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Predigt vom 25.10.2026 - Der geistliche Kampf - eine Zurüstung — Transcript

by Olaf Latzel - St. Martini Gemeinde · 7,419 words · 1,068 segments · language en · Watch on YouTube

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0:00Grace to you and peace from Him who was
0:03and is and who is to come for all
0:06eternity, our Lord and our Savior Jesus
0:09Christ. Amen. Dear congregation, life
0:14is a struggle. This is a philosophical
0:19insight. This is not merely some banal
0:21saying that is used in such a
0:23colloquial manner. Seneca, the great
0:26Stoic, stated exactly 2,000 years ago
0:28that to live is to be a fighter in this
0:31life. Voltea, the great Enlightenment
0:35thinker, called it exactly that. This
0:38saying is time and again attributed to
0:40him: "Life is a struggle." Or the
0:44atheist religious philosopher Nietzsche
0:48stated: "Struggle is life and life is
0:53struggle. Struggle is life." This
0:57concept permeates all of philosophy,
0:59yet it is not limited to philosophy
1:01alone. If we break it down into all
1:04areas of existence, we find this
1:06confirmed: life is indeed a struggle.
1:08To put it quite banally: we are here in
1:10Bremen, the city of Werder Bremen, and
1:13we lack the footballing resources of a
1:15club like FC Bayern Munich. How could
1:17Werder possibly remain in the league if
1:18they simply play football, instead of
1:20actually fighting? I can guarantee it,
1:22even without ever having been inside
1:23the Werder dressing room: this is a
1:25recurring topic that the coach
1:26addresses every single time he prepares
1:28his team. It is a struggle. In every
1:30sport, you must fight in order to
1:32achieve victory. This is a struggle in
1:34sports, but there is something much
1:38more important than this useless sport:
1:40marriage. Many people hold the belief
1:43that once they have finally found the
1:44woman of their life or the man of their
1:46life, everything will just work out all
1:47by itself. No, marriage is Fight. I
1:50spoke to someone just a few weeks ago
1:52who had registered for a marriage
1:53counselor, and they both decided
1:54together that they wanted to fight for
1:56their marriage now and work to save it
1:58for the future. That's when things
2:00really get going. Anyone can overcome
2:02the highs, but when the crises come,
2:04even marriage is a fight. Those who are
2:06newly married should know that.
2:08Marriage is also a fight. The economic
2:13fight, the big fight that is currently
2:17looming. The Chinese, who want to be
2:19number one, economically supporting
2:22everything in their own economy with
2:24the automotive industry, are fighting
2:26against our car manufacturers, fighting
2:28for markets, for sales, ultimately for
2:31jobs, for prosperity. Ultimately, the
2:33entire economy is a fight. Our entire
2:38society is politics, a fight. You only
2:41have to look at the defense budget. In
2:442020, we had a defense budget that
2:46amounted to 45 billion euros. The
2:49federal government's total economic
2:51budget at that time was 500 billion, or
2:53about 9%. It has been recognized that
2:56we Germans must be fit for war again,
2:58that we must learn how to fight once
3:00more. Today, our defense budget
3:02currently stands at approximately 110
3:04billion for this year. with an ETA of
3:06525. That means we have reached a level
3:08over 20%. Why? Because the Germans must
3:11become combat-ready again, also in the
3:13political sphere, or else I will simply
3:15stop providing these examples in the
3:17field of health care as well. I
3:19recently spoke to someone who was
3:20seriously ill with cancer and a man who
3:21had succeeded in everything in his life
3:23. Then came this sentence: "Now the
3:25battle of my life begins." In this way,
3:29I could carry on and go through every
3:30one of these different areas. Life is a
3:32battle, but the point that I am trying
3:34to make is that the exact same thing
3:36applies to the spiritual realm as well.
3:39Following Jesus Christ is also a battle
3:41. And this is what the text, the
3:44epistle, the letter reading for this
3:46Sunday, proclaims. We want to hear as
3:49our sermon text the passage from
3:51Ephesians chapter six, verses ten
3:52through nineteen. There, the apostle
3:59Paul, being filled with the Holy Spirit
4:01, writes: "Finally, be strong in the
4:03Lord and in the power of his might. Put
4:07on the whole armor of God, so that you
4:09may be able to stand firm against the
4:11crafty and deceitful schemes of the
4:13devil." For our struggle is not against
4:16flesh and blood, but against the
4:18principalities, against the powers,
4:20against the rulers of this present
4:22darkness, and against the evil spirits
4:25that dwell in the heavenly realms.
4:29Therefore, put on the full armor of God
4:31, that you may be able to withstand in
4:33the evil day and overcome everything
4:36and stand your ground. Stand firm
4:40therefore, having your arms girded
4:42about with truth, and having put on the
4:44breastplate of righteousness, and
4:46having shod your feet with the
4:48preparation for the gospel of peace.
