Christian Avengers

I love the Avengers.  Of all the movies I’ve ever seen, of all the series I’ve ever watched, truly the Avengers is my favorite.  And it’s NOT because the men are so good-looking!  (Although, I would like to thank Hollywood for that part.  It sure doesn’t hurt the movie that Thor, Ironman, and Captain American are easy on the eyes!)  The part that I love is that each super hero has their own impressive gifts to fight the bad guys, and that is coupled with romance, love, and some downright fun action adventure.  Thor would not be Thor without his hammer.  Captain America would not be Captain American without his patriotic shield.  Ironman would not be Ironman without his computerized super-suit.  These super heroes do not go into battle without their armor.  But, we Christians do.

Ephesians 6 reminds us that we are in a battle in this world, and how we should dress for that battle.

A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.

Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm. Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness.  For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared.  In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil.  Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

 Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere.

(Ephesians 6:10-18 NLT Version)

Jesus told us that we would have struggles in this world because He knew we are broken people that live in a broken world.  Some of those struggles are self-inflicted due to poor decisions. (i.e. ~ I choose to each nachos for supper this past week so therefore I did not lose the weight I was hoping to lose.  Poor decision!)  Some of those struggles are due to the bad decisions of others.  (i.e.~  My child decided to not follow a teacher’s instruction at school one day and therefore I had to have a conversation with the him and the teacher.  His fault, but it impacted me and my time.  I suspect it won’t happen again because I clearly communicated my disappointment if you get my drift!)  And, sometimes the struggles are because we simply live in a broken world. (I have itchy eyes this week because of stinking Mountain Cedar pollen.  The struggle is real y'all!! There will be NO Mountain Cedar pollen in Heaven!!!)

God loves us and knows that we live in a broken world.  We would never send our children into a battle unprepared, and so is the case with our Lord.  He has given us tools to help us in this broken world.

• The Belt of Truth – Truth helps keep all of our armor in place just like a belt does.  God does not just want us to point to the truth, He wants us to wear it.  Truth comes from the Word of God and is spoken to us by the Holy Spirit.
• The Breastplate of Righteousness – We are seen as righteous with God because of the Blood of Jesus.  We are to shield our hearts with the knowledge of our righteousness.  Also, since breastplates cover our fronts, we are not to turn our back to our struggles.  We are to face them head on because of our righteous.  We are His children.
• The Shield of Faith – We constantly have arrows being fired at us from the evil one, but we can put up our Shield of Faith and shoot those arrows down.
•  The Helmet of Salvation – Our helmets protect our brains from injury.  We need to put on our Helmet of Salvation and protect what goes into our brains.  We should be concerned about what goes into our minds.
• The Shoes of Peace – Our feet take us where we are to go, and if they are hurting our whole body suffers.  We need to wear peace to keep our whole body from suffering, and we need to not be anxious about anything, but in everything have peace.  God is on our side!
•   The Sword which is God’s Word – A sword is an offensive weapon.  Knowing God’s Word will help us resist the devil and he will flee.

 In the Avenger movies, Nick Fury is the Colonel that leads the team of Avengers.  Each Avenger receives his direction and encouragement and information from Nick.  Once the Avengers are dressed for battle, it is Nick that gives them the game plan. And so it is with Christians.  Once we put on the Armor of God, we must go to Our Commander in prayer so we will know the game plan.  Prayer is an important piece of the life of a Christian.  We receive our direction, encouragement and information through prayer with our Father.  Without prayer it we are walking into battle each day not knowing the plan.

·       What do you find interesting about the Armor of God?

·       How are you with putting on God’s Armor each and every day?

 Lord, thank you that you have equipped your children for this World.  And thank you that while we will have struggles in this world, we are can be encouraged that You have overcome this world.  Help us Lord as we fight against evil.  In the name of Jesus we ask these things – Amen.