rulers, the authorities, the cosmic powers over this present darkness, the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.
[12:45] It's not pretend. The struggle is a constant one because our enemy is real. And it's not a circumstance or a person in your life who's the enemy.
[12:57] The enemy is Satan himself and the spiritual forces of evil that he leads. He's not just a cartoon in red pajamas with a pitchfork. Satan is fighting against you even where in the heavenly places where you're seated with Christ.
[13:12] He's fighting against you there, shooting flaming darts at you, verse 16, prowling around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.
[13:24] Satan and his demons are not to be taken lightly. They're not all powerful, but they are powerful, especially in this present darkness, this world of sin and brokenness where we live and where they're at work.
[13:37] The Bible tells us Satan is a tempter, that he loves to lead us into sin. It says he's the accuser of the brethren, that he loves to create doubt in us about God and His love for us.
[13:54] And the Bible also says he's the father of lies, right? That he loves to distort God's truth for his own ends. One of the great cons and lies that Satan and his cohorts have perpetrated on, at the very least, the church in our day and in this country, is that we're at peace.
[14:16] That there's no battle going on. We can just enjoy ourselves, kick back and relax, consume some church, do what we feel like, live independently and autonomously, be okay on our own, as though we're at peace.
[14:34] Instead of at war. And most of us have bought it, haven't we? Most of us in our culture, and think about your own life, we've bought that. We're very comfortable just living on our own.
[14:48] And most of us who do feel like we're at war think the enemy is Republicans or Democrats. Think the enemy is Baptists or Methodists. Can you imagine that?
[14:59] On the same team. And we've made them the enemy. Even sometimes football games elicit from us more urgency and passion similar to a war.
[15:13] We talk of culture wars, we talk of worship wars, but very little mention of spiritual wars, of all-nighters battling in prayer for a brother or sister.
[15:28] Listen, our enemy is not flesh and blood. your husband, your boss, your former best friend, the person sitting next to you this morning with whom you disagree about something is not the enemy.
[15:43] And when we begin to think that way, that that's the greatest enemy we have, is that flesh and blood, something or someone in our lives, we lose sight of the real war we're called to engage in against Satan and his cohorts.
[15:56] And this plays right into their hands. Because what's their goal? What's Satan trying to do? He wants to disconnect us from Jesus, doesn't he? That's the entire goal.
[16:08] That's the idea. That's what he's shooting for. He's scheming towards that, in fact. He's thinking of all the different ways he might be able to disconnect us from Jesus, to prevent our active trust in God, to offer us fulfillment elsewhere.
[16:23] There's life over here to downplay our need so that we trust ourselves instead of God. And when the enemy is flesh and blood, that's exactly what happens.
[16:35] Because when the enemy is flesh and blood, I can pretty much handle it on my own, right? We'll just outwork them or outsmart them or if it comes to it, outvote them. And that's how we'll do it.
[16:47] We can handle this. We can do it. And so we've disconnected. Practically speaking, in those moments, we're disconnecting from Jesus because we can handle it.
[16:59] We're just fine. And so our enemy has us right where he wants us, drifting through life on our own, failing to see the reality of our enemy and thus failing to prepare to withstand his assaults.
[17:14] This sets us up perfectly because he knows on our own. When we get there and we're relying on ourselves, he knows our natural weakness. He does. If we're going to be able to stand firm, we must admit our own need.
[17:29] We must know it even better than Satan does. We must remember that on our own, we're easily deceived, that our flesh is weak, right? This is the repeated implication of this passage in several places.
[17:42] Look at verse 10. Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. It actually means to be strengthened. The implication is you're weak and you need to receive strength.
[17:56] Verse 11, what's the armor of God for that we may be able to stand against the devil and what he's doing? Implication on your own without the armor, you cannot, you are not able.
[18:09] Verse 13, we're told again, take up the whole armor of God that you may be able to withstand in the evil day. Again, implication on your own, you will fall over and over again just like we confessed earlier.
[18:26] Think of Eve. Eve walked with God, right? She spent time with Him. She wasn't born with a sinful nature. And what happened when Satan zeroes in to tempt her?
[18:41] She ate. She fell. Peter was in Jesus' small group for three years, right? Jesus was Peter's small group leader and Satan says, you who've been trained by Jesus, who've sat at His feet, I want to sift you like wheat.
[19:00] And when He's allowed, Peter denies three times even knowing Jesus. If we're going to stand firm in Christ, we have to admit our own weakness. That we're not just okay.
