Armor of God Pt 2
Notes
Transcript
Scripture Reading
Scripture Reading
Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.
Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness 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.
Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness,
and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one.
And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God;
praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints—
and for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel,
for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.
I. Stand against who?
I. Stand against who?
Demonic Authorities are behind the political and religious systems of this world.
Ephesians Refers to the Principalities and Powers a fair bit Ephesians 1:21; 3:10
far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come.
to the intent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known by the church to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places,
Jesus triumphed over them at the Cross Col 2:14-15
having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.
Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it.
Demons apparently have dominion over various nations Daniel 10:12-14
Then he said to me, “Do not fear, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand, and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard; and I have come because of your words.
But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days; and behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left alone there with the kings of Persia.
Now I have come to make you understand what will happen to your people in the latter days, for the vision refers to many days yet to come.”
Demons also stand behind the various idols 1 Cor 10:19-22
What am I saying then? That an idol is anything, or what is offered to idols is anything?
Rather, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice they sacrifice to demons and not to God, and I do not want you to have fellowship with demons.
You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons; you cannot partake of the Lord’s table and of the table of demons.
Or do we provoke the Lord to jealousy? Are we stronger than He?
The Demonic Authorities are world rulers of this Darkness. What exactly does he mean by darkness?
Just as we use the term metaphorically today, darkness does indeed stand for Sin sometimes. 1 John 1:6; Ephesians 5:11; Rom 13:12
If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.
And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them.
The night is far spent, the day is at hand. Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light.
But it also refers to the fact that it’s hard to see when it’s dark, so our actions are today “hidden”, for both good and bad things. We don’t always see the effects of our actions; people don’t always know what we are really doing, just like you can conceal your movements in the dark. 1 Cor 4:5
Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the hearts. Then each one’s praise will come from God.
Finally, Darkness can refer to a false worldview, where you don’t really know what’s going on because you’ve bought the Devil’s lies. Therefore you are “in the dark” about what God is going to do next; That’s part of the power of darkness. 1 Thess 5:4-5; Col 1:13
But you, brethren, are not in darkness, so that this Day should overtake you as a thief.
You are all sons of light and sons of the day. We are not of the night nor of darkness.
He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love,
“Spiritual Hosts of Wickedness?” Are the demons really in heaven?
Well it does appear Satan and his demons have some access to heaven Job 1:6
Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them.
Furthermore, the Devil is the prince of the power of the air - that is, the sky, the first heaven. Eph 2:2
in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience,
However, they do not reside there, as Satan was thrown out of heaven, probably when he sinned and tempted Adam and Eve Luke 10:18
And He said to them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.
Someday, the Devil will be permanently banned from heaven Rev 12:7-9, 12
And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought with the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought,
but they did not prevail, nor was a place found for them in heaven any longer.
So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.
Therefore rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell in them! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time.”
After Jesus returns, he will be imprisoned and banned from the earth, too. Rev 20:1-3, after which he will be released, then eventually thrown into the Lake of Fire, never to plague the earth again.
II. Put on the Rest of the Armor
II. Put on the Rest of the Armor
4. The Shield of Faith
4. The Shield of Faith
A. The ancient shield was often made of leather and wood; the soldier would get his shield wet, so that nothing would burn on it. The enemy might tip their arrows with pitch and light them on fire, to hopefully ignite the shield and eliminate the soldier’s shield as a defense.
B. So what are the fiery arrows that the devil sends?The Devil delights in creating doubt about who God is (Genesis). The Devil delights in confusing you about the Scripture’s meaning, so that you will be disillusioned when your mistaken understanding of the Bible proves to not be true. (Temptation of Christ)The Devil delights in setting up false gods to worship, to draw you away from worshipping God. (Temptation of Christ)
C. A Strong faith will immunize you against these kinds of attacks.If you clearly understand God’s nature, you will be able to answer the doubts the Devil raises in your mind.If you clearly understand the Scriptures, you will recognize it when someone presents an understanding of God that isn’t true.If you really know God, you will not be tempted to worship anything else. To know God is to love him; to know him better is to love him better.
