A Word About Warfare

As the pressures of this world increase, Christians can’t avoid engaging in spiritual battles. Not only must we stand our ground, but we also fight to continue advancing the gospel. As Paul makes clear in his letter to the Ephesians, God has equipped us believers to fight and win.

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. ¹¹Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. ¹²For 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. ¹³Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. ¹⁴Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, ¹⁵and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. ¹⁶In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. ¹⁷Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. ¹⁸And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. ¹⁹Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, ²⁰for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should. – Ephesians 6:10-20

For a long time, I’d understood this passage in personal terms of spiritual resources and practices. The Lord gives us weaponry and armor so we can be successful soldiers who don’t succumb to temptation.

But I noticed that Paul’s call to arms follows his discussion of the Christian household (see Ephesians 5:22-6:9). This led me to realize that the home might be the locus of spiritual battle. If the enemy were to attack, he would seek to disrupt the relationships between husbands and wives, parents and children, even masters and servants.

Both personal and corporate assaults are part of the devil’s schemes against God’s people. To drive them back, we have to make full use of truth, righteousness, the gospel, faith, salvation, and Scripture in how we live and the way we pray.

But while all this is true, Paul has evangelism in mind more than individual or familial holiness.

Spreading the good news of Jesus isn’t always easy; it takes people interceding for evangelists to Christ presented to souls in need of His forgiveness and love. That’s why Paul asked for the Ephesians to pray on his behalf. He wasn’t beyond requesting help; he knew he needed it.

Interceding for those bringing the gospel to the lost goes to the core of the church’s reason for being. Paul lays this out in the way he structured this letter.

In chapters 1 and 2, the apostle describes our saved status through Jesus Christ. He concludes the second chapter by characterizing the church as a united people, a family, and a temple (Ephesians 2:11-22). Then in chapter 3, he takes up the plan of God, the reason why the Lord fashioned the church (Ephesians 3:1-13). It was to create a people for Himself out of all the nations who had suffered under the rule of the rebellious principalities and powers. Through Jesus Christ, God was setting the nations free so they could come under His dominion and enjoy His blessings. What a plan!

Paul ends this chapter with a prayer for the Ephesians to realize their full heritage in Christ (Ephesians 3:14-21).

In terms of structure, Paul repeats himself in chapters 4-6. Chapter 4 and part of chapter 5 urge Christians to work out their spiritual status in their personal lives, relationships, and ministries (Ephesians 4:1-5:21). And as we saw, he then spells out the responsibilities of Christian family relationships.

Afterwards, Paul brings up spiritual warfare and prayer. These correspond to the themes of chapter 3: God’s plan and Paul’s prayer. Since both sections end with prayer, it’s fair to say that the plan and warfare are related. This shows us why Christians suffer attacks.

The devil rages against God’s plan to redeem the nations through the gospel of Jesus Christ. As we participate in spreading the good news and training people in its provisions, the enemy loses ground. That’s what he opposes and that’s why he comes after us.

But thank God, we serve the risen Savior! Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection establishes Him as the Lord in Whom dwells all authority (see Matthew 28:18). We’re joined to Him; we live under His protection and serve in His name. Our witness invites warfare, but we know we have victory through Jesus. The One who rescued us from our sin will deliver us from the devil.

Thanks be to God!