‘Put on all of God’s armour.’ Ephesians 6:11 NLT
Every day you live, you will battle the world, the flesh, and the devil. In order to be armed for spiritual warfare, Paul gives us six specific pieces of spiritual armour. Here are the first three:
1) The sturdy ‘belt of truth’ (v. 14 NLT). During World War II, a plane flew many miles past its destination. Why? Because the crew, not realising there were such strong tailwinds, refused to believe the cockpit instruments. As a result, everyone on board perished. Yet when the plane was found years later, the instruments were still in perfect working order. You can depend on God’s Word to guide you right. Read it daily and believe it no matter what your mind or emotions tell you.
2) ‘The body armour of God’s righteousness’ (v. 14 NLT). Note, it is God’s righteousness, not yours. You’re not saved by trusting your own performance but by trusting Christ’s performance on the cross. When you know that, God’s righteousness becomes the breastplate that protects your heart from doubts about your salvation (see 2 Corinthians 5:21).
3) ‘ For shoes, put on…peace’ (Ephesians 6:15 NLT). Shoes indicate you’re going somewhere, so don’t expect to hear from God if you’re determined to remain frozen in the same spot. When you start moving ahead, He confirms the rightness of your direction by giving you a sense of peace (see Colossians 3:15).
You ‘know in your knower’ that you’re on the right track. When you don’t have peace about it, seek God for direction. This is particularly important if you’re a self-starter who loves what you do. God wants you to have an abiding sense of His peace – so, don’t go without it.
Leviticus 19-20, Matthew 27:51-66
Armed for spiritual warfare (2)
Then after the battle you will still be standing firm.’ Ephesians 6:13 NLT
Let’s look at the next three pieces of spiritual armour God has provided for us to live victoriously:
1) ‘Hold up the shield of faith’ (Ephesians 6:16 NLT). For what? ‘ … to stop the fiery arrows of the devil aimed at you by Satan’ (Ephesians 6:16 NLT). Do you remember in the old western movies the battles between the Native Americans and the settlers? The settlers circled the wagons, and the Native Americans shot flaming arrows into them. They both understood that you can’t fight fires and fight foes at the same time; flaming arrows are a distraction. Satan uses the same tactic. But faith (focusing on God’s Word) snuffs out those flaming arrows.
2) ‘Put on salvation as your helmet’ (Ephesians 6:17 NLT). This helmet protects your mind. When Satan whispers, ‘If you were really a Christian, you wouldn’t have …’, you repel his attacks by knowing your identity in Christ – a blood-bought, totally forgiven, seen-as-righteous, heaven-bound child of God.
3) ‘Take the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God’ (Ephesians 6:17 NLT). ‘The Word of God’ referred to here isn’t logos (the written word) but rhéma, which means ‘utterance’. It calls for speaking God’s Word to defeat Satan, utilising the right Scripture at the right time to deal with the problem.
That’s why Satan fights you so hard over Bible reading. Three times he attacked Jesus in the wilderness, and three times Jesus answered, ‘… It is written …’ (Matthew 4:4-10 KJV). He demolished Satan with Scripture! The devil can out-argue you, but he has no defence against the Word of God. So, memorise the Scriptures and use them as a weapon to defeat him.
1 Kings 8-9 Matt 16:13-28 Ps 40:1-8 Pro 6:1-5
