Rearm & Refuel

Ephesians 6:10–18 KJV 1900

Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. 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, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;

Sixth Day War

At 7:10 a.m. Israeli time, sixteen Israeli Air Force Fouga Magister training jets took off and pretended to be what they were not. Flying routine flight paths and using routine radio frequencies, they looked to Arab radar operators like the normal morning Israeli combat air patrol.

At 7:15 a.m., another 183 aircraft—almost the entire Israeli combat fleet—roared into the air. They headed west over the Mediterranean before diving low, which dropped them from Arab radar screens. This was also nothing new: for two years, Egyptian, Syrian and Jordanian radar had tracked Israeli aircraft—though never this many Israeli aircraft—taking off every morning on this same flight path, and then disappearing from their scopes before they returned to base. But that morning, instead of going home, the Israeli armada of French-made Mirage and Super Mystere jets turned south toward Egypt, flying under strict radio silence and just sixty feet above the waves.

It was June 5, 1967, and the Six-Day War was about to begin. The conflict, which would shape the Middle East as we know it today, had been simmering for months between Israel and its neighbors. Outnumbered by the combined Arab armies, and surrounded by enemies on three sides and the deep blue Mediterranean on the fourth, Israel had resolved to strike first and win quickly.

That meant controlling the skies. But the Israeli Air Force could pit only two hundred aircraft, almost all French models (the United States wouldn’t sell aircraft to the IAF until 1968), against six hundred Arab planes, including many Soviet-supplied MiG fighters. Israeli leaders also worried over Egypt’s thirty Soviet-made Tu-16 Badger bombers, each of which could drop ten tons of bombs on Israeli cities.

Thus was born Operation Moked (“Focus”), a preemptive strike aimed at destroying the Arab air forces on the ground—and one of the most brilliant aerial operations in history. The plan had been worked out and practiced for several years. IAF pilots flew repeated practice missions against mock Egyptian airfields in the Negev Desert, while Israeli intelligence collected information on Egyptian dispositions and defenses.

Would all the effort pay off? The answer would become clear minutes after the Israeli aerial armada banked over the Mediterranean and arrived over Egypt.

Jordanian radar operators, troubled by the unusual number of Israeli aircraft in the air that day, sent a coded warning to the Egyptians. But the Egyptians had changed their codes the day before without bothering to inform the Jordanians.

Not that the warning would have made a huge difference. “Rather than attacking at dawn, the IAF decided to wait for a couple of hours until 0745hrs, 0845hrs Egyptian time,” writes author Simon Dunstan . “By this time, the morning mists over the Nile Delta had dispersed and the Egyptian dawn patrols had returned to base where the pilots were now having their breakfast, while many pilots and ground crew were still making their way to work.”

Meanwhile, the commanders of the Egyptian armed forces and air force were away from their posts on an inspection tour, flying aboard a transport as the Israeli aircraft came in (scared that their own antiaircraft gunners would mistake them for Israelis and blast them out of the skies, the commanders had ordered that Egyptian air defenses not fire on any aircraft while the transport plane was in the air).

The Israeli aircraft climbed to nine thousand feet as they approached their targets: ten Egyptian airfields where the aircraft were neatly parked in rows, wingtip to wingtip. Almost totally unhindered by Egyptian interceptors and flak, the Israeli aircraft, in flights of four, made three to four passes each with bombs and cannon. First hit were the runways so planes couldn’t take off, followed by Egyptian bombers, and then other aircraft.

It was here that the Israelis deployed a secret weapon: the “concrete dibber” bombs, the first specialized anti-runway weapons. Based on a French design, the bombs were braked by parachute, and then a rocket motor slammed them into the runway, creating a crater that made it impossible for Egyptian aircraft to take off.

The first wave lasted just eighty minutes. Then there was a respite, but only for ten minutes. Then second wave came in to strike an additional fourteen airfields. The Egyptians could have been forgiven for thinking Israel had secretly managed to amass a huge air force.

The truth was that Israeli ground crews had practiced the rearming and refueling of returning aircraft in less than eight minutes, which allowed the strike aircraft of the first wave to fly in the second. After 170 minutes—just under three hours—Egypt had lost 293 of its nearly five hundred aircraft, including all of its Soviet-made Tu-16 and Il-28 bombers that had threatened Israeli cities, as well as 185 MiG fighters. The Israelis lost nineteen aircraft, mostly to ground fire.

The day still wasn’t over for the Israeli Air Force. At 12:45 p.m. on June 5, the IAF turned its attention to the other Arab air forces. Syrian and Jordanian airfields were hit, as was the Iraqi H3 airbase. The Syrian lost two-thirds of their air force, with fifty-seven planes destroyed on the ground, while Jordan lost all of its twenty-eight aircraft. By the end of the 1967 war, the Arabs had lost 450 aircraft, compared to forty-six of Israel’s.

