The Church Militant

Onward Christian soldiers,

Marching as to war

With the cross of Jesus Going on before.

Christ the royal Master Leads against the foe.

Forward into battle See, His banners go! (hymn by George Bean)

One metaphor the New Testament does not use or model is the Church as an army. To be sure, we are told to put on armor like a soldier (Ephesians 6), but this is not to wage war against the world. Rather, it is a battle against Satan and his fallen angels.

¹⁰ Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. ¹¹ Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. ¹² For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. ¹³ Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. ¹⁴ Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, ¹⁵ and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. ¹⁶ In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. ¹⁷ Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. (Ephesians 6:10-17)

The goal Paul sets is not a conquering but a “standing firm.” The battle is a battle of the mind against the evil one’s flaming arrows. The belt of truth helps us stand against error, the breastplate of righteousness protects from temptation to evil, the readiness to preach the gospel moves us forward despite persecution, the shield of faith being our overall protection against the schemes of Satan. We might conclude that these attacks come in the form of people and that therefore we are at war against them, but Paul makes it abundantly clear that our struggle is not against flesh and blood.

We never see Jesus or the apostles engaged in a culture war “to politically impose their own ideology (beliefs, virtues, practices) upon their society” (Wikipedia). We certainly never see them speaking hatefully or disparagingly against unbelievers about their false views or bad morals. In fact, Paul says to the Corinthians:

¹² What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those inside? ¹³ God will judge those outside. “Expel the wicked person from among you.” (1 Corinthians 5:12,13)

The Church is not and should not be militant against the world. We should not be seeking to impose our standards upon our society. Our warring is against the enemy of our souls and so is a conflict more within ourselves against his malignant and poisonous lies. This is not to say we cover our heads and try to ignore the world. Neither Jesus nor the apostles did that. Nor do we hesitate to speak out against worldly falsehoods. But our posture is not that of a warrior against his enemy. God loves the world and so should we. Our power is the “gospel of peace” that invites the world to reconcile with the God who loves us.

At the name of Jesus

Satan’s host doth flee;

On then, Christian soldiers

On to victory!

Hell’s foundations quiver

At the shout of praise

Brothers, lift your voices

Loud your anthems raise!

 

Like a mighty army

Moves the Church of God:

Brothers, we are treading

Where the saints have trod;

We arе not divided

All one Body we

Onе in faith and Spirit

One eternally

 

Crowns and thrones may perish

Kingdoms rise and wane;

But the Church of Jesus

Constant will remain

Gates of hell can never

’Gainst the Church prevail;

We have Christ’s own promise

Which can never fail

 

Onward, then, ye people!

Join our happy throng;

Blend with ours your voices

In the triumph song

Glory, laud and honor

Unto Christ, the King

This through countless ages

Men and angels sing