Episode 770
Spiritual Warfare and Collective Resistance in Ephesians: Tools for Liberation | 770
In this thoughtfully engaging episode of Daily Bible Refresh Dr. Brad Miller delves into a profound scriptural passage from Ephesians 6:10-18, focusing on themes of strength, unity, and spiritual resilience. As the episode unfolds, Dr. Miller reads from the Message translation of the Bible, presenting the passage in a manner that is both accessible and relatable.
The episode begins with Dr. Miller offering an introduction where he emphasizes the importance of making scripture understandable, relatable, and applicable to the everyday lives of listeners. This foundational approach sets the stage for a deeper exploration of the scripture during the epiphany season.
Main Takeaway Points:
- Collective Resistance Against Systemic Injustice: Dr. Miller provides insightful commentary on the passage, interpreting it as a call for collective resistance against systemic injustices such as racism, economic inequality, and environmental destruction. He suggests that the "devil and his angels" symbolize these oppressive forces, urging listeners to stand together in their opposition to such societal ills.
- Tools of Liberation and Justice: The episode highlights how the spiritual weapons described in Ephesians 6 are not meant for violence but for liberation. Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation are recognized as powerful tools that can transform the world. For example, truth-telling combats misinformation, and righteousness fosters right relationships among all beings.
- Community Care and Spiritual Practice: Dr. Miller underscores the importance of mutual support within communities. He quotes the scripture, "Keep each other's spirits up so that no one falls behind," which emphasizes the significance of solidarity and mutual aid. This scriptural advice aligns with the broader spiritual practice of caring for one another as a form of essential spiritual work.
- Action Step – Creating or Joining Care Circles: To make the scripture's teachings actionable, Dr. Miller encourages listeners to create or join care circles. These are groups dedicated to addressing and mitigating injustices in their communities, providing support, sharing personal struggles, and celebrating victories together. Such circles serve as sustainable support systems necessary for effective activism.
- Resource Highlight – ABC 123 Bible Study Guide: Dr. Miller introduces a valuable resource called the ABC 123 Bible Study Guide, designed to simplify and enhance personal Bible study. This guide is accessible through the show notes on the Voice of God Daily website, offering an easy and structured approach to studying scripture.
As the episode concludes, listeners are led in a heartfelt prayer, seeking strength, collective action, wisdom, and the ability to persist in the face of challenges. Dr. Miller’s closing thoughts reinforce the enduring and refreshing nature of God's love.
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Join Dr. Brad Miller in this spiritually enriching episode as he offers a fresh and encouraging take on the scriptures, empowering listeners to apply these timeless teachings in their daily lives. Tune in daily to the "Daily Bible Refresh" for more insightful reflections and actionable guidance, available at voiceofgoddaily.com.The "Daily Bible Refresh" is presented each day by Rev. Dr. Brad Miller who has a goal of speaking a bit of the bible into two million ears (one million people) in three years (2025-2028).
He is the author of "The A, B, C-1,2,3 Bible Study Guide" Free to you by clicking HERE.
Brad served as a local church pastor for forty years and has a background in radio and podcasting. Moreover, he is a life-long student of The Bible.
He believes in the words of Jesus that “scripture is fulfilled in your hearing” (Luke 4:21)
The "Daily Bible Refresh" is available seven days a week by 6:00 am ET. The episodes are no longer than ten minutes long and are...
- Understandable: A reading from the New Testament (usually the Gospel) selected from the Revised Common Lectionary using "The Message" translation.
- Relatable: You will have a couple of "points to ponder" from the text which will relate to your life
- Applicable: Every episode includes a way you can take action based on the reading
- A recommended resource to help you go deeper in biblical study and spiritual direction.
- A prayer for your day.
A companion resource to the Voice of God Daily Podcast is the “ABC Bible Study Guide” available by clicking HERE.
The "Daily Bible Refresh" is available every day at VoiceofGodDaily.com on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and all major podcast directories.
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Remember… “All scripture is God-breathed and useful”(2 Timothy 3:16)
Transcript
Hello, good people, and welcome to this episode of the
Speaker:daily bible refresh brought to you by
Speaker:voice of god daily.com. My name is
Speaker:doctor Brad Miller. I'm here to offer you a fresh
Speaker:expression of a daily reading of the scripture, which is focused
Speaker:on understanding scripture that is both understandable, relatable
Speaker:and applicable to your life. We read
Speaker:from the revised common lectionary, year c,
Speaker:which is the particular passage of scripture selected for this
Speaker:very day, and we are in the epiphany season. We offer you a
Speaker:reading of the scripture that is understandable, and as much as it comes
Speaker:from the new testament reading only, we read from
Speaker:the the message translation of the Bible. We make
Speaker:it relatable by offering you a couple of points to ponder about the scripture
Speaker:and applicable, and we give you an action step to follow. We have a prayer,
Speaker:and we do the whole thing in under 10 minutes. Our reading for the day
Speaker:is from Ephesians chapter 6
Speaker:verses 10 through 18, reading from the message. A
Speaker:fight to the finish. And that about wraps it up.
