Conviction or Convenience?

By: Judy Smiley of Jacksonville, Florida

Today, we find ourselves in the middle of a great war, a war that has raged for more than four thousand years.  A war that pits us against a formidable foe, Satan. A war we cannot win on our own. We need help to fight this war! (Eph. 6:13)

Thanks be to God, we are not alone in this war.  Our loving Father has given us an all-sufficient  suit of armor as protection against Satan and this evil world.  This suit of armor contains all the pieces needed to protect ourselves as we strive to live in this world without being of this world.  Every piece has a specific role in protecting us.  We need every weapon we have to fight this war.  The breastplate of righteousness is an essential piece of our armor (Eph. 6:14),  How does it help us?

In an actual suit of armor, the breastplate covers the entire torso, protecting vital organs, mainly the heart.  A strike to the heart brings death to the soldier.  And so it is with God’s breastplate; it protects us lest a strike to our spiritual heart brings spiritual death.  The righteousness that we have with this piece of armor, the righteousness purchased for us by Christ at the cross (2 Cor. 5:21), leads us to live a life of obedience to God, a devout and holy life, a life that honors God, and a life at odds with the world.  Our God-given suit of armor protects our hearts, and thus, our lives, from Satan and the world.  

From our heart comes all our resolve to follow the Lord, our resolve to act in accordance with divine or moral law, and our resolve to stand firm against Satan.  We cannot leave our hearts and souls vulnerable to Satan and a sinful world.  First Peter 5:8 tells us that the devil is always on the hunt for souls to destroy.  He looks for the weak spot in our armor.  Even one small chink in our breastplate, a small crack in our inner resolve opens our hearts to the temptation and deception of Satan.  At the point that we say no to God and our breastplate fails, we have given Satan that entrance to our hearts and souls.  God has given us what we need, our armor; we only have to put it on and keep it on always!  

I grew up in a small town in the Deep South of the United States.  My family worshiped with a small congregation where everyone knew everyone and most of the members were related by blood.  I worshipped with that congregation for many years until I married.  My life there was comfortable and safe.  To the outside world, and even my congregation, I checked all the boxes to show that I was a faithful child of God.  And then I married a military man.  I was out of my comfort zone, but thanks be to God, my life changed from that comfort to a new and interesting life.  I no longer had the protection of a spiritual family who had known me all my life, who would help me to stay on the right path.  I had to make my own decision to wholly follow Christ or give in to the wiles of the Devil. I had a suit of armor, given to me by God, with a breastplate to cover and protect my heart.  What would I do with it?  

In my recollection (which grows dimmer every day), my husband and I have lived in at least twelve different places.  I know that isn’t a lot for some of you, but for me, who had lived 25 years in the same place, it was BIG.  Four of those locations happened to be overseas.  A whole new world opened up to me, but it was a world that had some real challenges. The main challenge was finding a group of Christians with whom to worship.  Because we were stationed near military installations, we usually found a congregation to join.  Small groups, always.  At one point our congregation consisted of my family of three.  My husband led the prayers, served the Lord’s Supper, led the singing, and preached.  Sometimes we drove a long way to meet with other Christians.  Sometimes we didn’t all speak the same language. Sometimes no one spoke our language. Often we were exposed to different customs or methods of worship, all scriptural, of course.  Sometimes we had people stay with us who we didn’t even know,  except to know that they were fellow Christians.  At times, there were frustrations.  It was hard but so beneficial for me. I had to decide how hard I was willing to work for the Lord.  For some, it is too much.  Sadly, there are those who feel that an overseas assignment or vacation, or any trip that takes us away from our home congregation is an opportunity to take a break from our worship.  It’s just not as convenient as it is “at home”.  What a terrible decision! Satan is everywhere, always looking for that chink in our armor.  He doesn’t care if we have left the congregation where we grew up.  He doesn’t care if we’re on vacation. He certainly never takes a vacation. No matter where we go on this earth, he is still there, watching and waiting for us to falter. We must guard our hearts and our faith wherever we may be, and whatever situation in which we find ourselves. We must be convicted in our faith! And the breastplate that God gave us will help us do that.

We know that our faith will be challenged often.  We are at war with the world and Satan is a powerful enemy and tempter.  But with God as our leader, and our commitment to follow Him, we can conquer Satan.  The question is whether you are a Christian by conviction or just convenience. Convenience compromises our faith to suit ourselves.  We then have no conviction to fight the battle against the world.  We find that each time we compromise, it becomes easier to do so the next time we are challenged.  And the time after that, and the time after that.  Our Lord has given us all we need to fight this war.  We have a breastplate of righteousness to keep our hearts pure and committed to God.  We have every other piece of armor to completely protect us (Eph. 6:10-18). The decision is ours as to whether we put it on or not.