#24 AND #25 BRING ENOUGH GUN AND PART 11 TRUTH

#24      Bring Enough Gun

Overusing military metaphors to illustrate a point is glaring fault.  A reader pointed out my penchant for exaggeration after the last edition rolled off the printer. Criticizing any comparison of our current financial crisis to the ravages of war, he’s absolutely right but long as these metaphors bring to mind important lessons for life....

Springfield Armory USA® has a clever campaign, Bring Enough Gun for their rejuvenated line of M1s rifles and more specifically their SOCOM II model[1]. Seeking a harder hitting caliber than the weapons currently used for most tactical applications, these upgraded long guns take the reliability of a weapon developed during WWII and apply it to current military and law enforcement needs. I own one of these and I’ll confess I bought it due in large part to the message in their advertisement. I’ll also confess that I do not use it. It sits on display but has never been fired. Hmmmm, might be an application there for the weapons listed below.

Now let’s get another opinion about being properly “gunned” from a preacher, scholar, writer and jailbird:

Ephesians 6:10-20              The Message translation

 ^10-12 And that about wraps it up. God is strong, and he wants you strong. So take everything the Master has set out for you, well-made weapons of the best materials. And put them to use so you will be able to stand up to everything the Devil throws your way. This is no afternoon athletic contest that we'll walk away from and forget about in a couple of hours. This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his angels.

 ^13-18 Be prepared. You're up against far more than you can handle on your own. Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has issued, so that when it's all over but the shouting you'll still be on your feet. Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation are more than words. Learn how to apply them. You'll need them throughout your life. God's Word is an indispensable weapon. In the same way, prayer is essential in this ongoing warfare. Pray hard and long. Pray for your brothers and sisters. Keep your eyes open. Keep each other's spirits up so that no one falls behind or drops out.

 ^19-20 And don't forget to pray for me. Pray that I'll know what to say and have the courage to say it at the right time, telling the mystery to one and all, the Message that I, jailbird preacher that I am, am responsible for getting out.

  A good public speaker always tells his audience what he is going to tell them, then he tells them with the appropriate level of detail and then he concludes by telling them what he just told them. So let’s get to the specifics.

 This Ephesians chapter has always been a favorite but is challenging once again.  Perhaps that familiarity over the years had dulled its impact or ability to affect me. Maybe my mind responded, “Oh, yea, I know those verses so well how could they possibly have anything new and fresh for me today?”  Let me propose that the verses from God’s book and the life lessons that have shaped you so far may be the very thing you should return to in times of trouble. Maybe we don’t need to chase around looking for new answers but are better served by returning to the ones that have survived life thus far. Perhaps these verses or lessons became dear to us because an all knowing Father knew we’d need these truths today.  I am being challenged to spend some time in this one passage until I get all there is for me to learn right now. Paul is telling me I need the following ‘guns’ to face today’s battles:

1. Truth
2. Righteousness
3. Peace               [see Tome 14 dated 8/12/2009]
4. Faith                [see Tome 19 date 2/15/9 and 21 dated3/10/10]
5. Salvation
6. God’s word
7. Prayer
8. In addition there is an exhortation to…” Keep each other's spirits up so that no one falls behind or drops out.”

 Even though I have written on Peace and Faith in these earlier Tomes, there is certainly a great deal more to be gathered on these weapons an how to use them. So, rather than start in on each of these weapons in this episode, lets think about them together.  Let’s start with Truth and kick around what that means to each of you. Send me a note on how to use Truth as a weapon in ….
 

This is no afternoon athletic contest that we'll walk away from and forget about in a couple of hours. This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his angels.

 
and rather than me being the authority here, we’ll compile our discoveries. Why do this? See number 8 above. For two years I have pecked out these lines and without fail I have received a response from one of you that was in some way encouraged by the discussion. I think number 8 is a valuable weapon if we intend to leave no soldier left behind.

 Look forward to Tome 25 as the second installment of Bring Enough Gun.

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[1] http://www.springfield-armory.com/armory.php?model=18

Tome 25                          Bring Enough Gun                      Truth

Ephesians 6:10-20                     The Message translation

 ^10-12 And that about wraps it up. God is strong, and he wants you strong. So take everything the Master has set out for you, well-made weapons of the best materials. And put them to use so you will be able to stand up to everything the Devil throws your way. This is no afternoon athletic contest that we'll walk away from and forget about in a couple of hours. This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his angels.

