The Heavenly Realms - 8/24/2018

WARNING PREACHY…

Ephesians 6:10-18

¹⁰ Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. ¹¹ Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. ¹² 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. ¹³ 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. ¹⁴ Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, ¹⁵ and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. ¹⁶ In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. ¹⁷ Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.  ¹⁸ 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 Lord’s people.

I always seem to forget that my struggles are actually a result of a spiritual reality; that even though my eye-balls may see a physical cause to my earthly woes, that the underlying reality is actually of a spiritual concern.

Have you ever seen the movie The Matrix? (1999)  It’s a sci-fi movie where the real world is merely a computer-generated wool pulled over the human’s eyes but a few people have broken free of the ruse and are determined to get the truth out.  The movie is of course fictitious but the element about the real-world being a ruse, that bit strikes true to the reality of the spiritual world in which our physical world exists.

When my wife and I are having a spat, I too quickly and easily get sucked up into the battle with her.  It isn’t until later after we have both said hurtful things to one another that I remember that the only one honored in a faltering marriage is the evil one.

When my children aggravate me because they are just being children, and then only after I have unloaded all of my adult fury and power over them, in order to wield them into physical obedience, do I remember that the Evil One desires for me to destroy my family.

When I discover at the end of the month that there is a whole lot more month than money and I begin to connive, cajole, bargain, and steal to make my month end as I want, I am reminded that it delights the evil one that I am not practicing faith and trusting in God.  

My life is like everyone else’s as there are countless trials and struggles, but when I stop and remember that my physical reality is merely a part of a much larger spiritual one, then it helps me to calm down and remember to adjust myself and take on a posture of faith; the faith of God through Christ my Lord.