1Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. 2“Honor your father and mother,” which is the first commandment with a promise: 3“that it may be well with you, and you may live long on the earth.”
4You fathers, don’t provoke your children to wrath, but nurture them in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.
5Servants, be obedient to those who according to the flesh are your masters, with fear and trembling, in singleness of your heart, as to Christ, 6not in the way of service only when eyes are on you, as men pleasers, but as servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart, 7with good will doing service as to the Lord and not to men, 8knowing that whatever good thing each one does, he will receive the same good again from the Lord, whether he is bound or free.
9You masters, do the same things to them, and give up threatening, knowing that he who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no partiality with him.
10Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. 11Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12For our wrestling is not against flesh and blood, but against the principalities, against the powers, against the world’s rulers of the darkness of this age, and against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. 13Therefore put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. 14Stand therefore, having the utility belt of truth buckled around your waist, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15and having fitted your feet with the preparation of the Good News of peace, 16above all, taking up the shield of faith, with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the evil one. 17And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; 18with all prayer and requests, praying at all times in the Spirit, and being watchful to this end in all perseverance and requests for all the saints. 19Pray for me, that utterance may be given to me in opening my mouth, to make known with boldness the mystery of the Good News, 20for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.
21But that you also may know my affairs, how I am doing, Tychicus, the beloved brother and faithful servant in the Lord, will make known to you all things. 22I have sent him to you for this very purpose, that you may know our state and that he may comfort your hearts.
23Peace be to the brothers, and love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 24Grace be with all those who love our Lord Jesus Christ with incorruptible love. Amen.
Satan on the Attack
The Flight to Egypt by Night
7 Then Herod secretly called the wise men, and learned from them exactly what time the star appeared. 8 He sent them to Bethlehem, and said, “Go and search diligently for the young child. When you have found him, bring me word, so that I also may come and worship him.”
19 But when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, 20 “Arise and take the young child and his mother, and go into the land of Israel, for those who sought the young child’s life are dead.”
Have weird things ever been going on in your life that seem unexplainable? It might be a coworker who goes out of their way to hassle you. It might be that you’ve developed an inappropriate crush on someone even though you’re married. It might be that an unexpected financial turn has left you nearly bankrupt. It might be that an argument arises in your church body that has everyone at each other’s throats, and you’re all tempted to call it quits. It could be that you’re a pastor, and a single person in your congregation singles you out and says things about you that are untrue. The list goes on and on, but many of these things are sure to be spiritual warfare. We walk in ignorance when we fail to heed Paul's warnings. “12 For our wrestling is not against flesh and blood, but against the principalities, against the powers, against the world’s rulers of the darkness of this age, and against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. 13 Therefore put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand” (Ephesians 6:12-13 WEB). Reader, do not walk in ignorance. You, too, might be in the midst of a spiritual battle.
Joseph and Mary were in the midst of a spiritual battle that they did not understand. King Herod was out to destroy them and Jesus. This wasn’t necessarily because Herod was a “bad guy” (although he was). It was because Satan was manipulating Herod to do anything and everything necessary to kill Jesus, the Messiah, the Savior of the world. God spared the lives of Mary, Joseph, and the baby Jesus and kept them safe in Egypt until the danger had passed. As saints, we too are often engaged in spiritual battle, whether we recognize it or not. As believers, we frequently mistake the instruments of evil for evil itself. People doing evil are not the true enemy. They are instruments of Satan himself. Some of them will even carry big Bibles and be clothed in a garb of righteousness. We must equip ourselves for spiritual battle because, whether we recognize it or not, we are already in one. When in spiritual battle, we can rest in the assurance that He that is in us is greater than he that is in the world. Take up the armor described in Ephesians chapter 6. Never fear, because He that is in you is greater than he that is in the world. Put on the armor of God and stand!