Spiritual Warfare - The Armor of God

Introduction

Ephesians 6:1–18 KJV 1900

1 Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right. 2 Honour thy father and mother; (which is the first commandment with promise;) 3 That it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth. 4 And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. 5 Servants, be obedient to them that are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in singleness of your heart, as unto Christ; 6 Not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart; 7 With good will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men: 8 Knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord, whether he be bond or free. 9 And, ye masters, do the same things unto them, forbearing threatening: knowing that your Master also is in heaven; neither is there respect of persons with him. 10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. 11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12 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. 13 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. 14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; 15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. 17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: 18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;

James 4:7 KJV 1900

7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

Body

Obedience

The first step in spiritual warfare is ALWAYS submission to authority!

James 4:7 KJV 1900

7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

When we fail to submit to God He becomes the One we’re fighting against.

When we fully submit to God He becomes our ally, fighting our battles for us.

We’re looking for those to whom we can submit

Ephesians 5:21 KJV 1900

21 Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.

1 Peter 5:5–6 KJV 1900

5 Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble. 6 Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:

Again, If we fail to submit to God He becomes our enemy.

It’s humility; a submitted spirit before God and a reliance on Him that wins our battles.

Expound on the scripture text, vs. 1-9

Armor

In war you get issued armor and weapons

Why? Because of the ‘evil day’

Expound on what the evil day is

The parable of the two builders - they both went through the same storm but one had a firm foundation

We will not escape it. We will most certainly go through it

Armor to protect and defend

We’re going to be attacked

The enemy does not think defensively. He thinks aggressively. Offensively.

We are overwhelmed with evidence of this in today’s world

God has given us a way whereby we can resist and defend against our enemy

Using the armor of God, we render the attacks of the enemy ineffective

Weapons to attack and destroy

We need to think offensively, not defensively!

You can’t conquer the enemy defensively. The best you can hope for is to not lose. You’ll never win.

By attacking we can now conquer the enemy. Conquer territory for Jesus Christ. See souls won to Him.

We haven’t been given authority to resist, but to have dominion over our enemy

Our mandate is not simply to sit back and endure everything the enemy wants to do until Jesus comes, but to crush the enemy and to let the enemy know he will NOT do ANYTHING he wants to do.

There is a reason the N.T. uses so many military analogies.

We’re in a war

We’re called to fight in that war

That means we’re soldiers

The armor is a set. We require EVERY piece for it to be effective

Put on the WHOLE armor of God.

The armor works together and each has a vital role to fill

To say it another way, God doesn’t introduce fluff. If it’s being issued, it’s important to have it.

Armor is called Lorica in latin

Girdle of Truth

Called a Cingulum (king’-gue-lum)

Ensures the underlying tunic is secured and won’t get in the way of free movement.

Ensures that the soldier’s weapons remain firmly in place

Made of leather and has metal plates for decoration and for reinforcement

Breastplate of Righteousness

Disassembles into the chest piece and shoulder pieces for easy transport

Made of Iron plates riveted to heavy leather straps

Put on like a vest and fastened in the front with a leather cord

The plates give very good protection against both slashing and stabbing weapons

Shoes of the Preparation of the Gospel

Called Caligae (kal’-i-guy)

Cut from a single piece of leather

Hobnails put into the thick soles to provide durability and give a firm grip on slippery soil

Shield of Faith

Called Scutum (Scoot’-um)

Measures about 3 feet high

Constructed of three different wooden layers glued together and covered in linen or leather

The edges are covered by metal strips to increase the integrity of the shield

Always carried with the left hand

Helmet of Salvation

Called Galea (Gahl’-e-yuh)

Made of iron or sometimes of a brass alloy

Designed to offer maximum protection to a soldier’s head

A neckplate, cheek pieces and a brow band all help to deflect enemy blows

fastened with a leather strap under the chin

Sword of the Spirit

Called a Gladius

A short stabbing sword

Always drawn and carried with the right hand

Because of its small size the soldier can stab very quickly and very precisely in the heat of a battle

Prayer

Prayer is the leather undergirding and fastening every piece of armor we are issued

Conclusion