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Our Struggle


For 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. Therefore 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. (Ephesian 6:12-13)
          I once read that if someone broke into your house while you were sleeping, put a gun to your head and demanded to know your mission in life, you should be able to express it in under thirty seconds. I don’t know that I could do that. It’s not that my mission is difficult to remember, it’s just that I tend to freeze under pressure. Today’s passage is another of those I think we should be able to repeat under pressure. In fact, being under pressure is the reason we should repeat it. 
          Our struggle. Make no mistake, we are at war. In fact, the past twenty years have been a great illustration of the type of war we’re in. We are at war with terrorists. 
         Is not against flesh and blood… The war we’re in isn’t battles with cannons, guns, and knives. It’s not a war against bodies, but against unhealthy principles, toxic powers, faulty logic, and insidious ideas. Therefore, ad hominems (attacking the person who disagrees with you or attacking the idea because of the person.) 
        Against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers…. I suppose some people read this and think, “Yes, _______ of the world unite against the powers that are! Let’s bring down the government and put a system in place that will do what the current government does not.” The problem is that the new system will become the ruler, the authority, and the power against whom we are to stand precisely because the system is the problem. Any system of rule with a human at its head (or even worse, multiple humans) is corrupt, period. Replacing government one with government two just changes the nature of the corruption, not the fact of it. 
          Therefore put on the full armor of God. You are to don it. I am, too. No elected official is meant to be our champion and do our fighting for us. This is was of terrorism. The attacks are against civilians who want nothing more than to go about their daily lives. 
          So that when the day of evil comes… Some folks want to think that the day of evil is in the future. I think it’s in the past, the present, and the future. Here’s the key. If you don’t learn to use the armor now, when the day of evil comes you won’t have time.

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