The Invisible War

The Invisible War

CPS: We can have victory in this invisible war against Satan, if we have the right posture.

Question: What does having the right posture look like?

1. Stand ready to take up the shield of faith (vs.16)

Take up is a technical military term. When you are at war you must always be ready and alert. Paul continues speaking about having this defensive posture. This piece of the armor is the “shield of faith”

The lexham Bible Dictionary defines the “shield” as, “A handheld barrier for self-defense.”

The Greek Lexicon said, “In some languages ‘shield’ is described as ‘protection one carries when one fights’ or ‘protection carried to prevent blows from the enemy.”

The Complete Word Study Dictionary said that shield, “used symbolically of shielding like a door.

Illustration: I was with police officer Kindle on Tuesday he told me that they had fight training this week. These trainings do not happen often but they are required when they do happen. They are to mimic live real life situations that each officer may face. Officer Kendal told me as soon as he walked through one of the doors someone hit him in the face. I’m assuming he went in with he had his with his belt on, his bullet proof vest, shoes on his feet, but as he walked through the door he was punched in the face. Many times I’ve seen officers having shields when they enter a door, ready for what coming at them. He was prepared to fight but with his bare hands.

Paul is telling the Ephesian Christians to stand, ready, and alert to take up the “shield of faith.”

This shield of faith will help you extinguish the flaming darts of the evil one the text says.

Notice here Paul did not just say take up any kind of shield. The shield that Paul speaks of is the “shield of faith.”

1 John 5:4-5 4 For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. 5 Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?

“Faith in Christ” is the only shield that brings true protection when the flaming darts from the devil are coming at you. Those who are in Christ must continue to hold out this shield because they have faith even when you cannot see the flaming darts clearly.

Hebrews 11:1,6-7

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. 6 And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him. 7 By faith Noah, being warned by God concerning events as yet unseen, in reverent fear constructed an ark for the saving of his household. By this he condemned the world and became an heir of the righteousness that comes by faith.

As we face the fiery darts from the devil we have assurance that our faith in Christ will extinguish these darts.

My Quote on Faith: Faith is Forgetting all that I think and trusting Him.

When I walk through that door I have this shield of faith that will shield me from the devil.

Tony Evans said, “Faith is acting like something is so even it is not so in order that it might be so, simply because God said so.

Remember that there is only victory if we are “in Christ.” In order to be “in Christ”, you have to trust Christ. In order to have this great victory that Christ brings to his people you must trust Christ.

No trust, then no victory!

Psalm 18:2 The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.

2. Stand ready to take up the helmet of salvation (vs. 17a)

Paul here again gives the Ephesian Christian another defensive weapon from schemes of the devil.

Take up the “helmet of salvation”

M. G. Easton said, The helmet is a cap for the defense of the head.

Here the helmet is the covering that protects the head. Christ is our helmet and is the head. The head is the most important part of the body. If we do not protect the head then we are destined for destruction.

Christ is our head just as we saw that Christ is our righteousness in verse 4.

We are covered with his righteousness so too are we covered with his helmet. He is the head of our life and he is the head of the church. The head bring salvation.

Ephesians 5:23b Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior.

Psalm 3:8 Salvation belongs to the LORD.

As we put on this helmet of salvation does not mean we need to put on salvation every day to win this invisible war. It means that Christ who is our head protects us from the fiery darts from the devil.

Illustration: Unfortunately people today try to win the war with their own strength. They are competing in the game, they go and make a tackle and their helmet comes off. Their protection comes off. You’ve seen it players still try to make the tackle with their helmet off. The NFL has implemented a rule; that if you helmet comes off you have to sideline until the next play. The reason for this is that they make sure your helmet is intact in order play in the game.

If we will win this battle we must have our helmet on. It is the one that is keeping us from having a major head injury. So when you think you can do things in your own strength remember where your salvation comes from.

3. Stand ready to take upthe sword of the spirit vs. 17b

Paul gives the Ephesian Christians another piece of armor which is the “sword of the Spirit” the Word of God.”

Not only do we need this shield of faith and the helmet of salvation. But we need the “sword of the Spirit.” The Word of God is our “offensive”weapon that we use to win this invisible war. All the armor that was spoken of prior are defensive weapons not Paul speaks of an offensive weapon.

Allen Myers said, “The “sword” An offensive weapon of war and conflict designed to inflict the greatest injury on one’s opponent. Unlike the arrow, sling, spear, and possibly the javelin, the sword is a close-order weapon, used when lines of infantry clashed in battle. It is the most frequently.” mentioned weapon of war in the Bible, in accounts of real warfare and also as a metaphor of the activity of God and his people.

Hebrews 4:12 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.

Psalm 119:9,11

“How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word.”

“I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.”

A Roman solider will not win the war if he just has defensive armor on he must have an offensive weapon.

The Russians are attacking the Ukrainian’s. The president of the Ukraine is asking America for weapons. They need more weapons!

You can not win the invisible war without the Word of God. Many people talk about the things they battle everyday. I understand that we all have things we battle. If we do not have God’s word in our hearts and in our minds we will lose the invisible war every day!

This takes discipline.

Psalm 119:105“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.

Psalm 119:107 “I am severely afflicted; give me life, O LORD, according to your word!

We need the Word of God!

Robby Gallatysaid, “We are going to get into the Word of God until the Word of God gets into us.”

If we memorize the Word of God we can 1. Meditate on it. 2. Mind it when we are tempted 3. Map out our path with it.

Spurgeon said about Bunyan:

“Oh, that you and I might get into the very heart of the Word of God, and get that Word into ourselves! I have seen the silkworm eat into the leaf, and consume it, so ought we to do with the Word of the Lord—not crawl over its surface, but eat right into it till we have taken it into our inmost parts. It is idle merely to let the eye glance over the words, or to recollect the poetical expressions, or the historic facts; but it is blessed to eat into the very soul of the Bible until, at last, you come to talk in Scriptural language, and your very style is fashioned upon Scripture models, and, what is better still, your spirit is flavored with the words of the Lord.”

“I would quote John Bunyan as an instance of what I mean. Read anything of his, and you will see that it is almost like reading the Bible itself. He had read it till his very soul was saturated with Scripture; and though his writings are charmingly full of poetry, yet he cannot give us his Pilgrim’s Progress—that sweetest of all prose poems—without continually making us feel and say, “Why, this man is a living Bible!” Prick him anywhere—his blood is Bibline, the very essence of the Bible flows from him. He cannot speak without quoting a text, for his very soul is full of the Word of God. I commend his example to you, beloved.”

We must be saturated with this “sword.” If we are in an invisible war don’t you think it’s imperative to have this weapon? We must do all we can to have this “sword of the spirit.”