[19:12] And it's vital because one of the great promises of our peacetime lifestyle is our own self-sufficiency, isn't it? That we've pretty much got it. Or at least me and a couple of guys around me, we're fine on our own.
[19:26] We can do this together. No big deal. If I'm not actively at war with someone who's crafty and powerful, I'm not too worried about handling whatever life might throw at me.
[19:41] And admitting our need is going to push us to Jesus for strength and help. And that's really the point of this entire passage. That in order to stand firm in Christ against the devil and his cohorts, we must actively abide in Christ.
[19:58] Christ. We won't stand unless we stand in Christ. It's not just knowing the power of the enemy and the weakness we have on our own, but it's the power to defeat the enemy that's essential, right?
[20:13] Just having some knowledge about the reality is not going to be enough. This passage is abundantly clear on one thing. That power to defeat the enemy belongs to God.
[20:25] To Christ himself. We see this through the whole passage starting in verse 10 where we're told the strength we need is in the Lord and the strength of his might.
[20:36] Paul does again what he did in chapter 1 if you remember where he piles up power words one after the other. The strength and the power of God's might. He's saying that's where the power is.
[20:49] Jesus is indeed the one throughout the New Testament with the power to defeat Satan. We see it several times, don't we? He does it in his temptation. He does it throughout the Gospels when he casts out demons and he does it foremost on the cross where Colossians 2 tells us what?
[21:09] He triumphs over the same powers and authorities mentioned in Ephesians. Jesus triumphs over them at the cross. He publicly shames them. Triumphs over them.
[21:21] Over the same ones against whom we battle. Jesus has conquered them. He has the power and resources to defeat the enemy. Christ is the victor on the cross and in the empty tomb where he defeats sin and death where he's exalted.
[21:37] Ephesians 1.21 says far above all rule and authority and power and dominion. He's powerful above them. I love the way the old Puritan prayer describes Jesus and his victory.
[21:54] It's in the valley of vision. Read this with me. Great was the joy of Israel's sons when Egypt died upon the shore. Far greater joy when the Redeemer's foe lay crushed in the dust.
[22:08] Jesus strides forth as the victor, conqueror of death, hell, and all opposing might. He bursts the bands of death, tramples the powers of darkness down, and lives forever.
[22:19] He, my gracious surety, apprehended for payment of my debt, comes forth from the prison house of the grave free and triumphant over sin, Satan, and death.
[22:34] Show me herein the proof that his vicarious offering is accepted, that the claims of justice are satisfied, that the devil's scepter is shivered, that his wrongful throne is leveled.
[22:49] Amen. That's good stuff. I wish I'd written that. Jesus wins. The victor has been crowned. His triumph is sure. He reigns in power.
[23:03] But where does that leave us? Here's the point of what Paul is saying in our passage this morning. He's saying that the same power over our enemy is ours in Christ.
[23:17] We take up the armor of God by being actively connected to Jesus, by drawing strength from him. It's been a constant refrain of Ephesians, right? Over and over, in Christ, in the Lord, connected to Christ.
[23:32] It's why we've called the whole series Connected in Christ. There's something about that that changes our identity and changes all of our reality.
[23:42] We have the power to defeat the enemy not because we're so strong, but because we're connected to him, to the one who has all the power we just talked about. That power from chapter one, remember that?
[23:56] The resurrection power that raised Jesus from the dead is not only for Jesus but toward whom? Toward all those who believe. That power is for you.
[24:08] You don't grovel before your powerful enemy. You can stand against him because greater is he who is in you than he that is in the world.
[24:19] Amen? You know Jesus is stronger than Satan. You've learned that since you were a kid. But did you forget, Christian, that you are connected to him?
[24:32] That the resurrection power of Jesus prevails for you? Have you forgotten that? The armor of God, contrary to much popular opinion, is not primarily about our being strong and fighting well enough with our own weapons.
[24:50] It is rather about the incredible resources and weapons at our disposal because we're connected to Christ. That's why, by the way, at the end of it we're told to be praying all the time for all the saints, even the ones wearing the armor because it's about our dependence on God, right?
[25:07] It's His armor, after all. The armor of God we're told to put on day by day, to take it up, to stand firm in it.
[25:22] The focus of this passage on the armor of God is not about the particulars. It's more telling us to put on the whole armor of God. But I'll mention the particulars briefly starting at verse 14.
[25:35] The belt of truth. Got a beautiful visual for these. He was right over here earlier, okay? The belt of truth. God's truth that directs us against the lies of Satan.
