Finally …
Summary: Our study of Ephesians has finally brought us to the famous passage about putting on the armor of God. As we contemplate what is to follow, it is good to consider why we need spiritual armor in the first place.
With one simple word Paul summarizes our feelings about his letter to the Ephesians. Finally, we have arrived. We have eaten our salad, munched our vegetables, and enjoyed a healthy portion of meat. Now it is time for dessert!
If you have never read Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, perhaps you are unaware of his famous passage about the “armor of God.” For many, this passage summarizes the whole of the Christian condition.
Paul tells us that we are at war. Not a war against people, but a war against an invisible enemy.
In the world of science fiction, alien beings from other planets find ways of taking over humans. On the outside, people look normal. But on the inside, they have become monsters intent on destroying the human race. The scary part is that we can’t tell who they are by looking at them. (A famous example of this genre is the 1956 movie, “The Invasion of the Body Snatchers.”)
The irony is that these fictional stories describe reality.
Humans are more than flesh and blood. We have spirits. While “humanists” refuse to acknowledge spirits, the rest of us see spirits as an essential part of life. The Bible says that God is spirit (John 4:24) and explains that God gave us the breath of life, our spirit. Before, we were no more than the dust of the earth (Genesis 2:7)
When we see ourselves for what we really are, two-part beings, we begin to understand the dangers of being human. Without God’s protection, humans face both physical and spiritual dangers. The physical we can usually see, but the spiritual dangers are invisible to the human eye.
What kind of spiritual danger is there?
The first hint of danger is given in Genesis, chapter 4. God tells Cain that something called “sin” is “crouching at your door.” God doesn’t go into detail to describe what this danger is, but he warns, “it desires to have you…” (Genesis 4:7)
It’s easy to pass this off as a metaphor of some kind. God didn’t mean that sin can really desire to have you or me, did he?
Actually, he did.
It is a metaphor, but one based on reality. A spiritual reality. There are invisible forces that desire to have control of our thinking, and our emotions. There really are “body snatchers” that invade the body by taking over the spirit that animates the body. Once the body’s spirit is occupied by the enemy, our thoughts and actions fall under his control.
What can we do?
There are two things we need to do. First, protect ourselves spiritually. Secondly, we need to fight the enemy wherever we find it. Not physically, for that would be too easy. We need to fight on the spiritual battlefield. As we continue to read about the “Armor of God,” Paul will explain.
Application: Stay in God’s Word every day and put on the armor of God!
Food for Thought: How do we prepare to put on spiritual armor?
I can’t help but correlate putting on spiritual armor to my experience in the military. That is to say, before we ever “put on armor”, three things had to be done: personal affairs, gear check, and mindset. Personal affairs were like wills, powers of attorney, light bill ect. Gear check was equipment inspection and maintenance. Mindset was your attitude and mental health. All of them really spoke to “readiness.” All of them really spoke to taking a look at these areas and making sure they were “ready.” The problem with my correlation is that it implies a time of peace and a time of hostility. Prepare in a time of peace so you are ready in a time of hostility. There was a time in my life when I lived under a constant state of “declared hostility.” In that time I had to learn how to maintain preparedness while wearing the armor. It was difficult to do, as it seemed it was the little strings that got pulled that unraveled all the stitching. A bill that didn’t get paid on time or not talking to someone about something that happened “out in the field.”
As believer’s, we are called into service by our King, and have been given the armor to protect us. We are in a constant state of “declared hostility.” It is one thing to say “I have armor,” it is another to regularly inspect it for service. One has to ask, “what verses in the Bible comprise my shield?” When faced with the enemy, what verses are in my heart that help me turn from sin? Not so much “memorization” but rather the verses that apply to your “personality,” “bend,” or “disposition.” The verses that ground you in Christ, and are a direct path to your heart and give you strength. These are the verses that the meaning comes to your mind, the life behind the words. Also, as your faith grows, the battle grows, and your armor will grow.
A long way to say, a good way to prepare to put on the armor is to know your armor. Your armor only fits one person. It is a gift, a covenant from God that says “I am with you” and “I will protect you.”
Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
Chris,
I appreciate you sharing your military experience. That provides a special credibility to your comments about armor.
I especially appreciate your “three things” that need to be done, “personal affairs, gear check, and mindset.” I think that applies to those of us not in the military as well.
The “personal affairs” item is fairly straight forward. When it comes to spiritual armor, the other two require a bit more thinking.
Thank you very much for sharing this morning!
Thanks CH. I think you summed this up well in a personal, interesting way.
However we prepare: Bible study, Bible reading, memorization, prayer, worship – we must realize we are in a war and we must actually put it on.
Rich,
Amen to that!! The time for dillydallying is long past! 🙂
How do we prepare to put on spiritual armor?
As a Marine, all peacetime activities focused on achieving combat effectiveness through professional leadership, and a cohesive doctrine. The key was a hair trigger on our Adrenal gland which put everything in slow motion and increased our effectiveness as we would go into automatic mode clearly seeing every available opportunity to achieve success in all adverse conditions.
As believers we must fully understand, the spiritual war is going on right now. Our enemy is more powerful than we are. He is totally dedicated to our destruction, alert for any opportunity to separate us from God and at the very least will take us out of this battle for a time, possibly permanently.
In my time as a believer I have repeatedly walked into Satans traps and each time, in looking back I can see my fall began as something I viewed as a little thing, a minor compromise which God would certainly not care about. This minor issue took me away from God and only He, in His love could bring me back.
I have come to believe we are not creatures having a spirit, we are each a spirit having a body. A spirit placed in a body by the breath of God. Today we worship, in spirit and present our bodies to God as instruments of His righteousness.
Genesis 2:7, John 4:23-24, Romans 6:13
We should put on and live in the full armor of God. We should take every opportunity to grow in Christ and allow the Holy Spirit to activate our spiritual Adrenal gland as we examine everything. Study God’s word, seek sound teaching and the company of fellow believers, seek to walk with God in constant prayer as we walk through this Valley, this shadow of death.
1 Thessalonians 5:21, Psalm 23:4, Romans 13:11-14
Ron,
Thank you! You make a very important point: We are not bodies having a spiritual experience. We are spirits having a physical experience. Your points are very well made.
What a great revelation, to understand the power of our flesh is totally subordinate to our energized spirits! The power of the Holy Spirit, connects with our spirits and tells our body, there is a new sheriff in town.
Blessings Brother!
Ron