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The Right Equipment A few years ago I decided that as I was married to a fanatical golfer perhaps I should take up golf as a way of sharing my life partner’s passion with him. Not being very sporty myself and consequently somewhat ignorant about sporting matters, I thought this would be a relatively simple matter. What could be more straightforward than hitting a little ball with a big stick? I felt very confident about my ability to crack this code. Having announced my intention to play the game I was instantly rewarded with a gleam of delight in Geoff’s eyes. I’d found an old golf ball in the garden, so I had a ball! I had also noticed that Geoff seemed to have a number of spare golf clubs in his bag, so assumed he’d be happy to give one of them to me and so, what were we waiting for? Let’s get started! Well, how wrong can you be? It turned out that playing golf was not something you spontaneously decided to do. There was a whole lot more involved than that thank you very much. I soon discovered that you had to book a time to play a game and then you had to equip yourself to play. This entailed endless purchases of gear including numerous golf clubs each with a different number; several balls; special shoes; special little tees to rest your ball on; a special glove; special collared shirts; a trolley and bag for your clubs etc, etc. Weren’t any of these dispensable? I inquired. ‘Certainly not!’ came the reply. Once I started playing of course it all became clear. You cannot play golf unless you have oodles of time; endless patience and perseverance and the right equipment. In the Epistle reading for today Paul makes a similar point about life and Christian discipleship. He states that to lead an effective Christian life we need to be spiritually well equipped and we obtain the equipment we need from God. He uses the analogy of a Roman soldier to explore this point. It may be that he employs this metaphor because at the time of writing the letter we think he was in prison and in all likelihood would have been tied to a Roman soldier so as to prevent his escape. So Paul is drawing his analogy from his own current life experience. But I think he also uses the metaphor because he is acknowledging that life is spiritually dangerous and we need to protect ourselves and defend ourselves from evil; ungodliness and the destructive forces that are ever a part of our human existence. You and I both know that Life is full of tensions and conflicts both within and without. We each of us face external battles and these often appear overwhelming in their magnitude. These come in the shape of tragic events; financial concerns; family issues and challenging relationships. But perhaps our most formidable battles are the ones we face internally, within ourselves, our moral and spiritual battles and private battles. Paul’s main concern is with the battle of the spiritual and moral life both internal and external. He pictures us standing in God’s army facing the forces of evil and darkness and he encourages us to use the protective equipment that God provides us with because our own human efforts and defences are by and large inadequate to protect us from the dangers facing our souls. His examples are also drawn from the Scriptures that would have been familiar to him at that time, from Isaiah 59:17 and Isaiah 11:4 . Isaiah uses the imagery of armour to portray God in strength. We see in Isaiah, God himself putting on righteousness as his breast plate of protection as he brings about justice and God putting on the helmet of salvation. So Paul advocates that we stand firm in the strength of the Lord and that we put on the armour of God. By this, I think he means put on the character of God, become more Christ-like in our values; understandings; behaviour and views. The battle then is not one of brute force but of character. Character is our best defence against the challenges; temptations and storms of life and the only character worth having is the Character of Christ. It is probably worth pointing out that personality is something we are born with but character is something we intentionally or unintentionally acquire. Throughout our lives we are in the ongoing process of building our moral characters. Paul says the character we must build is the character of God and we do so by using the resources he offers us. This is his central point and is his point throughout the book of Ephesians really. So let’s have a closer look at this metaphoric armour a Christian needs and receives by grace from God and which reflects aspects of God’s own nature and character. According to Paul God offers us 6 vital pieces of equipment for life: First there is the belt of Truth. A Roman soldier’s belt was a vital piece of equipment because from it hung his sword and knife and anything else he might need. This freed up his hands and enabled him to move quickly and confidently in battle. The truth that girdles a Christian is more than mere honesty. It is the truth about the presence of God incarnate in our lives and the salvation that Jesus offers. This truth enables the Christian to move freely and quickly with a sense of security and confidence through all the battles and challenges of life. Second is the Breastplate of righteousness The breastplate of a soldier protects his vital organs, his heart and his lungs, without which he cannot live. So righteousness protects our spiritual life. By righteousness