I’m back! After a 25 day Posterous hiatus, here’s a new sermon:
Ephesians 6:10-20
I believe Dulins Grove will soon enter an exciting new season of ministry and we need to prepare by going to the armory.
In Ephesians, Paul connects the glories of the gospel to the mundane matters of life. Let’s start here. Is there a disconnect between God and your real life? Church and work? Sunday and Monday? To prepare for a new season of ministry, we’ll need to destroy the disconnect. Honest, transparent, and vulnerable realities of life must flood into our church as the gospel pours out into our relationships and routines. For this to happen, we must be strong.
Be Strong
The analogy Paul uses here is war. Christians are at war with a real enemy that schemes, wrestles, and fires against them. If we are to move ahead as a church, we must expect Satan’s opposition and prepare for it by being strong in the Lord and the strength of his might.
Be Strong in the Lord
The Bible is a bit paradoxical when it comes to strength and weakness (see: 1 Cor. 1:23-31; 12:22; 15:43; 2 Cor. 12:5-10). It teaches that you must be weak to be strong. In fact, it is in your weakness that you find the most strength. Strange, I know. But think about it. We were never meant to be strong in ourselves, no matter what the self-help priests teach. We were always meant to rely on God for strength and it is our weakness that turns us toward him.
It is in our confusion that we reach for the belt of truth. In our inability to do right we reach for the breastplate of righteousness. In our unfitness to love people we lace up the boots of gospel readiness. In our fear we hoist the shield of faith. In our damnation we dawn the helmet of salvation. And in our defenselessness we grip the sword of the Spirit.
Look down. Are you spiritually naked on the battlefield of life? Let’s go to the armory, and prepare for what’s to come.
Discussion Starters
1. How do you think Dulin’s Grove is doing as a church?
– Where are we weak?
– What should change? What should stay the same?
– What do you base these opinions on?
2. What aspect(s) of God, the gospel, and chuch are most difficult for you to connect to real life? Why?
3. Read Ephesians 6:10-20. What areas of your life most clearly reflect the fact that we are at war (i.e. areas in which you feel Satan’s opposition)?
4. Looking at the items listed in Ephesians 6:14-17, which do you need most right now? Why?
5. How can you serve each other as a group in light of this passage?