 ^13-18 Be prepared. You're up against far more than you can handle on your own. Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has issued, so that when it's all over but the shouting you'll still be on your feet. Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation are more than words. Learn how to apply them. You'll need them throughout your life. God's Word is an indispensable weapon. In the same way, prayer is essential in this ongoing warfare. Pray hard and long. Pray for your brothers and sisters. Keep your eyes open. Keep each other's spirits up so that no one falls behind or drops out.

 ^19-20 And don't forget to pray for me. Pray that I'll know what to say and have the courage to say it at the right time, telling the mystery to one and all, the Message that I, jailbird preacher that I am, am responsible for getting out.

My last tome introduced the passage and got us thinking about…well-made weapons of the best materials…God has for us. To renew your recollection let me list them again and insert one I failed to point out before:

1. Truth
2. Righteousness
3. Peace               [see Tome 14 dated 8/12/2009]
4. Faith                [see Tome 19 date 2/15/9 and 21 dated3/10/10]
5. Salvation
6. God’s word
7. Prayer
8. Keep your eyes open
9. Keep each other's spirits up so that no one falls behind or drops out.

A new element to our exercise was requesting your input on these weapons. Several of you ‘pinged’ me with great answers on using Truth as a weapon in your life.

” for me Truth is the realization that God will prevail over all time.  My task is to be about his Kingdom building work which involves many joys, but also constant battles, failures and heartache. … In the end though, I see Truth in that God's purpose for his creation will stand over all of Satan's work, and that Truth arms me like no other. - Wes

The truth of who God is and who I am as a result of the sacrifice of His Son defines me and gives me strength for the battle…. I am convinced – by the power of the Holy Spirit – that God’s word is true.   The fact that there is absolute, unchangeable truth [a concept foreign to our current culture] defines the contest – a battle between truth and lies.   When we immerse ourselves in God’s truth . . . meditate on it, ponder it, absorb it . . . get it inside us, it guides and comforts us and gives us ammunition for the fight.  As Simon Peter said in John 6:68 "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.”   Karen

In the context of the armor of the Lord, truth is the “belt and suspenders”. Without knowing the ultimate truth - that there is a God, he sent his son Jesus to die for our sins, you cannot get to the father except through the son - the rest is irrelevant, Satan has already won. The belt holds the rest of the armor together. It’s binary. He is who he said he is, or he isn’t. If he isn’t, there’s no need to fight. If you believe the truth that he is who he is, be ready for war. - Josh

Truth:  (Gods sturdy belt of truth).

Tim each day I pray as I go out in the world that the Lord arms me with his full complement of armor, starting with the sturdy belt of truth.  I pray that I may speak, hear and stand on Gods truths and his truths alone.  This world throws a lot at you on a daily basis.   For those of us who adorn this armor we need to be able to distinguish what is from God and what is not.  Not only are we to adhere and live by Gods truths, but also to conduct and at the same time share these truths when ever possible.  By putting light where there is now darkness it shortens that much more the battlefield of our enemy, after all our enemy was a liar from the very beginning and is incapable of telling the truth. - Tom

So let’s stipulate to Truth being the Who and What prophesied in Isaiah 53, the Good News of John 3:16-21 and the ultimate declaration of John 14:6-7 [see below] and move on to its application as a ‘well-made weapon’. The contributions of Wes, Karen, Josh and Tom get us well on our way in their agreement on the centrality and foundational necessity of Truth.

There is just something cool about the way it reads… ¹⁴Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth [Eph 6 KJV]. Took me a while to get the whole loins and girt thing straight but it all makes sense now. My trainer Merrick always starts with my core [Al Qaeda terrorists would sing like a canary if he put them through his workouts-never mind water-boarding]. He works the center of my body [that’s my problem, by the way-too big of a center] to get me ready for everything else he wants me to achieve. He says if you are strong at the core you are strong enough for a real workout. I remember thirty years ago when I fancied being a power-lifter and I strapped one of those triple-ply, six inch wide, leather belts around my waist before dead-lifts or heavy squats. If you are old enough to remember the great Russian weight lifters, you know what I am talking about. This striking similarity of starting with the core of my physical body in preparation for exertion and wrapping a belt of truth around my spiritual structure is no coincidence. Just like abdominal and low back strength and support are the keys to stability, being wrapped, buckled, girt or surrounded by Truth makes us stable, solid, strong and ready for all the enemy may throw at us today.

