• “... with the belt of truth buckled round your waist” (Ephesians 6:14). Jesus tells us that “Satan was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.” (John 8:44). What Satan proclaims cannot stand against truth. To hold fast to truth is both a protection against being undermined by falsehood and also takes the battle to the very heart of the enemy’s territory.
• “... with the breastplate of righteousness in place” (Ephesians 6:14). A breastplate protects the heart. If we are righteous, our heart will be in the right place and will not be subverted. We will want the things that God wants and will be able to steer clear of the things that the devil offers.
• “... with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.” (Ephesians 6:15). If our feet are properly shod we will be able both to flee danger and to advance quickly against the foe. The gospel brings this readiness because with knowledge of God’s Word we will never lack guidance as to the right way to behave, nor understanding of what we should embrace and what we must shun. Furthermore, through knowledge of the gospel, we will “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks [us] to give the reason for the hope that [we] have.” (1 Peter 3:15).
• “In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.” (Ephesians 6:16). The devil’s first line of attack is to undermine faith: by undermining belief in God, in what God has said and in what God has told us will be the consequences that flow from actions both good and ill. In the Garden of Eden, the serpent’s first words to Eve tried to do precisely this by putting doubt in her mind: “Did God really say ...?” (Genesis 3:1). Faith is a shield against attacks of this kind.
• “Take the helmet of salvation” (Ephesians 6:17). A helmet protects the head, and thus both brain and mind. Reflecting on our salvation will protect our thinking. Our intellects are constantly assailed by supposedly rational and scientific attempts to debunk Christianity. These are the product of confused thinking and a twisting or misinterpretation of facts. We need clear heads to see them for what they are.
• “Take ... the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” (Ephesians 6:17). The Word of God is a weapon that cuts through all that is wrong and misleading, slices apart all falsehood, lays bare all vanity and forestalls each attack of the enemy: “For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” (Hebrews 4:12).
No-one sensible undertakes a task without the equipment they need. Still less do people go into battle deliberately lacking kit. We are rightly outraged when unnecessary casualties result from our troops having improper or inadequate equipment. Yet every day we fail to don the armour that God has made available for our protection. Little wonder that we seem to lack power in facing down the enemy.
Conclusion.
None of this is not to be glib about the reality of spiritual warfare. Just as we forget too readily the human cost of the great engineering achievements of the nineteenth century, we are apt to overlook the price of fighting in the spiritual realm. The toll exacted by the former was ghastly. Just one example will serve by way of illustration: construction of Brunel’s Great Western Railway involved the digging of Box Tunnel, at that time the longest railway tunnel yet attempted. Work began in September 1836 and was not completed until June 1841, using solely the muscle power of navvies and horses. Over 247,000 cubic yards of spoil were excavated and 30 million bricks used. About a hundred men died in this work alone. There were many more deaths in the fight for material progress. As regards spiritual warfare, to this very day Christians are being imprisoned, maimed and martyred as they labour in the work of construction, and toil to build the kingdom of God.
There will always be casualties. No-one relishes deaths, injuries and suffering, but equally no army expects to escape battle scot free and an army that will not fight is little use. In other spheres we readily acknowledge that attack is the best form of defence. Yet in the spiritual realm we too often seem paralysed and inactive, waiting for the next assault from the enemy and prepared at every stage to hand him the initiative. It is time that we stopped cowering in our dugouts and emerged to do battle. What St Paul asked his readers to pray for him, we can just as well pray for ourselves: “Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I should declare it fearlessly, as I should.” (Ephesians 6:19-20).
33. Band of brothers
Acts 9:1-22.
Key word: realisation.
“England expects that every man this day will do his duty.” Nelson’s signal to the fleet immediately before the battle of Trafalgar on 21 October 1805 has become everyday currency. As with all that becomes over-used or over-familiar, there is a tendency in the process for real meaning to be lost. In fact, duty was a recurrent theme for this younger son of a Norfolk parson. Even as he lay dying he several times repeated, “Thank God I have done my duty.” Nowadays it is a concept that we find difficult to grasp, for we live in a society whose sense of duty is diminished. Still more have we abandoned the deep Christian commitment that infused and inspired someone who was described by Sir Gilbert Elliot, a witness of the battle of Cape St Vincent in 1797, as “a hero beyond Homer’s or any other possible inventions.” In his day Nelson was both an international celebrity and recognised as one of the greatest naval commanders of all time, but he was more. The poet Robert Southey wrote: “The death of Nelson was felt in England as something more than a public calamity; men started at the intelligence and turned pale, as if they had heard of the loss of a dear friend.”
