Ephesians - Sanctification by Faith in Christ

By E. S. (Emanuel Sprankel) Young

Part II — Doctrinal as to Our State (4:1-6:24)

Chapter VI. The Christian Armor—Equipment for the Conflict and Victory, 6:10-20

 

The Christian church, founded by a crucified Christ here on earth is engaged in a great war. All Christians elected according to the foreknowledge of God are enrolled in this great army and are called to active service. The conflict is not against flesh and blood as our attention has been called to in the different Scriptures by the same author; not against visible and human foes, persecuting governments, unjust magistrates, violent mobs, but against invisible and superhuman powers animated an inspired by Satan himself, with a deep and irreconcilable hatred of God and righteousness. Now for this battle that is raging constantly in which the true followers of Christ are engaged; God alone can give us the strength and the arms which are necessary to defend ourselves, to support our comrades and destroy the enemy. Therefore the Apostle calls our attention to this great need.

1. THE FOES OF THE CHURCH, 6:10-12

Ver. 10. Finally (my brethren), be strong in the Lord, and in the strength of his might.

Paul was living in a period in which the Church, the Body of Christ, was meeting with tremendous conflict in its onward progress. Leaders were falling by the sword, some slain by enemies which could be seen, others from powers unseen. Paul realized this fact and gives warning to all who are with him in this tremendous conflict.

Here, as the Apostle soars in meditation, he does not forget the situation of his readers. The Apostle's words (4: 14) show us how well aware he was of the dangers looming before the church to which he was writing. In studying the other two prison Epistles we find this conflict is constantly present with the author, “For I would that you knew what great conflict I have for you and for them at Laodicea, and for as many as have not seen my face in the flesh” (Col. 2:1).

In writing that Epistle, the Apostle Paul was beset with Spiritual forces, mighty for evil, which had commenced their attack on the outlying posts of Ephesian provinces. He sees in the sky the cloud portending a desolate storm. The clash of hostile arms is heard approaching; and it entered into his own deepest experiences. He gives the church to understand, that as the Head of the church had to suffer to establish a church which has an aim directly opposite to the aim of the world, so the members of that society must have incarnate in themselves the spirit of suffering and be moved by the same love and sacrifice in order to offer to the world that for which the Head died.

Paul means to say that this is no time for sloth or fear, for the half-hearted or half-equipped. Every one of us has need of the best equipment of Spiritual armor to hold the ground in the conflict that is coming upon this society in every period, until the Master Himself returns.

Paul's cry is “To arms!” Preparation must be made and equipment secured before the enemy is upon us. The Christian cannot fight this battle himself. He must make the strength of another his strength. “Who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in Heavenly places in Christ” (1:3). “And hath raised us up together and made us sit together in Heavenly places in Christ Jesus” (2:6). This shows the Christian's exalted place in the world. He belongs to the society that was in the mind of God before the foundation of the world, an elect company made up by paying the price of the death of His own Son. Paul teaches us that this company of believers is now dwelling in the Heavenlies where the Head, Christ, now is (Rom. 8: 26-39), and that there is no separation from the love of Christ, the Head of His Body, the Church. Back of this company is our Heavenly Father, the Lord Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. Equipped to fight under this organization, no matter what the unseen forces of evil may be, one knows before the conflict begins that one fights on the side of victory.

Ver. 11. Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the Devil (crafty ways of the enemy).

Our Lord Jesus Christ described Himself in the conflict with Satan. Christ equips the members of His Body with this whole armor to meet the counter-attacks of Satan and the power of evil. Those who study carefully the origin of evil will learn that Satan, who is heading the forces of evil, has a great host fighting with him. He also furnishes them with the equipment by which to do their work. There is a Heavenly unseen power-house of equipment. Christ's weapons are tempered in Heaven and are wielded by the sons of light (Rom. 13:12). There is also an unseen power-house of equipment for those who are interested in the world, and these weapons are wielded by the men who belong to darkness. Now these weapons of warfare on the two sides are as the two leaders who furnish them. Christ, the strong one armed, is the stronger. The weapons are faith and love against unbelief and hate. The Scripture says (1 John 4:4), “Greater is he that is within you than he that is in the world.” Greater is Christ who furnishes you with this armor than he that is in the world, as represented by unbelief and hatred.

