Ephesians 6:10- 20
For these verses I am using the American Standard Version translation.
Finally, be strong in the Lord, and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, to be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For our wrestling is not against flesh and blood, but against the principalities, against the powers, against the world-rulers of this darkness, against the spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Wherefore take up the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and, having done all, to stand.
Stand therefore, having ‘put on the belt of’ truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; withal taking up the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the evil one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: with all prayer and supplication praying at all seasons in the Spirit, and watching thereunto in all perseverance and supplication for all the saint,”
Stand therefore, having ‘put on the belt of’ truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; withal taking up the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the evil one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: with all prayer and supplication praying at all seasons in the Spirit, and watching thereunto in all perseverance and supplication for all the saint,”
“For our wrestling is not against flesh and blood, but against the principalities, against the powers, against the world-rulers of this darkness, against the spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.” In high school I had a couple friends that were wrestlers, one in particular was very good; he was built for it. He made it all the way to state before someone was finally able to pin him. I watched him a few times and it is a grapplingly sport. You are in the other guy’s face and every body part can be used for you or against you. If both wrestlers are equaling skilled then victory goes to the one that is in the best condition. It’s an exhausting sport. I appreciated watching him especially since he was so good, but it never appealed to me. However I totally understand what Paul is saying, that we are in a life time wrestling match with the enemy of righteousness. We are wrestling with an opponent who doesn’t tire, who is a master of deceit and makes lies sound like truth, and has studied us and knows what moves to make to pin us. He is a “worthy” opponent, skilled in every way except for in righteousness and can withstand any force put against him except for prayer and the Word of God, as Paul says in James 4:6-7
“But God gives the more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble. Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” ( a side note, the proud are those who think they know better, that if they were “God” they would do it this way, or this would not be wrong etc.) When playing God you will quickly find yourself on the opposing side, with God resisting you and leaving you to reap what you sow. Not a good spot to be in, I prefer His mercy.
“Submit yourself” to place myself under in an orderly fashion and then resist, stand against knowing that the full power of Heaven is on my side because of my submission to God. “And he will flee,” as soon as the heat is too much via prayer and contending against him with
the Word, he will leave. However victory is short lived – he will be back, guaranteed.
“and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace;” An easier understanding of what Paul is trying to convey would be, “a readiness and or a quickness that comes from knowing the Word.” When the Word has become part of you because of study and meditation, temptation finds it hard to get a footing. Also when hard circumstances and or just problems in general come, you are able to navigate through them more readily because you have stored God’s Word. The Holy Spirit can more readily guide you. As David says in Psalms 119:10-12
With my whole heart have I sought thee: O let me not wander from thy commandments.
Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.
Blessed art thou, O Lord: teach me thy statutes.
When you are in the battle it’s no time to put your shoes on, they need to be on. Storing God’s Word within us is as a soldier having his boots on, he’s ready to move. The Word studied makes us quick and allows us to face trials head on, no giving ground because we were not prepared.
“withal taking up the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the evil one.” A method used to quench the fiery arrows of the enemies archers was to soak wood in water and attach it to the front of one’s shield. When the fiery arrows came they imbedded themselves in the soaked wood and would hence be extinguished. In similar fashion the “wood” attached to our shield is made up of a multitude of promises. When we fear Psalms 23 needs to be right at hand,
Psalms 23:4
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
Or when my way is not sure, whether it be related to employment, my health or a love one’s health, or relationship concerns Proverbs 3:5-6 ( my all time favorite).
“Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.”
It’s not so much for us to figure out our life as much as it is to trust God with it. And if trusting doesn’t seem to be working then check yourself with these verses. Psalms 32:8-9 ( an attitude check)
I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye ( some renderings say, “mine eye upon thee” ).
Be ye not as the horse, or as the mule, which have no understanding: whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle, lest they will not come near thee ( God’s promises are voided by our unwillingness to listen or yield).
Be ye not as the horse, or as the mule, which have no understanding: whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle, lest they will not come near thee ( God’s promises are voided by our unwillingness to listen or yield).
One of the biggest potholes our society has deals with our appearance. We worship beauty and physical form. It is almost impossible to watch any T.V without having one or both of these presented and often multiple times. Whether we think we have them or not, it is not a good bases to put your confidence in. We need to align our thinking to the verse below. And though it is addressing women, men have increasingly become more focused on their looks. Character has taken a back seat when in reality character should be first, second and third seat. Proverbs 31:30-31
Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain: but a woman that feareth the Lord, she shall be praised. Give her of the fruit of her hands; and let her own works praise her in the gates.
In Biblical days parents decided who their children would marry. It was actually a good system. They, unlike the son or daughter, were not guided by hormones and they through their own experiences in marriage understood the value of character. In “courting” the hormones are too high and long term decisions are clearly hard to make. Parents considered character, provision and the home values that the son or daughter were raised with. They were matched on these, looks were considered but in there rightful place. Parents understood that as you learn to love and appreciate the person inside, the outward attraction comes. We have so lost this value, we base almost everything on looks and sex, which will not keep a relationship together and hence the divorce rate has become the plague of our “progressive” society.