Six hours or so after the first IAF aircraft had soared into the morning sky, Israel had won the Six-Day War. Not that the tank crews and paratroopers on the ground wouldn’t face some hard fighting in the Sinai, the Golan and Jerusalem. But destroying the Arab air forces didn’t just mean that Israeli troops could operate without air attack; it also meant that Israeli aircraft could relentlessly bomb and strafe Arab ground troops, which turned the Egyptian retreat from Sinai into a rout.

Insignificant

"Our aim is the full restoration of the rights of the Palestinian people. In other words, we aim at the destruction of the State of Israel. The immediate aim: perfection of Arab military might. The national aim: the eradication of Israel." – President Nasser of Egypt, November 18, 1965

"Brothers, it is our duty to prepare for the final battle in Palestine." – Nasser, Palestine Day, 1967

"Our basic objective will be the destruction of Israel. The Arab people want to fight . . . The mining of Sharm el Sheikh is a confrontation with Israel. Adopting this measure obligates us to be ready to embark on a general war with Israel." – Nasser, May 27, 1967

"We will not accept any ... coexistence with Israel. ... Today the issue is not the establishment of peace between the Arab states and Israel .... The war with Israel is in effect since 1948." – Nasser, May 28, 1967

May 19, 1967: "This is our chance Arabs, to deal Israel a mortal blow of annihilation, to blot out its entire presence in our holy land"

May 22, 1967: "The Arab people is firmly resolved to wipe Israel off the map"

Wipe you and your family off the map, to wipe from existence.

Mountain lions detect vulnerabilities in their prey and attack the weakest — the young, the sick, the injured. Studies have confirmed this instinctive cruelty. It’s how the mountain lion lives, following the scent of suffering and feasting on whatever he finds.

The enemy of your hope and happiness hunts with that same instinct, with a cold-hearted and ruthless hunger for the weak or hurting. Satan prowls like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour

1 Peter 5:8 KJV 1900

Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:

And because he’s clever, he spends a lot of his time among the suffering. He lies in wait with lies, wanting to consume the fragile and vulnerable.

Peter knew what it felt like for Satan to pounce on him in difficult circumstances, to find himself suddenly gasping and drowning in temptation, to lack the strength to fight and to be overcome. He abandoned and denied Jesus on the night he died — not once, but three times (Luke 22:60). Like a wounded or sick infant deer pitifully trying to escape a mountain lion, the once confident and strong Peter became the defenseless prey.

But before Jesus hung on the cross, he had prayed for Peter, that his faith would not fail, and that his ministry would rise again from the ashes of fear and defeat.

Luke 22:31–32 KJV 1900

And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat: But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.

Peter had learned that Satan loved to hunt among the hurting, but he also learned that God arms us to fight well, even in pain and weakness. God plants invincible truths in our vulnerable hearts, and then guards our faith with his infinite power

1 Peter 1:4–5 KJV 1900

To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

Sometimes the unfortunate actions and unkind comments of others can diminish our feelings of self-worth. Young people are often on the receiving end of harsh criticism from peers, teachers, and even parents. Many adults experience the emotional turmoil that follows personal rejection or fractured relationships. Some worry that they are simply “not good enough,” a feeling that may be reinforced by carping comments from unkind and unthinking spouses.

The adversary knows that if he can prevent us from recognizing our divine potential, he will have scored a major victory.

The spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places are only too happy to make trouble for believers, when given the chance. But the helmet of salvation is hard and resistant to everything that rains down upon it from the air.

A jubilant soul doesn’t become despondent. It is the one who is downcast who is at risk. Discouragement is unbelief, but unbelief is faith in the power of Satan. Once you begin to believe in unbelief, everything goes wrong. So, in faith and confidence, pull the helmet of salvation tightly down upon your head, and lay hold of the sword of the Spirit!

The Helmet Of Salvation

The Believer's Sanity - A soldier used a helmet to protect his head because if his head was wounded, he wouldn't be able to think. Every believer needs to have the mind of Christ under the control of Almighty God.

When a person is saved, for the first time he has his right mind. A person withoof the Spirit ut the Lord Jesus Christ has a form of insanity. They do not operate with the mind that God made them to have. The most important thing for you to have at all times is an assurance of your salvation. Do you know that you are saved? If you aren't, then you cannot win the battle.

Intimidate

Intimidate: frighten or overawe (someone), especially in order to make them do what one wants.

INTIMIDATION is almost always as a result of someone trying to gain control over someone or something that they never had control over before. Therefore intimidation acts as a disguise to strike fear in its victim to ultimately gain control and cause its victim to become subject to them.

Intimidation is defined as the act of making someone afraid. Our enemy does this so that we will be unable to live healthy, joyful Christian lives that are characterized by the freedom to do what is right and good and God-pleasing, as well as the calm confidence that says "I know God will never leave me nor forsake me." Our enemy knows that when we live in fear, we will never be able to live out the abundant, purposeful life that God has for us.