4:52Above all, take up the shield of faith,
4:54with which you will be able to
4:56extinguish all the flaming arrows of
4:57the evil one. And take the helmet of
5:01salvation, and the sword of the Spirit,
5:03which is the word of God. Pray always
5:07with prayer and supplication in the
5:09Spirit, being watchful to this end with
5:11all sincerity, in prayer for all the
5:13saints, and for me. Amen. Let us be
5:16still and pray. Beloved Savior, you
5:19gift us these wonderful, precious
5:21verses concerning your armor, which we
5:24must put on in order to withstand the
5:26challenges of our spiritual warfare. We
5:28want to ask you, as we now hear the
5:31sermon on these verses, that you speak
5:33to us and that you equip us in this
5:35sermon, that this happens and that it
5:37succeeds, that we hear your voice and
5:39that we also follow. For this we need
5:42your help, your guidance through your
5:44good Holy Spirit. And so we all ask
5:46together: Lord, do you yourself bless
5:47the speaking and the hearing of your
5:49holy and living word, for the benefit
5:50and the strengthening of all of our
5:52faith. Amen. I have titled this sermon:
6:03Spiritual Warfare, an Equipment. I have
6:06brought four points with me. First, I
6:07would like to say something about the
6:09battle we are in. Second, the enemy who
6:12threatens us. Third, the weapons that
6:14are given to us. And fourth, the
6:16resistance that we are to offer.
6:18Spiritual Warfare, an Equipment. The
6:20first is the battle we are in. In the
6:24introduction to the sermon, I have just
6:27outlined some of the battles that are
6:29raging in this world. But these battles
6:32are all nothing. Not those related to
6:34health, not the economic ones, not the
6:35military aspects; those are intense and
6:37difficult, there is no question about
6:38that whatsoever. However, the most
6:40intense form of battle that exists is
6:43the spiritual battle. Not the
6:45inner-earthly battle, but the battle
6:48that threatens us all around us. That
6:51is mentioned here in verse 12. Paul
6:53says here that we do not have to do
6:54with flesh and blood, that is, with
6:56earthly things. For our struggle is not
6:58against flesh and blood, but against
7:00the mighty and powerful, namely the
7:02rulers of this world who govern this
7:04darkness, and against the evil spirits
7:05that exist beneath the heavens. That is
7:08the battle in which we stand. There are
7:13two forces that determine what happens
7:15in this world. First, there is our Lord
7:18and Savior Jesus Christ, and as long as
7:20this world confesses, there is the
7:22adversary. I repeat this again and
7:23again. The adversary is not a
7:25counterforce like in Ying and Yang. He
7:27is also just a creature of God. But he
7:29rules in this world, and because he is
7:31fighting against the living God and His
7:34gospel, I will address that matter
7:36shortly when I reach the second point.
7:39Are we, as those who belong to Jesus,
7:41truly called to take up this battle,
7:43this spiritual fight that is set before
7:45us? And it is a theme that runs through
7:48the entirety of the Bible, yet it is a
7:49subject that is quite frequently
7:51ignored. That is why I will examine
7:52this once more in greater detail,
7:54taking this specific text as a starting
7:55point. The fight that we are in. A
7:59battle that we are meant to be fighting
8:01. It is a good fight. I greeted you
8:03with this word from 2 Timothy 6: Fight
8:05the good fight of faith. In 2 Timothy 4
8:10, Paul, who knows he is at the end of
8:12his life, says: I have fought the good
8:14fight, I have finished the race, I have
8:16kept the faith. And he repeatedly calls
8:19the church to fight, to fight this
8:20spiritual fight. Not only here in the
8:24letter to the Ephesians, but also in
8:26the letter to the Philippians, where it
8:27says in the first chapter, stand with
8:29one mind in one spirit with us and
8:30contend for the faith of the gospel. In
8:34the letter of Jude it says: "Fight for
8:36the faith that was once for all
8:38entrusted to the saints. That means, if
8:42you are born again, if you have the
8:44Holy Spirit, then you are automatically
8:46a soldier of Jesus Christ and are
8:48called to battle." Unfortunately, the
8:52fact that this is important is
8:54something that was completely lost
8:56within theology during the second half
8:58of the last century; that is quite a
9:00tragedy. In the centuries preceding
9:02this, it was a recurring theme, just as
9:04sanctification had been a theme, or
9:06gratitude, yet the theme of struggle
9:08has been systematically ignored
9:09throughout the past few decades. I
9:12clearly remember one of the most
9:13formative Bible studies I have ever
9:15heard from Wilhelm Busch, which he
9:16delivered while he was speaking at the
9:17Weigelhaus. And since he addressed this
9:20back in the 60s, he said that it would
9:22be a catastrophe, because that is what
9:25the church of Jesus must be, ready for
9:27battle, if it thinks that everything is
9:30fine. We settle into this wonderful
9:32world in such a way that everything is
9:33just chic and beautiful. Then we play
9:36into the hands of the adversary. And
9:38then, during the Bible study that he
9:40was leading, he simply spent 10 minutes
9:43quoting various battle songs from the
9:45songbook of the former Herrnhut
9:47Brethren Church. And then he said this:
9:50Yes, in many songbooks, you will find
9:51that this is no longer even included as
9:52a separate section at all. Incidentally
9:55, that was one of the reasons why, when
