Dressed for Action! - A Reflection on Luke 12:35-38


“Be dressed for action and have your lamps lit; be like those who are waiting for their master to return from the wedding banquet, so that they may open the door for him as soon as he comes and knocks. Blessed are those slaves whom the master finds alert when he comes; truly I tell you, he will fasten his belt and have them sit down to eat, and he will come and serve them. If he comes during the middle of the night, or near dawn, and finds them so, blessed are those slaves”.

 

Many years ago, I wrote a series of articles on the “Armor of God”, and how important it was for the Christian to wear this armor at all times. It would ensure that we emerged victorious in the battles we keep fighting every day. I was reminded of this when I read about Jesus’ exhortation in today’s reading to be “dressed for action”. He didn’t tell us to be “PROPERLY dressed”, he told us to be “dressed for ACTION”,  which suggests that our attire reflects our readiness to act. Think of firemen on duty. No matter what they might be doing, the instant the alarm sounds they are ready to swing into action because they are dressed for action.  

 

Are we? This is what Paul says (and I paraphrase a little). “Put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground. Stand firm, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God” (see Ephesians 6:10-17).

 

Paul was describing the attire of the Roman gladiator. The gladiators were the most formidable warriors of their time. Paul used their armor to illustrate how we should be clad. We need the belt of truth buckled around our waists. In Scriptural usage, truth has three meanings. One is truth in word and deed—the opposite of falsehood. Another is truth in the heart—the opposite of hypocrisy. And the third is truth in God—Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life. All three truths are the links in the belt that God asks us to wear. 

 

We need the breastplate of righteousness, which is the righteousness of Jesus, not our own self-righteousness to protect our heart. We need the helmet of salvation, which is the “hope of salvation” to protect the mind from the constant taunts of the devil that God doesn’t love us. We need the gospel shoes on our feet, which serves to illuminate the path, as well as indicate our readiness to take the good news of salvation to all corners of the earth. We need the shield of faith, which serves as additional protection to our heart, mind, and feet, while preventing us going down in flames by the arrows shot by the enemy.

 

Finally, we need to be equipped with the Sword of the Spirit. Of all the items in the armory, there is one weapon that not only lets us defend ourselves, but also enables us to go on the offensive, putting the enemy to flight. It is this Sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. For it to be effective, however, we need to know how to wield it. This means we need to read it, study it, meditate on it, and memorize it until it becomes an integral part of our life.

 

Let us put on the armor of God and be dressed for action!


Watch a video of this reflection by Aneel Aranha here:  https://youtu.be/-zPUN6Vcssg


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Let’s Get Healed - A Reflection on Matthew 18:21-19:1

Image
  Then Peter came and said to him, “Lord, if another member of the church sins against me, how often should I forgive? As many as seven times?” Jesus said to him, “Not seven times, but, I tell you, seventy-seven times. “For this reason the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his slaves. When he began the reckoning, one who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him; and, as he could not pay, his lord ordered him to be sold, together with his wife and children and all his possessions, and payment to be made. So the slave fell on his knees before him, saying, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’ And out of pity for him, the lord of that slave released him and forgave him the debt. But that same slave, as he went out, came upon one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii; and seizing him by the throat, he said, ‘Pay what you owe.’ Then his fellow slave fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have patience with me...
Read more

Patience - A Reflection on Luke 2:33-35.

Image
  And the child’s father and mother were amazed at what was being said about him. Then Simeon blessed them and said to his mother Mary, “This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be opposed so that the inner thoughts of many will be revealed—and a sword will pierce your own soul too.”   This is probably the shortest passage that we have reflected upon this year. In it, we find a man named Simeon making a prophecy about three things. One, about Jesus. Two, about the people of Israel. And three, about the pain that Jesus’ mother Mary would go through. We have seen all his prophecies came true. But who is Simeon? And what can we learn from him? Ok. On the 40th day of his birth, Jesus is taken by Mary and Joseph to the temple to be officially inducted into the Jewish faith. When they were there, a man named Simeon came in to see them.   He is described as “righteous and devout, looking forward to the consolation of Isr...
Read more

Dying and Killing

  The Jews took up stones again to stone him. Jesus replied, “I have shown you many good works from the Father. For which of these are you going to stone me?” The Jews answered, “It is not for a good work that we are going to stone you, but for blasphemy, because you, though only a human being, are making yourself God.” Jesus answered, “Is it not written in your law, ‘I said, you are gods’? If those to whom the word of God came were called ‘gods’—and the scripture cannot be annulled— can you say that the one whom the Father has sanctified and sent into the world is blaspheming because I said, ‘I am God’s Son’? If I am not doing the works of my Father, then do not believe me. But if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works, so that you may know and understand that the Father is in me and I am in the Father.” Then they tried to arrest him again, but he escaped from their hands. He went away again across the Jordan to the place where John had been baptizing earl...
Read more