The enemy has all sorts of things that he uses to intimidate us, but thanks to the Bible we are able to know these, "for we are not ignorant of his schemes"

2 Corinthians 2:11 KJV 1900

Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices.

One of the means by which the enemy intimidates us is by taking us by surprise. After all, the Bible says that "Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour" (1 Peter 5:8). When he gets the opportunity to strike fear into our hearts, he will always take it.

Rearm

Rearm: provide with a new supply of weapons.

To fight effectively in our spiritual battle, the we must know Christ, obey His standards, and be prepared to fight.

Each Christian has a responsibility to love, honor, and respect. If faithful to these duties, Christians will find themselves united against the spiritual power of evil.

We may forget at times but one thing is true - this world is a battlefield. Day by day, hour by hour, we face a spiritual war and an enemy who’s real. He wants nothing more than to bring defeat, for his main aim is to steal, kill, and destroy. The forces of darkness don't wait for us to be ready for their attack. They're ruthless, determined, and cunning. The devil could care less if we "feel" prepared, or prayed up for our day. In fact, he prefers we're not.

God has given us his Word and Spirit, powerful and true, so we'll have the wisdom and protection to stand against the enemy. As I read these verses this morning, the reality struck me again that Paul wrote them while in chains, in prison. But Truth says - this enemy we face, no matter how cruel and vicious his schemes, can never chain our spirits that have been set free by Christ. Paul was not silenced by the attacks from dark forces. Neither should we be.

The Belt Of Truth

The Believer's Integrity - A soldier in Paul's day had a leather girdle or belt that he tightened about his waist to protect his loins and carry his weapons of warfare, such as a dagger or sword. The belt also held his tunic together so it wouldn't be snagged. In Christian armor, it is integrity that holds everything else together. If you do not have integrity in the big and small things of your life, you are going to lose the battle. Would people say that you are a woman or man of integrity? If not, then you cannot win the battle.

The Breastplate Of Righteousness

The Believer's Purity - The breastplate of a soldier was sometimes made of woven chain and used to cover the soldier's vital organs. For the Christian, the breastplate is righteousness.

The enemy wants to attack you not only with lies, but also with impurity. He wants you to read filthy magazines, watch immoral movies, and engage in all temptations of the flesh. The bottom line is that Satan wants to get into your heart and mind. He's looking for a crack in your armor. And don't be fooled. Satan knows where that crack is. Is your heart pure before God? If not, then you cannot win the battle.

Refuel

The Shield Of Faith

The Believer's Certainty - The Roman soldier's shield measured approximately two by four feet and was made of wood covered with leather. In that day, soldiers dipped arrows in oil, then lit them and shot them at the enemy. These shields were vital to protect the solider from getting burned.

Satan is going to fire flaming arrows of doubt at you. He wants to place subtle doubts in your mind about God and His Truth. He knows a spark can ignite a big fire. You will need to feed your faith and starve your doubts. Are there any seeds of doubt in your mind today? If there are, then you cannot win the battle.

Sword of the Spirit

The Word of God - When we are tempted, the most effective weapon that God has given to us as believers is the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. Jesus modeled this so beautifully during His temptation in the wilderness. When the devil tried temptation after temptation against Him, Jesus used the sword of the Spirit. Jesus spoke the Word of God to Satan. In Luke 4:1-13, Jesus responded, “It is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord God only. Him only you shall serve.” and again brought the Scripture back into context, “It has been said, ‘You shall not tempt the Lord your God.’”

The sword of the Spirit works. Memorize Scripture and use the Word of God to defeat Satan's lies and attacks.

Inspiration

We are urged to “take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand” (Ephesians 6:13).

Well we should, for they are organized. “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” (Ephesians 6:12).

For a toothless ol’ varmint, Satan sure has some bite! He spooks our work, disrupts our activities, and leaves us thinking twice about where we step. Which we need to do. “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour” (1 Peter 5:8). Alertness is needed. Panic is not. The serpent still wiggles and intimidates, but he has no poison. He is defeated, and he knows it! “He knows that he has a short time” (Revelation 12:12).

“He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world” (1 John 4:4). Believe it. Trust the work of your Savior. “Resist the devil and he will flee from you” (James 4:7). In the meantime, the best he can do is squirm. (From Next Door Savior by Max Lucado)

Application

We are in a spiritual battle against the powers of the evil world. Read about each piece of God’s armor as recorded in Ephesians 6, then mentally “put on” each piece of armor. Think about how that piece will help you in your battle.

Jesus spoke of the “gates of hell”

Matthew 16:18 KJV 1900

And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

a phrase that suggests the “council of hell.” Our enemy has a complex and conniving spiritual army. Dismiss any image of a red-suited Satan with pitchfork and pointy tail. The devil is a strong devil. . . .