Supernatural Warfare - Part Five

Sermon Shield of Faith

 

The reason the apostle Paul wrote his letter to the Christians at Ephesus – and by extension, to every Christian throughout the millennia – the reason is rooted in Genesis Three. No one can understand the darkness that our world has suffered since the beginning of time without understanding what happened in that early chapter.

 

In the same way, without returning to what happened in that early chapter of Genesis, no one can understand the deeply personal significance of the Lord Jesus’ comment in Mark 10:45 – “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many”

 

It is BECAUSE darkness entered our world that men and women have been taken hostage in this deadly spiritual battle, taken hostage by sin and Satan, who is the prince of sin and darkness.

 

And it is only – ONLY – through Jesus the Messiah – in whom (as John tells us) is the Light of men and women smothered in darkness. It is only through Jesus the Christ who, as Paul also wrote, who  “rescued us from the domain of darkness.” (Colossians 1:13)

 

And so, let us now turn again to Paul’s letter to the Christians at Ephesus. I’m reading again in chapter six of that letter:

 

Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. Stand firm therefore, having girded your loins with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints.” 

 

I focus my remarks today on the next element of our spiritual armor, which is the shield of faith – the shield that protects us from the destructive and fiery arrows of Satan and his demonic army.

 

Who here has not felt the burning wounds of his arrows? Just as the devil seduced Eve into doubting God's unconditional paternal love for her, even as she and Adam lived in a Paradise, even so, Satan works today, on July 27, 2025 to seduce you and me to doubt our Father’s care and love and compassion and abundant forgiveness.

 

Throughout the Old and New Testaments, we find evidence of Satan’s tireless work to destroy us For example, listen to this word from the Biblical book of Job (Job 1:6-7) “Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them. The Lord said to Satan, “From where do you come?” Then Satan answered the Lord and said, “From roaming about on the earth and walking around on it.”

The devil has not changed his strategic reconnaissance methods. Here’s Peter’s first letter: (1 Peter 5:8-9a) “Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. But resist him, firm in your faith.”

 

Christian – that’s God's instructions to you and me: Resist the devil, firm in your faith.

 

But if that ‘shield of faith’ is to protect us from Satanic attacks, the word ‘faith’ requires some definitions. First, what is faith? And second, what must be the singular object of our faith?

 

The answer to the first question is easy because Scripture itself defines faith. Here is Hebrews 11:1 - “Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” The JB Phillips translation of the Bible renders it this way: “Faith means putting our full confidence in the things we hope for, it means being certain of things we cannot see.”

 

In other words, ‘faith’ means we trust in the Lord with all our hearts – when things go well and when things go wrong. Faith in God means we trust Him, and we do not rely on our own understanding of circumstances. And faith means we obey God in ALL circumstances.

 

Biblical faith is comprised of two elements – intellectual assent and also trust. I can BELIEVE something to be true, but unless I TRUST it to be true, the concept of faith remains in my head and not in my heart. I BELIEVE a chair will support me when I sit on it, but if I do not TRUST it to support me, I won’t sit in it.

 

Many people BELIEVE in God. But unless that belief translates into TRUST in God in the midst of personal storms, such belief is often only intellectual and has not matured into residency in the heart.

 

Let me say all that in another way. Biblical faith is synonymous with trust in God, in His omnipotence – that nothing happens to us or around us that is not under His direct control; Biblical faith is synonymous with trust in His omniscience – that He knows moment by moment where we are and what are our needs; Biblical faith is synonymous with trust that nothing can ever separate us from His unshakeable love.

 

I think immediately of at least two instances in the life of the Lord Jesus that exemplifies that kind of trust in the Father and provides us an example to follow in Christ’s steps.

 

The first instance I want to draw attention to occurred in Gethsemane. I’ll speak about that point in a few minutes. But for now, let’s focus on the second instance, the one that occurred several hours after Gethsemane, on Calvary’s hill. The Lord hangs from nails in His hands and feet. He’s bloodied. Bruised. Hungry. Thirsty. Cold. Except for John, all of His disciples had left Him. Peter had denied knowing Him. And then Satan, through the mouths of the mob at the foot of His cross, moved in for the kill. Matthew records it this way: (Matthew 27:39-43) -

 

“And those passing by were hurling abuse at Him, wagging their heads and saying, “You who are going to destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save Yourself! If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross.” In the same way the chief priests also, along with the scribes and elders, were mocking Him and saying, “He saved others; He cannot save Himself. He is the King of Israel; let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe in Him. He trusts in God; let God rescue Him now, if He delights in Him; for He said, ‘I am the Son of God.’”