“That ye may be able to stand.” There is no question but what the New Testament assumes the personality of Satan. Satan and Hell are clearly set forth in the Word of God, but this runs contrary to modern thought. This teaching concerning the evil spirits given to us in the Bible, the Word of God, is treated as an absurdity and superstition and the name of the evil one, Satan, with many people is only a careless jest. All who are acquainted with the teaching of the Lord Jesus Christ have learned that Satan is no mere figure of speech, but he is a thinking and active being whose presence and influence is manifested in this evil world.

Now the Lord Jesus Himself, the Head of the Church, speaks what He knows and testifies what He Himself has seen concerning the mystery of this evil force in the world. There can be no question of the existence of a personal devil. Immediately after Christ was baptized He was taken into the wilderness and there, three times, was tested as the King of the Jews, and personally encountered Satan, and it therefore entered into His own deepest experience. In order to bring about the best that God has for His people, Christ could in no sense enter into any compromise with this evil power.

The first prophecy of the Bible is, “The seed of the woman shall bruise the serpent's head.” Jesus taught His Disciples to pray that they might be delivered from the evil one, Satan. The victims whom He healed from disease and madness were so many captives rescued from the malignant power of Satan. Now Jesus fulfilled in part the prophecy and had to meet His death. He viewed it as the supreme conflict with the usurper who claimed to be the “Prince of the world.” Falsehood and hatred are his chief characteristics. Jesus called him the man- slayer, and the father of lies. Through his influence man became disobedient to God.

“Against the wiles of the devil.” The devil here is the active and precise enemy. Through him sin is in the world.. The armor of God and the wiles of the devil are thus opposed to each other. The contest is difficult and hence the next statement:

Ver. 12. For our wrestling (our conflict) is not against flesh and blood, but against the principalities (governments), against the powers (authorities), against the world-rulers of this darkness, against the spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.

Chief among the wiles of the Devil, perhaps, at this time, was the scheme of error, which is cunningly presented, and the Apostle feared that those in the church would be endangered. Satan's empire is ruled with a settled policy and his warfare is carried on with a system of strategy which takes advantage of every opening to attack. Now such is the gigantic opponent with which Christ and the Church have been in conflict through all the ages. The Apostle even teaches that the contest is more than against flesh and blood. Underneath and beyond what is human and sinful, Satan himself is active. Flesh and blood to him is only the division of the armies seen and unseen. The contest with flesh and blood is not, however, on this account excluded.

James writes, “Be subject therefore unto God; but resist the devil and he will flee from you” (Jas. 4: 7). Paul declares that the god of this world hath blinded the eyes of the unbelieving, that the light of the glorious Gospel of Jesus Christ, who is the image of God, should not dawn upon them (2 Cor. 4:4). Paul has warned the Ephesians that if they yield to the excitement and violence of uncontrolled passion they will “give place to the devil” (4:26, 27). He tells the Christians at Corinth to beware of men who will come to them with false teaching and claim to be Apostles of Christ, and to give urgency to his warning he adds, “Even Satan fashioneth himself as an angel of light. It is no great thing, therefore, if his ministers also fashion themselves as ministers of righteousness” (2 Cor. 11:14, 15).

