Put on the whole armor of God so that we can stand against evil.
Powerful images in Ephesians. He writes and hopefully makes those that he’s writing to feel invincible.
Do we feel invincible? How do we know what the wiles of the devil are, who the rulers and authorities are? Those are some tough questions and they spread into all of our life. For example, when we shop, how do we know that what we buy is really environmental or is it just the company putting “green product” on the item as a marketing scheme? How do we know when we invest in our 401k that we are investing in companies that have Christian morals and don’t exploit the weak? Difficult questions…and I don’t have the answers.
But Paul writes with such certainty – such certainty – that we can discern the answers to these kinds of questions. One way we can discern this comes from an idea written by William Loader, and that is that if something is putting up barriers, then it’s unlikely that it’s part of good. What is good is things that break down barriers. That’s what Ephesians is all about: reconciliation and love and faith. Breaking down the barriers – earlier in the letter it talks about the Gentile and Jews and the circumcised and the uncircumcised – so Paul is writing about breaking down barriers – destroying them so that we can become the family of God.
So if you’re worried about this lesson and what Paul is writing, take comfort. Take comfort because you can get this armor. Where can you get this armor, you ask? In church! Paul is writing to a community, not to an individual, because community is stronger than individuals. Talk to each other; share good ideas and share the Good News.
Come to church. Be reminded of salvation, of God’s love, of peace and of faith. If you look at how Paul describes the armor, these are what make up the armor. And if we put those on and join in the community we can stand strong against evil.
The Rev. M.E. Eccles, LPC
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