9:56I first came to this congregation where
9:58the EG had to be removed immediately
9:59and we then had the new book—the
10:01community songbook—the republic was
10:02still in the midst of standing in
10:04battle; not just Advent, not just the
10:05sense of security in God, these are all
10:07important topics, but standing in the
10:08midst of the battle. We have to be
10:12ready for battle, because in this world
10:17we are faced with external and internal
10:20battles. If I preach to you so harshly
10:22today, if it is so clear, it is done
10:24for your protection, so that you wake
10:25up, since you have to some extent
10:27fallen asleep under the influence of
10:28this false prosperity gospel, which
10:30suggests that everything is simply
10:31going perfectly as long as you are with
10:33the Savior. That's all true, no problem
10:36at all, but it becomes difficult when
10:38you only emphasize the blessings, only
10:40the wonderful guidance of God, and no
10:41longer talk about what also belongs to
10:43faith, which we just heard in the
10:45reading from Matthew 10, the external
10:47persecution that will come. Those to
10:50whom Jesus said this, they all ended up
10:52in martyrdom, with the sole exception
10:54of John. It is not known how he died,
10:55but at the very least, he was also
10:56banished from this place. Persecution,
10:59pain and misery, that's what threatens
11:01someone from the outside if they
11:03clearly follow Jesus. That's how it is,
11:06if you clearly stand by Jesus, then you
11:07get a slap in the face. That's the
11:11external persecution that comes. I can
11:14tell you a thing or two about that. I
11:15could tell you a few things personally,
11:17but considering what I am allowed to
11:18experience here at the HMK, when one
11:20observes what is happening worldwide,
11:21what external persecution truly means,
11:23and when people disappear for decades
11:24and are tortured in prisons, all of
11:26that happens just because they belong
11:27to Jesus and are committed to Him. And
11:30there is still a sense of being halfway
11:32there, one knows it, but what could it
11:33possibly matter to me at this point? We
11:35don't want to forget that we are
11:36members of one body. If one member
11:38suffers, all the members suffer with it
11:40. But it is not just about the external
11:42struggles and the persecutions that
11:44come, the very persecutions that a Paul
11:45, a Peter, a Jeremiah, an Isaiah, a
11:47David, and a Samson have all
11:48experienced in their own lives. No, it
11:51is primarily also a matter of the
11:52internal struggles that are currently
11:53present. The devil doesn't just attack
11:57us from the outside in a bloody way, he
12:00also tempts us with sin. The old Adam,
12:03who always wants, who always pulls. And
12:08then we make the wrong compromises. In
12:10the second point, I will shortly
12:11address all the various tricks and
12:13stratagems that the adversary employs
12:14in order to get a hold of us.
12:17Everything that has to do with sin is
12:18the adversary, and that's where he
12:20attacks us, and that's where we have to
12:21take up the internal struggle. That's
12:23part of sanctification. Sanctification
12:26is not just sitting at home in an
12:28armchair, reading the Bible, praying,
12:29and feeling pretty good for the moment.
12:32That's great. What should we do? No
12:33question about it. But above all, we
12:36should notice when we are tempted by
12:38sin, that we actively take up the fight
12:40with Jesus Christ. This is the battle
12:43we find ourselves in. The good fight of
12:45faith, which is an inherent part of
12:47following in His footsteps. There is no
12:50following Jesus Christ without a fight.
12:52That is exactly what is being stated
12:54here in our sermon text today. We are
12:56called to fight, we are called to be
12:58ready, we must put on our armor, and
12:59there is indeed an enemy against whom
13:00we are required to take up the battle.
13:02That brings me to the second point of
13:03this sermon. The enemy who threatens us
13:06. In verse 11 it says: "Put on the full
13:09armor of God, so that you may be able
13:10to stand firm against all the cunning
13:12and crafty attacks of the devil." Verse
13:1516 says: "Above all, take up the shield
13:17of faith, with which you will be able
13:19to extinguish all the flaming devices
13:20of the evil one." There is an enemy,
13:24who is also called that. The enemy in
13:27the Bible has many names in the Bible.
13:29The enemy, the evil one, the devil,
13:32Satan. There are so many things. The
13:34hasty Bul, the devil is so
13:36multi-layered in his names, yet he is
13:38undeniably real in his essence. It is
13:41not something abstract. Just as there
13:44exists a living God, there also exists
13:46a devil, a being, a fallen being, who
13:49has not remained within his purpose,
13:51but has fallen, just as the Bible tells
13:53us, and who, along with his demons, is
13:55actively attempting to bring about the
13:58destruction of this entire creation.
14:01And it is so important that we know
14:03about the existence of this devil. If
14:05you don't know that, you can't explain
14:08history, you can't understand it. But
14:10it is also impossible for one to truly
14:12understand and grasp one's own life.
14:14There is a devil. And please, you who
14:17are at home in the Bible know that. It
14:19starts with the first book of Moses.
14:21The devil already appears in paradise
14:23until the book of Revelation. Right at
14:24the end, until he is destroyed.
