3 Share in suffering as a good soldier of
Christ Jesus. 4 No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim
is to please the one who enlisted him. - 2 Tim 2:3-4
This passage drowned out all other passages this week during
my studies. I could not stop thinking about the implications of being a “good
soldier of Christ Jesus.” As verse 4 says, a good soldier will not be concerned
with “civilian pursuits.” The aim of a soldier is to fulfill his duty from his
commander. The fact that Paul describes Christians as “soldiers” also reminds
me that we are at war (i.e. spiritually). What should we expect from war? We
certainly cannot expect prosperity or comfort. War is devastating and demands
many sacrifices. The expectations of Christians should be to suffer for as long
as we are at war.
The evil forces in this world are relentless and will stop
at nothing. Christians should be ready for their attacks by putting on the
whole armor of God. First of all, we must accept the fact that we are at war in
order to be prepared for war. Secondly, we must be completely dedicated to our
God-given mission. Thirdly, we must fight the war with the spiritual weapons
God has given us. If we do not accept that there is a war, then the enemy will
have no resistance. Christians who are not dedicated to their God-given mission
will abandon the battle field. Lastly, if we do not fight with the weapons of
God then the enemy will destroy us.
Christians must fight the good fight! But we should not
forget that we already have the victory in Christ. Our mission should be to go
into the world to save prisoners of war that are bound by their sin to bring
them into the fold of God.
