Battle ready

If there’s one thing I envy about Japanese junior high school and high school students, it’s that they get to take these cool school trips. Last month, my daughter went to Nagasaki and had a great time there with all the third-year students.

We just didn’t have all-class trips like that in my schools in Hawaii. But school clubs did sometimes go out on special trips. And for me, in my senior year, I went to a debate tournament on Kauai Island with my speech club. I remember that trip for a couple reasons. First, my partner and I actually won first place for team debate in that tournament. It was the highlight of my debate career.

The second was that the day after the tournament, my club members had an all-out shaving cream war. We all went outside to a park armed with shaving cream, the boys and girls divided in two teams, and we went around chasing and spraying each other. But just before we went out to battle, my friend looked at my shaving cream can and said, “That’s no good. You can’t use that. You just have the regular shaving cream top on that.”

You see, there was actually a secret to spraying shaving cream far. Now, I don’t know if it still works now, but back then, if you took the top part off of the shaving cream can and replaced it with the top part of a shaving gel can, it would shoot out one or two meters. So my friend kindly replaced the top for me and I was good to go.

I was really glad he told me. I thought I was battle ready, but if I had gone out without changing the top part of my can, I wouldn’t have gotten anybody with the shaving cream.

Well, as Christians, we need to be battle ready too. As we’ve talked about in this series, we are in a spiritual war. And if we’re not battle ready, we will be taken down. But how do we become battle ready? Let’s take a look once again at Ephesians chapter 6 and let’s start by reading verses 10-17 one more time. For this, I’m using a combination of two English translations.

Finally, be strengthened in the Lord and in the strength of his power. Clothe yourselves with the full armor of God so that you will be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world rulers of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavens.

For this reason, take up the full armor of God, so that you may be able to stand your ground on the evil day, and having done everything, to stand. Stand firm therefore, by fastening the belt of truth around your waist, by putting on the breastplate of righteousness, by fitting your feet with the preparation that comes from the good news of peace, and in all of this, by taking up the shield of faith with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one (CSB) ...also receive THE HELMET OF SALVATION, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God (LSB)...

In a lot of ways, I think this is a picture of Jesus. We don’t often think of him in this way, but he is our great Captain on the battlefield. Several weeks ago, Pastor Fumi linked these verses to Isaiah 59. In that passage, God saw the desperate plight of his people. And because there was no one to save them, God himself came down to rescue them. In Jesus, God became man. And not just a man, but a warrior clothed in full armor.

I’m not talking about literal armor, of course, as in this picture. But throughout his life and especially his ministry, Jesus wore the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the shoes of the gospel of peace, and the helmet of salvation. He carried the shield of faith and wielded the sword of the Spirit wherever he went. And then on Calvary, he took on the enemy and ripped the high ground right out from under Satan’s feet. By Jesus’ death, we now stand on the high ground, forgiven by God, and standing in right relationship with him.

And now, God calls you and I to follow the lead of our Captain, holding the ground he won, and fighting back against any spiritual powers that come against us. But if we’re going to do that, we need to be battle ready. And to be battle ready, we need to first do two things. The first thing is to put on that armor we’ve been talking about for over a month now. The second thing is to pray.

We talked last week about swinging the sword in prayer. But as I mentioned then, while I feel prayer is strongly connected to swinging the word of God, it’s also connected to everything else that Paul has been talking about in verses 10-17. Look again at verse 18.

praying at all times with all prayer and petition in the Spirit, and to this end, being on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints...(Ephesians 6:18, LSB)

One theme that you see throughout the New Testament is a connection between spiritual alertness and prayer. And alertness in prayer is key if you want to be battle ready. When Jesus was in the garden of Gethsemane the night before he was crucified, he warned his disciples, “Stay alert and pray so that you don’t fall into temptation.” (Matthew 26:41)

Jesus’ apostles later picked up that theme in their writings. Peter tells us in 1 Peter 5:7, “Cast your anxieties on the Lord because he cares for you.” Then in the very next verse, he says, “Be alert. The devil is like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour.” Paul also tells us in Colossians 4:2, “Devote yourselves to prayer. Stay alert in it with thanksgiving.”

And of course here in Ephesians, Paul tells us again, be alert as you pray with all perseverance, making petition for the saints. But what do we need to be alert to? Of course, one thing is our enemy.

Do you want to know a good way to die on the battlefield? Be totally unaware of what your enemy is doing. On that same trip I mentioned earlier, the girls actually managed to pull off a sneak attack a day before the actual battle. One of the girls was visiting my friend’s room, and right in front of his eyes, she managed to take his room key without his noticing. Later on, she and several other girls came racing into the room spraying shaving cream at us. If you’re not alert, Satan can do the same thing to you. But he can cause far greater damage than just spraying some shaving cream on your clothes.