 

I need to pause here for a moment. Not only is the Lord suffering excruciating physical agony, but – you will remember – He was also suffering inestimable SPIRITUAL agony, for when the sin of the world was placed there on His shoulders, when “He who knew no sin BECAME sin for us – as Paul tells us in that passage in 2 Corinthians 5 – Jesus cried out, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”

 

Have you ever been there? In physical or emotional or spiritual torment – or all three at one time? And the devil let go his fiery arrows and mocked your faith, saying “If you REALLY are God's child, if God really loves you, then why are you here suffering like this?”

 

May God help us take our cue from the uncountable martyrs of Biblical and Church history. Job is only one example. Many of you know his story. In one fell swoop, he lost his ten children, his great wealth, and his health. And as he sat on ashes and scrapped the sores from his skin with a broken piece of pottery, his wife said to him: (Job 2:9-10) “Do you still hold fast your integrity? Curse God and die!” But he said to her, “You speak as one of the foolish women speaks. Shall we indeed accept good from God and not accept adversity?” In all this Job did not sin with his lips.”

 

And if you know Job’s story you also likely know what he said in chapter 13 of his book: “Though He slay me, yet I will trust in Him.”

 

The prophet Habakkuk is yet another example of childlike trust in God even in the midst of pain and loss. The year is around 600 B.C. The bloodthirsty Babylonian army is poised to ravage, rape, and murder its way through Jerusalem. The prophet knows the inevitable. And so, he writes, “I heard and my inward parts trembled, at the sound my lips quivered. Decay enters my bones, and in my place I tremble because I must wait quietly for the day of distress, for the people to arise who will invade us.”

 

But then he continues in that next verse: “Though the fig tree should not blossom and there be no fruit on the vines, Though the yield of the olive should fail and the fields produce no food, Though the flock should be cut off from the fold and there be no cattle in the stalls, Yet I will exult in the Lord, I will rejoice in the God of my salvation.”

 

This kind of trust, this kind of faith is our shield of faith – faith in God – trust in God – who does all things well – even if we do not understand what He does, or like what He does. Faith in God, trust in God, who is not unaware of our suffering. And who, in the midst of our suffering, has not withdrawn His love from us one iota. Listen to the Holy Spirit tell it again to us, this time through the apostle Paul:

 

(Romans 8:35-39) “What will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? Just as it is written, “For Your sake we are being put to death all day long; We were considered as sheep to be slaughtered.” But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us.  For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

 

Now let’s look at the first instance when the Lord Jesus exemplifies for us the kind of faith that is our shield.  Most anyone with even superficial knowledge of the New Testament knows what happened in Gethsemane. Jesus – fully human . . .  don’t forget that; Fully human and fully God, but STILL fully human) – Jesus begged the Father to remove the cup He was about to drink to its dregs. Three times the Son of God wept and writhed under the weight of what He knew was to soon take place.

 

Jesus, fully Man and fully God did not want to go to the cross. But Jesus the Man – and I reemphasize the point of His humanity, because He was as much a human as you and I – Jesus the Man fully trusted His Father and His Father’s plan – the plan formed before the foundation of the world, the plan initiated in Genesis chapter three when Satan stole humanity’s birthright, the plan to restore fallen men and women – you and me and everyone in this sanctuary, in this building, on this planet – to restore us to an intimate relationship with our Creator God.

 

These people I’m talking about were not stained-glass caricatures. Job, Habakkuk, Peter, Paul – all the prophets and apostles, and yes, even Jesus Himself – they were all REAL people, human beings with real emotions. They got hungry and lonely. They bled when they were cut. They got angry and heartbroken. They were men and women just like you and me.

 

So, yes, Jesus the Man did not want to go to that cross, but He would trust the Father, and so He said three times: “Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from Me; yet not My will, but Yours be done.” (Luke 22:42)

 

So, Christian, with God's help alone, pick up the shield of faith, even in the face of the lies and innuendos and doubts Satan tries to introduce into our minds, pick up the shield of faith, which is the assurance of things hoped for and the evidence of things we cannot now see.  

