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Are you armed with the armor of God against Satan? 6/21/2010 8:06:36 AM
If the devil is so powerful, how do we defeat him then? In Ephesians, Paul admonished us to wear the armor of God. He gives us the Roman soldier outfit and gear as a model. You ask what's that has to do with fighting the devil? Well, it is a fight and Satan is our worst enemy so we need to prepare for the battle. And since our battle isn't against flesh and blood but spirits, we need different type of weapons. The enemy is invisible and very powerful and most people don't believe he exists which makes him even more dangerous. And those who believe that he exists, the devil makes them think that they are just too bright to be controlled by him.
We do need provisions to outmaneuver Satan and have victory over him. We have no power against Satan
by ourselves, only through Jesus and His power. His might and the armor of God is our only hope. We need to dress up spiritually, and each piece of the armor of the roman soldier represents a spiritual weapon.
Starting from the top, first we have the helmet of salvation; we need this to protect our mind from evil thoughts by reading the Bible and educating ourselves in the scriptures. It gives us the power of God we need to demolish strongholds and trenches of the devil like porn, drugs, and nudity.
Next - the sword is the Bible, God's word. If we want to shut down the destructive mind games the enemy plays in our heads, there is one tactic guaranteed to win, the Bible. But we have to believe and obey the truth in the Bible as the word of God. We need to remember it and use it every day. Popeye eats spinach and the believers eat the word of God.
Next - the breastplate of righteousness to protect the heart and guard our emotions, and trust in Jehovah-Tsidkenu. Jesus took our sins on Him on the cross and gave us His righteousness. It provides protection from the devil's accusations because God looks at us through Jesus' righteousness. Therefore, we're not afraid to go witnessing and spread the word even if we feel unrighteous because nobody is. What's important is that we love that which is righteous and refuse what is sinful, so that our neighbor would want to be a Christian.
Next - the shoes of peace. We have confidence in the commander-in-chief and prince and author of peace, Jehovah-Shalom. Great peace have they that love His law and nothing shall offend them.
This one protects against anxiety and fleshly temptations. The shoes of peace help us to be peacemakers and not troublemakers.
Finally - the Shield of faith with which we can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. We have an enemy who throws at us fiery darts of doubt, worry, anxiety, and fear which all work
against faith. Of course we can't forget the belt of truth, buckled around your waist. It holds the breastplate, the dagger, and the sword. Notice the armor has nothing that covers and protects the back, which means retreat isn't an option; we have to stand firm.
And this is the complete armory of the Christian. Our enemies are the world, wanting us to conform to it and squeezes us into its mold. The flesh, which says 'give me, give me, give me' lusting all the time. And the devil who says 'believe me', and he's a liar from the beginning. So make sure that you wear your christian armor today.