The Apostle speaks of “your adversary the devil—whom withstand, steadfast in the faith” (1 Peter 5:8, 9). In the short epistle written by John, he has no less than six or seven references to this dark and evil power. “I write unto you, young men, because ye have overcome the evil one. I have written unto you, young men, because ye are strong and the word of God abideth in you and ye have overcome the evil one” (1 John 2:13, 14). “He that doeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. To this end was the Son of God manifested that He might destroy the works of the Devil” (1 John 3:8). “In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil; whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother” (1 John 3:10). “Cain was of the evil one and slew his brother” (1 John 3:12). “We know that whosoever is begotten of God sinneth not; but He that was begotten of God keepeth him, and the evil one toucheth him not” (1 John 5:18). “The whole world lieth in the evil one” (1 John 5:19). There are other passages in this same book that the Apostle is using to show unto us that he at this time realized a personality at the head of this onward progress of evil.

Christ, although He died on the cross and ascended into Heaven, did not dislodge and dethrone a prince whose power and malignity were only the fantastic product of a gloomy imagination. It was not for Him—the judge whose lips are to pronounce the sentence which will secure eternal life and blessedness or doom and eternal death—to warn men that He will condemn them to eternal fire prepared for the Devil and his angels, if there is no devil to destroy and if there are no evil angels to share his destruction. The subject was one of active controversy between rival Jewish sects. In using the popular language, Christ took sides on this very question with the one sect and against the other, and that He should have supported opinions which He knew were false, is inconceivable.

”˜But against principalities, and against powers, and against rulers of darkness of this world, and against spiritual wickedness in high places.” They are here entitled principalities and powers after the same style as the angels of God, to whose ranks, as we are compelled to believe, these apostates once belonged. The angels of Satan have become associates with him as the god of this world and swaying the dominion of darkness, he is the ruler of the world of darkness. Nero was the wicked emperor of Rome when Paul was writing this and was under the direction of Satan. Pilate also was a specimen, by no means among the worst of the men in power. Jesus regarded him with pity.

St. Paul's demonology is identical with that of Jesus'. The two doctrines stand or fall together. The advent of Christ appears to have stirred to extraordinary activity the satanic powers. Satanic powers in an age of scepticism like our own are the wiles of the devil and work obscurely. The fight is not against flesh and blood. We need metal of another kind. The foes of our faith are untouched by carnal weapons. They come upon us without being detected by sense of seeing or hearing. They assail the will and conscience. They follow us into the regions of spiritual thought, or prayer and meditation. Hence, the weapons of our warfare, like those which the Apostle wielded (2 Cor. 10:2-5), are not carnal, but spiritual and mighty toward God.

The Apostle had personal enemies to meet. There were wild beasts with whom Saint Paul fought at Ephesus, the heathen mobs of the city, then Alexander the coppersmith, ready to do the Apostle evil, and the Jews from Asia, a party of whom all but murdered him in Jerusalem. You have read of Demetrius the silversmith who was at the head of a mob that drove him out of Ephesus because Paul damaged the trade of those who sold idols through the progress of this new religion. These were formidable foes, but simply brought terror to the flesh and body, yet back of this opposition was a mightier foe. The center of the struggle lies elsewhere. The Apostle looks beyond the ranks of his earthly foes. The church has all the time been undergoing an inner conflict with systems of error which were in the mind of the age. These forces opposed the Christian truth from without. They become far more dangerous when they find their way into the church, undermining her teaching and practice. The religious world is wonderously divided. The division comes by believing different isms, introduced by men not thoroughly grounded in the Word of Truth, not able to “contend earnestly for the faith once delivered unto the saints.”

God has placed us in this new society, this church that Christ Himself is building. It is standardized by the Word of God. In all ages God has had a separate people. Men and women who come into that society and are playing for an influence over the world to establish a standard more liberal than the Word of God, are giving Satan his way in the church and using his influence to modernize what is known as the truth of God. It is then that the Word becomes standardized and influenced by the leaders who are not acquainted thoroughly with the program of God.

The church is made up of members known as the Body of Christ, who dwell in Heavenly places and because of this are assailed by the powers of Hell. Christ died on the cross because His teaching was in direct opposition to a church already influenced by the teachings of the world. The Church that has Christ for its Head is in opposition to the world and is attacked by Satan, as Christ Himself was, so it is no wonder that Paul teaches that, “If so be that we suffer with Him that we may also be glorified with Him” (Rom. 8: 17). The “Glorified with Him” means only those who suffer with Him and not those who are building separate bodies.