 

But where does this kind of faith come from? Certainly, from reading, studying, and knowing God's word. As Scripture tells us: (Romans 10:17) “Faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” 

 

And so, the shield of faith is formed by – and strengthened by – God's undiluted, infallible, and inerrant word. But there is something else necessary to the integrity of our shield besides mere knowledge of God's word. There must be a supernatural component to that knowledge. As the psalmist tells us, “Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it. Unless the Lord guards the city, the watchman stays awake in vain.” (Psalm 127:1)

 

Only the Holy Spirit – the third Person of the Holy Trinity – only the Holy Spirit can convert in our minds INFORMATION to REVELATION. It is only when He reveals to our HEARTS His truths about Romans 8:28 will we also be able to say with the Lord Jesus, “Not my will, but Thine be done.”

 

Only when the Holy Spirit changes our hearts, will we be able to say with Habakkuk, even in the face of devastation, “Yet I will exult in the Lord, I will rejoice in His salvation.”  It is only through the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit that we will find ourselves empowered to proclaim to hell itself, “Though He slay me, yet I will trust in Him.”

 

Each week, I stand before a small group of men and women suffering varying stages of dementia. As I stand there, I am fully aware that unless the Holy Spirit breaks through their confusion and fading memory, I will be speaking into the air. Nothing I say during those 30 minutes or so will have any chance of making an impact on their lives.

 

And so, with that awareness, I always begin our time together praying aloud for the Lord to open all of our minds and hearts as I speak words of encouragement, exhortation, hope and promise.

 

But – isn’t that what we should all always do whenever we speak – or plan to speak – with someone about the Lord? Shouldn’t we always – even if it’s a quickly breathed prayer – shouldn’t we always ask the Holy Spirit to speak His truths through us?  Don’t we know that just because a person has an intact memory doesn’t mean they also have ears to hear and hearts that are soft to God's voice?

 

And – isn’t that what you and I should always do when we open our Bibles to read? Don’t we want from the Holy Spirit more than mere ‘information’? Don’t we also want from Him ‘revelation’?

 

Spiritual warfare. Spiritual armor. And an understanding of Satan’s cunning and calculating schemes to destroy you, me, and our families. THAT’S why I preach from the Bible. That’s why I teach from the Bible. We all – me included – we all need to be warned over and over to stay alert to Satan’s subterfuge; To stay faithful to Christ and obedient to His words; To learn to trust Him with childlike faith. Oh, may our God help us!

 

Gird your loins with truth – God’s inerrant and infallible word. Read it. Study it. Memorize it. Tell it to others. Live it before others. And put on the breastplate of righteousness which God credits to us through our faith in the sacrificial atonement of Jesus the Messiah. And take up the shield of faith with which you will extinguish the enemy’s fiery lies and doubts and temptations and confusions.

 

Next time we will examine our helmet of salvation and our sword of the Spirit. 

The Supernatural Warfare - Part Four

 I often listen to a pastor out of Cleveland, Ohio, Alistair Begg. Some time ago, he preached a message to his congregation around the theme with which we are dealing with here, that being Spiritual Warfare. During his message he referred to a song written by John Lennon of the Beatles.

In the 1960s, John Lennon, Ringo Star, Paul McCartney, and George Harrison were enjoying the limelight of near-worldwide fame. On February 9, 1964, the group made their American debut to a record breaking 73 million viewers on the Ed Sullivan show. A year later, in 1965, Lennon wrote these lyrics of one of the Beatle’s more popular songs:

 

Help! I need somebody, Help! Not just anybody, Help! You know I need someone. Help!

When I was younger, so much younger than today, I never needed anybody's help in any way. But now these days are gone and I'm not so self-assured. Now I find I've changed my mind, I've opened up the doors

Help me if you can, I'm feeling down. And I do appreciate you being 'round
Help me get my feet back on the ground. Won't you please, please help me?

 

In 1980 or so, shortly before his assassination, Rolling Stone Magazine interviewed Lennon. When asked about the background of that song, Lennon told the interviewer the lyrics tell the story of what he was going through at the time. The famous Beatle, whose name was instantly recognizable in nearly every corner of the globe said this about the song:

 

“It’s just me singing [for] ‘Help!’ and I meant it… .  When ‘Help!’ came out, I was crying out for help. Most people think it’s just a fast rock’n’roll song. I didn’t realize it at the time . . .  But later, I knew I really was crying out for help.”

