Spiritual Warfare, Part 3: The Rest of Our Armor
June 08, 2012
In my last post I left off with our feet. Yes, our feet shod with the gospel of peace! When our minds are full of God’s Word, and we are relying on and trusting God, we are STANDING firm in our faith. This is our strength.
I read something in a Bible study (Duty or Delight by Tammie Head) just this past week. In fact, the timing of this study—when I read this chapter and writing this series—all fell together at the same time. I asked God to equip me to write this series and boy, did He show up!
Now get ready for this little nugget of revelation. I read something that shifted my perspective and I want to share it with you. Tammie makes a great point in the last chapter of her study. She asks, are you fighting for victory or from victory?
Think about that for a moment.
In the NIV version of Ephesians 6:10-20, we are told to stand four times. We’re told to stand against the devil’s schemes; to stand our ground; that after we’ve done everything, to stand; and then to stand firm. All within the first four verses.
Now put this together with Tammie’s insight and what do you get? We’re not running into battle to gain victory, we’re standing firm in defense of the victory that is already ours.
Do you see the difference? This is a subtle yet major shift in our perspective. There’s a big difference between fighting to win to KNOWING you’ve already won.
My friends, we’ve already won! Jesus “finished” it. The enemy is already the loser in this battle. Let’s STAND our ground and keep what God has given us. And if the enemy’s taken some ground in your life, it’s time to take it back. Stand back up and stand firm!
Let’s look at the rest of this amazing armor of ours:
Feet Shod with the Gospel
We covered that the sword our Bible. I love how that goes right to our feet, because we are standing firm in God’s Word. That’s our foundation Jesus spoke about in Luke 6:47-49.
The Belt of Truth
This will absolutely blow your socks off, my friends. Take a look at these two pieces of Scripture:
Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, — Eph. 6:14
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. — John 14:6
The Greek word for truth is aletheia and is the same word in each of these verses. Jesus is our belt of truth! That makes me think of Colossians 1:17 that tells us He is before all things and in Him all things hold together.
Paul was very intentional in his analogical comparison of faith to armor. Roman soldiers wore their belts tightly around their waists to show they were ready for action. This same belt also held their breastplate in place as well as the scabbard, which held their sword. Jesus is holding us together, my friends, and we are girded in His Truth.
The Breastplate of Righteousness
Held by our belt of truth, our breastplate of righteousness is also a direct connection to Jesus. The Greek word used here is the same one used when referencing the righteousness of God. Jesus is our righteousness. Wear it proudly against the enemy as a reminder to you and to him that you are covered by the blood of Jesus and therefore now wear his righteousness and not our own. When the enemy hits you with doubts and thoughts that say you are unworthy or have no right to God’s love and grace, kick him to the curb with this truth. God chose you before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight (Eph. 1:4).
Our Shield of Faith
As I mentioned before, our shield is what keeps the enemy’s attacks (fiery darts) from getting through. This shield doesn’t just deflect those darts, it “extinguishes” them. When we pray God’s Word out loud and speak the name of Jesus (Truth) against the enemy when he attacks, we’re not just deflecting his presence, his lies, or whatever evil he’s sent against us, we’re actually defeating it. The flame intended to burn us is put out!
The Helmet of Salvation
Think of this as your protection against the enemy’s attempts fill your mind and thoughts with lies. Know who you are and who you belong to! If you know you are saved and that you are already victorious in Jesus, then this helmet is your covering. The enemy can’t take your salvation away from you. He will try to make you think he can, he will try to make you doubt your salvation, or even make you believe you’ve done something to lose it. When we are secure in our place in God’s heart, the enemy can’t touch this kind of confidence.
I hope by now you see that we’re not the ones fighting because the battle has already been won. We are holding our ground in faith. One more little nugget before we say goodbye. We talked about how the word “stand” is used four times in Ephesians 6: 10-14. Now look at this piece of Scripture from the last two verses of Jude:
Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to make you stand in the presence of His glory blameless with great joy, to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen. (NASB)
I’m using the NASB translation because it uses that word stand again more clearly. And I bet you already guessed that it’s the same Greek word. You’re right. So I’m thinking, if Paul says God can make us stand in his glory blameless with great joy, then the enemy doesn’t stand a chance.
Yes, pun intended, my friends. Take that chuckle and go be joyful before God and celebrate your place in victory!
Praying and believing,
Dineen
(You can read more about the armor of God in chapter nine of our book Winning Him Without Words as well.)