Speaker:God is strong, and he wants you strong. So take
Speaker:everything the master has set out for you, well
Speaker:made weapons of the best materials, and put them to use so you
Speaker:will be able to stand up to everything the devil throws your way. This
Speaker:is no weekend war that we'll walk away from and forget about it in a
Speaker:couple of hours. This is for keeps. A life or death fight
Speaker:to the finish against the devil and all his angels.
Speaker:Be prepared. You're up against far more than you can handle
Speaker:on your own. Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has
Speaker:issued, so that when it's all over, put the shouting, you'll still
Speaker:be on your feet. Truth, righteousness,
Speaker:peace, faith and salvation are more than
Speaker:words. Learn how to apply them. You'll need them
Speaker:throughout your life. God's word is an indispensable
Speaker:weapon. In the same way, prayer is essential
Speaker:in this ongoing warfare. Pray hard and
Speaker:long. Pray for your brothers and sisters. Keep your
Speaker:eyes open. Keep each other's spirits
Speaker:up so that no one fails behind or drops out.
Speaker:Powerful words for the words of scripture. It's about standing strong,
Speaker:resistance, and care of one another in the community.
Speaker:And it's really through this lens, if you will, of spiritual warfare,
Speaker:about how there's hidden wisdom, there's deep wisdom for
Speaker:a mod our modern faith in this words of scripture. Let
Speaker:me offer you a couple of points to ponder. One has to do
Speaker:with collective resistance. While
Speaker:some interpretations focus on individual spiritual battles, I
Speaker:believe this passage speaks powerfully to a collective resistance
Speaker:against systematic injustice. The devil and his
Speaker:angels, is what it says, can be understood as systems of
Speaker:oppression, as racism, economic inequality,
Speaker:environmental destruction, and other forces that diminish
Speaker:human dignity and keeps creation from flourishing.
Speaker:A point to ponder. Another one is this
Speaker:passage can be seen as a involving tools of
Speaker:liberation. The weapons described aren't for violence,
Speaker:but for liberation and justice. Truth telling
Speaker:in the face of misinformation, for instance. Righteousness
Speaker:as right relationship with all beings.
Speaker:Peacemaking in a world full of conflict. Faith
Speaker:and the possibility of change and salvation as a collective
Speaker:source of liberation. These are tools that
Speaker:can transform our world. One more
Speaker:point to ponder. It has to do with community care and spiritual
Speaker:practice. There's an emphasis here in this scripture about praying and
Speaker:supporting one another, and it really suggests that care of one
Speaker:another in our communities is essentially is essentially
Speaker:spiritual work. So it says here, I quote,
Speaker:keep each other's spirits up so that no one falls behind.
Speaker:Love that. Speaks directly to the importance of mutual
Speaker:care and aid for one another in a solidarity with one another
Speaker:to seek justice. Here's your action step for
Speaker:today. Create or join a care circle, that
Speaker:is some people who are caring about and connecting
Speaker:to some of the matters that matter in your community.
Speaker:Sweet if you where there's some injustice, maybe you can speak to it, or
Speaker:maybe you can open yourselves up to sharing your personal
Speaker:struggles or the struggles of your community. Celebrate the
Speaker:victories to be sure, and support one another, and try to get involved to
Speaker:make proper change. Remember, sustainable activism
Speaker:requires sustainable support systems.
Speaker:We're gonna pray in just a second, but I want to remind you that we
Speaker:have a we have a resource that I really want you to take advantage of.
Speaker:It's called the ABC 123 Bible
Speaker:study guide. You can find that at our show notes, which you can find
Speaker:everything at voice of god daily dot com, including
Speaker:this this, this episode today and a transcript.
Speaker:That's also where you could find this ABC
Speaker:123 Bible study guide, and, indeed, it makes your Bible
Speaker:study as easy as ABC in 123, and hope that you'll take
Speaker:advantage of it. Let's pray.
Speaker:Oh, God. You are the source of strength and justice in a world that
Speaker:is often overwhelming. Help us remember that we're not fighting
Speaker:alone. When systems of oppression seem too big to tackle,
Speaker:remind us of the power of collective action, and ground us
Speaker:in truth which when which of which surrounds us.
Speaker:Fill us with courage when fear threatens to paralyze us, and
Speaker:bind us together in community when other forces seek to
Speaker:divide us. May we be gentle with ourselves and
Speaker:each other as we do the hard work of justice and
Speaker:peace. Give us wisdom to know and when to
Speaker:rest, and strength to keep standing for what's right,
Speaker:in hope and solidarity.
Speaker:Well, it's been good to be with you. My name is doctor Brad Miller.
Speaker:It is my joy to present on a daily basis the daily
Speaker:bible refresh as a service to you. I hope that you'll join me
Speaker:again tomorrow morning and tell others where to find us on the daily
Speaker:bible refresh brought to you by voice of god
Speaker:daily dot com. Until then, remember that
Speaker:God's loyal love doesn't run out. His merciful
Speaker:love hasn't dried up. It's created new
Speaker:every morning.