Alright, let put this weapon to the test. First, as Tom and Karen point out, Truth at our core disarms lies and liars. Jesus declared he was the Truth and confronted liars and lies:

You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies. John 8:44 NIV

It is probably easy for us to see a distinction between lies and the Truth but how many times have you let a little half-truth become your truth and it became a big problem.  There are books and conferences and therapists and retreats dedicated to exposing the tiny un-truths that have crept into someone’s beliefs and really messed up who they thought they were. I’ll bet you know someone like this or looked in the mirror at someone like this today. Thirty years ago my family business failed and I became convinced irreparable damage had been done to my financial future. I was ready to accept a lie about the rest of my life but God’s Truth was very different from what I let become my truth. For most of us this issue is easier to see in someone else than it is in our own life. Let’s take another step.

What about things that are factual, accurate, mathematically certain, medical findings, or physical realities. These indisputable verities trouble us. How can the Truth-belt help us handle things that are undeniable?  Here’s  one example:

Facts and a medical finding: A 38 year, overweight, out-of-shape guy tries to learn how to snowboard in Aspen, CO and has a heart attack. Result: triple-bypass surgery. Can’t argue it, it happened. [I have the scars to prove it.]

Truth: But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed. Isaiah 53:5 

Is that hard enough for you? I have been wrestling with this for 17 years and three other heart surgeries. But, I try to wrap Isaiah 53 around my waist [it’s a big chapter] and head to work each day. Here is what helps me. First, most 38 year olds have only one symptom to warn them something is wrong with their heart-they die. I made it off the mountain and back home to my Doctor. Second, I have been blessed with another seventeen years with a wonderful wife and a great, growing family. Yes, it was a big chapter in my life but not the last one. Third, I have held my granddaughter in my arms [Dya wanna see a picture? ]. My life has been blessed in so many ways since then. Fourth, I have had some great adventures in those bonus years. Some of you have read my tales of two-wheeled misadventure. So, in spite of what is medically true, factual, undeniable, and certain I can choose to deny this information from becoming my truth: my Truth has to be … and by his wounds we are healed.

Let’s try another application of our Truth belt weapon.

Fact: I did lose everything, in fact, I lost more than I had [figure that one out] in that family business failure thirty years back.

Maybe your facts are:

·         Retirements savings are wiped out by bad investment advice.

·          In a dead-end job with no way out.

·         Just lost my house, or job, or whatever...

These things happen all around us so how do we use our Truth belt here? We know what the Truth is don’t we?

²³ The LORD makes firm the steps of the one who delights in him;
²⁴ though he may stumble, he will not fall, for the LORD upholds him with his hand.

 ²⁵ I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken
   or their children begging bread.
²⁶ They are always generous and lend freely; their children will be a blessing.^[b]

 ²⁷ Turn from evil and do good; then you will dwell in the land forever.
²⁸ For the LORD loves the just and will not forsake his faithful ones. Psalms 37

For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. ¹² Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. ¹³ You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. ¹⁴ I will be found by you,” declares the LORD, Jeremiah 29:11-14a

                            

¹⁷But no weapon that is formed against you shall prosper, and every tongue that shall rise against you in judgment you shall show to be in the wrong. This [peace, righteousness, security, triumph over opposition] is the heritage of the servants of the Lord [those in whom the ideal Servant of the Lord is reproduced]; this is the righteousness or the vindication which they obtain from Me [this is that which I impart to them as their justification], says the Lord     Isaiah 54:17 Amplified Bible

 ¹ If you fully obey the LORD your God and carefully follow all his commands I give you today, the LORD your God will set you high above all the nations on earth. ² All these blessings will come on you and accompany you if you obey the LORD your God:

 ³ You will be blessed in the city and blessed in the country.

 ⁴ The fruit of your womb will be blessed, and the crops of your land and the young of your livestock—the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks.

 ⁵ Your basket and your kneading trough will be blessed.