[25:48] The breastplate of righteousness. God's holy character that we've received from Him and then been called in this very letter to emulate. The readiness given by the gospel of peace.
[26:01] Having been made right with God, we're prepared to share that good news with others. The shield of faith where we trust God's promises in the midst of the devil's accusations.
[26:15] The helmet of salvation. God's amazing power to rescue and protect us. And the sword of the Spirit, the passage says, is God's word to guide and direct us.
[26:27] To fend off the attacks of the evil one as of course Jesus did when He was tempted, right? When He responds to Satan, it is written, it is written, it is written over and over again with the word of God.
[26:43] Do you see how the armor we have is indeed God's armor? That all of it is His? And He tells us to take it up.
[26:55] To put it on in order to stand firm. Now, what does that look like? I'll be honest, to this point, that sounds pretty hokey. Like none of us actually carries around a foam sword that says Sword of the Spirit on it and thinks it does something for us.
[27:11] What does it mean for us to put it on or take it up? This is what I mean by saying we must abide actively in Christ.
[27:22] Day by day, in all circumstances, it says, we must draw on the strength of Christ. It's not a question of did we once upon a time trust Jesus so our eternity is secure, although that's important.
[27:36] But do we trust Jesus right now? When we take our Christian life casually, when we assume there's peace instead of an ongoing war, we fail to avail ourselves of that connection to Christ practically in a particular situation.
[27:56] Let me tell you what I mean. A couple of examples of what this warfare looks like to help us see what Paul is calling us to in abiding actively in Christ.
[28:07] Often Satan works through temptation, right? He begins to tempt us with questions about sin. Is that sin really dangerous? Won't it feel so good?
[28:20] Is it really a big deal? I mean, isn't it only a big deal if you get caught? Or only if you don't stop after a while? I mean, you can just do a little bit of it. And we're told the resources to resist the tempter are in God's truth.
[28:35] The belt of truth that sin is really deadly to me and to others. That my heart longing after sinful desires really is destructive to me even if no one notices.
[28:48] That Christ really is more valuable than what sin offers. Those truths are there and it's not enough just for the theology to be true.
[29:00] We have to put it on in this situation. Abide actively then the truth has to matter about that sin.
[29:12] But often we give in. And when we give in, he's there as the accuser, isn't he? He wants to question us again. Satan says, did God really say he loved you no matter what?
[29:26] Could someone like you really be in his family? Could he possibly be okay with that after what you've done? What a failure of a husband you are, hurting the one person you promised to love.
[29:42] We've all felt it, right? Satan subtly trying to disconnect you from Jesus through sin and now through accusation.
[29:55] And this passage says, what do we do? We respond by actively abiding in Christ, by taking up the promises of God's word. Again, not merely theoretically that God loves sinners.
[30:09] I believe that God loves sinners. That's great. In that moment, it's not just theoretically do I believe that and that nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
[30:20] But this sinner in this situation needs to believe there that God still loves me, that he's not kicking me out of his family for this sin, actively, actually abiding in the midst of those evil accusations.
[30:41] Listen, when you've blown it, and we all have, it's hard to believe that, isn't it? Your theology may not have changed on the books. You didn't go and decide to believe something different, but sometimes your theology doesn't seem to matter when you feel like you've blown it.
[30:57] So we have to recognize the seriousness of this battle, the urgency of abiding actively in Christ, of drawing on his power to combat the enemy.
[31:09] When Satan tempts me to despair and tells me of the guilt within, upward I look and see him there who made an end of all my sin.
[31:21] I see him, the victor, the one who has conquered sin, the one in whom I'm righteous, and I can stand against Satan's accusations. One more example.
[31:35] We said Satan's not only the tempter and the accuser, but he's also the father of lies, right? And so tragedy hits in your life, and pain and heartache and real hardship and difficulty that you didn't see coming.
[31:53] And what does he whisper? What does Satan whisper to you? Many of you have heard him say this to you recently. God's not really good. He doesn't really care for you.
[32:07] He doesn't have your best interest at heart. If he was good, he could never have let this happen to you or to them. Little darts, right?
[32:20] That slip in to our hearts because our guard is down. It's peaceful. There's nothing really dangerous in my life. I'm coasting along and those little fiery darts slip in and in no time at all they start a raging fire in our hearts.
[32:37] You've felt it, haven't you? So we're to do what? To take up the shield of faith. Trusting God and His promises and sometimes, let's be honest, we're so discouraged or depressed that the shield of faith we're to take up to stop and extinguish those darts seems hard to find, doesn't it?
