Equipped for War: Donning the Armor of God

Bible Passage: Ephesians 6:10–20

Summary: In Ephesians 6:10-20, the Apostle Paul exhorts believers to be strong in the Lord and to put on the full armor of God, illustrating the spiritual warfare they face against evil forces. Each piece of armor symbolizes different aspects of faith and protection that equip Christians to stand firm against spiritual challenges.

Application: As Christians face daily spiritual battles, this passage encourages them to actively engage in their faith through prayer, righteousness, and the proclamation of the gospel. By understanding and applying the armor of God, believers can find strength and resilience amidst their struggles, knowing they are equipped by God.

Teaching: This sermon teaches that believers are in a constant spiritual battle and highlights the importance of equipping themselves with God's armor to protect against temptation and attack. It emphasizes practical faith and reliance on God’s strength.

How this passage could point to Christ: This passage reveals Christ as the ultimate source of power and victory in spiritual battles. Each piece of armor reflects aspects of Christ's character—His truth, righteousness, readiness to spread the gospel, faith, salvation, and the Word of God—showing that believers’ strength comes from Him.

Big Idea: To stand firm against spiritual opposition, Christians must equip themselves daily with the armor of God, drawing strength from their relationship with Christ.

Recommended Study: In your Logos library, consider exploring commentaries on Ephesians to deepen your understanding of Paul's metaphor of armor. Pay particular attention to the historical context of Roman military gear, as this could illuminate Paul's choice of imagery. Analyzing the original Greek words used for each piece of armor may also provide insights into their spiritual implications and help you address potential contemporary application challenges.

Introduction

[Tell story about WW2, sleeping in battle uniforms to be ready]

Imagine a chilly, damp night on the Normandy beaches after D-Day, where soldiers fought for days without proper rest or food. For those in the thick of the fighting, sleep might be a brief affair, snatched in a slit trench with a carbine still gripped in hand. Even within the relative safety of a patrol base, slumber might be taken in shifts with a buddy keeping watch, ready to spring into action at any moment.

These men slept in harsh conditions, geared up in their uniform, ready at a moment’s notice to engage in battle. They did not have the luxury of time to get ready; they were always on alert, always equipped for battle, because, for all intents and purposes, they were constantly engaged in warfare.

Are you equipped for war? Are you ready?

Context

Tonight, we will be diving into Ephesians 6:10-20, but before we do, let’s briefly look at the context of this letter.

Paul planted the Ephesian church and spent three years there during his missionary journeys. He has a tender relationship with these Christians. Paul’s purpose in writing this letter is reveals his love and care for them. We see Paul address the need for unity of faith and purpose among a diverse body of Jewish and Gentile Christians. We see Paul address the role of the church in the work of ministry and how Christians are to live differently than they did before Christ. Paul elaborates on the beautiful mystery of the gospel that has been revealed in Christ and trusted to the church. The heart of Paul is on display as he labors in prayer for these people, desiring for them to attain the fullness of the faith and walk in the love and purity of Christ. And, as we will see tonight in Ephesians 6:10-20, Paul exhorts the Ephesian church to don the whole armor of God for defense and offense against spiritual warfare.

Please stand with me as I read our passage aloud tonight.

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.

Let’s pray. [PRAY]

You may be seated.

As we look through Paul’s exhortation to the Ephesians in this passage, we see an exhortation that applies to us, as well. The exhortation for Christians, and what I want you to take away from this sermon tonight, is this:

In expectation of spiritual warfare, you must equip the armor of God and engage in prayerful combat against the powers of Satan.

1. Expect Spiritual Warfare

Ephesians 6:10–13 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.

Paul begins his final instruction to the Ephesians with this: “be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.” Paul is quite simply encouraging the church to lean on the Lord, trust in his strength, rather than leaning on ourselves and trusting our own strength to prevail against the enemy. In view of our abilities, the enemy is capable of defeating us. We are but weak vessels, bound by sinful flesh, and the enemy has all the tactics, techniques, and procedures to cause us to lose when he wars against us.

But look at God! Psalm 24:8 says it like this:

Psalm 24:8 ESV

8 Who is this King of glory? The Lord, strong and mighty, the Lord, mighty in battle!

Why trust in your own strengths, oh weak little man, when you have the strength of the King of glory? Only a fool would choose to fight on the enemy’s turf without the One who can defeat him… and, in fact, already has defeated him!

For men, this can be a tough pill to swallow. We do not like having help. We want to prove the depths of our own strength by accomplishing victory ourselves, in whatever situations we find ourselves.