“In the heavenlies.” Through Christ we have been exalted. We are in Heavenly places in Christ Jesus. Our Head is in Heaven. Our foes try to take Heaven from us. If we keep on dwelling in Heavenly places and our associations are right with the different members of the Body of Christ and we ever look to our Head for whom the Body is being built, no matter what the influences may be that play upon us, we shall be able to hold our place and gain our victory through Him who is known as the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

QUESTIONS

  • Why say, “From henceforth be strong in the Lord”?

  • How can the Christian best meet the foes of the church?

  • Explain meaning of “wiles of the devil.”

  • Is there no wrestling against flesh and blood?

  • What two great forces are in opposition to each other?

  • Who are the leaders of both forces?

  • What is the source of the armor used by the enemies of the church?

  • How do these enemies attack us, who are organized as hosts of wickedness, in Heavenly places?

 

2. THE WHOLE ARMOR OF GOD, 6:13-18

The Christians are raised to Heavenly places of fellowship with Christ and invested with lofty characters as sons and children of God, and as such, they must hold their ground. They must maintain the honor of their calling and have secure their highest state, thus being able to stand fast in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. Every good soldier of Christ Jesus contends for his Heavenly city and household of faith. Now the defense that the Apostle speaks about here is for an evil day that is coming. The Apostle Paul foresaw the crisis of extreme danger to which the Church of Christ, during this age of grace, would be exposed. Christ taught from the first that as He was in the world, so they would be in the world, and that there would be constant conflict and opposition by the world in holding the truth as presented by the Lord Jesus Christ. Every desperate struggle of Christ's Body must finally result in triumph.

In the second epistle to the Thessalonians, Paul presents to the church some of the forecasts of Christ's visions and judgments. It culminates in the evil day of Antichrist, which is to usher in the coming of the Lord Jesus. This consummation, as the Apostle was inclined to think, might arrive within the generation in which he lived, although he declared its times and seasons are wholly unknown. The final day of the Lord Jesus Christ is sure to come. There is a great crisis to be met by Paul and the church to whom he is writing. They were approaching the destruction of Jerusalem and the scattering of the people who had returned to Palestine.

Ver. 13. Wherefore take up the whole (complete) armor of God, that ye may be able to withstand (resist) in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

This is every Christian's duty. It is an armor offered without money and without price to every soldier who enlists to fight under the banner of the King. It is the armor that is prepared in Heaven's munition plant and has been tried out, and those who fought under the protection of this whole armor found it not burdensome to wear but that it gave security and confidence of protection and victory. No one can go into this conflict with the unseen foe, having been careless concerning any part of the armor furnished us by One who is to lead on to victory.

“That ye may be able to stand” and “that ye may be able to withstand.” That is, that ye may be prepared for the approaching evil period into which we are being ushered. “Stand” is the watchword for this battle. The Apostle's order for the day, “That ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil” and that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, the day of peril, and “having done all, to stand.” That is, having accomplished all that we can accomplish and yet be able to stand. It is the victorious keeping the field in the place of contest, the opposite of yielding, of being thrown down. The Apostle here treats of doing the Divine will in order to make the way through all assaults and conflicts from the organized forces of demons, without being led astray or weakened.

The armor consists of seven pieces, offensive and defensive, if we count prayer. These make up the whole armor: (1) the girdle of truth, (2) the breastplate of righteousness, (3) the shoes of readiness to bear the message of peace, (4) the shield of faith, (5) the helmet of salvation, (6) the sword of the Word, and (7) the cry of prayer.

Ver. 14. Stand therefore, having girded your loins with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness.