we mean conducting ourselves according to the will of God. When we act with integrity according to the will of God then we are fully protected from any spiritual danger. Thirdly we read in today’s Epistle, “As for shoes for your feet, put on whatever will make you ready to proclaim the gospel of peace”. Paul connects the message of the gospel to the protective and supportive foot gear of the Roman soldier. We are called to stand in the shoes of Christ’s peace and to both experience and share his peace with others. Just as shoes prepare us and protect us for physical journeys so the gospel of peace enables us and readies us for the spiritual journey of life. Fourth is the shield of faith The Roman shield was a great big oblong shield that was covered in leather. Its function was to protect the soldier from the lethal fiery darts that were used at that time. These darts might symbolically represent the many temptations that face us. If we were to succumb to them, they would be harmful and destructive to our spirits. Paul believes that faith and trust in Christ is the only real protection against the fiery temptations of life. So our faith in Christ and also our faithfulness to Christ protects us from spiritual dangers. Fifth is the Helmet of salvation. Salvation is the spiritual healing and rescuing from death that Jesus offers. The helmet is great protection for one’s head, the centre of one’s thinking, but it is an item that is also worn with pride and confidence like a crown. Isaiah 59: 17 supports this view where God the great healer and life giver is described as wearing the helmet of salvation like a victory helmet. So we are to put on salvation like a helmet. We need to claim our salvation with confidence. Sixth is the sword of the word of God. The word of God obviously includes the Scriptures but also includes the inspired word we receive from God through prayer and communion with fellow Christians. Just as Jesus used the words of Scripture to repulse the Tempter, so the Christian uses the words of the Spirit to drive evil away. As we go through the spiritual armour the Christian must wear, it is interesting to note that much of the equipment is defensive armour. The armour is in a sense disarming. The letter to the Ephesians is not interested in conquest, nor does it appear to be dividing people into those to be loved and those to be hated. We are not called to attack others but only to stand firm against evil, to hold onto what Christ has given to us in this spiritual battle. The letter identifies the need for resistance. It talks about personal empowerment in relation to Christ. And what is this power about? Looking back through Ephesians we see that it is not about those things we generally associate with war, but rather it is about reconciliation and love, Overcoming of barriers, religious and otherwise. In fact it celebrates the overcoming of barriers and the coming together in peace and hope and healing through Christ. The Christ agenda controls the military imagery rather than the military imagery controlling the Christian agenda. Truth is one of the first casualties of war and hate. Righteousness, goodness, justice is the centrepiece, close to the heart. The feet move not to march in war but to bear the good news of peace, like the prophetic figure of Isaiah 52:7. Faith here is as much about faithfulness and trust as it is about belief. Salvation has a strong sense of security and hope, the basis for trust. This is also true of the word as a sword. It is used, as in Hebrews 4: 12, as an instrument to get to the heart of the truth not as an aggressive weapon of destruction. So Christians are once again called to engage in the challenging structures of injustice, discrimination and evil, but we are to do so in a spirit of peace, bringing the word of the good news of love and hope and salvation. John Bunyan was inspired by Paul’s imagery in his book the Pilgrim’s Progress. In this book the main character Christian receives the armour he is to use against his enemy Aplloyon. Only by wearing this armour can he successfully make the journey. Bunyan made a point of noting that there is no armour for Christian’s back. He will not be able to run. He must venture and stand his ground. This is true of each of us also. In simple terms the armour image illustrates putting on Christ: His truth, his faithfulness, his righteousness, his peace, his word and his salvation. Only in this way will we successfully make the Christian Spiritual journey as Disciples of Christ. “Be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.’ In other words he is saying that spiritual health and strength does not just happen but requires of us to consciously build a Christ-like character by putting on the armour of Christ that we might draw on his moral and spiritual strength in our lives. On a personal note, I’d like to say that each time I read the biblical text I find that god speaks to me thought his scriptures. As I was preparing this talk, I felt convicted that as the day of my ordination draws near, I should ask you as my church family to pray intentionally for me and the other ordinands and the prayer I ask for is the one that Paul requests from his congregation also. It is the request to be found in verse 19 “Pray also for me, so that when I speak a message may be given to me to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel”. -- Bibliography: Barclay B. Loader J. Allan NIV Application Commentary (Zondervan) |
