“Attention to Orders” is a work that has grown out of my military background and the realization that we are in a war whether we wear the uniform or not. “Our struggle is not against flesh and blood but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places (Eph 6:12, NASB).” All my life I have embraced the martial nature of the Christian walk, with Jesus as the Lord of Hosts. Learning to lead in the Army helped me put that abstract notion of spiritual warfare into concrete, experiential terms, and I am very thankful for the opportunity to serve.

When I left the Army it was with fond regret. I rightly believed I was called to a different venue of leadership which would require a great deal of additional training. I have often said that I miss the uniform and the camaraderie with my brothers in arms every day. As time marches on, the wistful notions of duty and brotherhood, gunnery and field time (always in the rain) eclipse the memories of drudgery and beauraucratic shenanigans. The conduct of actual Army business—preserving the Republic through the training for and performance of combat tasks—made the government’s wrong-headed social engineering efforts and the Army’s inevitable politicking bearable. In everything there is good and bad, and the grass is just fine on whichever side of the fence you find yourself.

They say that whatever you do, wherever you go, the different seasons of life will mark you. It was as a young officer in the Army that I learned the value of living consistently as a Christian for the benefit of those around me. Not only should I be concerned for my subordinates and superiors in my chain-of-command, I should be concerned for the eternal destinies of all those men and women in uniform around me. And the contractors. And the parents of every one of those fantastic young men and women with whom I served. And their siblings. And their pastors. The Army’s mission must be conducted with all efficiency and professionalism, but Christians are duty-bound to a higher mission under a higher command. The outcome of that mission is not temporal regional stability or even national defense but eternal life.

I am not proud to say that this thought—this responsibility—did not really occur to me until it was almost too late, and in some cases it actually was too late. And I don’t mean that I should have been handing out tracts and preaching on the corner where Motorpool Drive intersects Barracks Row. I mean that I should have been more oriented on my witness to those around me. I should have prayed for the S1 section before I went in to get some personnel actions processed. I should have prayed with the chaplains instead of looking for the places where our theologies did not line up. I should have considered every word I said as a representation of my Savior, to be empowered by His Spirit.

I don’t mind sharing lessons learned as a young man on my first tour of duty because it is in these trenches that we figure out what we’re supposed to be doing. Sure I would approach a “do-over” with a more mature perspective on these responsibilities and opportunities. However, the lessons had their impact, and now in my long “second tour,” in which I have charge of a different kind of unit, those hard-won lessons are paying off. This is how God uses life to teach us, if we are capable of being taught.

So it was when Paul told Timothy to soldier up.

1 Timothy 1:18–19 (NASB95)

¹⁸This command I entrust to you, Timothy, my son, in accordance with the prophecies previously made concerning you, that by them you fight the good fight, ¹⁹keeping faith and a good conscience, which some have rejected and suffered shipwreck in regard to their faith.

This summary instruction characterizes the Christian life as a struggle and a duty to fight through it. He doesn’t say “cruise the good cruise” or “fly the friendly skies.” Sanctification is a battle. Spiritual growth is an uphill climb. I thank God for moving Paul to so describe what every believer inevitably experiences. Does he not validate our rock-strewn path by saying it is a fight? If you are serving God and feel like you are wading through obstacles and opposition, welcome to the fight!

Let me point out three features of these verses which help us understand the full thought Paul is conveying to Timothy. First he says how we fight well: by means of “keeping faith and a good conscience.” Actually the Greek says “having faith and a good conscience.” If we maintain our trust in the only One who is worthy of our faith, the only One Who never fails, we will be empowered for all fifteen rounds of the good fight. Remember that the “shield of faith” is the only instrument in the “full armor of God” which is said to extinguish Satan’s flaming arrows (Eph 6:16).

The second point of observation I would raise is the need to maintain “a good conscience.” We really need to examine ourselves and listen to our conscience. God’s design of the human heart includes as basic equipment a capacity to evaluate our choices and experiences in light of established norms and standards. Some of these principles are inherent, no doubt, while most are learned. The conscience, then is a growing, developing feature of the inner man, and believers are responsible to keep it clean. When you notice that something is bothering you about what you are thinking or doing, it may be your conscience. If you find yourself engaged in wickedness and it does not bother you, you need some repair work done on your sensory equipment (1 Tim 4:2).

Finally, what about “the prophecies previously made concerning you”? I take this to mean that Paul and perhaps others were given direct revelation from God concerning Timothy’s calling to ministry. This revelation from God would be of an equal authority with what we have from Paul in the Bible—directly inspired communication from God. That is what the Scriptures are: prophetic declarations from men “moved along by the Holy Spirit (2 Pet 1:21).” I believe that we have the prophetic Word from God today in the Bible; it is the prophetic Word of God. Therefore what Paul is saying to Timothy applies to us when we find things in the Bible that address our situation.

In other words, let’s pay close attention to what the Bible says about us, about our position in Christ, our eternal destiny, our calling to rule with Christ in His Kingdom. Let’s walk under the shadow of the Cross and “put on Christ.” Let’s take God’s promises about the Resurrection and our future glory to heart and bring them to bear–by believing what He says about them–on our struggle along this path that at times takes us through the “valley of the shadow of death.”  With a clear conscience about God’s expectations, let’s put up our guard, square our feet, slightly bend at the knees for balance and support, and rise to the occasion: Let’s fight the good fight.