Ephesians 6:10-13

“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his power. Put on the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.” vss. 10-11

Paul’s language in this closing section of Ephesians is familiar to people of faith and is consistent with much of what we find in scripture. It’s a kind of militaristic refrain and imagines us as soldiers of the cross, standing firm against the demonic forces of the universe who battle us daily on our journey with Jesus. The problem with this dualistic picture is that it breeds divisiveness. We already have a tendency to be suspicious of others and to imagine that we have enemies constantly assailing us. So when we’re asked to join the battle against the devil, we unfortunately don’t have much difficulty in figuring out who or what we’re supposed to be fighting against. We absolutely love to demonize those who don’t look like us, those who don’t have the same values, and those who don’t think like us! And it doesn’t get any easier in the middle of a political campaign. As we listen to the rhetoric of the interminable speeches, it’s easy to begin believing that our side is fighting for eternal virtues and values, while our opponents are pushing Satan’s agenda. Of course humans have always done this sort of thing–demonizing the enemy is nothing new. BUT THAT’S NOT WHAT JESUS WAS ABOUT!!! He said, “Love your enemies, pray for those who persecute you.” 

Thought for the Day: Why is dualism so attractive to the human spirit?