Where the Battle Is (Ephesians 6:12-13)

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. 13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. —Ephesians 6:12-13

I’ve heard my share of sermons and teachings on these verses; likely you have, too. They say that other people are not our biggest problem: the real enemy is not the kid in your class who keeps blaming his failures on you, not the driver in the other car who repeatedly pulls across the center line on the narrow road refusing to let you pass even though the way is clear. The real enemy isn’t even the social liberal who seems bent on forcing your participation in an event that counters your own religious convictions, going so far as to actually arrange some penalty for your resistance.

No, Paul tells us that the real enemy is not the lost and broken, the fallen and sinful human beings who surround us (who are like we were before Christ saved us). The real enemies are cosmic, spiritual, invisible evil. We are reminded, both in the remainder of Ephesians 6 and in 2 Corinthians 10:4, that God has provided His people with tools and weapons appropriate for our specific wrestling match: “The weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds.”

Reading our passage this week, what captures my imagination is not who we're wrestling with or the tools we're using, but the ring. College athletes wrestle on a mat in a gym. Sumo wrestlers wrestle within a circle of a prescribed size. And, of course, two siblings can wrestle and tussle on the living room floor. These matches all take place somewhere. Where is the wrestling mat for the spiritual battle?

Some might picture a faraway vista, dark and desolate, an ethereal landscape shrouded in ominous clouds of spiritual foreboding. Others might envision a cosmic battlefield from the mind of Tolkien or Bradbury. But I think the location in our passage is closer to home and far more familiar than any distant scene. Where is it that we wrestle, not with flesh and blood, but against rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places? Where does our spiritual wrestling match take place?

The Christian's wrestling match of faith against evil takes place in the heart. Our own minds, our spirits, our hearts are the battlefield and our attitudes, worldview, personalities—our very selves—are the prize for which we fight. Just now I am wrestling with devastating attitudes of discouragement and despair having just learned that a well-integrated family in my church has been transferred and is leaving the area, perhaps permanently. Ours is a small church. Two of the family members are my pianists. One of the young men runs our AV ministry. There is no one to replace them. More than that, I really love these people. This feels like death to me!

That’s why I am wrestling this morning, not with them, but with feelings of betrayal for having learned of their future on social media; with discouragement because we never seem to achieve the church growth we pray and work for; with grief because I will miss them; and with faithlessness because I am tempted to see only my reaction and not the glory of God’s providence and provision. I am not wrestling on some far off, cosmic seashore, but in my own heart with my own thoughts and insecurities. The battle is not over there somewhere, it is right here, in me. But that, my friends, is a good thing, for “greater is He that is in me than He that is in the world” (1 John 4:4).

You don’t dress up a battlefield, you dress up a warrior. Paul reminds us to take up and put on the whole armor of God. The armor is not “for the battle,” the armor is for you, for your heart, for your spirit, for God’s glory. The armor of God is for your victory over the myriad influences of evil that would lead you away from faith and obedience into despair and anger and fear. The armor is not designed to win some nebulous battle on some imaginary battlefield, but to win your heart and thinking to the glory of Christ.

So put on the armor today and wrestle in your heart knowing that whatever your circumstances, when you have done all, you have only to stand firm, clothed in all you need in the Spirit to win your heart for Christ.

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For Reflection

1. What circumstances or people tempt you to think that they are the focus of spiritual warfare in your life?

2. How does knowing that your heart is the battlefield change your perspective on your trials?

3. Ask the Lord to protect you with His armor from losing faith, and equip you to endure.