14:26Revelation 20. Time and again, the
14:28devil is spoken of so intensively that
14:30it is important that we keep this in
14:32mind. It's not about believing in the
14:34devil. We were asked: "Do you believe
14:36in the devil? Of course I believe in
14:38Jesus Christ, but I know about his
14:39existence and that's important. We have
14:42to know that. There is a devil and we
14:45have to be careful with him. He is a
14:48terrible, brutal reality. Anyone who
14:51denies or downplays him places
14:53themselves outside of biblical reality
14:56and actuality. And not only does this
14:59occur again and again in the Bible, for
15:01our fathers of faith the existence of
15:03the devil was also something completely
15:05natural, something they warned about
15:07again and again. Heidelberg Catechism,
15:10first question. As it says about Jesus
15:13Christ, he paid for all my sins in full
15:16with his precious blood and redeemed me
15:19from all the power of the devil without
15:20the blood. I'll come back to what the
15:21blood of Jesus does in the third part.
15:22We are not in the power of the devil.
15:25Luther now moved away from the Reformed
15:28to the Lutherans, he received every
15:29morning with his morning blessing. Your
15:30holy angel be with me, that the evil
15:32enemy may have no power over me. finds.
15:34This great theologian was aware of this
15:35. If the living God is not present with
15:37him through His Spirit, then he will be
15:39unable to fight the battle that is
15:40waiting for him on this very day. On
15:42Saturday, October 31st, we will go to
15:44Paul Gerhardt, where the devil is a
15:46recurring theme in Paul Gerhardt's
15:47songs. So watch it later, come and let
15:52us honor Christ or commit your ways to
15:54him. The devil is a recurring theme,
15:56that he attacks people. We will
16:01experience this again during the course
16:03of this week. They celebrate Halloween
16:06and make a mockery of demons and the
16:08devilish; they play it all down, just
16:11like in those Harry Potter pulp novels,
16:13where people handle profound realities
16:16without having the slightest clue. It
16:20is all being trivialized and reduced to
16:22the point where people claim that this
16:24is nothing more than something for
16:25little children in fairy tales, as they
16:27are now walking around on the
16:28thirty-first of October and about
16:30trick-or-treating, but I don't have to
16:32worry about that anymore. And the
16:34adversary claps his hands and says:"
16:36Great, everything went well. "Anyone
16:38with a little military training can
16:39explain it to him, but not everyone.
16:41The best thing is when the enemy
16:42doesn't even notice that I want to
16:44attack him, that I'm not even there. It
16:45gets difficult when they know, oh,
16:47they're bringing up their troops." And
16:48that's what the adversary does. He
16:50deceives. He deceives. That's what it
16:54says here, so that you can stand
16:56against the cunning attacks. It says in
16:59Greek methoda, which means detours,
17:01cunning, ultimately lies, which he uses
17:04to shoot his hot, in verse 16, the
17:06fiery arrows of evil, the incendiary
17:08missiles of evil. And that's where he
17:11gets involved and that's where we have
17:12to watch out. There's a devil. You're
17:15in a fight and your problems always
17:19have to do with the devil. Whether
17:21you're sick, whether you have problems
17:22with money, whether your marriage isn't
17:24working out. Everything has to do with
17:25the devil. Most people just don't get
17:28that. They just break everything down
17:29internally and don't even consider the
17:31larger context, and not just for the
17:33private money, but also for the
17:34historical context. How do you want to
17:36understand the Holocaust? The
17:38industrial killing of 6 million people
17:41in Germany, in the nation of poets and
17:43thinkers, that they slaughtered their
17:46neighbors. industrial, if you don't
17:48know what the devil wants, who fights
17:50against Israel. You can't understand it
17:53any other way. But what we are able to
17:56understand is how the devil actually
17:58works. And there are four active forces
18:00that this devil uses. And I want to
18:02remind us of them again. First, he
18:04always fights, and this is the devil's
18:06main attack, against the Word of God.
18:10The devil's main fight is against the
18:11Word, because he knows that if I
18:13destroy this here, I will destroy
18:14everything. It already starts in
18:18paradise. Adam and Eve, everything is
18:20perfect and God says how it should be,
18:22do not eat from this tree. And he comes
18:24and fights against the Word. God should
18:26have said it, God should have said it.
18:29In questioning the Word of God, but not
18:30in such a way that he can destroy it.
18:32He can't do that, because the Word is
18:34God. But people seduce people into not
18:36believing the Word. And if you get to
18:39the bottom of that, then it's all over.
18:43Luke 8 about the fourfold field. The
18:45first cast passes, then the birds
18:46arrive and take away the seed, which is
18:48the holy Word of God. from the path.
18:50And then Jesus says in the
18:52interpretation, this is Satan, the
18:54ponero. The devil who takes away the
18:57word of God, this is the first thing
19:00that is always questioned. You can see
19:03the fight against the word in all
19:04dictatorships, in all those who despise
19:06humanity. They did not stand by their
19:09word, whether it was the Nazis, the
19:11communists, or today in North Korea,
19:12always against the word, always against
19:14the word. The ban on owning the Bible,
19:17always against the word. This is the
19:19first thing that the Lord, like Wier
19:21Sacher, fights and we must fight for
19:22this too. You see, when we call the
19:24word into question—wondering if what
19:26I heard in the sermon was truly
19:27faithful to the Bible, or if what I
19:29have read is correct—then you must
19:31realize that it is the adversary who is
19:33attempting to seduce you. And if you
19:35act against the word, do things
19:37differently than the word says, then
19:39you are playing the devil's game. A
19:43second thing that the adversary uses is
19:46fear. Fear is the frequently used
19:53phrase The second biblical sermon is as
19:55follows: Do not fear, do not be afraid
19:57of anything at all. The things we do in
19:59and out of fear are always conditioned
20:00by what he is saying yet again. He can
20:02destroy us. Oh, the Russians are going
20:05to attack us. Oh, everyone is afraid.