But our enemy isn’t the only thing we need to be alert to. We also need to constantly be aware of where our Captain is and what he’s doing. Be alert to what he’s doing in your life and in the people around you. That’s something I’m honestly not always so good at. And a lot of times it’s because I get too focused on what I’m planning and what I’m doing and I don’t want to be interrupted. Can any of you relate? But because of that, I often miss what my Captain is doing. That nearly happened to me a month ago.

Last month, I gave a message at KBF, my old church in Kobe. And after I got an idea for the message, I did my usual preparation and started writing out my message. But as I was writing, I got the distinct impression that something wasn’t right. I can’t say I heard a voice, but I just got a sense from God that this wasn’t what I was supposed to talk about. The thing is, though, I’d already done my studying. I’d already started my writing. And I didn’t want to be interrupted. Still, I couldn’t shake the feeling that this wasn’t what I was supposed to speak on.

And so very reluctantly, I scrapped everything I’d been working on, and started going in a different direction. A few days later, I happened to look at the KBF website, and guess what I found? Another speaker had just given a message on the exact same passage I had been preparing for earlier. And I thought, “So that’s why God said no!” But more importantly, after the message I gave at KBF, several people including the pastor came up to me and said, “That was exactly the message we needed to hear.” Pay attention to what your Captain is doing.

Also be alert to what’s going on in your own heart. Especially be alert to where your own thoughts are taking you. How are you reacting when people hurt you? What’s going on in your heart, when things don’t go the way you expected or hoped? What’s going on in your heart as you see all the terrible things happening in this world? If you’re not careful, your thoughts can lead you into danger zones and totally mess you up. That’s why Solomon once wrote this:

Guard your heart above all else, for it is the source of life. (Proverbs 4:23, CSB)

Stay alert. Stay alert against the enemy. Stay alert to what your Captain is doing. And stay alert to what’s going on in your own heart. And swinging the sword of the Spirit, pray. Not just during your quiet times. Not just at meals. Not just before you go to bed. Paul says to pray at all times, with all perseverance. You see, our main connecting point with God is prayer. And if we’re not praying, we’re cutting off our lines of communication with God. And on the spiritual battlefield, cut off from our Captain, that can be deadly. We need to keep our lines of communication open at all times.

Does this sound familiar? We’ve been talking about this a lot over the past year. Moment to moment conversation with God. Again, this does not literally mean talking to God every single second of every single day. What it does mean is that you’re so aware of God’s presence, that you are quick to talk to him throughout the day. You’re quick to check in with your Captain. I’ll do it as I’m walking to work. “God, I have a busy day today. Help me.” I’ll do it between classes at my school. “Father, that was a tough class! My attitude wasn’t very good, was it? Forgive me.” I’ll do it when I’m reading the news on the internet. “God, what’s going on in this world? Have mercy on us.” That’s what it means to pray at all times.

I like what one pastor once said:

Always be in communication with the Lord. Don’t ever hang up the phone! Never have to pray, “Lord, we come into your presence,” because you never left His presence!

--Warren Wiersbe

How about you? Are you keeping the lines of communication open throughout the day? Or are you often on radio silence with God?

But it’s important not to just keep the lines of communication open, but to also consider the kind of communication you’re having with God. Paul says in verse 18 to pray with all prayer and petition. The Japanese is probably a bit clearer: “pray with every kind of prayer and petition.” Too often, our prayers are just long lists of our needs and desires. Don’t make your prayers a mere Christmas list.

There are all kinds of prayers we can make. In English, we have an acronym for prayer called “ACTS.” “A” stands for “adoration.” It’s prayers of praise to God for who he is. We see an example in the book of Revelation. There we see a scene in heaven, and we see these songs:

Holy, holy, holy, Lord God, the Almighty, who was, who is, and who is to come. (Revelation 4:8 CSB)

And again in verse 11.

Our Lord and God, you are worthy to receive glory and honor and power, because you have created all things, and by your will they exist and were created. (Revelation 4:11, CSB)

Why are those kinds of prayers so important? They remind us of who God is. How big he is. How great he is. So often as we’re fighting on the battlefield, we lose sight of that. Our problems look so big, and God seems so small. Adoration is our telescope to remind us just how big our God is.

“C” stands for “confession.” That’s important, because sin becomes a block in our relationship with God. It puts static in our communication with him. And often times, shame born from our sin keeps us from approaching God at all. Satan would lie to you, and say, “You’ve messed up too many times. You don’t have the right to approach God anymore.” But the truth is, when we come to God with a repentant heart, confessing our sin, asking for his forgiveness, he always forgives. He always receives us. That’s what King David learned. He had slept with another man’s wife and got her pregnant. He then had her husband killed. Awful, awful sins. And burdened by guilt, he made this plea in Psalm 51:10.

God, create a clean heart for me and renew a steadfast spirit within me. (CSB)

And as a result, he found forgiveness. There were still consequences he had to face because of his sin, terrible consequences. Like we talked about a few weeks ago, there are natural consequences that come from our sin. But ultimately, David found forgiveness and his communication with God was restored.