A couple weeks ago, we had our dryer vent disconnect from the wall, which was blowing hot, humid air into our tiny laundry room. Now this room is a little bit smaller than my wingspan. So, picture that room, hot and humid, with two large utility appliances in taking up half the space. I had to shimmy the washing machine out of the way and finagle myself behind it in order to reconnect the vent. Unfortunately, I could not get any leverage to push the dryer closer to the outlet while holding the vent tubing in place. So I am drenched in sweat at 10pm, stuck between a washer and dryer. My helper, my beautiful wife, was 8 months pregnant and in no shape to push this dryer into place for me.

I am sitting there, frustrated, and trying to figure out how to get this daggum thing back in the wall. My wife has the brilliant idea to call her father. While I am trying to figure out how to overcome the laws of physics, my wife uses her brain. So my father-in-law comes over, pushes the dryer into place while I position the vent, and all is well. I could’ve saved a good bit of time and frustration if I had not spent so long trying to do it on my own.

Men, you cannot respond to spiritual problems with carnal solutions. You cannot wage spiritual warfare with fleshly strength. This is why Paul says to be strong in the Lord, because you are not strong enough in yourself. You must humble yourself before the Lord and accept his help, his strength.

How do you do this? Paul introduces the idea, which he will elaborate on further, by saying to put on the whole armor of God. By putting on this armor, you can stand against the schemes of the devil; you can defend, and you can fight. The Lord provides this armor to you! You just have to put the gear on!

Paul emphasizes in the next verse, verse 12, that the reason you must don this spiritual armor is due to the expectation of spiritual warfare. Paul uses this military imagery to illustrate the significance of dealing with the advances of the devil and his forces. This is not just a little lie here, or a small temptation to do this thing over here. This is WAR! Right, we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the hierarchy of evil that the devil commands. We are not waging war against a physical army but a spiritual one. This army, led by Satan, will seek to kill, steal, and destroy, employing any methods necessary to conquer you.

Many of us – or more accurately, all of us, to some degree – struggle with lust, for instance. The devil and his forces will gladly work through the world to put every stumbling block before you. Anything that can cause your mind to wander, to lust after promiscuous women out in public or on social media, will be thrown your way. The same thing with traffic that will incite your road rage, with persecution of our brothers and sisters around the world that will play upon their fears and worries, with a silly dryer vent tugging on your pride and frustrations.

So, again, Paul says in verse 13, therefore – because of this spiritual warfare – take up the whole armor of God to stand firm. If you do this, you will withstand the wicked tactics of the devil. In the strength of the Lord, you will withstand being besieged by the enemy, not falling to the temptations put before you.

Expect spiritual warfare, brothers. Now, in expectation of that spiritual warfare, it’s time to suit up. It is time to equip the armor of God.

2. Equip the Armor of God

Ephesians 6:14–17 ESV

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,

There are six pieces of armor to equip here: the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the shoes of peace, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit. Paul is fashioning the armor of God through the image of a Roman soldiers garb. Remember, Ephesus is a prominent Roman city, Paul was a Roman citizen, and he is addressing an audience that would almost certainly consist of at least some other Roman citizens. They’ve seen what the Roman legionnaires would wear for battle. So, Paul continues with the military imagery. Let’s look at these pieces of the armor, as we do so, we can recognize how each aspect is an attribute of the character of Christ that we are to take on; some of these go hand in hand with each other, supplementing the whole.

And, allow me to preface with this: these are the Christian ideals. You and I will never perfectly equip this armor. We will not fasten the clasps properly at all times, but there is abundant and amazing grace from our Savior when we fail. So, remember, this list does not expect perfection, but a pursuit of a Christian ideal. Let’s get into it.

First, we have the belt of truth. The Roman soldier would wear a thick leather belt to support the garments of the uniform and hold weaponry. For the Christian, the belt of truth is the underlying integrity of the faith that we hold to. You are being girded up with Christ, effectively; he is the way, the truth, and the life. You must fasten this belt tightly, meaning be tightly supported by the truth of Jesus Christ, for that is what will hold up everything else. Your armor will fall off if the faith, the truth, is not firmly fastened. This looks like trusting in the truth of the Word and in the promises of God. When we look at the gospels, how does Jesus treat truth? With boldness and integrity. He never shies away from the truth. Jesus always stands on business. We are to do the same, with everything being held up by the truth we put our hope and trust in.