20:09We have to arm ourselves even more. And
20:10in Russia, too, we are afraid. We are
20:11constantly arming ourselves. The
20:12resurrection is all happy out of fear.
20:15Oh, I am deeply afraid that my pension
20:16will not be enough to live on. No, what
20:17else must I still do with all of my
20:18money, and I snatch, and I snatch, and
20:19I snatch, and I snatch, and I snatch.
20:21If you die and have a huge fortune,
20:22then you will get everything you need,
20:23right? Health, that's the truth. We
20:26will all die. In 100 years, none of us
20:28will be here anymore. That is true, but
20:30we do not need to be afraid of dying,
20:32because Jesus has overcome death, and
20:33you are able to continue on your path
20:34forward. Wherever you are afraid, no
20:36matter what your fears and worries are,
20:39the adversary is after you. Do you not
20:41trust in the promises of the living God
20:43, and is the adversary not already
20:44being sent? It is understandable that I
20:48am worried. No, worry is hiding. Take
20:51care again, but do not worry. Fear is
20:54forbidden. If fear is in your life, it
20:56does not matter what the object of your
20:58fear is, what the fear is aimed at, it
21:00is the adversary who is after you. He
21:02works among humans because that way he
21:03is able to seduce them more effectively
21:04. Ah, I fear that I am going to end up
21:06short on my share. That is why I have
21:07to defend myself in court. I am afraid
21:09that I am not loved enough by my wife
21:10or that I have to take the others. And
21:12and it is always out of fear that the
21:14adversary works with. A third thing he
21:18works with is wealth. When he tempts
21:23Jesus, the adversary, he says, I will
21:24give you the whole world, everything,
21:26all the riches, everything you can have
21:27. You have to worship Judas, he betrays
21:31Jesus for the sake of money. Ananias
21:34and Sapphira are not seduced by the
21:37devil. Keep a piece of of money in
21:39itself. Money in and of itself is not
21:41bad. It is not a matter of someone who
21:42owns a billion being worse off than a
21:43person who only possesses 100 Euros in
21:45their bank account. You can have
21:46problems with money with little money
21:49and have no problems with a lot of
21:51money. But you have to be careful, as
21:53he keeps trying again with the money.
21:56The younger ones can reset their clocks
21:58. Yes, perhaps the older ones among us
22:00will experience it too. What will
22:01happen to a state that has completely
22:03surrendered itself to money? We solve
22:05all problems today by printing money,
22:07printing money, printing money. The ECB
22:08prints print print print print print
22:10print. No problem at all. We'll push
22:11everything out. The bill will arrive
22:13along with all the impoverishment that
22:15is going to take place within this
22:16state. But then please don't think: "Oh
22:18, and now I have to go and secure my
22:19future for myself." Stop! It's not just
22:21the Lord who secures our existence and
22:23our future, but also works with wealth
22:26again and again. And look at your life,
22:28regardless of whether you have a lot or
22:30a little: All the things the adversary
22:31has already frightened you with money
22:33in your life. A fourth method that the
22:37adversary uses to work is by means of
22:39human suffering. In 2 Corinthians 12,
22:41Paul speaks about the fact that the
22:42adversary has given him a thorn in his
22:44flesh to contend with. The adversary
22:47works by using illnesses, and he also
22:49makes use of psychological burdens and
22:50stress. Time and again, he simply tries
22:54to destroy people. Everything that
22:57destroys life, everything that hinders
22:58life, all comes from the devil. And we
23:01must recognize that we have been placed
23:03into the midst of this battle. When
23:06these things come our way—and I am
23:07not suggesting that a mental disability
23:08means someone is possessed by the devil
23:10, nor am I saying that if someone has
23:11cancer, for you to understand this
23:13correctly—but when that comes, it is
23:14indeed from the devil. And then we have
23:16to go to the doctors and to the
23:17therapists, but above all we must turn
23:18to the one who is able to protect us,
23:19to our Lord and to our Savior. Because
23:22against this devil, who fights against
23:24us with such terrible weapons, we alone
23:27are defenseless. We can do nothing. But
23:30thank God for this battle in which we
23:31are engaged, for our Lord and Savior
23:33has graciously given us a full suit of
23:34spiritual armor. He has given us
23:36weapons. And that brings us to the
23:38third point of this sermon, with which
23:39we can protect ourselves in this battle
23:41against the devil. There are five
23:46weapons that are named here, which have
23:49been given to us, which are needed for
23:51the battle. And when I called on you at
23:55the beginning of the service to fight
23:58the good fight of faith, that was very
24:00abstract. Now it becomes more concrete,
24:03as it is stated very clearly how you
24:05should arm yourselves in order to take
24:07up this battle. The first thing is the
24:10truth. As it says in verse 15. Stand
24:12firm therefore, and gird yourselves
24:14with the truth. We are to abide in the
24:17truth. Jesus Christ is the truth. It is
24:20written up there in our church. He is
24:22the truth. That means we have nothing
24:25to do with lies. The devil is the
24:28father of all lies. And that applies to
24:30both big and small things. Please
24:33always stick to the truth, no white
24:37lies. Always tell the truth. You might
24:40not be required to tell everything that
24:42is true, but whenever you say something
24:44, it must be in accordance with the
24:45truth. Otherwise, you are delivering
24:47yourself up to the adversary. I have
24:50also told the story twice about the
24:51neighbor who was a driver in my old
24:52congregation around the area of Sieger.