On the morning of the battle of Trafalgar, Nelson wrote a prayer: “May the Great God, whom I worship, grant to my country, and for the benefit of Europe in general, a great and glorious victory; and may no misconduct in anyone tarnish it; and may humanity after victory be the predominant feature in the British fleet ...” The same sentiment was translated into the orders issued to each crew. These ensured that British sailors risked their lives in foul weather after the battle (and in some instances even during the battle itself) to rescue drowning French and Spanish seamen. The conduct of the Royal Navy in the aftermath of one of the most crushing victories in naval warfare stands as a model for magnanimous treatment of a defeated foe.
Nelson’s Christianity did not come out of thin air, nor was it based on unquestioning acceptance of all he had been taught. It was instead the result of a profound mystical experience. Invalided home from India in 1774, the youngster (then only 16) experienced what he termed a “light from heaven.” He said that, from this moment, “a sudden glow of patriotism was kindled within me” and often spoke afterwards of the “radiant orb” suspended in his mind’s eye. In 1793 he wrote in his private journal: “When I lay me down to sleep I recommend myself to the care of Almighty God. When I awake I give myself up to his direction. Amidst all the evils that threaten me, I will look up to Him for help, and question not but He will either avert them or turn them to my advantage. Though I know neither the time nor the manner of my death, I am not at all solicitous about it because I am sure that He knows them both, and that He will not fail to support and comfort me under them.”
Preparation.
Thus the Lord prepared the future admiral for the work ahead. In the same way he prepared St Paul for his work as “my chosen instrument to carry my name before the Gentiles and their kings and before the people of Israel.” (Acts 9:15). In the same way, he will prepare us. This does not mean that we will necessarily see “a light from heaven ... and [hear] a voice” (Acts 9:3-4), nor see a “vision” (Acts 9:10 and 12), for the manner of our preparation will differ from person to person. In general, we can expect that
the more we are asked to do and the greater the change that is needed in our lives, the more dramatic will be the divine intervention. What we can all expect, however, is to encounter Jesus. It is our response to this that holds the key to what happens next. Whatever form our meeting with the Lord may take, the lessons from what St Paul experienced on the road to Damascus hold good for us, too:
• In the presence of the Almighty, the only proper response is to fall on our knees in wonder and worship, being alert to what he wants to say: “He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, ‘Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?’” (Acts 9:4).
• We should recognise our Lord and Saviour for who he is, and obey his commands, acknowledging that often we may have to wait before we are shown the next step[81]: “’Who are you, Lord?’ Saul asked. ‘I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,’ he replied. ‘Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.’” (Acts 9:5).
• It should be no surprise if those who lack a godly perspective fail to see God at work and have nothing worthwhile to say on matters spiritual: “The men travelling with Saul stood there speechless; they heard the sound but did not see anyone.” (Acts 9:7).
• There is no shame in accepting help when we need it, as long as it is taking us in the right direction: “Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus.” (Acts 9:8).
• There will be times of trial, points at which we may not hear from God and occasions when it is right to fast. These should be taken as part and parcel of life, not allowed to undermine our faith or to deflect us from our course: “For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything.” (Acts 9:9).
• Prayer is the key to unlocking the power and activity of God: “[Saul] is praying. In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight.” (Acts 9:12).
• God’s activity in our lives requires a reaction on our part, and this involves giving priority to the spiritual over the physical – only in this way can we achieve insight into the ways of God: “Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptised, and after taking some food, he regained his strength.” (Acts 9:18-19).
• Fellowship with other believers is vital for our wellbeing and growth: “Saul spent several days with the disciples in Damascus.” (Acts 9:19).
• Proclaiming the gospel is a duty for all: “At once he began to preach in the synagogues that Jesus is the Son of God.” (Acts 9:21).
• The more closely we walk with God and do our utmost to obey him, the greater will be our spiritual strength: “Yet Saul grew more and more powerful and baffled the Jews living in Damascus by proving that Jesus is the Christ.” (Acts 9:22).
• Others’ failure to accept what is staring them in the face should neither alarm nor discomfort us: although St Paul’s preaching of the gospel “baffled the Jews living in Damascus by proving that Jesus is the Christ” (Acts 9:22), this apparently did not lead to their all becoming Christians. Some were resistant to truth, then as now.
On the road to Damascus St Paul reached a point of realisation. It involved realisation in the sense of perceiving as true what had previously been hidden and apprehending clearly and vividly what had previously been obscured. Thus he saw that what he had been doing up to then in the belief that he was serving God was wrong, he came to see exactly who Jesus Christ is and, most importantly, to know that this Jesus was not dead, but alive. It also involved realisation in the sense of bringing into existence and making actual the fullness of his destiny. From this moment he was no longer Saul, known everywhere for his “persecuting of the church” (Philippians 3:6), but began the process of transformation by which he became Paul, the great apostle to the Gentiles.
