Sunday November 20, 2016 | Greg Boyd
Our struggle is not against enemies of blood and flesh, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.
In this final sermon of the Without Borders series, Greg explores our ultimate weapon for fighting the powers of this present darkness. (Hint: it isn't more darkness)
This is the last sermon in the Without Borders series, which has been contrasting the kingdom way of dealing with conflict vs that of the ways of world.
It is said by some historians that human evolution can be traced by our weapons. We started out with clubs and stones, then grew to swords, bows & arrows, catapults, gun powder, bullets, then we made those bullets more accurate, shooting for longer distances, then machine guns, cannons, bazukas, tanks, nuclear, chemical weapons, and now drones. This evolution is a testament to original sin that we are so ingenious when it comes to killing each other. But it doesn’t stop there, words, gestures and expressions are also weapons. These are all designed to hurt people, and the assumption of them all is that other humans are the enemy.
In Ephesians 6:12, Paul teaches that our struggle is never against flesh and blood but against the powers of this present darkness, also known as the principalities and powers. They deceive us into thinking humans are enemy.
We can fight these unseen powers by refusing to hate anyone. When we see an action that looks like evil, do not hate the person, but the powers that have deceived this person into thinking this way.
But refusing to hate, while noble, is simply pacifism– this is good but we have in our possession the ultimate weapon to fight and defeat these powers of evil.
Our secret weapon is entirely different than the weapons of the world. It is designed not to kill people but to free them. The weapon is the Self sacrificial love that God displayed on the cross. The world never suspected, never saw it coming. From the start it looked weak and foolish. This “weakness” is the Power of God almighty. The way God fights and vanquishes the principalities and powers is to sacrifice himself out of love, which obliterates all debts. This is the one weapon he uses and wins with, and calls on us to use too.
It is the sheer extravagance of this love that makes it so powerful — he goes to the absolute extreme. He didn’t stop at “just enough” but went as far as possible. It is what we see in Ephesians 1:3-8 — Paul says God doesn’t just sprinkle, but he *lavishes* the richness of his grace on us. This is what defeats Satan and his minions. The extravagant extreme of his love.
The Cross reveals a God who would do absolutely everything to give us absolutely anything when we deserve absolutely nothing. It is echoed in Romans 5 – where sin abounds, grace much more abounds.
This extravagance changes us because it compels us to love him back. It gives us a new motivation, and a new destiny. It replaces the darkness in our life with light, and transforms us into a Child of God with new identity. Nothing can do what the love of God can do in a person’s life.
Ephesians 5:1-2 Paul instructs us to “be imitators of God” This is our call, to echo this extreme love to our enemies. Paul spells it out in Romans 12:14, 17, 20-21. Never respond to evil with evil. Instead, overcome evil with good. Don’t just be neutral, either, but go overboard! Actually push back in the opposite extreme. Be aggressive in loving back. That is why in Revelation, the lion of Judah is a lamb. It is the ferocious power of a lion, packaged in the vulnerability of a lamb.
When we retaliate, we sink to the level of evil and are defined by their evil. But responding with love protects us from being sucked into the evil being brought against us. At the very least it takes the wind out of their sails, and allows us to be defined by love since this is our new identity.
But when we take it further– when we respond with even more force, even more love, the result is often much more pronounced. Responding to evil with copious and undeserved amounts of love actually short-circuits the destructive cycle of “evil escalating evil.” In Romans 12 Paul says this tactic “Heaps coals of fire on their head” meaning it shocks them, lets the other person see their own sin, and convicts them, and the result of this can be that they repent and reverse course. The destructive cycle of anger is thus interrupted and replaced by a cycle of escalating and self-perpetuating love.
Greg tells a couple of good stories that illustrate this, such as one time when a guy was super mad at him and yelling at him, and Greg responded by inviting the guy out to dinner. Totally threw the guy off and ended the conflict.
It’s hard, of course. You have to swallow your pride and slay your own nature. This is part of the reason Paul tells us to offer up our body as a living sacrifice. It’s not easy or comfortable. But sacrificing ourselves is an act of worship, and not only that but it feels so good when you do it and when it works, either by just ending a conflict or by actually restoring a relationship.
Here are some tips to help you get good at this:
Action Steps for Growth Groups
Greg talked about Ephesians 1:3-8 where we are to be extravagant and above and beyond lovers of others. Think of someone specifically that you have trouble being around, how can you approach them differently to get a different relationship. Pray with others about this.
As we approach the holiday season, family and friends can seem like a relational “demonic merry-go-round”, how can you specifically turn the other cheek or carry their load to counter the typical interactions?
As you start your Christmas shopping think about a tangible gift you could bless this person with. Greg talked about a lady giving a German Chocolate cake to start a different “merry-go-round”. Purchase something to start this process.
Cultivate Class will begin on January 17th, one of the classes is called “Renewing the Mind”, pray about signing up and attending this class if you feel like you could use more help taking thoughts captive and getting off the relational “demonic merry-go-round”.