I recently had the opportunity to preach on Ephesians 6:10-20 at my local church. Introducing the topic of the Armor of God, I highlighted the popularity of the Marvel hero Iron Man and made the point that he always keeps his armor near because he’s not the Hulk, Thor, or Captain America. The armor of God has a purpose because we are in a spiritual conflict. I spent time emphasizing verse 12, which reads, “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.” As Christians, we need to be clear about our true enemy and our mission. It’s important to remember that our mission is people and that Paul is very careful to point out here that people aren’t our enemies.
The Bible teaches us that we are dead in sins and captive to an ungodly way of living (Eph 2:1-3) and then praises the amazing work of God in raising us to spiritual life (Eph 2:4-5). Paul goes on to teach that we were once bound in darkness and lies (Eph 4:17-19), but then we learned about Christ (Eph 4:20). While people may think and act in ways that oppose our beliefs and values, Paul points out that they are not the ones we struggle against (6:12).
But what about the image of the Christian as a warrior? My recommendation is to analyze those passages and hold fast to the meaning as defined in the passage. In 2 Timothy 2:3-4, Paul says, “Suffer hardship with me, as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No soldier in active service entangles himself in the affairs of everyday life so that he may please the one who enlisted him.” Here, the soldier image refers to enduring difficulty, like a soldier would, and remembering that we are to honor our commander with our obedience. The actions of the armored Christian are to stand firm and to pray (Eph 6:19) specifically, that we would have the words to speak the gospel as we ought.
My question at this point of the message was, “Is the warrior image a good one for Christians? Is it helpful for living a Christian life? Is it helpful in defining our relationship to people?” My response was, “Yes, yes, and yes–as long as we remember that Paul’s instruction was to specifically pray for words in sharing the gospel with people.”
“God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their wrongdoings against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you, on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.” 2 Corinthians 5:19 -20
Without discarding the warrior image of discipline, obedience, and preparedness, we are able to identify that when thinking about people, our guiding image ought to be more “ambassador” and less “warrior.” The shift from being a warrior to an ambassador is a significant one. The warrior exists to win by conquering the enemy. The ambassador exists to win hearts and minds.
At the Matthew 5:9 Fellowship, we seek to support evangelical Christian leaders and pastors in shepherding their communities to live out the Gospel and place their identity in Jesus Christ above partisanship and societal divisions. We believe this fits well with the truth that our savior is a warrior who has conquered death, the devil, and spiritual forces and has given us everything that we need for life and godliness (Eph 1:3). He has committed to us the message of reconciliation and made us His ambassadors.
Keith Myer is the Matthew 5:9 Outreach Manager.
He has been a pastor serving in the Southern Baptist Convention for over twenty years, most recently at Harvest Baptist Church in Salisbury, Maryland. He serves as a trustee of Gateway Seminary in California, as the Associational Missionary for the Eastern Baptist Association, and as the Chair of the BCM/D Sexual Abuse Reform Task Force. The BCM/D Task Force’s work has been incorporated into the SBC’s national response, specifically the 5 Essentials of Train, Screen, Protect, Report, & Care, and the Pathways implementation curriculum.
Jesus’ ministry of peacemaking thrives on trust, transparency, and strong relationships, and so Keith has worked hard to listen and build coalitions that can produce positive change. He enjoys reading and spending time with Nancy, his boys, and their two dogs. He knows with certainty that Coke is better than Pepsi, Dunkin is superior to Starbucks, and The Empire Strikes Back is the best Star Wars movie and the best sci-fi movie ever made.
Keith has an M.Div from Columbia International University and an M.B.A. in Leadership from Liberty University.
Keith Myer is the Matthew 5:9 Outreach Manager.
He has been a pastor serving in the Southern Baptist Convention for over twenty years, most recently at Harvest Baptist Church in Salisbury, Maryland. He serves as a trustee of Gateway Seminary in California, as the Associational Missionary for the Eastern Baptist Association, and as the Chair of the BCM/D Sexual Abuse Reform Task Force. The BCM/D Task Force’s work has been incorporated into the SBC’s national response, specifically the 5 Essentials of Train, Screen, Protect, Report, & Care, and the Pathways implementation curriculum.
Jesus’ ministry of peacemaking thrives on trust, transparency, and strong relationships, and so Keith has worked hard to listen and build coalitions that can produce positive change. He enjoys reading and spending time with Nancy, his boys, and their two dogs. He knows with certainty that Coke is better than Pepsi, Dunkin is superior to Starbucks, and The Empire Strikes Back is the best Star Wars movie and the best sci-fi movie ever made.
Keith has an M.Div from Columbia International University and an M.B.A. in Leadership from Liberty University.