For the past weeks we’ve been looking at a text in Ephesians chapter six related to supernatural warfare. Let’s listen to it again to remind ourselves of the context for today’s message:

Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. Stand firm therefore, having girded your loins with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints  . . . . (Eph 6:11-18)

We’ve already looked at the evidence of the growing and encroaching supernatural evil all around us. Then we examined the ‘belt of truth’ with which we are to gird our loins, and the breastplate of righteousness. Today’s message centers on our footwear in verse 15. I like the way the translators of the Christian Standard Bible render this section from the Greek. Here is verse 14 for context: “Stand, therefore, with truth like a belt around your waist, righteousness like armor on your chest, [and now verse 15]: and your feet sandaled with readiness for the gospel of peace.”

The Scriptures speak of many different types of peace – being at peace with our neighbors, enjoying peace of heart, or peace of mind. It also talks about being at peace with God – and it is THIS peace that I want to focus on today – being at peace with God.

 

Most people probably don’t even think about being at peace with God. Nor do they even care. They’re too busy with their lives to think about eternity. You know people like that. I know people like that. But let me be quick to say this about those who hardly ever think of God – and much less in terms of being at peace with Him.

 

There was a time in my life when I lived for YEARS not giving God more than a passing glance. And most of the time, not even a glance. But then it happened, in the stillness of the night, when I was all alone and far from home and friends and family, God was able to break through my self-imposed isolation from Himself. I didn’t know I needed help. But God knew I did. And, well . . . here I am today trying to tell others where to turn when they finally realize THEY need help. 

 

You and I can never know what is going on in a person’s heart in the stillness of their night. Like was true in the case of John Lennon, when they are all alone and far from things that comfort them and distract them, God calls everyone to Himself. He calls everyone to Himself because He is not wanting ANY to perish, but for ALL to come to salvation.  As Augustine wrote in his classic book titled, Confession, “God made us for Himself, and our hearts are restless until it finds its rest in Thee.”

 

I don’t know if John Lennon ever recognized, even to the day he died, his God-designed cry for help was . . . well, God-designed. His lyrics were rooted in God moving in his heart to look to the ONLY one who could ever truly help him.

 

Which now circles us back to Paul’s point about the supernatural battle in which we are all engaged. He tells us to sandal up our feet with readiness to present to others the gospel of peace – that being the good news that you and I, and all the John Lennons of the world, can have peace with God.

 

It’s the good news that anyone can be reconciled with God. That they also can be adopted into His own family of sons and daughters who’ve been purchased for Himself with the precious blood of His only begotten Son, Jesus our Savior, Jesus our Messiah.

 

The bottoms of the Roman soldier’s sandals were studded with what would resemble athletic cleats. Those cleats – like those on the bottom of some athletic shoes which help the player maintain a firm grip in the dirt or sand – so the Roman soldier’s sandals had cleats which helped him ‘stand firm’ on the dirt as he did battle with an enemy.

 

Stability in the battle. That’s why Paul wrote to his protégé Timothy, “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth.” (2 Timothy 2: 15).  When we do battle for our souls, or the souls of others, we don’t want to be slipping and sliding as we fight. That’s what spiritual truth does, it anchors us, it roots us, it steadies us in the battle.

 

The good news of the Cross is for all who wonder, in the stillness of their night and in the emptiness of their own isolation, is there hope for me in God. Is He mad at me for the things I’ve done? Has He turned away from me? Does He even know my name?

 

There will be people out there in the dining room this evening who have asked themselves those very questions. And there will be people in that dining room who don’t love Jesus because they think He doesn’t love them.

 

Think of that a moment. There are people you know, people who live here at Ashwood, who think Jesus doesn’t love them. Oh, how tragic it is to believe that Satanic lie.

 

Child of God, listen! Put on your God-given sandals that represent the preparation and the presentation of the gospel of the peace we can have with God. We can have peace with Him because He has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus.

 

Listen to this truth from Romans 5. Hold it like a tight belt around your waist: “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

 

Please remember the Greek word translated ‘justified’ means in its fullest sense to be declared by God as being without guilt before Him. Paul continues in this fifth chapter of Romans, verse 8:

 

God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. (Romans 5:1-10)

 

No wonder Paul also writes to the Christians at Corinth: “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.”  (2 Corinthians 5:17-20)

 

Peace with God. The Scriptures make the promise from one end of the Book to the other. We can have peace with God, and God has given you and me the most awesome and awe-inspiring privilege to be His hands and His feet and His mouth to proclaim to the perishing that unfathomable truth.