Collaboration.
Usually God involves others in our preparation and transformation: “The Lord told [Ananias], ‘Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying. In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight.’” (Acts 9:11). It may be only one in a million who is called to exercise the kind of ministry that St Paul undertook or to perform the deeds of an Admiral Nelson, but every Christian is called to exercise the ministry of Ananias. He was “a disciple” (Acts 9:10) who gave practical effect to what he believed:
• He was responsive to God: “The Lord called to him in a vision, ‘Ananias!’ ‘Yes, Lord,’ he answered.” Acts 9:10).
• His dialogue with God was respectful – he put the facts as he knew them before God but did not attempt to substitute his judgment for that of the Almighty: “I have heard many reports about this man ...” (Acts 9:13).
• He did what God told him, even though it made no sense from a human point of view, and he acted promptly: “But the Lord said to Ananias, ‘Go!’ ... Then Ananias went to the house and entered it.” (Acts 9:15 and 17).
• He showed love and acceptance to the unlovable: “Placing his hands on Saul, he said, ‘Brother Saul ...’” (Acts 9:17).
• He corroborated what Saul had heard and experienced in a way that authenticated his own mission and gave encouragement to the future apostle: “the Lord – Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here – has sent me” (Acts 9:17).
• He was a channel for healing and the work of the Holy Spirit: “Placing his hands on Saul, he said, ‘... Jesus ... has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.’” (Acts 9:17).
If we want to have people like Saul of Tarsus at work in our land and to see people changed so that instead of “persecuting the church” (Philippians 3:6) they become its most powerful advocates, if we long to witness deeds like those of the heroes of old, we must each do as Ananias did.
Jubilation.
At Trafalgar Nelson won a victory which was beyond almost any in the annals of naval warfare. So overwhelming was it, both physically and psychologically, that no enemy dared challenge the Royal Navy in battle for a century.[82] The turnaround in the nation’s fortunes in the years immediately following was spectacular. Hitherto Napoleon’s armies had been everywhere victorious. England had been isolated and beleaguered. Triumph at sea freed her from the threat of invasion and gave new hope to those fighting tyranny. With the start of the Peninsular War in 1808, the long process of rolling back French conquests on the continent began.
The experiences of St Paul on the road to Damascus brought about an equally sharp switch in direction for him, with momentous consequences for the future spread of Christianity. The man who up to then had been “breathing out murderous threats against the Lord’s disciples” (Acts 9:1), who wanted to “take [any he found] as prisoners to Jerusalem” (Acts 9:2), who was known for “all the harm he has done to [the] saints” (Acts 9:13) and who had “come [to Damascus] with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on [the] name [of Jesus]” (Acts 9:14) was utterly changed. He was transformed because he met Jesus and thereby experienced a moment of realisation.
Conclusion.
The Lord has a disconcerting habit of using those who have been great sinners to do some of his mightiest work. Moses, David and Saul were all murderers, either killing with their own hands or having others kill on their behalf and with their approval.[83] God also tends to choose those we might regard as unprepossessing, even puny. Nelson was small in stature and weak in constitution, suffering recurrent illnesses. At the time of his greatest victory, he was middle-aged, blind in one eye and his right arm was only a stump. Reflecting on such things should build us up. No matter what we have been, what we have done or what we lack, Jesus can use us. If we allow the moment of realisation to come upon us, we will be changed. The greater our past sin, the more obvious our limitations and infirmities, the more powerful will be our witness: “All those who heard him were astonished and asked, ‘Isn’t he the man who caused havoc in Je
rusalem among those who call on this name? And hasn’t he come here to take them as prisoners to the chief priests?’” (Acts 9:21).
A man like Horatio Nelson did not come about by chance any more than the world was formed by chance. He was prepared by God and placed by the Almighty where he could best be used, just as each of us will be if we allow our Creator to mould, shape and guide us. The Lord’s signs and wonders are visible in this land today, just as they have been in years past. The reason they are not better known is that too many “heard the sound but did not see anyone” (Acts 9:7): events take place without our recognising who is behind them. We need to look for our heavenly Father at work and pray that the scales will fall from our eyes and those of our fellow countrymen. Then realisation will come upon us and we will live in a land where: “Everyone was amazed and gave praise to God. They were filled with awe and said, ‘We have seen remarkable things today.’” (Luke 5:26).
34. Titans
Zechariah 12:1-6.
Key word: strength.
Redeeming a Nation (Timeless Teaching) Page 24