Sermon 17th November 2013

Today, our Vicar, Cameron Barker, continues our study of Paul's letter to Ephesus.  The reading is from Ephesians 6 verses 10-26.

So has it, I wonder? ... At the start of this series I predicted that Ephesians would climb to the top of many a Herne Hill favourite-Bible-book list by the time we were done. So is it No. 1 for you now? It’s fine if it isn’t, of course: but at least you do now know what a biblical parachute looks like! And what a Roman soldier looks like too, of course; and rather a lot else besides, it must be said; including the scale, and nature of the challenge that all Christians face each and every day!

Now this may well be the shortest summary sermon that we have ever had. It is ‘only’ the summary part of it that will be short, though – because there is plenty that really needs to be said today. We need to focus on the vital detail that Paul ended his letter with. There are other good reasons for keeping the summary aspect short; not least because this letter has covered so much ground. At the start I also used Tom Wright’s picture, of Paul giving us a sweeping view of the whole Christian landscape; like he was writing from the top of London Eye. It’s not possible, then, to go over all of that ground again today. So here is encouragement to read, or listen to, all of this series’ sermons on our website. It is key, foundational bigger-picture stuff: about who and what we are, in Christ; and how we are now to live: in and for him.

Just to sketch it out: Paul started with God, of course; his major themes then included the world that God made; the work and person of His Son, Jesus; the church; the means of salvation; what proper Christian behaviour looks like; and how marriage, family, and work life are to be ordered before God. And that has got to be the summary part of today’s sermon about done! Where we are now is looking at perhaps the most crucial ending of any Bible book. So I’d probably best begin by explaining my earlier parachute comment. Two weeks ago I started with a list of 1-liners that each applied to that day’s passage – except one. In case you missed it, I said that you don’t need a parachute to skydive: you only need a parachute to skydive twice! And now we know how that applies too: if we want to live to face another day, then we need to don God’s armour.

At this point you may well find yourself responding in 1 of 2 classic ways. Either you will be groaning internally, and be thinking something like: ‘O come on! It’s 2013: nobody believes in stuff like this anymore’. Or you’ll be leaning forward, desperate to learn how better to identify any and all passing demons! If that’s you – at whichever end of that spectrum – the best failure that we can hope for is that we will agree to disagree. Now I don’t often ‘do’ dogmatic, except when whatever it is really matters – as I believe this matters: hugely. It just is not possible even to try and live a Christian life if we deny this key aspect of our reality. So what we need is a sober, and realistic, assessment both of the very real struggle that we are engaged in, and also of the weapons that we have at our disposal.

That is exactly what Paul gave his First-Century readers here; and it is exactly what God offers to us today. We need it now every bit as much as they did then; or maybe even more so because of how the baby has so often gone out with the bathwater. Of course there is a degree of circularity to this argument; but the topic of spiritual warfare is itself the subject of spiritual warfare. And yes, I do mean that this has been way more of a pig of a week than usual for me – and that I don’t for a moment believe that’s coincidence. Nor do I believe that it’s coincidence that there are people here pooh-poohing what I’m saying. And yes, you’re right: nor do I believe that it’s coincidence that we find it so hard to read the Bible; to pray; to do the right things; or to walk away from doing the wrong things: these are all classic battle-signs!

As I say, I’m aware that some people may say that I think this way because of what I believe. But to that I would respond that I believe what I do because of what I read in the Bible and because of what I have experienced in 30+ years of living a Christian life. Now there is no doubt that Paul believed and taught the same as Jesus did on this subject. There is, in fact, real consistency on it across the whole of the New Testament – from the Gospels right through to Revelation. God’s work is opposed at every turn by a personified evil called the Devil, or Satan. He has a host of followers, sometimes known as angels, dedicated to the same task. And whoever puts their head above the parapet on God’s side automatically becomes part of their target for destruction!

It’s strong, dramatic language, I know. But the fact is that we are not fighting against flesh and blood here: rather, “We are wrestling with rulers, authorities, the powers who govern this world of darkness, and spiritual forces that control evil in the heavenly world” as one translation puts it. In the Greek each one on that list has their own ‘against’: we are wrestling with or fighting against rulers; against authorities, against the powers, etc. This isn’t some faceless conglomeration, but rather a targeted, co-ordinated, carefully planned and strategic attack; on as many fronts as the enemy can keep open against you. Well, if God loved you enough to send His son to die for you, then God’s enemy just as passionately wants to destroy you in whatever ways he can! So, quick: “For this reason, take up all the armour that God supplies. Then you will be able to take a stand during these evil days. Once you have overcome all the obstacles, you will be able to stand your ground.”