“Rescue the perishing.” Many of you know the words of Fanny Crosby’s hymn.

“Rescue the perishing, care for the dying, snatch them in pity from sin and the grave; weep o'er the erring one, lift up the fallen, tell them of Jesus, the mighty to save.” “Rescue the perishing, care for the dying; Jesus is merciful, Jesus will save.”

Child of God, you who have been bought with the blood of the Savior – strap your feet with readiness, with the preparation of the good news of peace. Like troops ready for battle, duly equipped through prayer and knowledge of the word of God, be ready to win the John Lennons of the world back for God.

Do you think you are unqualified to rescue the perishing? Don’t let Satan trick you into selling yourself so short. If you love Jesus, if you serve Jesus to the best you are able, then God will use YOU to rescue them – if you WANT Him to use you.

 

Remember, neither you nor I stand alone in this battle. We could simply read to someone the genealogy of Jesus from the first chapter of Matthew’s gospel, and the Holy Spirit would use even that list of names to draw someone to the Savior. We are not alone in this battle.

 

What is it Paul wrote to the Christians at Rome?  “Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.” How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher? How will they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news of good things!” (Romans 10:13-15)

 

Do you want others to have peace with God? Then dress your feet with the readiness to share with them the good news of the reconciliation with God that is available to all of us. Tell them the God of all creation, whom Scripture describes as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit . . . tell them what they need to do to have peace with God, to be reconciled with God. It’s so simple, a child can understand it:

 

We must tell God of our sins. We must apologize to Him for those sins and ask His forgiveness. We must ask Him to help us, through the power of the Holy Spirit, to serve Jesus the Messiah for the rest of our lives. And finally, we must follow the Lord’s commandment to be baptized for the cleansing of our sins.

 

So, during the Jewish Feast of Pentecost, when Peter stood with the others in the Temple area and exhorted the visiting priests and laity, saying: “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:38) – they all would have immediately understood Peter’s reference to the immersion in water. The ritual is called the ‘mikvah’ – even to this day.

 

And so, when we tell others to repent and be baptized, we do nothing more than repeat what Moses, and then Peter, prescribed for our own conversion to Christ.

 

Now, back to the armor. As I’ve said before in this series, each piece of the Roman soldier’s armor was vital to his safety and the safety of his comrades-in-arms. Each piece was also necessary to his ability to successfully wage battle against the enemy.

 

In the same way, each piece of our spiritual armor is vital to our protection and the protection of others. Our armor is also vital to our ability to successfully wage battle against our supernatural enemy.

 

Gird your loins with truth – God’s inerrant and infallible word. Read it. Study it. Memorize it. Tell it to others. Put on the breastplate of righteousness which God credits to us through the sacrificial atonement of Jesus the Messiah. And put on your battle-designed shoes, prepared and ready to tell all the John Lennons of this world, “God loves you. God died for you, so that you and He might be reconciled forever.”

 

Next week we will continue our examination of this supernatural armor given us by God.

The Supernatural Battle - Part Three

Two weeks ago, we looked at the evidence all around us of the supernatural evil – the growing supernatural evil.  Last week we began our look at the supernatural armor God has provided us for our protection in this deadly spiritual battle. In so doing, we also reminded ourselves that we are never, ever alone in this battle. God lives inside each follower of Christ, and God provides angels who always guard us. Always guard us, even when circumstances seem as it we are left alone.

 

Before we look once again at the spiritual armor Paul wrote of in his letter to the Christians at Ephesus, let’s remind ourselves that it was to the pastors and church leadership of the Ephesian church that Paul warned, “I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves men will arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after them.” (Acts 20:29-30).

 

It was the same Ephesian church that received a rebuke by the Lord Jesus: “But I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Therefore remember from where you have fallen, and repent and do the deeds you did at first; or else I am coming to you and will remove your lampstand out of its place—unless you repent.  (Revelation 2:4-5)

 

It is within these contexts that we discover once again the many reasons we must not neglect the full armor of God – reasons not the least of which is reflected in an 18th century hymn written by 22-year-old Robert Robinson. Here are some of the lyrics: “Come Thou Fount of every blessing, Tune my heart to sing Thy grace, Streams of mercy, never ceasing, Call for songs of loudest praise . . . Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it, Prone to leave the God I love. Here’s my heart, O take and seal it. Seal it for Thy courts above.”