24:54He was a great man, a devout man, very
24:56active, clearly committed to the Savior
24:59, a really great brother, and then he
25:01was also very active, very hard-working
25:04, that's when things really got going.
25:07Then he thought, of course you'll be
25:08attacked as an adversary. And then he
25:10decided that he wanted to do his
25:11confirmands a favor. That was the case
25:14in North Rhine-Westphalia, if you had
25:16your confirmation, then it was the case
25:17that the Monday after your confirmation
25:19was the day off from school. Yes, so
25:22that they could then express their
25:23gratitude, all that kind of thing, that
25:24was the custom. So the pastor simply
25:25wrote an excuse for the confirmands,
25:27and then the matter was settled as far
25:28as the school was concerned as well.
25:31Now, in his congregation, it was the
25:32case that the confirmation fell on
25:33April 30th, and May 1st was a day off
25:35anyway. Now he wanted to do his
25:39confirmands a favor, but since the day
25:41off was no longer possible, though
25:43well-intentioned, they wrote an excuse
25:45for the schools and placed a sealed
25:47signature underneath it. Eventually, it
25:50was discovered, and he was forced to
25:51leave his driving position because he
25:52had, on that one single occasion,
25:54failed to remain entirely truthful
25:55about the matter at hand, which led to
25:57his departure from the role. Please
25:59believe me one thing. The truth
26:00sometimes hurts, but it is such an
26:02important matter that we must ensure we
26:04do not begin violating the ninth
26:06commandment here. You shall not bear
26:08false witness again. Always stick to
26:11the truth in everything. That is
26:13something important. The adversary is a
26:17liar from the beginning, but if we want
26:19to stick to the truth, then we are
26:21protected. That is the first weapon,
26:23the weapon, the truth. The second is
26:24righteousness. We should be clothed, it
26:27says in verse 15, with the armor of
26:28righteousness. Armor is that which used
26:33to protect the soldier in the areas of
26:35his vital organs, specifically the
26:37heart, lungs, liver, and the intestines
26:39. If you happen to injure your knee, it
26:41is certainly painful, but it is not a
26:42life-threatening situation. But it
26:44kills your internal organs. And that's
26:48where the armor protects you. Yes, what
26:50is the armor that protects our lives?
26:53That is the righteousness, which is
26:55called the armor; the righteousness
26:57that was achieved upon the cross of
26:59Golgotha through the shed blood of
27:01Jesus Christ. The armor of
27:03righteousness is the blood of Jesus
27:05Christ. You have to stand under the
27:07blood. If you don't have the blood of
27:09Jesus over your guilt and sin, you are
27:11lost for time and eternity. There is no
27:15other way. You won't get rid of your
27:18guilt through any good deeds, any huge
27:21donations you make or great care for
27:23your neighbor. You only become free of
27:25your guilt through the precious blood
27:27of the Savior Jesus Christ. And we have
27:29to have that when we are in the fight
27:31against the adversary. If we are not
27:32under the blood, if we have not
27:33received forgiveness for our guilt,
27:34then he has a legal claim on us and,
27:36consequently, he is able to do
27:37something to us. It is crucial that we
27:40are under the blood. Years ago I went
27:43hunting in Africa. So I spoke with my
27:44doctor, my GP, about what kind of
27:45vaccinations I would need for Dengue,
27:47fever, and everything else I mentioned
27:48to him regarding those diseases, and he
27:49told me that I would indeed need to get
27:50all of them. The only thing you need is
27:52a tetanus shot. And then he gave a
27:53lecture, and I quickly got myself
27:55vaccinated again with tetanus. It's
27:57just wishful thinking, you have to be
27:58vaccinated. I hope everyone has had a
28:01tetanus shot. When I look, you have to
28:04get a follow-up vaccination every 10
28:05years, because it's really important,
28:06otherwise you're in physical danger.
28:08But more important than the tetanus
28:09shot. Much, much, much more important
28:11is that you are under the blood of the
28:12Savior Jesus Christ, so that you are
28:14protected against the devil. A few
28:16viruses are certainly bad enough if
28:17they ruin your life here, but it is far
28:19worse if you lose your eternal life
28:20because you do not possess the blood of
28:21Jesus for your salvation. We need that.
28:23That is righteousness, the armor of
28:25righteousness. A third weapon is faith.
28:29Above all, take up the shield of faith,
28:31with which you will be able to
28:33extinguish all of the fiery arrows shot
28:35by the evil one himself. Shield of
28:38faith. We must believe in Jesus Christ.
28:42We must believe what the scriptures say
28:43. And then we are protected. Then we
28:45have a shield against what is coming.
