Original: February 5, 2008
McMinnville, OR
1 You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. 2 And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others. 3 Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 4 No one serving as a soldier gets involved in civilian affairs--he wants to please his commanding officer. 2 Timothy 2:1-4
As a little boy I grew up watching John Wayne as a Green Beret in Vietnam, Audey Murphy in his World War II biographical movie, Hogan’s Hero’s, and James Conrad in The Black Sheep Squadron. As a teenager I was shaped by movies like Platoon, Rambo(s), all Arnold Schwarzenegger films, and the list goes on. As fascinated as I was with the violence of war my boyhood years came on the coattails of the Vietnam War and in the middle of the Cold war with Russia.
Fascinated with war but afraid of dying I asked mom on numerous occasion, “Will I have to go to war Mommy?” Even though war intrigued me to no end I had a tremendous fear of death and dying.
“No honey” my mom’s gentle voice would affirm, “You will never have to go to war.”
However, as an adult sometimes I regret not enlisting in a branch of the military, choosing instead to play college football. Being a soldier would have taught me what it means to be in God’s army on a level that I may never understand as a civilian. I am so grateful to live in a nation that protects our borders with the greatest military force the world has ever known. I may never have to lay down my life for my country. I may never have to be a U.S. soldier. I may never have to experience the pain, death, and trauma of war, but as a follower of Jesus, as a soldier in God’s army I must be ready at any moment to engage in spiritual warfare.
I am a soldier for Christ.
“No one serving as a soldier gets involved in civilian affairs--he wants to please his commanding officer” (4).
Unlike John Wayne, Audey Murphy, Sylvester Stallone, and Arnold Schwarzenegger this is a real war with real casualties. Unlike my Hollywood heroes this is the greatest war ever fought and is raging even as I write this, and even as you read this. It is a war over the greatest spoils in all eternity.
It is a war for souls.
It’s a war over the “forevers” of mankind.
“For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does” (2 Corinthians 10:3).
It is a war that every believer in Jesus is enlisted in whether he knows it or not. It is a war against the most diabolical enemy in the history of the world.
It is a war that requires a man’s full knowledge, engagement, and proper weaponry.
“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. 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. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints” (Ephesians 6:10-18).
