This is how I fight my battles, Ephesians 6:17

Ephesians 6:10–20 (ESV)

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.

Recap

“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.”

The belt of truth

The breastplate of righteousness

The shoes of 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.”

In all circumstances…

Take up the shield of faith

And the helmet of salvation

Today: We fight our battles with the sword of the Spirit— the Word of God.

“…and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God”

As a weapon, the sword is both defensive and offensive, and it’s the only part of the armor that is both.

Revelation 19:11–16 (ESV) gives an incredible picture of the power and might of the Word- Jesus.

“11 Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. 12 His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself. 13 He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God. 14 And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses. 15 From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. 16 On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords.”

Jesus is the Word, and His words are all He needs to overcome his enemies.

Jesus doesn’t come welding the sword in his hands, the sword comes from his mouth… there are no contenders… why? Because the created is less than the creator. Jesus has only to speak for his enemies to defeated.

We see this throughout his earthly ministry, beginning with his temptation in the wilderness and then has he commands the demons.

Jesus defended himself against the attack of Satan with the Word.

Matthew 4:1–11 (ESV)

“Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3 And the tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” 4 But he answered, “It is written “ ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ ” 5 Then the devil took him to the holy city and set him on the pinnacle of the temple 6 and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written, “ ‘He will command his angels concerning you,’ and “ ‘On their hands they will bear you up,lest you strike your foot against a stone.’ ” 7 Jesus said to him, “Again it is written, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’ ” 8 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. 9 And he said to him, “All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.” 10 Then Jesus said to him, “Be gone, Satan! For it is written, “ ‘You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.’ ” 11 Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and were ministering to him.”

Jesus responded to the twisting of the Word, and the temptations of the devil with Scripture.

Satan twisted the Word, Jesus corrected him with the Word

Satan tempted the flesh of Jesus, and Jesus depended on the Word

Satan tempted Jesus with the goal of his Word, and Jesus replied with the Word rightly used.

The Sword of the Spirit is our defense, it’s our attack,,, but when we look to Hebrews 4 we see that

The sword of the Spirit is a double edged weapon against the enemy and a scalpel to your soul.

Hebrews 4:12 (ESV)

“12 For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.”

The sword of the Spirt is how we resist and reject the darts of the enemy.

The sword of the Spirit is how the Lord reveals the true motivations and condition of our hearts.

The same Word that is used against the enemy is used to

“…and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God”

The sword of the Spirit is the Word of God, and we need to know and use all of it!

2 Timothy 3:16–17 (ESV)

16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.

In every circumstance we are to use the armor of God, and we need the Word.

You can only follow the leadership of the Holy Spirit to the degree that you know the Word.

You are susceptible to the enemy in every area where you don’t know and understand the Word.

Remember… the armor we are called to put on is the armor of God. And, the sword is the of the Spirit… which means the Spirit wields the sword and works through the sword.

Application: "This is how I fight my battles”

You fight against your sin and flesh

You fight against the world and it’s ways

You fight against the lies and temptations of enemy.

Fight your battles by knowing, understanding, praying, applying, and obeying the Word

Personal time with the Lord through His Word- Commit to a time of day

What do you do in that time? Read, study, pray, apply, memorize, and obey the Bible

Use the Rooted Journals or something like it… have a plan, and stay sensitive to the Spirit… and always be willing to go the Word over the things that come up in your life.

Get a faithful translation that you can read and understand

Rooted Journal or another reading plan, or get into a book of the Bible.

Using a good study Bible, Bible dictionary, encyclopedia, commentaries, etc.

And in all of this you need others…

God says it, I am just delivering the message… you can’t do this alone.

Hebrews 3:12–14 (ESV) says, “12 Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God. 13 But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. 14 For we have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original confidence firm to the end.”

Fight your battles with the Word and with one another.

Grow in your relationship with God with other members of the church

Helps us to keep membership in its right perspective. Membership is about being a part of the body of Christ, and being an encourager to others and being encouraged by others. Membership is so much more than filling in a position in the ministries and programs of the church, it’s so much more than a couple of hours a week… Membership is about our shared relationship with God and growing and serving Him together.

1 John says that when we walk with the Lord, we have fellowship with one another, and that we cannot walk with each other or the Lord without being in the light.

We fight our battles with the Word, and we fight our battles together.

Don’t reduce church as something to attend, elevate the church to a people you grow in the Word with and fight against the enemy and your own sin with.

We need to study the Word together, pray it together, memorize it together, apply it together, and obey it together,

Accountability and encouragement are both a part of this…

This goal is present in our worship services, Sunday school classes… our various ministries and programs… our de-groups, and even in our equipping classes.

This is how we fight our battles— through the strength and Word of Christ.

Philippians 4:13 (ESV)

13 I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

This passage gets used for all kind of things it doesn’t apply too… but it absolutely fits here… in the face of the flaming darts of the enemy… you use the Word of the one who wins with His Word.

This is how we fight our battles— Know it, understand it, pray it, memorize it, apply it, and obey it.