Your Spiritual Armor
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“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 the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” Ephesians 6:10-17 (NIV)
How long was it after you became a Christ follower that you discovered you were in for a fight? To be forewarned is to be forearmed! If you haven’t discovered it yet, you will. Life is a battleground. In fact, the battle is constant, but here’s the good news – the victory is instant! The very moment you turn from your own strength in the struggle and appropriate the armor and authority you have in Christ, the victory is won! Apart from Christ, though, we would be overcome, but in Christ, we are more than overcomers!
Paul uses a military illustration in our passage today to describe the spiritual conflict every believer faces with sin, self, and Satan. He wrote this letter from a prison cell while chained to Roman guards, so it’s interesting to me that he describes the believer’s spiritual protection with the armor worn by a Roman soldier. You’ll find that military illustrations were a favorite with Paul. He exhorted Timothy to “fight the good fight of faith.” 1 Timothy 6:12a (NIV)
We are all engaged in a spiritual conflict. As Christ followers, we face three enemies that we discussed yesterday, the world – refers to the system around us that is opposed to God and appeals to our sinful nature; the flesh – is our old fallen nature apart from God that we inherited from Adam. (As part of the Adam’s family, we are all a little weird.) We also fight against the devil and his demonic forces set against us and against God. It’s a constant conflict we cannot escape but the good news is that with the armor of God as Paul described in our passage today, we do not fight for victory – we fight from victory! The indwelling work of the Holy Spirit enables us, by faith, to appropriate Christ’s victory for ourselves. In fact, God desires that believers walk in victory day by day. That’s why we are instructed to put on the full armor of God. When we do, we are prepared for battle. And did you notice that all of the armor is frontal! There is no armor for the back of us. We are never destined to retreat. Our mission is to charge the gates of hell and rescue those who are perishing. We do that when we share the gospel with others and bring them to Jesus.
In verses 13 through 17, Paul lists the equipment God has provided for us that will protect us and ensure our victory. We are to put on the full armor of God. Don’t omit any part. Satan looks for any area of our lives that we’ve neglected so that he may gain a foothold. He seeks a foothold in our lives so he can establish a stronghold over us. Take a moment to consider your armor.
The belt of truth – Jesus is the truth that sets us free. The belt is what holds the other parts of the armor together.
The breastplate of righteousness – Jesus Christ is our righteousness. The only righteousness the believer has is in Him. When Satan accuses us, it is the righteousness of Jesus Christ that comes to our defense and liberates us from guilt and shame! This is our positional righteousness, and it enables us to live in practical righteousness as we stay connected to Christ.
Feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the Gospel of Peace – If we are going to take our stand in the evil day, we need to be grounded in Christ, prepared and ready. We need to walk daily with the Lord and follow in His steps.
The shield of faith - A Roman soldier’s shield was large, usually about four feet by two feet, made of wood, and covered with tough leather according to one historian. It protected him in battle from spears, arrows, and “fiery darts.” Warren Wiersbe notes that “The edges of these shields were so constructed that an entire line of soldiers could interlock shields and march into the enemy like a solid wall. This suggests that we Christians are not in the battle alone.” The faith Paul mentions here is not saving faith, but living faith, trusting daily in the promises of God and relying on Him in every situation to protect us from Satan’s flaming arrows.
The helmet of salvation – The helmet protects our minds. How a believer thinks shapes his behavior. We must have the mind of Christ and know the truth of His Word to live in victory.
The sword of the Spirit – While most of the armor we’ve examined is defensive, the sword is our offensive weapon against the enemy. Paul says the sword of the Spirit is the Word of God! More than just print on a page, the Word of God is living and active and powerful! God speaks His Word in our hearts as His revealed will for our lives. It is the application of His word in whatever situation we are facing at that moment. This is why it is so important to study daily the written Word of God so that the Living Word may apply in our lives when we are in the battle. The Holy Spirit inspired men to write the Word of God and the Holy Spirit will wield His Word in our lives when we apply it by faith to conquer the enemy!
Every one of these pieces of equipment speaks to the indwelling Christ. In another letter, Paul sums up all the pieces of God’s armor by simply saying, “Put on the Lord Jesus Christ!” Romans 13:14 (NKJV) When we put on Christ, we get all the armor! Have you put on Christ?