Stand ready for the fight. The soldier, in girding himself for the field, fastens around his waist the military belt. To this he binds his garments that there may be none loose or trailing about him, and prepares himself for action. Everything about the warrior is tense and firm; his dress, his figure and movements speak of decision and concentrated energy. He stands before us, an image of resolution, impressing us with the fact that his mind is made up. This is what comes to us from the person that is “girt about with truth.” It is the solemn conviction of what we believe. If the Christian is girdled with truth, he will be honest and upright and will not lie or deceive. It is the truth that is in Jesus that is his girdle.

You must dwell in this truth of Jesus and make it your own. Only by faithful searching and being honest will this truth become the girdle of truth to the soldiers of the cross. This is an age when faith should be strengthened through a better knowledge of God and His Word. We need the faith of an intelligent, firm, and manly assurance, a faith that does not depend upon intellectual greatness or physical security, but lays hold of the truth of Jesus Christ. In other words, it is the Word of God that furnishes us with the girdle, or the girdle is furnished by God Himself, but it is truth of the Word from which the girdle is made. Truth appropriated is made into a girdle of strength, firmness and decision of Christian life and action. It relieves us from the entanglement and distraction which comes from uncertainty and doubt and gives us a complete command of all our vigor. It can only be said of those who do this, that they are able to stand because the truth that is in Christ Jesus has made it possible for God to furnish the girdle through which to secure them for action.

“And having on the breastplate of righteousness.” This protects the vital organs of the soldier. In the picture drawn in 1 Thess. (5:8), the breastplate is made of faith and love. It is the state of one who is right with God and God's law. It is the righteousness both of standing and of character. These are never separate in the true doctrine of grace. The righteousness that is of faith, is the soul's main defense against the shafts of Satan. Does the enemy bring up against you the old sins? You meet it at once by saying, “It is God that justifieth; who is he that condemneth” (Rom. 8: 33, 34) ? There is wonderful protection in this breastplate of righteousness. From this breastplate the arrows of the tempter fall pointless. “He that doeth righteousness is righteous. He that is born of God doth not commit sin” (1 John 3:7-9).

Ver. 15. And having shod your feet with the preparation of the Gospel (glad tidings) of peace.

The soldier thus having on the girdle of truth and the breastplate of righteousness, must as he enters this army look well to his feet. He is provided shoes of wonderful make. Now, what is the quality of the shoes most needed ? The soldier must have on his feet shoes by which he may move with alertness over all sorts of ground. The Apostle's feet were shod with shoes of this kind. This is the spirit of a man who was ready to move forward against any opposition. You can hear him say that he is ready to preach the glad tiding to all who are in Rome.

“Having shod your feet,” you are thus shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace (Cp. Isa. 52:7; Nahum 1:15). It is the Gospel of God. It is the Gospel of conflict with the world. While it is in conflict with the world, it is the Gospel that brings peace to the soul. It gives man the right relationship to God. The fact that God is at peace with us gives us confidence. We are not merely ready; we are eager for every good work. We are like a man whose feet are well shod. They can stand firm and they can run. They are prepared to resist the shock of the enemy's assault. They strike him and pursue him when the assault is repelled. We are soldiers having our feet shod with preparation. This is the readiness of the Gospel of peace. These shoes are furnished to you by the one who sends you out on the mission of peace.

Ver. 16. Withal taking up the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the evil one.

That is, in addition to. It means, in all things and under all occasions, having on the girdle of truth and the breastplate of righteousness, the feet properly shod with the gospel of peace, we are now ready for the shield of faith. There are thousands of perils against which faith, love, and power of God are our only protection. With all our civilization and education, we have perhaps never stood so much in need of faith as in this hour of gloom. The hopes that men cherish of a Golden age, concerning which they are trying to unite the forces, seem to us nothing more than the illusions of the imagination which can never satisfy the heart's unrest, because such a union is not in harmony with the teaching of God's Word. God Himself is our shield, hence it is faith in the Lord Jesus Christ that is our security.