28:48Can you imagine what it was like in the
28:49past? Wait, there were the armies that
28:51stood against one another, and often
28:53you could only tell who someone
28:54belonged to by the markings upon their
28:55own shields. When two armies met, they
28:58didn't really have uniforms, but their
29:00shields bore a symbol. Who do you
29:02belong to? And if I stand firm in my
29:04faith in Jesus Christ, then I am
29:06effectively protected. That's why I
29:07just said that in the introduction to
29:09the creed today. It protects us when we
29:12live out this faith, and when we openly
29:14profess it, we are just like those
29:15Roman soldiers who used that famous
29:17turtle formation in times long past.
29:19I'm sure you all remember that from
29:20history class. They had their shields,
29:22and when the arrows arrived, they all
29:23moved together, arranging those shields
29:24one over another and in front of them,
29:26and then those arrows were unable to
29:27hit them through all of those defensive
29:29shields. And that's exactly how it is,
29:31if you believe in Jesus Christ, then
29:32you can know that you are protected
29:34against these arrows. Therefore, remain
29:36in faith, strengthen yourself in faith,
29:38always in the Word. And that is the
29:40third weapon, the fourth weapon that we
29:41have, that is the Word. If we want to
29:43be strengthened in faith, we need the
29:45Word. But the Word is the weapon par
29:46excellence. It says, take up the sword
29:49of the Spirit, which is the Word of God
29:51. The sword of the Spirit. We have to
29:54be strong in this. That's why I appeal
29:56to you again and again: read a chapter
29:57of the Bible every day. The Old
29:59Testament, that is, a chapter of the
30:00New Testament, always contains the
30:01Scriptures. You can never do enough to
30:03remain in the Scriptures. And actively
30:06accept the fact that you are being
30:08guided by the Holy Scriptures. When the
30:10adversary tempts you, you must do what
30:12the Holy Scriptures instruct you. When
30:14you are being attacked, when you are
30:16being tempted, just take the Scriptures
30:17and hold them up against what you are
30:19facing. What happens when Jesus is
30:20tempted by the devil? The Savior
30:23himself works with the Word. He could
30:24have done that. He would have walked
30:26away, he could have stamped his foot,
30:28but he holds the Word against the
30:29adversary. And when he does that, the
30:32adversary walks away. I repeat this
30:34time and again whenever men approach me
30:36and complain: "Yes, I am having such
30:37problems with internet pornography.
30:38What should I do?" In those cases, I
30:40tell them everything quite clearly. If
30:42that is a problem, then take the Bible,
30:44lay it upon your keyboard and read
30:45Psalm 121, read Ephesians 6; just read
30:47that and make it a point to fight using
30:49the Word, to take a stand and truly go
30:50against it in that manner. If you are
30:55afraid because you are going to get
30:57sick, take Psalm 23, Psalm 91. Read
31:00that, not what the world tells you. You
31:03have to be in the Word and then the
31:05fear goes away, it dissolves. It's so
31:08simple, so banal. And I always ask
31:10myself, why don't you do that? You
31:12notice, there's a bit of frustration
31:13here from 30 years of pastoral care.
31:15You're talking to long-established
31:16Christians who are afraid. You say, "My
31:18goodness, you have a word." It's like a
31:20doctor. Yes, he sees here that he has
31:22pneumonia. It says here: antibiotics.
31:25Swallow it. Yes, and so I tell you,
31:27take up the sword of the Spirit. What
31:29is the Word of God? It's given to us as
31:31a weapon. It helps in all areas. And
31:34the fifth weapon, prayer. Paul says
31:37that you should pray at all times with
31:39prayer and supplication in the Spirit,
31:40and that you should be watchful to this
31:42end with all perseverance in prayer for
31:43all the saints and for me. Praying for
31:45yourself is no problem at all. Asking
31:47for forgiveness if you have sinned.
31:48Asking to be equipped for the battles
31:50that lie ahead. But don't forget the
31:51brothers and sisters who are in the
31:53fight with you. The great Paul says
31:55here, please pray for me too, for my
31:57ministry, which is very important, for
31:58all the saints, but also for me, a
32:00small number. I say that from this
32:02pulpit. Please pray for me too. I am
32:03deeply grateful for all the prayers
32:04that you say on my behalf. Pray for all
32:06those who stand up here in the pulpit,
32:07for all Bible-believing preachers. Pray
32:09for yourselves, pray for your children,
32:11pray for your marriages, pray always.
32:14These are the weapons that have been
32:15provided to us in this struggle, and we
32:17are obligated to use them. Fight the
32:18good fight of faith, and that is the
32:20struggle we are meant to take up. We
32:22are to—and this brings me to the
32:23fourth point of the sermon—we are to
32:25offer resistance, that specific
32:26resistance which we are expected to
32:27provide today. Take up the armor of God
32:30, so that you may be able to resist in
32:32the evil day and overcome everything
32:34and stand the ground. Three brief
32:36thoughts on this as well. First, we are
32:39to fight and resist. We are to resist.
32:45In the old church, this was customary
32:46at baptism. I have also mentioned this
32:48many times before, that both baptisms
32:51of infants must say, “I renounce the
32:53devil, and I renounce all his works and
32:56all his splendor.” And the same
32:59question was asked for adults, so that
33:01from the beginning of their life of
33:02faith it is clear that their faith
33:03consists in their renunciation, in
33:05their resistance, because they are
33:06entering into conflict and resisting
33:08all the false things that are there.
