Was there ever a time when you thought that being a Christian was tedious, boring, and dreary? A time when you wanted to do something exciting rather than deal with the regular day-to-day? Let me present the Christian life to you from a different perspective.
Have you ever thought back on medieval times and how cool it would be to be a knight? Wearing cool armor, protecting the helpless, and conquering lands? Being a Christian is like being a knight. After all, we serve in the Kingdom of God, and every kingdom needs a knight to protect it. It might seem like a reach, but when you put it in perspective you can see how you, as a Christian, are like a knight.
The first thing you might think of when I say “knight” will be armor. If you’re a Christian, then your mind will probably jump to the armor of God. From the breastplate of righteousness to the sword of the Spirit, Ephesians 6:13-18 lays out the armor of God for us to use either to defend ourselves or to attack spiritual enemies with. But wearing the armor of God is not the only way that we can be considered knights.
Because of the Bible, we know that God will win and Satan will be trapped in hell with his angels, and those who don’t know Christ will be sent there as well. Knights are supposed to save others, but we know that we cannot save the unbeliever because only God can. However, we are used by God to get the message out there. That’s why it is so important to spread the news of the Gospel, to help spare the lost of this fate.
Knights also serve their kingdom by expanding their borders during wartime. Our borders expand as more people come to know Christ. That is why we send out missionaries. This is a time of spiritual warfare, and the more people repent and believe, the more we can help others come to know Christ.
We also do this because we are told to. In Matthew 28:16-20, the Great Commission was given to us by Christ to teach the Word to the unbeliever. All knights have to take orders from someone, whether it be from their commanding officer or the king himself. They also have rules and regulations to follow. The Bible is full of instructions for us to follow from the law of the Ten Commandments to lessons learned from Christ’s teachings.
Communication with the chain of command is essential. As knights have to regularly communicate with those in charge of them, we should also communicate with our Lord through prayer. But we have the privilege of getting to go to Him as our friend and Father.
Preparation is another key to being a knight. A knight who does nothing for weeks cannot expect to slay a dragon with no problem when one shows up. That dragon will be eating roasted knight for supper. If we don’t want to become a dragon’s toasted pop-tart for breakfast, we need to prepare as well. The Bible and God should be a constant in our lives and should not be something we only consider on Sunday. Think of the Bible like a textbook, full of history and lessons for us to learn. If we don’t study it, we allow ourselves to be vulnerable spiritually and open to attack.
And just like no one wants to be saved from an inexperienced knight, no one wants to hear the Gospel from someone who knows nothing about his faith. 2 Timothy 2:16 tells us to prepare to give an answer to those who are curious and want to learn or to defend our faith when someone attacks it.
Finally, knights work together. It takes an army to take down an enemy, that is why we are called to fellowship with each other. We can’t do everything by ourselves. Being together helps strengthen ourselves and makes what we are trying to accomplish more efficient.
The next time you find yourself thinking that the Christian life is boring, just remember that you’re a knight in the kingdom of God, and He wants you to continue to serve under him.
By Parker Kathleen May
