What are these weapons?
God’s word gives us so many weapons we should wage war with. Please bear with me because I am going to cover many of these weapons, but note that by no means is this an all inclusive list. Please search the scriptures for yourselves to find out exactly what weapons God is calling you to fight with in your particular battle. Not all battles will require the same weapons, nor are those weapons going to be used in the same manner in every battle we face. Spend some time seeking God’s direction on what weapons you need to be fighting with and how you are to fight with them.
“Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.” Ephesians 6:11-18
The most logical place to start examining our weapons is in Ephesians 6. This section of scripture introduces us to the armor of God. We will be looking at each individual piece of armor and the significance behind wearing it. Please note that some of the pieces we will discuss are for our protection while other pieces are for us to physically battle with. Each piece is important in our battle against the evil forces in the heavenly realms.
I want to mention quickly that verse 11 tells us to put on the full armor of God so that we can stand against the devil’s schemes. I don’t know any soldier who would go into battle and not wear ALL of their protective gear. I guess if you wanted to lose, become injured or die, you might consider going to war with parts of your armor missing, but in reality, who really wants any of those things to happen? Yet, this is what we do on a daily basis as Christians. We leave our homes for work, school, play dates, errands, and even church without getting dressed in our full armor. By not getting battle ready we are basically inviting satan to wreak havoc in our lives.
1. Belt of truth
In thinking about the belt of truth my mind immediately takes me to one place, the next generation. The belt is a garment worn around the waist. The body parts in and around that area deal with the reproductive organs. I truly think there is a reason why scripture talks about covering our waists with truth. My understanding of this is that we should be covering our children, both physical children and spiritual children with the knowledge of God’s truth.
“I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.” 3 John 1:4
Our children can never walk in a truth they have never heard. It is our responsibility to put on truth and in turn pass that along to the next generation as well. In doing so we will reap a beautiful harvest. One major aspect of waging war means sharing the knowledge of God’s truth to anyone who will listen.
2. Breastplate of rightness
The breastplate is used to protect vital organs such as our lungs and heart. I truly believe the key protection area is our heart. It is crucial that we protect our heart with righteousness. Please bear in mind that we can not produce the type of righteousness that has the capability of protecting our heart from the evil schemes that satan is skillfully planning. Isaiah 64:6 tells us that “all our righteous acts are like filthy rags.” So in other words,the righteousness we need only comes from the Heavenly Father Himself.
“...For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.” Luke 6:45 When we allow the Lord to fill our heart with His righteousness, our mouths then become a vehicle for God’s righteousness to be spread to those around us. Protecting our hearts begins with allowing God’s righteousness to fill us and then allowing His righteousness to flow from us.
3. Your feet fitted with readiness
What good is it to get dressed for work in the morning if you never actually go to work? God not only desires us to put on the full armor, but to actually go and use it. Ephesians says that our feet should be fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. We can never be fitted for readiness if we don’t daily delve into God’s word. We should be so involved with the word of God that it affects the way we walk, the manner in which we carry ourselves, our demeanor, our mindset, our speech and our interactions with others. Our Heavenly Father desires for us to come to such an intimate place in our walk with Him that every aspect of our being reflects the character of Christ. We can not arrive at such a place without putting on the gospel of peace each and every day. I truly believe that the reason God desires us to ready our feet is so that we don’t keep Christ for ourselves. When our feet our equipped for readiness, we have a burning and urgent passion inside to share the things of God with others. It’s time to put on our running shoes saints. We are facing a lost and dying generation that needs to hear the gospel more than ever before.
To continue this series please read: Weapons of Warfare (Part 3).
Heavenly Father, please help us to put on the belt of truth so we can share your truth with the next generation with a sense of urgency. May we faithfully put on the breastplate of righteousness so that our hearts can be protected because we know that when our heart is guarded our mouths will speak forth the godliness that we have stored up inside. Fill us with diligence to lace up our shoes of readiness so that we may go wherever you are sending us and share with whomever you place in our path. Overwhelm us with an urgency to do battle in the heavenly realms.
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