[32:59] I want to show you a picture of the kind of shield Paul mentions here, the word he uses because Paul's been talking a lot about unity in Ephesians. It's very important to him for the church.
[33:10] Look at the shield that he's talking about. It's a door shaped shield, very large, and the Roman soldiers would take them up and they'd come together with their shields overlapping or interlocking.
[33:23] They'd form a group together, they call it a small group, they called it a small group or something like that. I can't remember exactly, I think it was a small group, and they do that to protect each other, right?
[33:36] And I love that beautiful picture because sometimes a brother or sister has to pick up the shield of faith for you. They have to take God's word, the sword of the Spirit, and speak truth and encouragement into your life because you're too weak to see it.
[33:53] We need each other in the battle. But remember, again, it's active abiding. Y'all know a lot of truth. You're not changing your theology most of the time.
[34:06] What's happening is we're not bringing it to bear in our lives. We're not abiding actively in the battle. We're not taking it up.
[34:17] It means not do I theoretically believe God's good and there are lots of wonderful promises and I've never doubted any of them. What it means is actually here in this situation, will I choose to believe that God is good, that He has been and is for me, that He showed it to me by sending His Son to endure my greatest pain in my place, that I can trust His promises again now, taking up the shield of faith, abiding actively, not in my own strength, but in His, right?
[34:54] In the strength of the one who's conquered. I hope you're convinced as we've talked this morning that our peacetime lifestyles won't work, that will continue to get picked off by Satan if we function that way.
[35:10] Something's got to change. We've got to remember the power that our enemy has. We've got to remember our own weakness. And I hope you've seen anew as I have this week, the absolute necessity of accessing the moment by moment strength of Christ for this battle.
[35:29] I hope we can encourage each other to reject the peacetime temptation of self-sufficiency and that everything's okay and we've got this. And be mindful of the urgency of depending in every situation on Christ whose power is great and whose victory is sure.
[35:49] I know it's late. I figured it was going to be. But one last question for you. What are you fighting for? What are you fighting for? Are you fighting hard like me?
[36:02] Do you see it in your own heart? Are you fighting hard for a peaceful life? To be successful enough that you get comfortable enough and you can just enjoy some peace?
[36:15] Look at this vision in Revelation chapter 12 where Satan gets defeated. The voice says, Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come for the accuser of our brothers Satan here in Revelation has been thrown down who accuses them day and night before our God and they have conquered him how?
[36:38] By the blood of the lamb and by the word of their testimony for they loved not their lives even unto death. Satan's conquered by the blood of the lamb and by those actively trusting in him and it says what about them?
[36:55] What did it look like for them to actively trust him? That they loved not their own lives even unto death. I recognize that mindset not in myself but in Paul in this passage where Paul asks for people at the end of our passage to pray for him too, right?
[37:14] Because he's in prison so pray for Paul for what? That he gets out of jail, right? He's stuck in prison, he's in chains. Now what does Paul pray for? Pray for me in prison that I might speak the mystery of the gospel boldly.
[37:31] He is just like those who've conquered in Revelation. Not fighting for their own lives, fighting for God and for his kingdom. What's our priority?
[37:47] How much do we love our peacetime lifestyles? Lifestyles? How hard do we fight for them? Does it make sense when we're in a war?
[37:59] Does it fit with what God's word tells us? That we have a war against Satan and sin and evil in which we have not yet resisted to the point of shedding our blood.
[38:12] But if it be that it comes to that, would it be that we would be those who love our king and the gospel of his kingdom rather than loving our own lives even unto death?
[38:25] What are you fighting for? Let's pray. Father, your word is indeed a sword and we're told it's a double-edged sword and we feel that it cuts to our hearts because none of us here has adequately appreciated the war that we're engaged in.
[38:55] And so we've failed to take up the strength that you've given us. Father, I thank you this morning that in the midst of our weakness, the strength and the victory of Jesus is secure.
[39:09] That it hasn't changed and that those resources are available to us in him again no matter how many times we've neglected them. Oh, Father, make us people who don't fight in our own strength, but make us also not those who would cease to fight.
[39:28] Make us those who would care more about your kingdom than our own, who would value your gospel going forward more than our own lives.
[39:38] Christians are everywhere and in this country being asked whether they will stand or whether they will save their own lives.
[39:49] Father, make us those who value your kingdom over our own, even our own lives. Thank you for Jesus.
[40:00] Would you strengthen us in his victory and we ask it in his name. Amen. Amen. For more information, visit us online at southwood.org.
[40:13] Thank you.