 

Prone to wander. It’s a danger to which EVERY Christian needs to be alert and a spiritual battle for which every Christian needs to be prepared.

 

It’s easy to be unaware of the battle, especially when our lives are quiet. But, as someone on a social media site wrote earlier this month about the battle: “Not every storm is loud. Sometimes it comes through distraction, discouragement, or the slow drift where prayer fades and the Word begins to feel distant. We don’t always notice it happening, but one day we wake up feeling empty and disconnected and we wonder how we got there. But Scripture never told us to coast. It says, 'Be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.'”

 

And so, the Lord Jesus warned us, “Therefore keep watch [be alert], because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him. (Matthew 24:42-44)

 

So, let’s move again into our examination of the Christians spiritual armor. Last time we looked at the belt of truth with which the apostles urged us to bind up our loins. The word ‘loins’ in Scripture often refers to the center of a person’s strength.

 

So, when Paul used the belt illustration, he was telling his readers that if we don’t hold truth close to ourselves, if we compromise or dilute God’s truth, then we open ourselves to mortal attack by our Satanic enemy – which is likely the reason we see so much demonic activity in our culture. Truth – God’s eternal truth – has been so severely diluted and compromised that even in many churches it is nearly unrecognizable.

 

I was going to move past this piece of our armor since we looked at it last week, but I felt urged in my spirit to say a few more things about God's truth because it is the very core, the very foundation of our ability to successfully engage in this spiritual warfare.

 

Some years ago, I had a brief conversation with someone on one of my social media sites who thought a church marquee was an abusive use of the Christian message.  Here is what the church sign read: “The fact that there’s a highway to hell and only a stairway to heaven says a lot about anticipated traffic numbers.”

 

He responded: “Christians should do better than using abusive scare tactics to gain and retain members.”  I told him the church sign was a direct allusion to Matthew chapter seven: (Matthew 7:13-14) “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” But he didn’t seem impressed. He certainly didn’t change his mind.

 

I’ve even had pastors tell me in private conversation that they do not talk about certain social issues in their homilies so as to not offend people in the pew.

 

Christian, please always remember this immutable fact – all of us – church leaders and those in the pews – we are all responsible and accountable to God to never compromise truth.

So, now, before we move further into Paul’s description of our armor, let’s look once again at this entire section for context:

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. Stand firm therefore, having girded your loins with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit . . . .” (Ephesians 6:10-18)

 

Turning our attention to the breastplate, no Roman soldier would ever go into battle without his breastplate. It protected him not only from the sword or spear in close combat, but also from arrows coming from the side or rear. Without it he would likely die in battle.

But Paul, well acquainted with Roman body armor, told his audience to put on the breastplate of 'righteousness.' The word ‘righteousness’ as used in Scripture, carries the idea of thinking and acting according to God’s commandments. It holds virtue, integrity, and moral purity as godly principles.

 

The equation seems simple enough. Obey God’s laws – the more scrupulous the better – and you’ve got nothing to worry about. But God has something deeper in mind when it comes to Biblical righteousness.

Listen to what the Lord Jesus said to the crowd of disciples, curious onlookers, and some religious leaders. “For I say to you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom.” (Matthew 5:20)

The scribes and Pharisees were meticulous in their observances of the Law of Moses, as well as in their multiple oral interpretations of those laws by their scholars. In fact, the two major theological schools of Hillel and Shemmai both taught that oral traditions were as authoritative as the written laws handed down by Moses and the prophets. Their oral traditions informed them that if they followed those traditions and interpretations of the Law, God would consider them ‘righteous.’

Yet, the Lord Jesus told His disciples – and He tells us the same thing – unless their righteousness surpassed that of their religious leaders who were scrupulous in their observances, they would not enter the kingdom of heaven.

I can imagine what the crowd thought to themselves: If even the holy men around us will not enter heaven, then WHO can ever be saved?

Who, indeed?

As the New Testament repeatedly informs us, Biblical righteousness is not defined so much by what we DO, but by what we ARE. And please pay attention to this follow-on comment: It is what we ARE that must translate into what we do.

 

That’s why anyone who claims to be a follower of Christ but still acts and thinks and talks like he or she did before allegedly becoming a follower of Christ, that person is a liar. Here is this word from John’s first epistle: (1 John 2:4) “The one who claims, “I know him,” while not keeping his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in this person.”

