What to Wear to the Battle: The Sword of the Spirit

Text: Ephesians 6:10-18

Focal Passage: Ephesians 6:17

Date: 10/06/2013 File Name: Armor07.wpd Sermon ID: 21

Theme: There is one weapon in the armory, however, that not only lets us defend ourselves, but also enables us to go on the offensive, putting the enemy to flight. It is the Sword of the Spirit, which the Apostle tells us is the Word of God.

Over the past six weeks we’ve been discovering the spiritual armor God provides believers for overcoming the world, the flesh, and especially the devil. The pieces of armor we’ve looked at so far include the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the gospel shoes, the shield of faith and the helmet of salvation. These are powerful pieces of armor that protect us from the attacks of the enemy. There is one weapon in the armory, however, that not only lets us defend ourselves, but also enables us to go on the offensive, putting the enemy to flight. It is the Sword of the Spirit, which the Apostle tells us is the Word of God.

This sword—crafted, tempered and honed by none other than the Holy Spirit himself—is a weapon of formidable power. We see Jesus himself wielding it to great effect when the devil came to tempt him in the desert, (Matthew 4:1-11).

The devil attacked Jesus with three temptations. Each time Jesus beat back Satan’s attack by using the Sword of the Spirit. All three of our Lord’s replies came from the Book of Deuteronomy. In the end, the devil fled. In the third stanza of Martin Luther’s hymn “A Mighty Fortress is Our God” the Reformer penned, “The Prince of Darkness grim, We tremble not for him; His rage we can endure, For lo, his doom is sure, One little word shall fell him.” Satan trembles at the believer who skillfully and faithfully uses the Word of God.

If we are to resist the attacks of the enemy—and take the battle to him—it is vital that we learn to be good practitioners of the sword.

I. BELIEVERS MUST GRASP FIRMLY THE SWORD OF THE SPIRIT

1. the only way to keep a firm grip on Christ—who is the Living Word of God—is to have a firm grasp of the Bible—which is the Written Word of God

ILLUS. Shortly after the crucifixion, two of the Lord’s disciples are walking along the road from Jerusalem to Emmaus. Suddenly Jesus is walking with them and asks why they are so glum. They are amazed that the stranger has not heard the news coming out of Jerusalem concerning Jesus the Nazarene, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word. How he had been condemned by their religious leaders and handed over to the Roman authorities to be crucified. How, three days after the crucifixion, some women had gone to the tomb and found that the body is gone. At that point, Jesus tells them ...

“And he said to them, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! 26 Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?” 27 And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.” (Luke 24:25–27, ESV)

a. if you want to know Jesus, you’ve got to know the Book that tells us everything there is to know about our Savior

ILLUS. Eliza Hewitt, in his hymn More About Jesus writes in the third stanza:

More about Jesus in his Word

Holding communion with my Lord;

Hearing his voice in every line,

Making each faithful saying mine.

2. the reason so many believers backslide and fall away from church is that they have lost their grip on spiritual things because they have failed to firmly grasp the Sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God

a. for one reason or another, the Bible never became the foundation of their life

b. they no longer read the Word, or study the Word, or memorize the Word, or meditate on the Word or obey the Word

c. the consequence is that there is no spiritual power in their life

1) and when there is no spiritual power in your life the world, the flesh, and the devil have taking you captive

ILLUS. In the New Testament we read of a man name Demas. Here is a man who had served as part of Paul's ministry team during Paul's house arrest in Rome in AD 60—62. In the Book of Philemon Paul refers to Demas as a “fellow worker” in the Lord’s ministry. But about a year later, when the Apostle Paul writes his second letter to a young minister named Timothy we hear these sad words, “[Timothy] Do your best to come to me soon. 10 For Demas, in love with this present world, has deserted me and gone to Thessalonica. ... .” These are some of the saddest words in all the New Testament. Demas had been a faithful laborer for the Lord, and a trusted ministry companion to Paul. (2 Timothy 4:9–10, ESV). Now he has been taken prisoner by the world, the flesh and the devil.

3. it is not enough for you to merely attend church on Sunday morning, sing a few hymns, ‘amen’ a deacon’s prayer, and hear a sermon

a. these alone will not equip you to do serious battle with the supernatural powers of evil that are firmly entrenched in our culture

b. these alone will not help you to develop a worldview firmly based on the Scriptures

“But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. 23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. 24 For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like.” (James 1:22–24, ESV)

4. hearing the Word is only the beginning

a. if you are going to have a firm grip on the Sword of the Spirit, there five other things you must do in order to apply the Scriptures to your life

1) you must also Read the Word — “Blessed is the one who reads the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near.” (Revelation 1:3, NIV)

2) next, you must Study the Word — “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.” (2 Timothy 2:15, NIV)

3) after you study it, you must Remember the Word — “I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.” (Psalm 119:11, NIV)

4) the fourth step is to Meditate upon the Word — “But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night.” (Psalm 1:2, NIV)

