I recently heard “Onward Christian Soldiers” given a heavy metal sound (here). And while I’m not a fan of heavy metal music, I found this version inspiring.
It has received some backlash and even been removed from some hymnals because people were offended by equating Christians to marching soldiers. Some have even associated it with the social gospel instead of true faith. But I think this criticism shows a failure to understand that the Christian life is a battle.
- We are fighting our enemy, Satan.
- We are seeking to rescue the unsaved from his deadly arrows of deception.
- We're seeking to stop his attacks on faithful believers.
You won’t find negative attitudes toward soldiers in Scripture. Jesus claimed that a Gentile soldier had amazing faith, better than any He’d seen in Israel (Matthew 8:5-13).*
In addition, Scripture sometimes equates us to soldiers in a spiritual battle:
Paul tells Timothy, “Join with me in suffering, like a good soldier of Christ Jesus” (2 Timothy 2:3).
And Ephesians 6:10-17 describes spiritual battle gear every Christian needs, both defensive and offensive: the full armor of God, the breastplate of righteousness, the shield of faith, and the sword of the Spirit.
See also Acts 10, Philippians 2:25, 1 Timothy 6:12, 2 Timothy 4:7, and Philemon 1:2.
If we aren’t taking the battle seriously, we are going to fall prey to “the flaming arrows of the evil one.”
So let's march onward, Christian soldiers!
The battle we fight today is filled with half-truth propaganda. I encourage you to check out Lies in Disguise, which can make you aware of popular half-truths and prepare you to refute them. Click the image to read the chapter descriptions, reviews, and sites where you can purchase it at discounted prices.
And if you're a Bible Love Notes subscriber, you can get a free PDF study guide to Lies in Disguise. Find out more HERE.
Info about the hymn: source
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