33:11And the Bible calls us to resistance. 1
33:14Peter 5: Be sober and vigilant, because
33:15your adversary, the devil, prowls about
33:17like a roaring lion, seeking those whom
33:19he may devour. Resist him firmly in
33:22faith. We are to resist. And that is
33:26what you are to do in the fight. Offer
33:28resistance wherever you notice that
33:30ungodly, satanic forces are at work in
33:33this place. Engage in resistance, not
33:36with force, certainly no physical force
33:37, but take a determined stand against
33:38it. We are Protestants. We are
33:40permitted to say no when they ring at
33:42our door and carry on with all this
33:43Halloween nonsense. We are allowed to
33:45say no, we won't participate. We don't
33:48have to send our children to parties.
33:51We are allowed to say no. We are
33:54permitted to object whenever biblical
33:56things are being done once again. That
33:57means resisting, that's unpleasant, no
33:59problem at all. But we are also called.
34:01We are supposed to, that's the second
34:03idea, hold the field. That's what it
34:05says here. With which you can overcome
34:07everything and hold the field. There is
34:10such a fantastic story. There are only
34:12fantastic stories in the Bible, but one
34:13that is particularly close to me, I
34:15have already preached about it in
34:16Corinthians 11. It talks about the
34:18heroes of David and three are named in
34:19particular and one is named. I'll read
34:21the passage to you. First Corinthians
34:2311 verses 12 and 13. After him was
34:25Elijah, one of the three great heroes
34:27of David. After him was Elasah the son
34:29of Dodo of Ahochita. He was among the
34:31three heroes. And then it comes. He was
34:34with David in Pastamin at the time when
34:35the Philistines had gathered there
34:36together for the battle. There was a
34:38piece of barley there, and the people
34:40were fleeing from the Philistines. And
34:43he went into the middle of the field,
34:45secured it, and defeated the
34:47Philistines. Now it happens. And the
34:49Lord gave great deliverance. The whole
34:52people got scared and ran away when the
34:53Philistines came. And then there is
34:56this Elijah, who says that he will
34:58defend this field all by himself. What
35:01a mighty hero he was! And he defended
35:03this barley, which in turn was the
35:04grain that the people had available for
35:06their food. And then the Scripture also
35:09says: "And the Lord brought about great
35:11deliverance, because someone stood firm
35:13and was ready to hold the field." And
35:15that is very often how it happens in
35:16spiritual battles. You will not find
35:17100 people coming up to you and saying,
35:19"That's great, we are all going to join
35:20in now." You often stand entirely alone
35:22at your place of work, in your school,
35:23or within your family. But in those
35:25moments, it is vital that you hold your
35:27ground. God says to you, "You must hold
35:29the field," and through that action,
35:31there frequently arises such incredible
35:33blessing that we are unable to perceive
35:35. This image represents what occurred
35:37militarily 3,000 years ago during the
35:38battle against the Philistines, yet it
35:39serves as an equally powerful metaphor
35:41for the spiritual battle to hold your
35:42ground. And you are called to resist
35:45and hold the field. And the third
35:47thought concerning this point is that
35:49we must stand up for the gospel,
35:50specifically by putting on the boots of
35:52the gospel. Be prepared to stand up for
35:54the gospel of peace with your boots
35:57fastened firmly on your feet. And so
35:59let us step into the coming week and
36:01the time that lies ahead, truly
36:02equipped with boots like a soldier who
36:04wears his combat gear, that we may
36:06enter the battle which is commanded of
36:07us and face the future with the
36:09necessary readiness that is now
36:10required for the tasks that we must
36:11fulfill. Whether it is private with our
36:13personal sins, or at our workplace
36:15where so much blasphemy occurs, or
36:17regarding all that Halloween stuff that
36:19is going on right within our
36:21neighborhood. We are to stand up for
36:24the gospel. We are to go forward. And
36:26that is the task that is required of
36:28both me and you, that we are to take up
36:30this fight and that it is our duty that
36:32we must offer our resistance. That is
36:34what our sermon text calls us to do. I
36:38began this particular sermon with the
36:40quote in which I stated that life is,
36:42in fact, a struggle. I then quoted
36:45several philosophers. I would also like
36:48to conclude with the words of a
36:49philosopher and a man of letters—not
36:51perhaps as great as Schiller or Goethe,
36:53but certainly one of the most
36:54significant literary figures we have in
36:56Germany: Karl May, who, after being
36:57deeply involved in the ways of the
36:59world and even having been a criminal,
37:00eventually managed to find his way to a
37:02truly living and vibrant faith. And in
37:05one of his novels, From Bdort to
37:08Stambul, he writes the following: Life
37:10is a struggle. We live in order to
37:15fight, and we die in order to triumph.
37:19Therefore, the apostle's admonition
37:22applies: Fight the good fight of faith.
37:27Amen. And may the peace of our almighty
37:31God, which is far greater than all our
37:33human understanding, guard our hearts
37:35and our minds in Christ Jesus, our
37:37risen and living Lord. Amen.

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