Ephesians 6:10-17
The Complete Armor of God…
For the past few days, we have discussed the armor of God, piece by piece, and now, let’s bring it all together:
Finally, draw your strength from the Lord and from his mighty power. Put on the armor of God so that you may be able to stand firm against the tactics of the devil. For our struggle is not with flesh and blood but with the principalities, with the powers, with the world rulers of this present darkness, with the evil spirits in the heavens. Therefore, put on the armor of God, that you may be able to resist on the evil day and, having done everything, to hold your ground. So stand fast with your loins girded in truth, clothed with righteousness as a breastplate, and your feet shod in readiness for the gospel of peace. In all circumstances, hold faith as a shield, to quench all (the) flaming arrows of the evil one. And take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. -Ephesians 6:10-17, NAB
We must prepare ourselves for battle by putting on the armor of God. Each piece has a unique, distinct purpose, and together, they make up the protection we need to fight off sin, temptation, and the ways of the devil.
- First, our loins are girded in Truth to fight off the lies and deceit of the evil one.
- We are clothed with righteousness to protect our very heart and soul.
- The Gospel of peace helps us to stand firm against our doubts and fears.
- The shield of faith stops the flaming arrows that threaten to destroy everything around us.
- The helmet of salvation secures our minds against our own worst enemy: our own “rational” thoughts.
- Finally, the sword of the Spirit is our offensive weapon that helps us to fight back against the evil one.
Now that we have looked at each one of these pieces individually, we can see how, together, they form a complete suit of armor to protect us against every attack – a necessary tool in our faith journey. The complete armor of God shields us from head to toe as we prepare ourselves for battle.
The battle rages on. The further we go down the path towards Christ, the more perilous it becomes. We become a bigger target for the devil, so we must develop and strengthen our use of the armor of God to protect ourselves even more.
Whether you know it or not, you are part of a great spiritual battle for souls, and you should not enter the battle without the armor of God to protect you. May truth, righteousness, peace, faith, the assurance of salvation, and the Spirit protect you in the assault.
