"Defense, Defense!" - Eph. 6:10-20 - August 27, 2000

Fall is almost here and that means football. Some of you will be glued to your television sets for long periods of time, incapable of hearing the voice of your spouse. Others will pay no attention at all since they have no interest in the game of football or sports of any kind. But, if you are in an audible range of a television at times during the contest you will likely here the crowd, in unison, yelling "Defense, defense!"

That is the corporate cheer (or congregational cheer, depending how seriously you take this game), that the crowd chants when the home town favorite is the defender. If you’ve ever been in a stadium with 75,000 fans shouting, it is a deafening sound. The electronic boards light up with the words illuminating the screen. The drums beat in loud rhythm and the cheerleaders motivate the people to shout at the top of their lungs, "Defense, defense!"

In football the call to defense means to stand your ground and keep your opponent from advancing. It means to be strong, be literally immovable. In recent times a good defense has become more aggressive. A strong defense attempts to steal the ball, disable the offense and even score if possible. In the game of football a sound defense is built on several principles such as speed, strength and strategy.

Paul, the apostle, was somewhat like a cheerleader, but really more like a coach, calling for the Church to have a solid defense. However, Paul advocated a defense that was quite different than the one we know in football.

First of all. It was not aggressive. To "put on the whole armor of God" meant to protect, survive, withstand the powers and forces against them. It was a defense without aggression and certainly not offensive. There was no intent to "win" or any attempt to hurt the enemy. They were not fighting a battle, striving after spoils or land, nor were they trying to conquer anything. At the same time, it didn’t mean turning the other cheek, allowing their enemy to take advantage of them or walk all over them. The metaphors Paul used were those of a military soldier, as one prepared to defend themselves against anything that might cause them harm.

Recently my family and I spent a week at Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Every day the lifeguard would raise a flag to warn swimmers of present dangers. Yellow was meant for caution and red was for dangerous waters. One day the flag was blue with little symbols of a shark and jellyfish. At that particular time there was evidence of people being stung by jellyfish in nearby beaches. It meant that the surf contained potential harm.

You had a choice. You could go into the surf and risk being stung or you could stay on the beach and keep from being hurt. The blue flag was a totally defensive device that shielded you from any possible danger. I chose to heed the warning of the blue flag and build sand castles on the beach. I didn’t get stung but unfortunately that same day I was a little careless in using my sunscreen and got sunburned.

The blue flag and the sunscreen are not unlike the protective devices Paul referred to for the people of his day. Just as the helmet and breastplate protected the soldier, the blue flag protected me. The sunscreen would have helped also, had I chosen to use it.

I believe that Paul is saying that in order to protect ourselves we have to make choices, using certain practices and beliefs which will keep us from harm. Notice that Paul wasn’t saying we would be kept from physical harm but spiritual harm. Ultimately our goal is peace, surrounding ourselves with trust and using love to keep our hearts in tune with the will of God.

Just what are we defending ourselves from? Since Paul coaches us to use truth, righteousness and faith he is wants us to be protected from the things in the world that prevail against us. They are; tyranny, oppression, faulty trends, legalism, whims, coercion, deceitfulness and temptation.

The defense we need to withstand these forces is not toughness, power, or intelligence. We don’t need a lot of information or marketing genius. Rather it is a stance of peace, lives encircled in truth, love and faith that will sustain us.

If I had used sunscreen on that one day I would have managed to have an entire week on the beach without getting sunburned. One day I took a chance, and got burned. Paul doesn’t want us to take chances since life is constantly bombarding us with things that will hurt us. We need protection. We need a strong defense.

For Paul, they are once again; speaking the truth, standing for peace, being faithful and living in love. These are not passive practices but rather practices that separate the believer from the rest of the world. Paul knew that if the Church was survive it people needed a defense that would work.

While on the beach my wife and I normally use a number "30" sunscreen. We were surprised to learn that they even make a number "50". This stuff could keep your skin safe from a nuclear blast. Speaking the truth, practicing love and being faithful are the number "50" we need to defend ourselves.

On this day, twenty years ago, I began my preaching career. In those twenty years I’ve learned a few things. I can’t say I have always adhered to them but in retrospect I believe that a defense like Paul’s will last forever. When I was willing to speak the truth, it set me free. When I put my trust in God, things happened that never ceased to amaze me. As much as I like to confess, it takes patience, endurance and a very, very strong protective faith to sustain us. But the greatest rewards for me were when I was willing to be loving and giving. It was during those times I experienced fulfillment.

His name was Fleming, and he was a poor Scottish farmer. One day, while trying to make a living for his family, he heard a cry for help coming from a nearby bog. He dropped his tools and ran to the bog. There, mired to his waist in black muck, was a terrified boy, screaming and struggling to free himself. Farmer Fleming saved the lad from what could have been a slow and terrifying death.

The next day, a fancy carriage pulled up to the Scotsman's sparse surroundings. An elegantly dressed nobleman stepped out and introduced himself as the father of the boy Farmer Fleming had saved. "I want to repay you," said the nobleman. "You saved my son's life." "No, I can't accept payment for what I did," the Scottish farmer replied, waving off the offer.

At that moment, the farmer's own son came to the door of the family hovel. "Is that your son?" the nobleman asked. "Yes," the farmer replied proudly. "I'll make you a deal. Let me take him and give him a good education. If the lad is anything like his father, he'll grow to a man you can be proud of." And that he did.

In time, Farmer Fleming's son graduated from St. Mary's Hospital Medical School in London, and went on to become known throughout the world as the noted Sir Alexander Fleming, the discoverer of Penicillin. Years afterward, the nobleman's son was stricken with pneumonia. What saved him? Penicillin. The nobleman's name? Randolph Churchill. His son's name? Sir Winston Churchill.

We humans are easily misled. We live in a world that solicits our resources and tempts us with things that only temporarily satisfy. We think we need power when what we really need is to be more giving. We think we need to protect ourselves with walls and weapons rather than work for peace and speak the truth. We open ourselves to harm and danger when we fail to protect ourselves with a defense like Paul described to the Ephesians.

Since this is the beginning of another school year it reminds us all of the importance of an education. There is no greater defense than education. Just as Paul taught the Ephesisans how to be prepared, he teaches us. Just as we need a number "50" sunscreen to keep us from getting burned, we need a number "50" defense to protect our souls. The next time you hear the crowd roar, "Defense, defense!" say quietly the words of Paul; love, faith, truth and peace.

Dr. Keith Wagner, St. Paul’s United Church of Christ, Sidney, Ohio