Now I have been known to say that survival is vastly underrated as an achievement! People do often laugh when I say it – but here is the main reason that I do. ‘All’ we are called to do, look, is to survive: to be standing at the end of the day; to hold our ground on the line. Then we can do the same the day after; and then again the day that; and the next one. It is one day at a time: of staying standing; of surviving all that is being thrown against us each day. And survival here is a major achievement because it’s against the universe’s biggest and scariest forces, don’t forget. Paul names them for who and what they are; next he defines our calling – ‘just’ to survive; and then he tells us how we can achieve that: by putting/praying on God’s armour.

I’m assured by those who know that this was standard 1^st-Century Roman military equipment. Paul would know: as a prisoner in Rome he was probably chained to a soldier. He certainly recounted the order in which a soldier would put it on. First was a belt, to hold the undergarments in place; then the breastplate to cover the vital organs; next came sandals: hobnailed ones! Then pick up the shield, to protect all other parts of the body; before pulling on a helmet that covers the head and neck. Finally, take just the one weapon: your sword; and then you are as ready as you will ever be for this fiercest of battles that has already found you, Paul wrote.

Of course there is plenty more that could be said, about all of this. Most of it is a combination of the sort of common sense and active imagination that God gives us abundantly. So feel free to take this picture, and play with it, if you find it helpful in your quest to work out how to survive the battles that you are facing. Yes I know that it’s very outdated for us militarily: or is it? Still today soldiers don some kind of helmets, armour, and footwear! The key point that I’d make (as others have often done before me) is this: despite Rome’s aggressive reputation, this equipment is all defensive! We could even say that a sword can be used to ward off attacks, rather than to launch them. God wants us to stand firm against the enemies that attack us, remember: hence he supplies us with this particular equipment.

It also doesn’t take much to see how Paul’s adapted the equipment for his own purpose. Being Paul, he did so quite deliberately and thoughtfully. For those who know their Bible well, there are hints of Isaiah’s description of the Messiah in here. That too fits with the rest of Paul’s letter, teaching us how to follow the example, and become ever more like Christ ourselves. That’s worth keeping in mind when you go back over this passage, then – as I hope you will do: many times. There’s a richness in here that can, and will, speak into our own changing battle circumstance. For example, preparing this I was most struck by the idea that Roman shields were big enough to completely cover a group of soldiers who stuck close enough together. I had scenes from the film Gladiator in mind, as I pictured this church staying together in order to protect everyone, on all sides including the top.

Now don’t miss the detail that’s already in here: as I say, Paul wrote very deliberately when he attributed spiritual values to each item. The truth matters: the truth about God, and the truth about us. It holds the rest together, keeps distraction away. Don’t neglect a breastplate, either: righteousness is what it sounds like. It’s us choosing to do the right, Godly moral things in all the areas we face. God will help us to do that; but we have to make choices; and there are spiritual consequences. We need those hobnail sandals too: part of our digging in is a willingness to tell others what believe, and why. The main feature of a Roman shield was that it was designed to put out fire-arrows. How we can burn, with indignation or anger at others’ taunts or hurtful words: use God’s shield to put them out, then; have faith that He always knows the truth. And get your thinking straight too! Know who and what you are in Christ; and don’t let anybody tell you any different. You belong to God, you are on the winning side, if you believe in and follow His son, Jesus. Read that, know it, and use it, then: here is the sword that God gives us. And be aware that we are only scratching the surface here: there is so much more to learn about all this.

We each need to do that for ourselves; and it is need; so here is lots of encouragement to do it. But there is even more! We must also hear Paul’s related closing advice, which almost sounds as if prayer is a weapon in this battle. At the least it is the main form of communication with our HQ. It is one which Paul made much use of himself: he began this letter praying for his readers; and he ended with an invitation for them to pray for him. There’s another sermon on what Paul asked them to pray for him, let alone on the wider subject of prayer. The headline though, is that prayer is vital in and for this spiritual battle, just as it is in all areas of a life in Christ. As Paul wrote, we are to pray in the Spirit constantly: on all occasions; in all circumstances.

And so we reach the end of this amazing journey, through one of the most comprehensive, inspiring, and well-written books in the entire New Testament. Of course I can’t know what God has been saying to you during these past 3 months. I am sure that He has been speaking, to us personally as well as to us as a church. We know where we are heading as a church as a result: it’s about keeping Jesus at the centre of all that we do, and being united in that. Doing it is a battle, every day; but it is one that God equips us for, so that we can survive it. For us to do that as a church, it takes all of us to stand our bit of ground; so I hope that now you do feel better equipped to do that, in every way. And how better to end than by echoing Paul’s final prayer: “May God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give us peace and love, with faith” as we battle on, to live out who and what He has made us in Christ. Amen.