In 2012, Jack Phillips, a Colorado baker, politely refused to design a custom cake for a same-sex couple’s wedding. By refusing to make cakes with messages that go against his Christian beliefs, Jack has endured years of litigation, risked financial ruin, and received countless hostile threats. For simply standing up and defending his faith, Jack has become a target of ungodly hatred. How would we have responded in Jack’s circumstances? How will we respond when the cost of being identified as a brother or sister of Christ becomes a serious threat to our wealth, our friendships, our reputation, our health, or our job? If we think we can live a peaceful life and avoid suffering for our faith, remember that Paul told Timothy, “everyone who desires to live a godly, Christ-like life will be persecuted.” (2 Timothy 3) Jesus said that since the world hates Him, it will hate us too. (John 15) And if the personal costs weren’t important enough, it has been known since at least Plato’s time in ancient Greece that the only thing necessary for evil to triumph in society is for good men and women to do nothing. How we respond to temptations and persecutions have important and eternal consequences both for ourselves and for those we love.
God’s people have repeatedly been called to stand strong in their faith. When fleeing Egypt and preparing to cross the Red Sea, Moses said to the people, “Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the Lord.” (Exodus 14) When Judah was about to be invaded, Jehoshaphat told everyone to, “…stand firm, hold your position, and see the salvation of the Lord on your behalf. Do not be afraid and do not be dismayed … the Lord will be with you.” (2 Chronicles 20) In many of his letters to new churches in the Gentile world, Paul encouraged believers to be courageous, to be strong, and to stand firm in their faith. (ex. Galatians 6)
When you are standing, you are not lazy or resting. Standing is a common metaphor for being courageous and taking action. Stand tall. Stand on your own two feet. Take a stand. Stand in the gap. Stand up and be counted. To stand firm is to not give ground or surrender. It can takes courage to defend the vulnerable and support others standing by your side. Someone standing strong is engaged in the battle, not merely being a spectator to the fight. And even when we’re filled with the power of God, standing strong isn’t easy in the spiritual warfare of our age.
Our enemies fall into three groups who often work together against us: the world, our flesh, and the devil. (Ephesians 2) We can understand the devil better if we consider his many Biblical names, all of which he has earned: beast, deceiver, evil one, liar, murderer, power of darkness, slanderer, tempter, thief, and wicked one. Our enemies can instill a real fear in us, and that’s OK. Courage is standing strong and doing what’s right regardless of the danger and suffering that may come our way. We admire the bravery of Esther who risked everything by speaking to the king to save God’s people from genocide. (Esther 7) We remember John the Baptist’s courage to condemn Herod’s sin, and the high price he paid. (Matthew 14)
Our enemies also have another emotion to use against us in this spiritual battle: indifference. The deadly sin of acedia, often translated as sloth, has been called the noonday devil. Acedia is a combination of weariness, sadness, a lack of purposefulness, and joylessness. Acedia is often masked with a flurry of busyness and distractions that are hiding a spiritual emptiness. The lukewarm attitude of acedia was severely condemned in the church at Laodicea. (Revelation 3)
We may all be facing a time of increasing hostility to our Christian faith. Are you aware that a spiritual battle is raging? Do you care? How badly do you want to win? Being afraid is OK. Being indifferent is not. As our brothers and sisters have done for countless generations, we must stand firm, fight the good fight, and hope for the day when we will see the salvation of the Lord.