Second, we have the breastplate of righteousness. Roman breastplates would primarily be made of bronze and leather, and the purpose of the breastplate was to protect vital organs from sustaining critical damage. Similarly, the breastplate of righteousness protects you from sustaining critical spiritual damage from the consequences of sin. You bear the righteousness of Christ, justified and renewed to right standing with the Lord, and you live accordingly. Where the belt of truth is being sustained in the truth of God, the breastplate of righteousness is choosing to reject sin and striving to be Christlike in thought, in word, in deed. You live according to the righteousness that Christ has imparted unto you, and your spiritual organs are protected. Temptation does not penetrate your breastplate, for it is not formed out of bronze, which will dent and fail under repeated stress; no, it is formed from the righteousness of Jesus Christ, which is completely impervious to any damage.

Third, we have the shoes of peace. Perhaps more completely, the shoes of the gospel of peace. The soldiers would wear these sandals that would kind of wrap up their ankles and partly to their shins. This would ensure a solid footing, which would be helpful in standing firm in a shield formation or engaging in offensive tactics. They were ready for combat with a sure footing. The shoes of peace remind us of the peace of God we now possess, being perfectly reconciled to him in the power of the gospel. You stand firmly upon the cornerstone of Jesus Christ, not being swayed or caught off balance by doubts or lack of assurance. No, you have the peace of the gospel, steadied and sure-footed to fight the spiritual war we are caught up in. We personally possess this as a gift from the Lord. We are granted rest in Christ, in the midst of spiritual trials, where we can have a firm foothold as we hunker down.

Fourth, we have the shield of faith. Roman soldiers had a couple options for shields, with the scutum being the longer, curved rectangle and the parma being the smaller, flat circle. The Greek word used here denotes the larger scutum. Regardless, the shield is used to defend against assailants, able to be maneuvered by the soldiers according to the formation or the direction of attack. The shield of faith, like the breastplate of righteousness, enables us to withstand the attacks of the enemy by hunkering down behind the faith. We trust in the promises of God, we trust in the hope of salvation in Christ, we trust in the victory over sin, death, and hell. So, when the enemy shoots his flaming darts of temptation at you, you can maneuver your shield of faith to block the arrow. And guess what? It not only blocks the arrow of temptation, but that faith will extinguish the flame of temptation from spreading, either to yourself or your fellow Christians around you. When you remind yourself of the truth of the gospel, when you teach yourself truth, when you stand confidently behind your faith in Christ, the attacks of the enemy do you no harm. And, they cannot harm your brothers and sisters with whom you battle alongside.

Fifth, we have the helmet of salvation. The helmet is meant to protect the head from damage, which is particularly important not only due to the brain, but due to the eyes. A soldier must be able to see if he is to fight well. His sight must be protected. The helmet of salvation draws our eyes back upon Christ, back upon the work he accomplished on our behalf. Our eyes are not blinded by the attacks of the enemy, attempting to shoot out our sight by throwing opportunities to sin our way. Instead, the helmet protects our eyes, letting us see what the enemy is throwing at us, defend and fight against it without the danger of being injured. Having been given the gift of salvation, we know have this helmet to don to rest our hope in the completed work of Jesus. Whatever we see coming our way, nothing can compare to what we see in Christ and the glory he offers to his people.

Sixth, we have the sword of the Spirit. The sword is a multitool, used to defend against the enemy combatants and to attack them when the opportunity arises. For Christians, the sword is the Word of God, which Paul clearly states for us. There is no confusion. When Satan’s forces assail us, we have the authoritative, infallible, inerrant, God-breathed Scriptures. This is the final piece of our armor. When you wage war, you are given all this defensive gear, but now, you have the tool that can do both. You have a weapon that never dulls, can never break in the midst of a clash, can never fail to pierce the enemy. You have a perfect weapon. We see Jesus use this very weapon himself, when he is facing the temptations of the devil in the wilderness. Jesus Christ shows you how to use this weapon. You must know the Word of God, you must have it written on your heart and shored up in your mind, sheathed upon your belt and ready to be drawn when a battle commences. I really want to hammer this nail. You may have heard of the Marine’s Creed. “This is my rifle, there are many like it…” Let me offer up this alternative…

1. This is my Bible, the Word of God. There is nothing like it.

2. My Bible shows me my Lord, who is my life. I must master it in faith as I must master my flesh.

3. My Bible, without me, is still the Word of God. Without my Bible, I am useless. I must wield my Bible true. I must shoot straighter than the enemy who is trying to kill me. Though the enemy shoots at me, my Bible protects me.

