September 10
Isaiah 6-8
Psalm 103:11-14
Proverbs 22:12-13
Ephesians 6:10-23
Spiritual Armor
“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the Heavenly realms. Therefore, put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take up the helmet of salvation and the Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.” Ephesians 6:10-17 NIV
Many years ago, I was in a Sunday School class with a dear friend, Dr. Bill Daniel, who has since gone to be with the Lord. He was talking about this passage of scripture and told us that most mornings when he woke up, before he ever got out of bed, he recited this passage in his head and mentally put on the armor of God before he started his day. He explained that he had no idea what his day might hold, but he knew that he needed spiritual protection for whatever he might face. Whenever I read this passage, I can’t help but think of Bill. When I was in college, I participated in a Bible study called Masterlife. It was a discipleship program that led you through the basics of the Christian faith. One of the assignments was to memorize this passage. I am not great at memorizing scripture now, but the verses that I memorized when I was younger, I can usually still recall. I don’t do it every day, but I often will go through this verse in my head in the mornings as Bill suggested, especially when I know my day is going to be stressful or I am facing a difficult situation. Each piece of the armor has a certain function to protect us from Satanic attack and it is important to equip ourselves so that we are prepared for battle.
1. Belt of Truth- The belt is used to keep the rest of the armor in place. Satan is the father of lies and he will tell you clever and convincing lies about God and yourself. The only way to protect yourself is to know and trust the truth God has given us in His Word. When we know the truth, we will recognize Satan’s lies and we will not believe them.
2. Breastplate of Righteousness- The breastplate protected the soldier’s chest and heart and was tucked into the belt. We put on the breastplate of righteousness by claiming for ourselves the righteousness that comes through faith in Jesus. Jesus’ death means we no longer have to strive to be righteous by our own actions, but by faith the righteous character of Jesus is made available to us. We are then able to grow in our own obedience as the Holy Spirit changes us and makes us more like Him.
3. Shoes for Your Feet- Shoes are necessary for a soldier. They needed to be able to move quickly across various terrains and they needed shoes that would protect them. The shoes in the spiritual armor are “the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.” We have to be prepared to share the gospel whenever we have the opportunity. What are we doing to stay prepared and alert?
4. The Shield of Faith- The shield is the soldier’s greatest defensive weapon. It was made of leather, wood and metal and would have been large enough to cover his vital organs. With it, he was able to extinguish the flaming arrows of the enemy. Faith is our shield against all the lies and attacks Satan throws at us.
5. The Helmet of Salvation- The helmet protected the soldiers head from attack. Salvation is the greatest gift we have. In I Thessalonians 5:8 Paul describes the helmet of the hope of salvation. Our hope is based on our salvation. The certainty of our salvation gives us the confidence to enter battle knowing we are protected against anything Satan can throw at us.
6. The Sword of the Spirit- The sword is the only offensive weapon in the armor. The Sword of the Spirit is the Word of God. The Bible is our offensive weapon against Satan. Just as Jesus used scripture against Satan’s attacks when He was in the wilderness for 40 days, we have scripture available to us when we are under attack.
Paul finishes this passage describing the spiritual armor with encouragement to pray on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. He knows that we need to be in constant communication with Jesus to stand firm against Satan’s schemes. Our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, authorities, powers, and spiritual forces of evil in the Heavenly realm. We cannot hope to fight Satan on our own power so we must rely on Him to protect us and help us be victorious.
Comments