No Passive Defense in the Christian Life

In 1 Peter 5:8, Peter issues two incisive imperatives: “Be sober-minded; be watchful.” We have a duty of personal vigilance, since, as Peter goes on to explain, “your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” There can be no passive defense in the Christian life. The moment we let our minds wander, the moment we get lazy, unguarded, or slothful, we are immediately in a spiritual danger zone. The Necessity of Action The British evangelist Alan Redpath used to ask young people, “Do you have blanket victory?” He wasn’t using “blanket” in the sense of “total” or “all-covering.” He simply meant the blankets on their bed! Were they, he was asking, resisting the urge to be lazy with the God-given gift of their daily lives? In the book of Proverbs we find a clarifying picture of the cost of the lazy life: I passed by the field of a sluggard, by the vineyard of a man lacking sense,and behold, it was all overgrown with thorns; the ground was covered with nettles, and its stone wall was broken down.Then I saw and considered it; I looked and received instruction.A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest,and poverty will com...