To repeat, because of its important point: Religious rituals and good works, in and of themselves, save no one. That was precisely the stumbling stone the Holy Spirit spoke of in Romans 9:30-32 “[The] Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, attained righteousness, even the righteousness which is by faith; but Israel, pursuing a law of righteousness, did not arrive at that law. Why? Because they did not pursue it by faith, but as though it were by works. They stumbled over the stumbling stone.”

Painstaking observance of the law or of tradition saves no one. Why? Because sin is part of our inherited nature, written like some genetic code into our spirits that invariably leads us away from the Savior.

That was the lament of that great apostle, St. Paul. Feel this man’s passion as he cries out in Romans 7 regarding his sin nature: “For what I am doing, I do not understand; for I am not practicing what I would like to do, but I am doing the very thing I hate. . . . For the good that I want, I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not want . . . I find then the principle that evil is present in me, the one who wants to do good . . . Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death? (Romans 7:15-24)

But Paul didn’t stop at the end of chapter seven with the bad news. He moved on to the next verses that we find in chapter eight. It is there that Paul shouts the good news about the righteousness that God imputes to us – the righteousness God credits to us – solely on the basis of our baptismal faith: “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus – which mirrors what he wrote a few chapters earlier: But now apart from the Law, the righteousness of God has been manifested . . . even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe . . ..” (Romans 3:21-22).

 

Listen also to what Paul wrote to the church at Philippi: “I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith . . . (Philippians 3:8-9)

The Biblical definition of righteousness by faith is vital to the integrity of our spiritual breastplate and to the rest of our spiritual armor.

 

So, what ARE we? The Christian’s answer is girded and secured by the belt of truth – truth that assures us that we are a precious child of God, that we are born into His family through our baptismal faith – faith in the shed blood of Messiah Jesus, whose blood alone can wash away each stain of our sin.

 

St. Paul again tells us what we ARE in his letter to the Christians at Corinth (1 Corinthians 1:30-31)  But by [God’s] doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption . . . .”

 

God says we are righteous because – and only because – of our relationship with Him through faith in His Son. That’s God’s view of us; Holy and righteous because of who we are – what we are – by faith in His promises.

 

Consider King David for a moment. Here is what he wrote in 2 Samuel. “I was also blameless toward Him, and I kept myself from my iniquity. “Therefore, the Lord has recompensed me according to my righteousness, according to my cleanness before His eyes.” (2 Samuel 22:24-25)

 

It is essential that we understand the context of David’s remarks. This is AFTER his sin with Bathsheba, and his murder of her husband Uriah. But when David repented of His murderous sins in Chapter 12 of 2 Samuel, the prophet Nathan told him: “The Lord also has taken away your sin; you shall not die.”  (2 Samuel 12:13)

And David BELIEVED God's promise.

 

Certainly, David suffered terribly in his lifetime for his sins. Bathsheba’s first child with David died, and David’s own children rose up against him. One even tried to murder him.  But our point here is that David’s honest repentance brought him God's forgiveness, but that God ALSO removed David’s sin. He REMITTED David’s sin. He obliterated David’s sin. That is why the king could say he was clean in God's eyes.

 

I’ve spoken multiple times in the past about God's promise of forgiveness. I’ve reminded us all that He completely erases our sins from His memory. But if Satan can create doubt in our mind about God’s truth concerning what we already ARE in Christ – forgiven, clean, righteous – if he can insinuate uncertainty in the unalterable promises of God, then he will have created a critical chink in our armor – and he will go in for the kill.

That is why girding ourselves with Biblical TRUTH is so important to the Christian. God’s truth produces a strong faith and trust in Christ. God’s truth sets us FREE from fear that God has lied to us about any of His promises, or that His promises do not apply to us because of our past sins.

 

None of the Roman soldier’s armor was superfluous. Each piece was vital to his safety and the safety of his comrades, as well as to his ability to successfully wage battle against the enemy. In the same way, none of our supernatural armor is superfluous. Each piece Paul mentions in this sixth chapter of Ephesians is rooted in God’s truth and is vital to our safety – and the safety of others. Our armor, all of it, is also vital to our ability to successfully wage battle against our supernatural enemy.

 

Gird your loins with truth – God’s inerrant and infallible word. Read it. Study it. Memorize it. Tell it to others. And put on the breastplate of righteousness which God credits to us through our faith in the sacrificial atonement of Jesus the Messiah.

 

The clock tells me we are out of time, so I will start next week’s message looking at the shield of faith.