For a believer to put their confidence in the outward is to play the fool; you will never find security there. There will always be someone more attractive, more “sexy” more… whatever. However in combination with a Godly person, which definitely has its own beauty, plus your own unique looks you have a winning combination, for there is not another like you. You are unique, one of a kind, and if you go down that road comparison ends. To put all our emphasis of self worth on the outward is to discount 2/3rd’s of who we are. Why would we do that? Insecurity comes from basing our life on a foundation that is not secure. It is just like the foolish man that built his house on the sand. As long as we do that, our life we will never feel secure. In Matthew 7:24-28 is the parable of the wise and foolish builders…
“Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock ( the truths of Christ);
And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not; for it was founded upon a rock.
And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand:
And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.
And it came to pass, when Jesus had ended these sayings, the people were astonished at his doctrine:”
Insecurity entered into man at the time of the fall, when man rebelled against God. Man fell and God dis-inhabited man ( we talked about this in prior Vida’s). That’s a big deal, when God leaves it’s a vacuum of universal proportion inside man. Even if we are believers, this insecurity has become part of our D.N.A. It takes much time for the Holy Spirit to drown out its voice and reprogram us. The things we say and do because of insecurity we could write a book on.
And what does emphasizing charm and beauty do to us? Well it makes us constantly look in the mirror. If we are looking good then our confidence remains strong. However if we are not, or we don’t compare to the competition, then we can become very insecure and critical of ourselves. That is no way to live, we are much more than our looks. The best, the most stable, and consistent life is a life founded on a growing in relationship with Christ. Finding our self worth and value in Him because of the value He places on us is where we will find our greatest stability. If we do this we will be able to quench many of satans fiery darts and it will become increasingly easier as we mature in our faith. This is especially important for my sisters, this is a major struggle area for most women as lust is for most men. To strenghten our “shield” therefore would be to specifically study verses that deal with our inherit weaknesses ( the Pocket Promise book is great for this, it list all the promises of scripture in their categories) . As these specific verses are meditated upon they become part of us. They “shore up” the work that the Holy Spirit is wanting to do. Another favorite verse is found in Isaiah 58:11 (make sure to read the whole chapter to put the verse in context)
And the Lord shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not ( “make fat thy bones,” was an expression referring to strenght, health and vitality).
“And take the helmet of salvation…”
The mind is the first battle ground where lies, worry, temptation, deceit and the like come too. A strong mind trained in God’s truths equals a quick response and a soon defeat for these demonic messagers. An unstudied mind, one that doesn’t know the scriptures, struggles and debates whether or not to yield, much like Eve did with the serpent. And the more we debate the greater the risk for defeat. The core purpose of the helmet of salvation is to give us a very specific mindset that has eternity in first place and current circumstances in second. When that is your mindset, then it is almost impossible to lose. We get so trapped in our little world with our own concerns and worries that we forget that there is a much bigger world out there with concerns that are eternal in perspective. Example, a school teacher sees only the needs of his or her classroom. In comparison, the principal sees the needs of the whole campus. We need to be principals to correctly serve and function in God’s Kingdom and to do so one must continually wear the helmet of salvation.
“and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:” In our military we have different levels of training. Each branch of the forces has their special names for these specialized groups but in essence these groups are more advanced and better trained than an enlisted G.I. There’s the infantry soldier then there’s the Royal Ranges, and beyond them is Delta Force. For the Navy there is the sailor and then the navy seal that is many degrees more advanced than a sailor. And so is it true when it comes to skill and proficiency in using God’s Word. The less trained we are the harder life will be; we’ll have greater emotional casualties as we navigate in and out of the challenges of life. To ignore a consistent time of study in God’s Word is to try to fight Goliath with your bare hands. When with a sling ( faith) and God’s promises as the rock you can embed that truth into the forefront of any lie and defeat it. We don’t have to yield or be defeated, it’s not in our Father’sB DNA. It is absolutely not necessary and it is not our calling. We are called to be victorious in life through the help and aid of the Holy Spirit as He takes the Word studied and quickens it to our life. The harder life gets simply means the closer we are getting to a personal victory, or a “break through” if you want to use church terms.
For me personally wearing the armor is critical, it keeps me focused on what is real, and what my Father values. Running a business with its various demands can definitely be tough, often requiring me to work long hours. I must juggle between being with crews and checking job progress, meeting with current clients and seeing new clients, writing estimates for new business, closing current jobs and collecting final payments etc. Then there is the stuff you do that has nothing to do do with your profession. I call it the business of running a business. Yet in all this I am blessed in that most of the time we have really good clients. Although all this can just simply be over the top, way beyond what I can handle and I tell the Lord that. That He must do it through me, and He does. He takes over, controls my thoughts, inputs what I need to be doing or saying and battles are won and things get done, my courage stays strong and my stress stays regulated for I see His hand helping me. He is my Keeper and the Good Shepherd of my soul. All I can say is Amen, and that I sure look forward to my 30 minute naps at the end of the day ;)
Father God,
Thank you for this series and making our armor something that I can apply to my daily life. Your truth and my relationship to You through Christ is my armor, my full armor. As I continue to seek You let humility be my guide and Your truth my wisdom. Thank you and Amen.
Move Forward in His Grace – Arthur