The shield was made of hides and metal, curved round so as to protect the whole body. This would protect the soldier from the fiery darts of the enemy. The shield of faith protects the soldier, so that the fiery darts of the enemy fall extinguished at his feet. Such is the shield of faith by which “we will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one.” In this hour of anguish we are like soldiers wounded by the darts. We want to be safe when that evil day comes. It must find us with strong and invincible faith in God. This will be a perfect defense apart from which we can have no secure protection. No wonder the Apostle after presenting the girdle of truth, the breastplate of righteousness and feet shod with readiness of the gospel of peace, emphasizes this shield of faith so much needed in this evil day of doubt and modernism when many lose out because they are not willing to wear the armour that Christ has furnished for protection.

Ver. 17. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.

We are insecure until we make completely our own the great redemption that God has achieved for us in Christ. The man and woman that is secure is made so by a proper standing in the Lord Jesus Christ. The Christ who bought him has given him complete salvation. He now has experienced salvation by forgiveness; by faith in the thing that God says, he stands justified before God. He testifies by actions and words, not in any uncertain way, but as a positive witness for God.

There are too many soldiers now fighting for the Lord without such a helmet. We have the hope of looking forward to a glorious return of the Lord. We are conscious of the infinite power and grace of God. These different parts of the armor are all given us for the defensive: the girdle of truth, the breastplate, the shoes, the shield, the helmet, but a soldier needs more than simply protection. An army with soldiers who are simply depending upon protection and nothing more, cannot be counted upon. We must have a weapon for conquest—“The Sword of the Spirit.” We must have weapons for attacking and destroying the enemy. We belong to an army and are fighting for victory and for the complete destruction of the armies and power of the spiritual hosts of the wicked one. It is not enough that we have personal safety, but we are to fight the enemies with a Sword of the Spirit, the Word of God.

The world is full of doubt, the world is full of religions. These doubts and these religions that are without the Christ must not only be repelled but they must be destroyed. Of the Messiah it was said in language quoted by the Apostle against Anti-Christ (2 Thess. 2:8), “He shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked” (Isaiah 11:4). Similar in Hosea: “Therefore have I hewed them by His prophets, I have slain them by the words of His mouth” (Hosea 6:5). Again in Hebrews (4:12), “The word of God living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword.” (Also see Rev. 1: 16, 2:12, 19:13-15.)

This Sword of the Spirit—the Word of God—the Apostle Paul wielded with superhuman effect. He rebuked the sorcerer, he defended the Gospel against the Judaizers of Galatia and Corinth.

“Heaven and earth shall pass away but my word shall not pass away.” The Son of Man put it to test in his temptation in the wilderness. Satan himself sought to resist this sword. With adulterated truths in his mouth he tempted our Lord. Jesus, who is truth, repelled Satan and drove him from the field and said, “Get thee behind me Satan.”

The soldier is harnessed from head to foot. He is clothed in arms that are supernatural. We must be strong, but our strength must be of some one else and that is the Lord. With all these equipments the Apostle goes a step farther:

Ver. 18. With all prayer and supplication praying at all seasons in the Spirit, and watching thereunto in all perseverance and supplication for all the saints.

So the Apostle adds this besides. It is essential to be mentioned in connection with the offensive and defensive work of the children of God. It is not a needless repetition. God speaks to man in His Word; man talks to God in prayer. The Bible is the best book on prayer. Only those who know God and His Word can talk to Him in a way that pleases Him and to these He will be willing to make His program for humanity known.

We must know our Captain and talk to Him and He to us at every turn of this great battle in which we are on the defensive and using the offensive weapon. Christian prayer is always in the Spirit, being offered in the grace and power of the Holy Spirit, who is the indwelling Person in the Body which is the temple of the Holy Ghost. The Holy Spirit helps our infirmities and weaknesses and virtually intercedes for us (Rom. 8:26, 27).

