Warships are built for a purpose, and to achieve that purpose they are loaded with power. When they are well commanded and on the right course, they become very powerful weapons.
We too can be powerful weapons as Christians… but we fight a different kind of war, for our enemies are not other people
Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 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.
Eph. 6:10-12
Strong in our faith, steadfast in His Word and obedient to His command we are formidable indeed against the enemy, and victorious with Christ in the end.
Good one Don. But keep your head down LOL. Some folds have a real issue with us using any martial imagery in our description of the Christian life, apparently that means we want to run out and kill all the non believers. Just sayin LOL…the voice of experience speaking.
LOL Yep, I know what you’re sayin’ Wally, but I figure that if Jesus and Paul can use martial images, I will too!
No prob here Don! Just some folks get pretty excited lol.
Yeah… keeps it interesting 🙂
Words of life in this time when the battle rages hard and loud and we see casualties all around us.
Thank you
Dear Don,
Thank you for repeating this message. All too often, we face what I consider one of the greatest tragedies and ironies facing today’s church… that of “Friendly Fire”. It is so much easier, so much simpler, so much quicker, and so much more comfortable to “gird ourselves up” for “spiritual battle” with the victims, the casualties, of the “rulers… powers… authorities… spiritual forces” that comprise the enemy we are to combat… rather than the dark forces themselves. We can readily stand on our pedestals of righteousness, our pews, and point our fingers all around us at the horrible sinners that congregate in “the world”, at those who destroy themselves and others through flesh and blood.
All too often we are exhorted and encouraged to take up our spiritual arms against such people. To slay them, destroy their potency, devalue them and their lives, banish them from our communities and our presence, shut ourselves off from them and hedge ourselves from relationship with them.
Yes, we are to slay those wicked!
Where Paul’s more compassionate counsel here is lost in the hue and cry. Those, are the wounded. Those, are the casualties. Those, are the victims of this war. We often find it much more economical and efficient to slay the injured than to heal. All too often we subject the vulnerable and wounded to Friendly Fire, in our zeal. We fail to identify the “enemy” properly, and rain down our barrage on the garrisoned and refugee.
Thank you for posting this.
And, though I know you will object… (and you may edit/delete this section if you choose… *smiles*)… Allow me to thank and congratulate you, in that I believe you will attain your 100,000th hit within the next 24 hours. I do not praise you for the “attainment” in a sense of exalting YOU for something impressive. But I do simply “thank you” for making such solid discourse, dialogue, teaching and community interaction in the name of God… available for all of us. I can only imagine the work, the discipline, and the effort it takes faithfully to serve this way… day after day… regardless of mood, health, location, busy-ness of schedule, travel… all that.
You encourage me. You inspire me. I thank you for all that… even while I will agree without your protests, that the grace and glory are His alone. Nonetheless I can admire and thank you for the faithfulness and grace of your obedience and service.
With Grateful Acknowledgment…
The Little Monk
Thank you Little Monk, your encouragement and that of so many others means more than y’all will ever know.
We certainly are, even though there are times when we question it, given all the things going on in this world. God is still in control and powerful over everything!
He sure is, and that is a wonderful thing!
Great word of encouragement. Thanks for the reminder.
Thank you
NOW you have my attention. Arleigh Burke class destroyer on the prowl… and in the wee hours of the morning, on watch in the engine rooms… this blog might just be the conversation maker… USN Retired
Thank you for your service! I got the photo from my son’s ship’s site a few years back…
Thank you for this. I needed the renewed encouragement after enduring some very disturbing things at church.
Jacob I’m glad to have been in the right spot with this post, sorry about the disturbing things…
So simple yet so easy to forget our fight is spiritual and not flesh.
No doubt!