"Nothing is so effectual against the devil, the world, the flesh, and all evil thoughts as to occupy oneself with the Word of God.... This, indeed, is the true holy water, the sign which routs the devil and puts him to flight."
Luther's Large Catechism: Preface.
"Then comes the devil, who baits and badgers us on all sides, but especially exerts himself where the conscience and spiritual matters are at stake. His purpose is to make us scorn and despise both the Word and the works of God, to tear us away from faith, hope, and love, to draw us into unbelief, false security, and stubbornness, or, on the contrary, to drive us into despair, atheism, blasphemy, and countless other abominable sins. These are snares and nets; indeed, they are the real 'flaming darts' (Ephesians 6:16) which are venomously shot into our hearts, not by flesh and blood, but by the devil."
Luther's Large Catechism: Lord's Prayer
I am teaching on spiritual warfare during adult study this fall. In addition, I am knighting two of our youth in The Rite of Knighthood next month. So my thoughts drifted to spiritual warfare, and I decided to post again on spiritual warfare.
BTW. I was shocked to see over 3330 hits. Thank you all for taking the time to read my posts. As you know, I don't want this to be just my opinion, but The Confessions, The Creeds, and most of all The Word of God.
My post title comes from the monument to Jan Hus in Prague, Czech Republic. Anita and I began our Luther tour as part of my sabbatical in the summer of 2011 in Old Prague, to begin with Luther's predecessor, Jan Hus, father of the Moravian Church. We were at the monument and I was looking around the shops for a mini of it. A man asked me, "Was he a good man?" (Atheism is prevalent in former Soviet Czech Republic apprently.) I answered, "He was a great man." Back at the monument I bumped into a young tour guide and asked her to translate the inscription around the monument for me. She translated, "Where are God's Warriors today?"
The back story for this is that when the ELCA came out with a new hymnal, several hymns from the Green Hymnal were "conspicuous in their absence." Gone were "Onward Christian Soldiers" and "Stand up, Stand up for Jesus." The compilers changed a word in "Lift High the Cross" and removed an entire verse. I think they would have pulled "A Mighty Fortress" but they did not dare. The idea is/was that these are too militaristic and triumphalistic to be in the hymnal. But assuming Paul wrote Ephesians, and I do, he made it VERY clear in Ephesians 6: 10 et seq. that we are not fighting people. We are fighting demons. It is spiritual warfare against spiritual beings using spiritual weapons (II Corinthians 10).
OK now the irony. Clif Christopher, the stewardship guru, came and did a presentation in our small town thanks to the United Methodist Church in town. (UMC pulled the hymns as well.) Clif Christopher told the story of being on the ground in "Desert Storm" against Iraqi soldiers. He ended his story by asking, "Where are God's soldiers today?" I didn't know whether to laugh or cry. We have gutted virtually all references to spiritual warfare in our new hymnal. We aren't training any. Adult Study this fall will be on spiritual warfare.
None us of have time to go through the LEGION of verses in the New Testament on spiritual warfare and it's seriousness. Nor do we have time to go through all the hymn references. Suffice it so say that "A Mighty Fortress" is THE hymn on spiritual warfare; and it will never be excised because it is "A Mighty Fortress." Read the words again. Listen as you sing them on Reformation Sunday. (We are opening with it before our Rite of Knighthood, followed by: "Onward Christian Soldiers", "Stand up for Jesus" and "Lift High the Cross" - in the original un-depleated version.)
OK: just a few.
II Corinthians 6: 7
II Corinthians 10: 4-5
Ephesians 6: 10-20
II Timothy 4: 6-8
James 4: 7
I Peter 5: 5-9
"In battle we'll engage! His might is doomed to fail; God's judgment must prevail! One little word subdues him." (The little word btw is: JESUS!)
Fight on.
