W - A - R

 "Bless the Lord, my Rock, who trains my hands for battle and my fingers for war" Psalm 144:1.

"I Am the commander of the army of the Lord, and now I have come".  Joshua 5:14.

If you watched a modern war film like Hacksaw Ridge or We Were Soldiers, then you come away with one very sobering indeed terrifying conclusion - war is absolute hell on earth. Whilst human violence of any kind is cruel, war takes us to the bleakest expression of barbarism and horror. Thousands - hundreds of thousands, can find themselves in moments the casualties of the most dreadful carnage, not just in death, but because of wounds, physical and psychological, that will never truly heal. A battleground is simply one of the most dreadful places on earth, and yet, each of us in reality are born, live and die in such a zone.

The wars we all fight are not often fought with actual guns, though the damage caused by the conflict is just as total as if we had been pierced by shrapnel. Our enemies are ferocious and continually seeking to complete one objective - our destruction by any means necessary.

There are numerous battalions arrayed against us:

Sin (The fifth column that seeks to sever us from all deliverance).

Death (A 'law' of destruction at work in each of us).

The World (A system which seeks to conform us to despair).

Sins (The miserable twin of Sin, which seeks to choke any hope).

Apollyon (The Devil, The thief who steals, kills and destroys).

Principalities and Powers ('rulers' who seek to end all that is good).

Like the character William Cage in the movie Live, Die, Repeat, we all find ourselves in the midst of a conflict where everything we see, hear and know can prove to be a weapon against us - the enemies are totally overpowering, and there's nothing we can do to change that.

Thankfully, some twenty centuries ago, in a moment where a man was cruelly extinguished on a vicious means of Roman execution, every enemy we have was subdued and made to capitulate to the one person who could vanquish their power amidst total subjection to all of them at once.

The Apostle Paul informs us that as the Lord Jesus hung there upon the cross, seemingly overwhelmed by the powers arrayed against Him, He did the most remarkable thing - His subjugation to such total malevolence didn't eradicate Him as it does us - He was entirely righteous, replete in the nature and power to fully demilitarise every enemy arrayed against us. Included in that victory was not only death, but the forgiveness of our every sin (see Colossians 2:9-14).

So, what is the consequence of this for the person who recognises the certainty of what God has procured in His victorious Son?

Imagine being in a war zone where you know that something which has happened means that victory is absolutely assured, but until that event is evident, you still continue to live in a realm where all the damage, all the shock and trauma that have been incurred, will continue to be present along with the surety of final triumph. That is the Christian life, where both the old reality and the new collide each and every day.

The new reality brings us some vital resources to live through what surrounds us. The essential essence of the victor Himself now lives within and along side us, enabling us to deal with what we face, but the 'equipping' we're provided does not end there.

Back in the 1950's, author Robert Heinlein used his military experience to write a gritty tale about a future mobile infantry unit, whose talent and experience in engaging a frightening enemy were enhanced by the equipment each soldier was provided. Known as power armour, these warriors were equal to anything the opposition threw at them.

To assist us in our continuing struggles, we have been supplied with a complete suit of materials that can help us make each day not only bearable, but worthwhile.

Here's the list of our basic kit:

Head Gear.

We all know it's vital when engaging in certain robust activities to make sure your head is protected, and that's even more the case when it comes to not only what our thoughts dwell upon, but what manner of way we think about and examine the issues that surround us each day. Paul shows us a man that knows about his world - its pursuits, ways of thinking and interests, and he's not afraid to engage with all of these head on because he knows that the message that has so transformed him is equal to the task of contending with the various notions that men would raise in seeking to refute what he was stating.

The excellence of God's word addresses us directly in so many ways, granting us a furnishing of penetrating understanding that is able to hold us through all of life's many phases and changes. It is as we apply this great wisdom to the very roots of what makes us - our thoughts and desires - that we are able to grow and flourish.

Which brings me on to the next realm of central motivations:

Heart Gear.

Seeing our desires and intentions guided and directed in a fashion that guards their strength and power into meaningful, purposeful ends is such a necessary and enriching aspect of what makes life good. It's common for this realm, married to unruly thinking, to become a key source of waywardness which so readily adjusts to habits and practices that can leave us damaged and demeaned. Jesus spoke of our treasure being found where such things are focused, so rather than seeing our lives driven by greed, jealousy, envy and the like, it's wise to see our longing attuned to the things God reveals are good, worthwhile and excellent to pursue.

Soul Gear.

The New Testament speaks of our being dressed as those ready to engage in battle, armed in a manner that we can form up with each other in unity and fellowship to deal effectively with the wiles and onslaughts we're going to confront.

The image employed here, of us as an effective unit in the whole, was something  commonly understood at that time - such legions of troops marched across the known world and were victorious continually against all manner of opponents.

It is as we seek to encourage each other in recalling what's meaningful, pursuing these things, that we truly enrich and cherish the company that Jesus delights to know as His.

The nature of what equips us, then, is complete, but it doesn't merely act to protect us - the intention of such dress and tools is to allow us to take the initiative, to take the battle to the very 'strongholds' of the trends and notions that drive the day and display the far better alternatives in such a manner that what is facile and superficial crumbles into its own smallness as people evidence that surety of the life God is seeking to bestow.

A war which leads to genuine peace and wholeness is a very different affair to the pointless conflicts we so often encounter. Christ comes to conquer to bring that manner of excellence and victory.

There's clearly more to unpack on all of these opening thoughts, but hopefully they'll help point us in the right direction.