The threat of sin within and among those who make up the Bride of Christ has existed since the beginning, and the danger of wolves is something we are warned about throughout the Bible. In fact, after three years of strengthening the Ephesian Church through the faithful preaching and teaching of God’s Word, Paul warned: “Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood. I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves men will arise, speaking perverse things to draw away the disciples after them” (Acts 20:28-30). Years after Paul had left Ephesus, Timothy served as their pastor and in his final letter before Paul was executed by Rome, he warned Timothy of difficult days ahead—days I believe we find ourselves in today:
But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, slanderers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, holding to a form of godliness although they have denied its power; avoid such people as these. For among them are those who slip into households and captivate weak women weighed down with sins, led on by various impulses, always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. (2 Tim. 3:1–7)
The threat we face is also individual and internal! The desires of your own sinful flesh are the most immediate and present threat you face! We are warned: “Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world” (1 John 2:15–16). This is why Paul pleaded with the Ephesian Christians to be diligent is how they lived and walked: “Be careful how you walk, not as unwise people but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil” (Eph. 5:15-16).
Although there are wolves who sneak in from the outside and there are real dangers from within, Paul wants us to understand the nature of those threats in Ephesians 6:10-13,
Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. 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. Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist on the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm.” (Eph. 6:10–13)
The very real dangers we face as followers of Jesus includes wolves from the outside and our flesh and sin from within; however, our struggle is cosmic, and it is with the realm of the demonic! My hope and plan for the weeks to come is to not only help you appreciate just how real our struggle is, but to offer you practical ways you can remain strong, stand against the schemes of the devil, and resist the spiritual forces of darkness by standing firm in your faith as a Christian.
We are at War!
Today, I want to turn our attention to Ephesians 6:10, but before I do, you need to understand that if you are a Christian, you are engaged in a cosmic war! It is a war that Paul categorizes as a “struggle.” The Greek word Paul uses for “struggle” is palē (πάλη) which is a word used to describe what is involved in close hand-to-hand combat. In close hand-to-hand combat, you have no choice, for you must chose to fight against the one who wants to harm you, or you must surrender to slaver
