By Rebecca Murzin
Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints
Ephesians 6:11-18
This is a very familiar verse for most believers that I know. I even have it tattooed on my leg and have to explain it to people every time I wear shorts. However, I certainly need this reminder. I don’t know about you but I feel like I have been under a spiritual bombardment lately. One attack after another. God has really stirred my spirit to share the gospel and boy, does that make the enemy mad! If I am not careful, I can quickly forget about the real battle I am fighting. I can begin to look at and focus on worldly things and think that’s what I am battling, which is not true. I am battling the schemes of the devil, I am fighting against spiritual forces of evil. Satan wants nothing more than to stop us from spreading the gospel and to stop us from pursuing the vision God has for our church . Satan will do whatever it takes to stop the church from working properly and stop what God has created us to do. He would love to stop our Pastor and leaders from training and equipping us for the work of the ministry and building up the body of Christ (Ephesians 4:11-12). The devil has an army and has deployed them for battle. Are we ready and standing firm to fight back? Are we even aware of the true battle or are we focused somewhere else?
We are told first to put on the belt of truth. Jesus is the truth! Without Him, nothing else matters. He is what holds everything together. He is the center of our life. Without Jesus everything falls apart. He is the way, the truth and the life (John 14:6). Jesus, the truth, gives us strength. When we have trusted Him as our Lord and Savior, it is His blood that makes us righteous and allows for that breastplate to be put on. Our heart is protected by the breastplate of righteousness. We are ready to go out when we have put on the gospel of peace as shoes. We should be going out and spreading the gospel. We have peace when we have the truth and trust God with all our cares. Shoes are important, we hurt without them. Many of us even collect shoes and want our feet to look great in every outfit. There is one sure way to make sure you have the most beautiful feet and perfect shoes, and that is by the spreading of the gospel. How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace (Romans 10:15).
We should not be surprised that we are under attack. In fact, we should be expecting it and keeping an eye out for it. We should always be ready for attack. Verse 16 says, “in every circumstance take up the shield of faith”. We are to always be ready for the attack, because it is coming. However, we don’t have to worry about the attack as long as we have done what we are told. In every circumstance to take up the shield of faith. We need to be trusting God and having faith that no matter what is happening and whatever circumstance we find ourselves in, we know Jesus can handle it. We need to continuously trust God and stand firm in faith knowing that with God all things are possible and all things work together for good for those who love Him and have been called according to His purpose (Romans 8:28). Stop believing that the enemy will harm us and that the worst will happen. Hold that shield of faith high! It extinguishes ALL of the flaming darts of the evil one! However, a shield only works if you are actually holding it.
We are given the helmet of salvation. That free gift of Jesus, must be taken. Salvation is a gift that protects our mind. When we trust in Jesus, we are able to see the truth and the lies and schemes of the enemy. We also are to take up the sword of the spirit, which is the word of God. We must take the time to read and learn the word of God. It is our weapon. The Holy Spirit reminds us of it when we need it. Jesus even used this weapon to fight the devil in the wilderness. When the enemy brings thoughts to our mind, we can combat him with the truth of the word. This allows us to go from a defensive position to an offensive position to take down the enemy.
I love the reminder of verse 18, “praying always”. How blessed we are as a body to have a group of dedicated prayer warriors lifting up the body and making supplication for the saints every Tuesday. I personally have never felt so loved. As I have needed prayer these past weeks, many of you have reached out to let me know you were praying. Thank you brothers and sisters. Keep fighting! Know who and what you are really fighting against. Take up all that Jesus has given us to fight and know that I am praying for all of you as you do, with much love.