5. The Helmet of Salvation
5. The Helmet of Salvation
A. The Helmet, of course, protects the head. Without it you can easily be permanently taken out.
B. So what salvation are we talking about? Ephesians 2:4-8. We have been already delivered from the power of Satan into the glory of the heavenly places in Christ. This salvation must be received as a gift.
But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us,
even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved),
and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,
that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.
For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,
C. This salvation, therefore, is absolutely essential. You cannot fight the battles of the Lord without it. But it’s also essential to know you have it, for without a secure understanding that you are saved and going to heaven, you won’t be able to concentrate on the battle, only on your own eternal destiny. If you aren’t certain you will participate in the glory of God’s kingdom, why risk everything for it?
6. The Sword of the Spirit
6. The Sword of the Spirit
A. the Sword is the only offensive weapon on this list. It’s pretty self-explanatory.
B. The Word of God defeats the lies of the Devil. It did at Jesus’ temptation.Reveals the true intents of your heart Heb 4:12 It is therefore the counter to the flesh, which will deceive you into thinking you are better than you really are.
For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
7. All Prayer
7. All Prayer
A. We are out of ancient pieces of armor, but Paul has one more item, and it’s probably not a coincidence that this brings the number of items to seven. If Paul were using modern armor, he could have invoked the radio.
B. This is your communication to the commander, to allow you to fix problems beyond your own control; to allow you to help others in ways you cannot in yourself.
C. Paul own prayer request is a practical example - he prays for boldness to witness as he ought to speak. The Ephesians obviously can’t do that for him, but they can pray to the Lord that he would enable Paul to do it.We pray at all times, with all kinds of prayers and intercessions for all Christians, so the emphasis is not only on your own needs, but to pray for others. This way, you participate in the good things that they do or that happen to them.
III. Fellowship and Benediction
III. Fellowship and Benediction
Tychicus was not a pastor, but a “faithful servant” and “beloved brother.” We find him several times
He carried this letter as well as the Letter to the church at nearby Colossae Col 4:7
Tychicus, a beloved brother, faithful minister, and fellow servant in the Lord, will tell you all the news about me.
Tychicus was one of the men Paul trusted to travel with him to Jerusalem to deliver the funds he had raised to the church at Jerusalem Acts 20:4
And Sopater of Berea accompanied him to Asia—also Aristarchus and Secundus of the Thessalonians, and Gaius of Derbe, and Timothy, and Tychicus and Trophimus of Asia.
He returned to be with Paul at some point, and Paul again sent him to Ephesus, his hometown, at the end of Paul’s life 2 Tim 4:12
And Tychicus I have sent to Ephesus.
Tychicus is a “beloved brother” which demonstrates true Christian fellowship.
Fellowship has the effect of creating familial bonds, which we see here. It’s the affection that causes Christians to care about each other- The Ephesians will be anxious about Paul because he is in prison, so he will be able to share. Phil 1:5; 1 John 1:7
for your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now,
But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.
This seems an awful lot like simple friendship, and it is that, but the cause of this friendship and comaraderie is different - it is the common ground in the Gospel. Rom 12:10; 1 Thess 4:9; 2 Pet 1:7
Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another;
But concerning brotherly love you have no need that I should write to you, for you yourselves are taught by God to love one another;
to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love.
Peace, Love and Grace
Love our lord Jesus sincerely.
Because Jesus is in heaven right now, we cannot see him 1 Pt 1:7-9. Now having faith in Jesus without having met him is blessed John 20:29. However, the danger in loving someone that you cannot meet is that this love can very easily become a mere slogan, a hypothetical loyalty that costs you nothing and is therefore worth nothing.
that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ,
whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory,
receiving the end of your faith—the salvation of your souls.
Jesus said to him, “Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
The Apostle Paul warns the church at Corinth that their welcoming of false teachers could lead them away from the sincere faith in Jesus Christ 2 Cor 11:2-4
For I am jealous for you with godly jealousy. For I have betrothed you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.
But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted—you may well put up with it!
A practical test to see if you love God truly is to see how you love the imperfect people around you. 1 John 4:20
If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?