“T” stands for thanksgiving. Adoration is praising God for who he is. Thanksgiving is praising God for what he’s done. And thanksgiving is a huge weapon we wield when trying to hold our ground. It’s huge because it reminds us of all God has done for us in the past. How he’s given us victory first at the cross and in other battles since then. And remembering those victories gives us courage for our present battles.

If you want to see a prayer of thanksgiving read Psalm 136. It’s marked by the very first verse:

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. His faithful love endures forever. (Psalm 136:1, CSB)

And throughout the psalm you see prayers of adoration for who God is, but also prayers of thanksgiving for the victories he granted Israel. The psalmist wielded the weapon of thanksgiving. So should we.

“S” stand for “supplication.” And that means praying for people, including yourself. It’s perfectly fine to pray for yourself. It’s even better to pray for others. But again, let’s not make prayer a Christmas list. How would you feel if the only time someone talked to you was when they were asking you for something? Don’t be that way with God. Pray with all kinds of prayers.

I’ll be honest. A lot of my prayers in the past have been requests. I was a like a little kid asking for presents from Santa Claus. One thing that’s helping me break that pattern is that I’m starting to use the psalms as the center and springboard to my own prayers, kind of like what I modeled with the Lord’s prayer in last week’s message. And what I’m finding is that by doing that, I’m starting to pray the ACTS of prayer more naturally. It’s also keeping my prayers fresh. I’m not just praying the same thing over and over every day. There’s a simple system for choosing the psalm to pray each day, so if you’re interested, please talk to me after service.

But however you do it, pray at all times, with all kinds of prayer and petitions.

One more thing I want you to think about. We need to be praying with our armor on. An effective prayer life requires that we’re constantly wearing the armor God has given us.

Pray wearing the belt of truth. Come completely transparent before God. Don’t try to hide anything from him. Pray with hearts bared before him. Come into the light, and let him see all your sins, weaknesses, and struggles. And come with confidence knowing that he has accepted you. If you read the Psalms, that’s how King David was. He never tried to hide what was in his heart, no matter how ugly it was. He came with complete transparency to God knowing that he was completely accepted and loved.

Come wearing the shoes of the gospel of peace. A gospel that says, “Our God reigns! There’s joy and peace in surrendering and submitting to our good King!” Don’t come with a stubborn heart that won’t listen to God as you pray. Come with a humble, surrendered heart, trusting that God is good and that he deeply loves you.

Come with his breastplate of righteousness on. As much as it’s up to you, be at peace with those around you. Love those God has put in your life, and forgive those who have hurt you. If your heart isn’t right towards others, it can hinder your lines of communication with God.

That said, relationships are a two-way thing. And sometimes reconciliation isn’t possible because the other person isn’t ready. You can’t control other people’s hearts toward you. But with God’s help, you can lead your own heart, and keep a right heart towards them. Think about Jesus and Judas. Was there ever reconciliation between them? No. There couldn’t be because Judas’ heart was too hard. But Jesus had that breastplate of righteousness on, and that protected his heart in dealing with Judas.

Come trusting in God’s faithfulness to you. Come under his shield of faithfulness, whenever you’re feeling like you don’t measure up. Along with that shield, come wearing the helmet of salvation, knowing that you are forgiven by the blood of Jesus. And finally, come wielding the sword of the Spirit in your prayers, knowing that it has power to break Satan’s lies and transform not only your life, but the lives of those around you.

Jesus certainly was battle-ready the night before he was crucified. He was in a battle, not against flesh and blood, not against the religious rulers or Pilate or the Roman soldiers, but against Satan himself. And so at Gethsemane, he took up the full armor of  God so that he could resist. He stood with the belt of truth around his waist as he confronted the Jewish leaders and Pilate at his trials. Righteousness was like armor on his chest. No matter what his enemies did to him, anger, hurt, and bitterness didn’t touch him.

Then he went to the cross, feet sandaled with the gospel of peace and carrying the shield of faith, totally surrendered to his Father’s reign in his life, and completely trusting in his Father’s goodness and faithfulness. And there on Calvary, he hung on the cross, wearing the helmet of our salvation. And even in his suffering, he wielded the sword of the Spirit, crying out David’s prayer in Psalm 22, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me.”

But he said that knowing that at the end of that psalm comes the promise of salvation, not just for him, but for the whole world. And through it all, he prayed at all times, staying alert with perseverance and petition for all the saints. For us. “Father, forgive them. They don’t know what they’re doing.”

That’s the Captain we follow. That’s the example he’s given us. So let’s follow our Captain, clothed with his armor, ready for battle, holding our ground.

I love the words of a song I first heard when I was in junior high school.

Jesus has trampled down the enemy and has given us the victory. When we pray, we learn to see that his army, we are marching on our knees.

--Steve Camp

Let’s go out from this church, this week and every week, marching on our knees.