“And watching thereunto with all perserverance.” Prayer is of necessity, both for our own defense and for the destruction of the Kingdom of darkness. The Christian needs to be on his guard. Perseverance here is necessary. Prayer is an education. The Master taught us how to pray. He is a good Teacher. He hears our prayers and brings them to the Father. The Holy Spirit helps us make these prayers, if we are willing to have them made in harmony with the will of God and “supplication for all the saints.”

It is in the church at large that the Apostle Paul is interested. Every Christian equipped with this armor will be in constant training in the use of the Sword of the Spirit. He talks to God in behalf of every member of the Body of Christ. By the bonds of prayer we are knit together—a band of saints throughout the earth, unknown by face or name to our fellows, but one in love of Christ and all engaged in the same perilous and victorious conflict.

QUESTIONS

  • Why was it necessary to take the whole armor of God?

  • What is the evil day referred to in Ver. 13?

  • If it is so important to stand, are we making the required preparation?

  • Name the defensive and offensive weapons.

  • Explain each defensive armor.

  • Give the offensive weapon and its use.

  • How may we learn to pray as suggested here?

  • For whom should we pray?

 

3. PERSONAL APPLICATION OF PRAYER, 6:19-20

(Cp. Col. 4:2-4)

We had introduced the cry of prayer with the armor, believing that he who has this is completely armed. It was customary of the Grecian armies, before they engaged in a conflict, to offer prayers to their gods for their success and the Apostle shows that these spiritual warriors must depend upon the Captain of their salvation for help and victory. We should be ever ready for public and private communion with God in the great interest of safety and progress, both of ourselves and the church, because everything depends upon Him who is our Captain, who can alone save and can alone destroy. The Apostle exhorted the Christian to pray with all prayer. It may be performed in public, in the family, in the closet, in the heart, on the way, without a voice, and with a voice from the heart. Now all of these are necessary to a genuine Christian. He whose heart is right with God will be frequent in prayer.

The author of these church letters was especially conscious of the opposing forces that had to be met. The Apostle stood in the forefront of this great battle. He was a soldier for the cause of His Master, Christ. He was a mark for the attacks of the enemies of the Gospel, and he prays more than any for the safety and progress of the Christian Church (Phil. 1:25). At this time he naturally says, “Watching unto prayer in all perseverance, and supplication for all the saints.”

Ver. 19. And on my behalf, that utterance may be given unto me in opening my mouth, to make known with boldness the mystery (secret) of the Gospel.

He was in need of a strong heart in this conflict when the opposition is more than that which comes from flesh and blood, by unseen foes on each side. The most difficult to meet are those who find their way into the church and pretend to be true to the Word and yet use their influence for material gain in a large measure, and make it almost impossible for men who are true to the Word to stand against those whom Paul calls false brethren. Paul was under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit and made much of his Heavenly allies. This privilege was continually open to him and this great teacher of the Gentiles, with unlimited faith, and with the girdle of truth, was able to open his mouth and speak forth the words of Truth.

Would it not have been a tremendous blow upon the early Christian Churches if the enemy could have closed his mouth; in some way closed the channel through which inspiration came to him, and instead of being the great teacher of the Gentiles, which increased faith in the Truth, would have commenced to question the authority of the Word of God and occasionally presented doubt instead of truth? In any century such a man as Paul giving way would have been a sore discouragement to the friends of Christ. In this letter (3:13) Paul says, “My afflictions are your glory, my unworthy testimony of Christ in the showing forth in praise of all men and angels” (Phil. 1:20; 2 Tim. 4: 17). “Pray for me then that I may speak and act in this hour of trial in a manner worthy of the dispensation given me.”

Now strong and confident as the Apostle was, he felt himself to be nothing without prayer. In the study of all his writings we learn that he expected the support in intercession of all who loved him in Christ. He knew and experienced that he was helped by this means on numberless occasion and ways, and now he asks right here, “Pray for me/' The specific thing that he wants them to pray for is utterance, that this gift may be given him from the Lord.

“That I may open my mouth boldly.” He is asking for courage, fulness, freedom, and fit opportunity. A word thus uttered in the opening of the mouth by God, is God's Word. He therefore wished the word, not for himself and his heart, hut a word in his mouth for others in the furtherance of the conflict which tends to peace.

