Standing Firm

Ephesians 6:10-22 (NASB) from the daily reading in the One Year Bible

The Armor of God

¹⁰ Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. ¹¹ Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. ¹² For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. ¹³ Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. ¹⁴ Stand firm therefore, having girded your loins with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, ¹⁵ and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; ¹⁶ in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. ¹⁷ And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

¹⁸ With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints…

²³ Peace be to the brethren, and love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. ²⁴ Grace be with all those who love our Lord Jesus Christ with incorruptible love.

Today’s text serves to a remind to us, both who or what our enemy really is and how we should prepare ourselves daily to engage this enemy. It says:  Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil.  For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.  Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm.    We are reminded that though people do evil and hurtful things they are not our true enemy. Every evil action is motivated by spiritual darkness. If we are to have true victory in our lives, it must be a spiritual victory. Jesus Himself showed this truth when on the cross He said: “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.”(Luke 23:34)  The people who took part in Jesus crucifixion were driven and motivated by the spiritual forces of darkness. It was a scheme of the devil.

For ourselves, in Ephesians 5:15-16, Paul said:  Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, ¹⁶ making the most of your time, because the days are evil.  Today’s text says: , take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. We should then take up this armor, this spiritual protection each and every day. The image Paul creates for us is that of a Roman soldier from his day dressed and prepared for battle. The first thing we are to do is:  Stand firm therefore, having girded your loins with truth.  the devil… was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies. (John 8:44)  

The devil’s first attack is to begin with lies. These lies are like a kick in the groin or the stomach, they cause us to look down. We protect ourselves from the lies of the devil by clothing ourselves in God’s truth, the promises of His word. Standing on God’s truth we can look up and focus on the battle before us. The second thing we are to put on is the breastplate of righteousness. The breastplate protects our heart. It is critical that we put on Christ’s righteousness not our own. Knowing that it is only through Christ that we are righteous protects our heart from pride. We stand in Christ not our own strength.

The next item we put on is to shod our feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace. We need a good solid foundation to stand and walk in the battle of the day. We are victorious when we stand in the gospel of peace even while we are engaged in battle. Romans 16:20 says: The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you. If we stand firm in Christ, He will grant us peace and He will fight for us.

Next we are to take up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Our faith too, is in Christ. It is not the size of our faith that matters. Jesus says: “ Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you." (Matthew 17:20) Christ is the object of our faith. We walk in battle: fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. (Hebrews 12:2) Just as when Peter walked on the water toward Jesus, he was able as long as he kept his eyes fixed on Jesus, the object of his faith. (Matthew 14) So too can we do all things through Christ. With faith in Christ, nothing will be impossible.  

The last protective armor we are to put on is the helmet of salvation. The helmet protects our brain, our mind. Much of the battle we face is fought there in the battleground of our mind. By protecting our mind with the salvation we have in Christ, we can stand and fight fearlessly, knowing that nothing can harm us. Even death has no power over us. As the psalmist says: In God, whose word I praise, In God I have put my trust; I shall not be afraid. What can mere man do to me? (Psalm 56:4) Because of the salvation we have in Christ our eternal destiny is already settled. In Christ we have the victory.

Finally then we take up the only offensive weapon we need. The sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.  God’s word and His promises are not only our defense against the lies of the enemy, through the Spirit the Word of God has the power to create or destroy. Jesus says: "I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven." (Matthew 16:19)  The word of God is one of the keys to the kingdom of heaven. When we pray and declare God’s word we pray in agreement with His will.  

 With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit. Your kingdom come. Your will be done, On earth as it is in heaven. Thank You heavenly Father, Lord Jesus Christ and Holy Spirit. Amen.