READY FOR BATTLE
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Well we have come to the end of Ephesians - the whole letter leads up to this point.
W are now ready to do battle.
Are you ready?
10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.
11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.
12 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.
13 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.
14 Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness,
15 and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace.
16 In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one;
17 and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God,
18 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,
19 and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel,
20 for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak.
21 So that you also may know how I am and what I am doing, Tychicus the beloved brother and faithful minister in the Lord will tell you everything.
22 I have sent him to you for this very purpose, that you may know how we are, and that he may encourage your hearts.
23 Peace be to the brothers, and love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
24 Grace be with all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with love incorruptible.
Very important note – Just like the rest of Ephesians if you don’t get a handle on vs 10 forget about the rest of the verses. You are only as strong as you are in the Lord. AMEN
There is no place for spiritual pacifists- it is a very real battle- One theologian said we are on a battleground not a playground
A Real Enemy
Your antagonist is not human or visible- he is Satan and his deeds for the most part are invisible. What you see is the effects of the invisible made visible. He is the enemy of your soul.
1 PT 5 :8 -says, 8 Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.
Every work of Satan is diabolical and destructive
He is the enemy - a murderer and a liar - the accuser of the brethren - he is your adversary
He has two positions or princely realms – rules in the earth and in the air- he rules over evil people and evil spirits. Isaiah speaks of him.
12 “How you are fallen from heaven, O Day Star, son of Dawn! How you are cut down to the ground, you who laid the nations low!
13 You said in your heart, ‘I will ascend to heaven; above the stars of God I will set my throne on high; I will sit on the mount of assembly in the far reaches of the north;
14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.’
15 But you are brought down to Sheol, to the far reaches of the pit.
In other words he operates in this world and beyond the confines of it.
Zechariah speaks of him accusing Joshua before Jesus and Job speaks of him before God
Today many belief that Satan is not real or believe he has little to no influence.
But - He has been defeated and his end is sure. Until Christ comes we have to be vigilant soldiers.
The church is evidence of Satan’s defeat. Remember every saint is a sinner snatched out of Satan’s kingdom
Satan tempts and challenges us in our walk with God everyday. In the last days, Satan will be doing all-out battle against the people of God. Thus, the armor is not for just one special occasion in the Christian’s life, but is an everyday necessity
We Wrestle All The Time.
It is continuous that is why we stick together
As we wrestle we overcome –
John speaks of young men overcoming the devil
14 I write to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I write to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one.
A youths victory is overcoming the evil one -
HOW - You fully comprehend the power of the cross – the power of the Holy Spirit and the Power of Faith
1 jn 5:4-5
4 For whatever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.
5 Who is the one who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?
Everyone born of God overcomes the world – By faith
Satan is going to attack your faith becasue with it you win. AMEN
The Battlefield
Battle in heavenly places 6:12 – Our position has changed
Where are we if we are in Christ read 2:6
If we battle in the heavenlies what kind of weapons would we use
2 Corinthians 10:4–5 (NASB95)
4 for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses.
5 We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ,
Battle in the mind
Joyce Myers wrote a book a long time ago that was awesome it was called the battlefield of the mind. - How many of you felt that battle?
The Tactics of the Enemy
Steal the Christians Wealth – by lieing about who God is, false teachers
Decoy the Christians walk – everything else seems important – no time to read the word – no time to pray – we become more concerned with ego , money , power , etc….
Disable the Christians ability to war – through sin, lack of prayer – lack of fellowship. Lack of training – think of a soldier how is he most effective in war.
It is extremely arrogant and foolish on our part to underestimated the tactics of Satan but it is equally foolish and fatal to overestimate it.
Victory is ours –Our Strength lies in the most powerful two letter word – IN – In Christ – In the Spirit - In the Lord
You will probably find that in your own strength you are very limited to the power you have over the devil
The Armor – Is to help you stand- He uses this word twice- vs 11 and vs 13 . The battle belongs to the Lord
Some say the armor is your salvation- others say the armor is the the priestly garment worn by the high priest. Most say it represents a Roman soldier.
Either way this Armor is there for you to protect yourself
The greek word for armor - is “panoplia” - it means the full equipment of a fully armed foot soldier.
God is described as a warrior in Is 42:14
13 The Lord will go forth like a warrior, He will arouse His zeal like a man of war. He will utter a shout, yes, He will raise a war cry. He will prevail against His enemies.
This armor is designed for you and is meant to protect you as long as you are on the offense.
Ephesians: A Bible Commentary in the Wesleyan Tradition 1. Putting on the Full Armor of God 6:10–17
In God’s army, one never hears the call for retreat.
Belt of truth - why because the enemy is a liar
44 “You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He 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.
Breast plate of righteousness - not your righteousness but Christs righteousness- He protects you because you cannot protect yourself.
Shoes – Peace - Is 52:7
7 How lovely on the mountains Are the feet of him who brings good news, Who announces peace And brings good news of happiness, Who announces salvation, And says to Zion, “Your God reigns!”
The good news changes the your position and all others who will hear it. They will be saved- again snatching them out of the grip of the enemy
Shield – Faith - allows the attack of doubt by the enemy to be deflected away from you. Paul says in 2 Cor - By faith you stand . In the most impossible situations you can stand. Job faced an impossible situation but in it he stood - WOW
Helmet – Salvation- Paul calls it in Thessalonians the Helmet of Hope - the hope of our salvation. In other words not only do you have hope in this present life but you hav a future hope. A hope in the next one.
Sword – Word of God ( offensive weapon) Jesus battled Satan by the Word in Matthew. It penetrates - and divides the soul and spirit
vs 18 praying at all times in the Spirit,
26 In the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words;
27 and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.
Pray always- Supplication ( petitioning) – constant bombardment
- In the spirit – Remember God has the vantage point so He can see everything. Pray what the spirit wants you to pray not what is in your own mind. Remember Intercession and some of the steps
Conclusion –
Remember you must go through spiritual boot-camp to be a soldier-
You must be trained – and you must fight
Remember we are a body we need each other and we need Jesus and the power of the spirit working in our lives.
We are as effective as our unit.
Would 4 or 5 highly trained special forces soldiers be more effective than 4 pinkerton security guards in a fight? Yes
And when we fall we need to get up, wipe the dust off of our pants and keep marching, remember I said marching and not walking.
Good soldiers march they do not walk into battle and brave soldiers hold the line