Ephesians 6:10–20, Mark 7:14–23

Ephesians 6:10–20 10Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. 11Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. 12For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. 13Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. 14Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. 16In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; 17and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, 18praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, 19and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, 20for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak.

GOSPEL LESSON:　　Mark 7:14–23 14[Jesus] called the people to him again and said to them, “Hear me, all of you, and understand: 15 There is nothing outside a person that by going into him can defile him, but the things that come out of a person are what defile him.” 17And when he had entered the house and left the people, his disciples asked him about the parable. 18And he said to them, “Then are you also without understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into a person from outside cannot defile him, 19 since it enters not his heart but his stomach, and is expelled?” (Thus he declared all foods clean.) 20And he said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him. 21 For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, 22 coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. 23 All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.”

We need protection. The world is dangerous. There are thieves so we lock our doors. The summer sun is hot so we wear a hat and sun screen. There are the police, the military, and the fire department. The traffic laws protect us from reckless drivers. Even the Ten Commandments protect us. I read a book by Martin Luther, where he said that the Commandment “Do not kill” was there so that others would not hurt or harm me. Not only that I do not steal, but the Commandment tells others not to steal from me. And we pray for God’s protection, “Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.”

There are many evils, like bad people, disease, war, natural disasters, and the like. We pray for protection from these things. St. Paul himself knew about all of these distressful things. When he wrote the letter to the Church in Ephesus he was a prisoner. He calls himself “an ambassador in chains,” 6:20. And yet he knew that there were more vicious things to worry about. There was the devil. And so he wrote Ephesians 6:10–13.

“10Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. 11Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. 12For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. 13Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm.”

The armor of God includes: the belt of truth, breastplate of righteousness, shoes for your feet having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

This armor protects our faith. We are not fighting. God protects us from the devil.

At the time of Jesus, the Jews thought they could protect their faith by keeping a lot of regulations. One of those regulations forbid certain foods that were not kosher.

Jesus told his disciples that all food was okay to eat. It is not what we take into our bodies that make us sinful, but what comes out of our hearts. Jesus said it this way, Mark 7:20-23,

20And he said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him. 21 For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, 22 coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. 23 All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.”

So, what needs to be protected is our heart, our mind, the source of all evil. And this is when the Armor of God that St. Paul speaks of becomes important.

We look to Jesus for protection. When Jesus fought the devil for us, he had no weapon. There was no sword in his hands, rather there were nails. There was no armor and even his clothes were taken by the soldiers. It seemed that even his Father had abandoned him. But in this wonderful way, he forgave our sin. The devil’s weapon is our sin. And so Jesus took away from the devil the weapon of sin that could defeat us. Sin and doubt could defeat us into giving up the fight.

Jesus won that fight. He arose from the dead on the third day. He was victorious. To protect us, he promised to be with us always, even to the end of the world. That is our sure protection.

Amen.