4. My Bible and myself know that what counts in this war is not the flesh or blood we oppose, the noise of combat, nor the smoke we make. We know that it is the victories over sin, and the enduring faithfulness in Christ amidst the enemy, that counts.

5. My Bible, through the Spirit, shapes me, because Christ is my life. Thus, I will learn it as a brother. I will learn its strengths, its mysteries, its beauties, its power, its authority and promises. I will ever meditate on it and have it commited to my heart. I will keep my Bible near and ready. It will become part of who I am.

6. Before God, I swear this creed. My Bible, the Word of God, through Christ, is my defender, and the defender of my faith, being from God, who is the master of the enemy. The Bible points me to the Savior of my life.

7. So be it, until the final day of victory under Christ and there is no enemy, but peace!!

Men, you have your armor. Take up your belt of truth, take up your breastplate of righteousness, take up your shoes of peace, take up your shield of faith, take up your helmet of salvation, take up your sword of the Spirit. Wage war!

We get to our final point. We know the war is coming; it’s already here. We have our armor, and now we must engage in prayerful combat.

3. Engage in Prayerful Combat

Ephesians 6:18–20 ESV

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.

Prayer keeps us alert. Prayer is the means by which we rightly wear our armor and wield our sword. Prayer keeps us alert on the battlefield, sword and shield in hand, ready for commands from our King. And not only for ourselves, but for others.

Paul is a man who persists in prayer for the saints, and he encourages others to do the same. All throughout his letters, prayer is a vital power. You possess the very power of prayer that Jesus did, that Paul did, that all the saints throughout history have wielded. They used this to fight. Do you use prayer like that? Do you pray without ceasing, offering supplications on your behalf and on others’ behalves? Remember, you are not the only one waging war. You are surrounded by others who are in just as much need of defense and offense as you are.

Paul asks for the Ephesians to wage war on his behalf, praying that he would be successful to boldly proclaim the gospel of Christ wherever he would go. Even confined in a cell and chained to a Roman soldier, he desired to wage war well through the tactical support of his prayerful brethren. We must do the same. Prayer enables us to remain vigilant in the midst of spiritual battles, as Christ himself even intercedes and wages war for us!

And through consistent, vigilant prayer, may we and our fellow Christians be equipped to boldly proclaim the gospel, to boldly wage war against the enemy, to fight to the spiritual tooth and nail against the evil one. Prayer is combat. Prayer is power. Prayer is how we communicate with our Commander, how he guides us according to the Word. Do it, brothers.

In expectation of spiritual warfare, you must equip the armor of God and engage in prayerful combat against the powers of Satan.

Application

What do we do with this?

Understand that there will be warfare. You will face trials, where the enemy will seek to break your spirit on the battlefield, causing you to fall and be defeated by sin. Do not let him.

Once you understand that reality, you must equip your armor. Remember every one of those pieces that Paul describes. You must constantly be reminded of the truth of the gospel, of the power of the Word of God, of the beauty of salvation and the promise of eternal hope, of the blessed reconciliation you have with your God. How do you do this? Memorize Scripture, internalize it. Read it often; don’t just read, but meditate upon what it means. Preach the gospel to yourself, that you have been saved by grace through faith, and that this is not of your own doing so that you may not boast, but it is a work of God for you. Confess your sins to brothers and sisters who can stand in formation with you. Trust God to defend you when you are weak. Bear his strength through standing upon the Word of Truth. Be righteous and obedient to Christ, rejecting sin.

Finally, be prayerful. You can do none of this effectively if you are not laboring, not waging war, in prayer. Spurgeon said, “...the power of prayer can never be overrated. They who cannot serve God by preaching need not regret. If a man can but pray he can do anything. He who knows how to overcome with God in prayer has Heaven and earth at his disposal.” You must view prayer like this, for through it God will overcome and fight on your behalf. Don’t try to fight a battle that only he can win.

If you are an unbeliever, this may not make a whole lot of sense to you, and that is ok. But let me frame it like this. You will face fears, anxieties, pain, evil in this world, whether you follow Jesus or not. But the promise of the gospel is that those things will exert no meaningful power over you if you trust in Christ. It is a simple as coming to him in humility, turning from your sin and toward Christ. Jesus has already fought for you, and he desires for you to join him. You are fighting a battle against an enemy alone. Do not stay there. You will lose, but you do not have to… Please, lay down your arms, and take up Christ. Bear his armor, trust in Him, and though you may struggle, though you may hurt, though you may be faced with sin, though you may even die, you will live in Christ forevermore. You can endure in him. Turn to him.