5) finally, you need to Apply the Word — “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.” (James 1:22, NIV)

a) until you apply what you have heard, you really haven’t listened

A. THE BIBLE’S PRIMARY PURPOSE IS TO LEAD THE SINNER TO FAITH IN CHRIST

"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. In Christ, God has given us every spiritual blessing in the heavenly world. 4 That is, in Christ, he chose us before the world was made so that we would be his holy people—people without blame before him. 5 Because of his love, God had already decided to make us his own children through Jesus Christ. That was what he wanted and what pleased him, 6 and it brings praise to God because of his wonderful grace. God gave that grace to us freely, in Christ, the One he loves. 7 In Christ we are set free by the blood of his death, and so we have forgiveness of sins. How rich is God’s grace, 8 which he has given to us so fully and freely. God, with full wisdom and understanding, 9 let us know his secret purpose. This was what God wanted, and he planned to do it through Christ. 10 His goal was to carry out his plan, when the right time came, that all things in heaven and on earth would be joined together in Christ as the head." (Ephesians 1:3-10, NCV)

1. the Bible is unlike any other book you have in you home or can find in a library

ILLUS. When Linda and I were in New York City a few years ago, one of the sites we visited was the NYC Public Library. That library houses approximately 15,000,000 books. If you include the maps, manuscripts, recordings, musical scores, posters, prints, magazines and historical artifacts, the collection swells to 55,0002,000 items. On the second floor, in a special room, in a glass case, is displayed one of the Library’s prized items—a Gutenberg Bible. Gutenberg, if you’ll remember, was the printer who introduced movable type to Europe. His first project was to produce 180 Bibles of which about 50 remain. It’s worth is estimated at $35 million dollars. If you know Latin, and if you’re skilled at reading Gothic typeface you might be able to read the two pages it’s opened to.

2. we read books to increase our knowledge, to learn how things work, to entertain us, to relax us and to accomplish a dozen other things

a. but of all the books ever written, only the Bible is God’s revelation of Himself to men and tells us how we can have a relationship with the God who created the universe

b. this Word cuts to the heart of spiritual issues ...

1) it reveals how sinful we are ...

2) it reveals how holy God is ...

3) it reveals how sinful men can be accepted by a holy God through the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ—God incarnate

3. the Bible’s primary purpose is to lead the sinner to faith in Christ

B. THE BIBLE’S SECONDARY PURPOSE IS TO INSTRUCT THE BELIEVER IN RIGHT LIVING

1. the Bible is a reliable guide for teaching us about right living

“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.” (2 Timothy 3:16–17, ESV)

2. this verse teaches us that the Scriptures are reliable in leading us in paths of righteousness because it is divinely inspired by God, which means it is trustworthy

3. the Apostle Paul writes that all Scripture is God-breathed

a. without infringing upon the intelligence, individuality, literary style, or personality of the human authors, God supernaturally directed the writing of Scripture so that each individual author recorded with perfect accuracy God’s comprehensive and infallible revelation to man

4. if you follow God’s recipe for your life, it is sure to be a success

a. and please be aware that there are lots of false recipes out in the world today

1) they sound yummy, but they leave out key ingredients

2) they will lead you astray

ILLUS. Dr. Benjamin Spock, wrote a book in the mid-sixties, which at the time, was considered the definitive way to raise your children. A whole generation of American mothers raised their children upon the authority of his credentials and what he said in that book. In 1981, Spock reversed himself and admitted that everything he had ever said in that book was wrong!

b. be careful about the recipes of life which you follow

c. the good news is that God’s word will never lead you astray

1) God will never have to come back and say, “Oops, I didn’t mean that!”

5. the world the flesh and the devil will always tempt us and entice us to wrong living instead of right living

6. folks, let me be blunt

a. a lot of Christians make horrible life decisions—not because they deliberately set out to sin—but because they do not know what God says in His Word about a particular topic

b. God has an opinion on every single sphere of human culture and society

1) God has a design for government and the politicians who run governments

2) God has a design for economics and trade

3) God has a design for justice – both social and criminal

4) God has a design for education

5) God has a design for raising children

6) God has a design for caring for senior citizens

7) God has a design for money and investments

8) God has a design for gender, sexuality and sex

9) God has a design for entertainment and art

10) God even has a design for how to eat, and how to drink, and how to dress

c. sadly, the vast majority of believers have no idea what God has to say about these things because they are biblically illiterate

ILLUS. George Barna has been asking questions of Christians for thirty years now. His Barna Research Group has interviewed tens of thousands of professing believers over the years. In their most recent polling of Christians nation-wide Barna writes, “To some degree, he says, "we all pick and choose things that make sense to us and feel good... [then] we wrap it all together in this unique package..." But the problem for Christians is, more and more of that package doesn't include the black and white truth of God's word.” Their finding should sadden ... and maybe frighten ... the Church. While 70% of Americans identify as Christians, only six percent of adults in this country have what George Barna defines as a "biblical worldview." Even among Evangelical Christians only 21% have a biblical worldview.