Jesus said to His apostles, “It shall be given to you in that hour, what you shall speak when brought before the rulers and kings” (Matt. 10: 18-20). The Apostle now stands before the Roman world. He has appealed to Caesar and awaits his trial. If he has not yet appeared at the empire's tribunal, he shortly will have to do so. Christ's ambassador is about to appear in chains before the highest of human courts. It is not his own life or freedom that he is concerned about. It is not flesh and blood that he is thinking of. The ambassador has only to consider how he will represent his sovereign's interest. Christ is his Master; is his Lord, and now shall he be true, clothed with Christ's armor, when he stands before the man of the Roman court? The man wearing the girdle of truth, who is the mouthpiece of the Holy Spirit, cannot but be subject to His individual thought or will.

Jesus said, “The words that I speak unto you, I speak not of myself.” The Apostle intends to open his mouth and he knows for whom he must open it, so he must have the true word given unto him. Now, can we not pray for Christ's ambassadors and especially for men who are the mouthpieces of God, that when they open their mouths, they may only open them to present the message given by the Master Himself?

He wants boldness to make known the mystery of the Gospel. He wants freedom and confidence of speech. Paul realizes the fact that the Gospel is a mystery. The Apostle was separated unto the Gospel of God. This Gospel of God is a revelation from God. In this Gospel is revealed the righteousness of God which is received by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. This part of the Gospel, however, was not hidden from before the creation of the world. It was set forth in the Old Testament in types and figures, and revealed in the New Testament, but the mystery referred to here is a secret concerning this Gospel that was hidden from before the foundation of the world. It was hidden in God and never presented in the Scriptures for man until it was made known to the Apostle Paul.

He writes this church letter for this age of grace and now the Apostle asks the prayers of the saints, that he might have boldness not only to reveal the Gospel, but to reveal this mystery concerning the Body of the Lord Jesus Christ. The middle wall or partition is broken down between Jew and Gentile, and this mystery is the making out of individuals, from these separate nations, through regeneration, One New Man, a society, a Church, known as the Body of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Ver. 20. For which I am an ambassador in (bonds) chains; that in it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.

An ambassador is a representative of a King. His person is in all countries held sacred. Contrary to the rites of nations, this ambassador of the King of Heaven was put in chains. He had, however, the opportunity to defend himself and to vindicate the honor of his Master.

“That therein, I may speak boldly.” That is, in matters of the Gospel mystery. “They have bound me but they cannot bind the Word of God” (2 Tim. 1:7-12). He was not ashamed of the Gospel when he came to Rome years before (Rom. 1:16), and he is not ashamed now, though he has come in chains as an evildoer.

Paul was writing to the Ephesian Christians who had strong affection for him. For three years he had lived in and about the city, and during that time ceased not to reveal the blessings of God. Such a Church would naturally be anxious to know about his health and prospect of release.

“As I ought to speak.” Much depends upon this. He must indeed testify. That is of necessity, and he can only testify in harmony with the Master under whom he serves. A minister must speak as he ought to speak because he is under the authority of the chief shepherd and cannot, if he wants to have Christ's will done, speak in any other way than under the direction of Him who gives him his commission.

QUESTIONS

  • What did Paul say about prayer in connection with the armor?

  • Why did Paul say, “And on my behalf”?

  • Why did not Paul ask prayer for deliverance from prison?

  • Is the Gospel still a mystery?

  • To whom was Paul an ambassador in bonds?

 

 
Book Navigation Title Page Systematic Bible Study Map Epistles to the 7 Churches Introduction Dedication Table of Contents Part 1 ► Chapter 1 ► Chapter 2 ► Chapter 3 Part 2 ► Chapter 1 ► Chapter 2 ► Chapter 3 ► Chapter 4 ► Chapter 5 ► Chapter 6 ► Chapter 7

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