 ⁶ You will be blessed when you come in and blessed when you go out.

 ⁷ The LORD will grant that the enemies who rise up against you will be defeated before you. They will come at you from one direction but flee from you in seven.

 ⁸ The LORD will send a blessing on your barns and on everything you put your hand to. The LORD your God will bless you in the land he is giving you.

 ⁹ The LORD will establish you as his holy people, as he promised you on oath, if you keep the commands of the LORD your God and walk in obedience to him. ¹⁰ Then all the peoples on earth will see that you are called by the name of the LORD, and they will fear you. ¹¹ The LORD will grant you abundant prosperity—in the fruit of your womb, the young of your livestock and the crops of your ground—in the land he swore to your ancestors to give you.

 ¹² The LORD will open the heavens, the storehouse of his bounty, to send rain on your land in season and to bless all the work of your hands. You will lend to many nations but will borrow from none. ¹³ The LORD will make you the head, not the tail. If you pay attention to the commands of the LORD your God that I give you this day and carefully follow them, you will always be at the top, never at the bottom. ¹⁴ Do not turn aside from any of the commands I give you today, to the right or to the left, following other gods and serving them. Deuteronomy 28 (NIV)

Even in a crisis of faith the same well-made weapon can work. It may be accurate that you can’t see God’s hand at work in your life right this moment but we can be boldly “Stand therefore” with God’s Truth belt surrounding us.

      ²³Jesus said, "If? There are no 'ifs' among believers. Anything can happen."  ²⁴No   sooner were the words out of his mouth than the father cried, "Then I believe.  Help me with my doubts!"  Mark 9:23-24 (The Message)

       Joshua 24:15b… but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD. [KJV]

There might be an element of discipline, of action, in this whole thing we should talk about. Truth doesn’t do me any good if I leave it hanging on a hook by the back door of my house when I leave for work. I have to take it down, strap it tightly around my waist and go to the battle front for it to do me any good.  I am going to repeat myself here for clarity. I can not let things that are true, factual, or accurate become my truth. I can not dress myself in the attacks of the enemy. God has a uniform for me to wear.  Does that sound like a play on words- I don’t mean to just be word playing.  Let’s try to say it another way then. There are real problems in my life that can take over my life if I let them dominate, define, destroy me. The belt of truth then is not just a noun it may also be a verb to describe this taking on, ‘girting’, strapping up, cinching done, process of wrapping ourselves in the Well-Made Weapon God has for us.

Maybe another weapon listed by Paul may hold the key but for now let’s finish this episode with the prison preacher Paul and his take on this paradox:

 2 Corinthians 4 [Message]  ^7-12If you only look at us, you might well miss the brightness. We carry this precious Message around in the unadorned clay pots of our ordinary lives. That's to prevent anyone from confusing God's incomparable power with us. As it is, there's not much chance of that. You know for yourselves that we're not much to look at. We've been surrounded and battered by troubles, but we're not demoralized; we're not sure what to do, but we know that God knows what to do; we've been spiritually terrorized, but God hasn't left our side; we've been thrown down, but we haven't broken. What they did to Jesus, they do to us—trial and torture, mockery and murder; what Jesus did among them, he does in us—he lives! Our lives are at constant risk for Jesus' sake, which makes Jesus' life all the more evident in us. While we're going through the worst, you're getting in on the best!

 ^13-15We're not keeping this quiet, not on your life. Just like the psalmist who wrote, "I believed it, so I said it," we say what we believe. And what we believe is that the One who raised up the Master Jesus will just as certainly raise us up with you, alive. Every detail works to your advantage and to God's glory: more and more grace, more and more people, more and more praise!

 ^16-18So we're not giving up. How could we! Even though on the outside it often looks like things are falling apart on us, on the inside, where God is making new life, not a day goes by without his unfolding grace. These hard times are small potatoes compared to the coming good times, the lavish celebration prepared for us. There's far more here than meets the eye. The things we see now are here today, gone tomorrow. But the things we can't see now will last forever.

Whew! If you thought that Truth was hard, our next weapon is Righteousness! I look forward to hearing from you and remember… Suck in your gut, pull up your pants and cinch down your Truth-belt ‘cuz we are going to have-at-it, as they say in the sticks!