7. the bible tells us that we are to love God with all of our heart, all of our soul, all of our strength, and all of our mind

a. the Christian faith was never meant to be a faith devoid of thought or intellect

“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. 11 For through me your days will be many, and years will be added to your life.” (Proverbs 9:10-11, NIV)

b. the Sword of the Spirit becomes our chief weapon

1) not only for defending ourselves against the world, the flesh and the devil ... which we call apologetics

2) but for going on the spiritual offensive in living for God as we become salt and light in a lost a pagan culture ... which we call evangelism

8. Believers must Grasp Firmly the Sword of the Spirit

II. BELIEVERS MUST GROW PASSIONATE FOR THE SWORD OF THE SPIRIT

1. one of the many definitions of the word passion is a deep and abiding interest and zeal for something

a. Christians need to have an interest and a zeal for the Word of God

2. you will never be a joy-filled, prayer-engulfed, Spirit-led, Christ-honoring believer until you gain a passion for the Word of God

ILLUS. Polls tells us that, year-after-year despite average sales of more than $1 billion annually, only about 20 percent of Americans read their Bible daily — making the Bible the most owned, least read book in history..

3. the day you lay the bible down, never to pick it up again, is the day you capitulate to the enemy

ILLUS. Back in 1986, the contemporary gospel group Acappella, recorded a song entitled, Army of the Lord. Listen to the words ...

Stanza 1

All around us a war's going on between the wrong and the right

We've gotta choose which side we're on—the darkness or the light

Some of the soldiers of the Lord just don't realize,

That the captain of the army of darkness has come to blind their eyes

Chorus:

Are we walking into the enemy's camp, laying our weapons down

shedding our armor as we go, leaving it on the ground?

We've gotta be strong in the power of his might and prove to the enemy

We are the army of the Lord and we've won the victory.

Stanza 2

Can't you see that we're in a battle and there's no place to hide?

The shields of faith are full of darts and their shooting from every side

Just shake out the darts and run right at em' and remember who you're fighting for

Don't fall asleep cuz' if they catch ya' they'll take you prisoner of war.

a. when you stop studying the Bible—that’s when the world, the flesh and the devil will make you a prisoner of war ...

b. stop memorizing the Bible—that’s surrender ...

c. stop submitting to the truths of the Bible—that’s capitulation ...

d. stop going to church and being under the preaching of the Bible—that’s raising the white flag and saying ‘I give up’

ILLUS. To be very politically incorrect ... every time you pick up the Bible to study it, or memorize it, or meditate on it, or put yourself under its authority, you’re putting a gun to Satan’s head!

A. A PASSION FOR THE WORD WILL KILL OUR PASSION FOR THE WORLD

1. if you read the word of God for twenty minutes each day, you will read through the Bible in the next year

a. if you will commit yourself to that, you will be a changed person

b. God's truth will penetrate into your heart, discerning your thoughts and attitudes and exposing any hypocrisy or deceit in them

c. it will also reveal the sin in your life

1) faced with such intense scrutiny from which there is no hiding, you will simply not be able to do anything but rectify whatever is wrong about your life so that you can stand up to God's piercing gaze

2. the strongholds of sin in you mind and heart will come crashing down and the devil will flee!

III. BELIEVERS MUST GAIN PROFICIENCY WITH SWORD OF THE SPIRIT

1. James 1:22 says it all: “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.” NIV

2. lets be honest, many Christians have become professional listeners when it come to church and worship

a. worship has become primarily a spectator’s event

ILLUS. Pastor and author Chuck Swindoll, tells the story of a typical American family driving home from church one Sunday. Dad was fussing about the sermon being too long and sort of boring. Mom said she thought the organist played too loudly during the second hymn they sang. Sis, who was a music major in college, said she thought the soloist sang about a half note off key during most of her song. Grandma said she couldn't hear very well – since they were sitting toward the back. As they pulled in the driveway, little Willie, who had listened to all of this, started to fuss about the woman who sat in front of him with that big hat. Then he paused, nudged his dad, and said, "But, Dad, you gotta admit, it was a pretty good show for a buck."

b. more than we would dare admit, attending church is a lot like watching a show

1) the better the entertainment, the more folks enjoy coming

2) the less they like what they see and hear, the more they grumble and complain

3) let the show get really bad, and they probably won’t come to next week’s performance

3. but, compared to what the public is willing to pay for live theater or a professional ball game tickets, it's still a pretty good show for a buck

4. as James instructs, we need to stop being professional listeners, and become Godly doers of the Word

a. if we grasp the purpose of the Word ... and if we have a passion for the Word ... then Performing the Word is the logical outgrowth

To overcome the enemy we have to learn how to use the sword of the Holy Spirit, which has the "divine power to demolish strongholds." How do we do this? We can begin by taking the sword off the wall and holding it in our hand. We can toss the sheath away as something we will never need again because this sword should never be sheathed. And then we can start training.

The first lessons in use of the sword involves evicting the enemy from your own life.

"The word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double- edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart." (Hebrews 4:12)

Will you begin using the Sword of the Spirit by allowing the Word of God to judge the thoughts and attitudes of your heart? Will you be willing to repent of those thoughts and attitudes that you know are not Christ-like?