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 saints. (Eph.6:13-18)

This will be my last word on this key passage from Ephesians 6 for a while but I wanted to look at the last and greatest weapon in God’s arsenal – prayer. After listing truth, righteousness, the gospel of peace, faith, salvation and the word of God as weapons and armor with which to do battle in the spiritual realm, Paul calls on us to pray – not only to pray but to pray in the Spirit. So what does it mean to pray in the Spirit?

Paul gives us an indication of what this means in his letter to the church at Corinth. In his discussion of spiritual gifts he says, “So also you, since you are zealous of spiritual gifts, seek to abound for the edification of the church. Therefore let one who speaks in a tongue pray that he may interpret. For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my mind is unfruitful. What is the outcome then? I will pray with the spirit and I will pray with the mind also; I will sing with the spirit and I will sing with the mind also. Otherwise if you bless in the spirit only, how will the one who fills the place of the ungifted say the “Amen” at your giving of thanks, since he does not know what you are saying” (1 Cor. 14:12-16). In this context, Paul is clearly giving direction on the practice of praying in tongues – a spiritual language given by the Spirit that even our own minds don’t understand unless God gives us a gift of interpretation as well. Paul speaks about praying out loud in a tongue to give a blessing and calls that blessing “in the spirit” or “in the Spirit” depending on your understanding of the context.

Jude instructs us, “But you, beloved, building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God” (Jude 20). John tells us that he was “in the Spirit” on the Lord’s day when he received the book of Revelation (Rev. 1:10). This idea of praying in the Spirit as a spiritual weapon suggests that we should be praying in tongues as well as praying by direction of the Holy Spirit. Paul encourages us when he says, “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express” (Rom.8:26). I believe the Spirit intercedes or prays for us even when we are unaware but also when we engage with Him as we pray in tongues. Jude tells us that as we pray in the Holy Spirit there is something about the process that builds us up and strengthens us spiritually.

In his letter to the Corinthians, Paul states that he would pray both with the spirit (tongues) and with the understanding, which is our typical way of praying, and in this passage he seems to encourage both in the life of every believer. However, the overall theme of his statements in Ephesians 6 is to pray every kind of prayer and to persist in prayer not only for our own needs but also for all the saints.

As a weapon, our prayers not only activate the power of heaven but they also direct the power of heaven. Without our prayers, little power is appropriated and little power is directed. The early church was a praying church. The leaders ministered in prayer, the people met often to pray and fast, and when they did the power of heaven shook the earth. The church grew and when Rome crumbled into dust the church still stood. Above all else we must pray for that is the ultimate weapon in spiritual warfare. So pray in all kinds of ways about all kinds of things but keep on praying until hell bows the knee to Jesus in the lives of individuals and nations. Be blessed and please be in prayer of our nation and the Lord’s churches in this nation.

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 saints. (Eph.6:13-18)

Paul finishes his description of the panoply of God by commanding us to take up the sword of the Spirit which is the word of God. We cannot overstate the power of the word of the Lord. God himself declares through the prophet Isaiah, “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it” (Isa.55:10-11). The writer of Hebrews declares that “the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart” (Heb.4:12). John also speaks of this power in his vision of Jesus recorded in the book of Revelation. He says, “The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean. Out of his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations” (Rev.19:14-15). Remember that the spoken word of God created the universe and that Jesus himself is called the Word (John 1:1). The Word (Jesus) has all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, this sword of the Spirit is very powerful.

A sword is both defensive and offensive in nature. The word of God is said to be alive, powerful, penetrating, and capable of taking down nations. It is the sword of the Spirit, a weapon infused with power by the Spirit of God. Defensively the sword is used to block and deflect attacks by the enemy. As we have seen all through Paul’s discussion of spiritual weapons, the word of God and the truth of God disarm the enemy whose primary weapons are lies, accusations, and distortions of God’s word and character. To declare God’s truth in the face of Satanic deception blocks his attempts to draw us out of the ranks and extinguishes the doubt and condemnation he has fired at us. Jesus himself, as a man, used the word of God against the very presence of Satan in the Wilderness Temptation. Satan would tempt and Jesus would declare the word over the strategy. Satan attempted three volleys and after Jesus answered his volleys three times with God’s truth, the enemy gave up and departed – at least for a season.

Offensively, the word of God broadcasts truth and when it has settled in hearts it sets people free. At another level, the word of God declared over situations releases the power of God into that situation. In his sovereignty, God has determined to do his work on the earth through his people. Often, God does nothing until his people ask or until his people declare his promises over a person or a situation. In the first chapter of Jeremiah, God tells the prophet, “Now, I have put my words in your mouth. See today I appoint you over nations and kingdoms to uproot and tear down, to destroy and overthrow, to build and to plant” (Jer.1:9-10).

As you read the rest of Jeremiah you see that Jeremiah did those things by declaring God’s word over nations and kings. As he said in Isaiah 55, when God’s word goes forth it fulfills its purpose whether from his lips or from ours. When we declare the word of God over a situation, we release God to direct the power of heaven into that situation to make his word come to pass.

Typically, that does not happen overnight, although on occasion it does. It often comes to pass immediately when God’s word of healing is declared over a person. It seems to take longer when declaring faith over a person for salvation or revival over a nation but the word of God can launch angels on missions and take great patches of territory from the enemy.

Again we discover that to declare the word or use it as a weapon we must know the word. To declare it skillfully we must know the ways and the heart of God that lies behind the word.  But as we learn those things we learn how to wield the sword of the Spirit with great power. So be quick to take up the word of God and use it to defend and to take ground, to push back the enemy and to expose his schemes, to uproot his lies and sow God’s transforming words in hearts. It is a divine weapon that is essential and powerful when facing the enemy.

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 saints. (Eph.6:13-18)

As Paul works through the panoply of weapons and armor the Christian is to strap on each day, he calls us to put on the helmet of salvation. In his letter to the Thessalonians, Paul told them to put on the hope of salvation as a helmet (1 Thess.5:8). Figuratively, the function of a helmet is to guard our minds. Again, this language reveals that the greatest part of spiritual warfare lies in our thought life. In 2 Corinthians 10, where Paul discuss “divine weapons,” he explains that the key to tearing down strongholds is to bring every thought we have captive to Jesus Christ (2 Cor.10:5). In other words, when we align our thinking with the truths of Jesus, strongholds begin to crumble.

The reality is, however, that we can believe one thing in our minds and something else in our hearts. We have all had the experience of saying,” Part of me thinks this, but another part of me thinks that.” James talks about this experience as a “double-minded” man who follows the Lord only half-heartedly. I ran across a concept at a conference in Chicago that speaks to this (I can’t remember who the speaker was). The speaker spoke about “aspirational values” versus “actual values.” Aspirational values are values or beliefs we aspire to hold because we know we should. Actual values, on the other hand, are the ones we live by. We often say one thing and do another. Our actual values can be determined by seeing what we do rather than by what we say.

For instance, a man can say that his family is the most important thing in his life yet never spend any time with them because of the immense number of hours he puts in at work or pursuing another interest. If you ask him, he will always says that his family comes first (aspirational value) but if you watch him you will know that his job, golf, hunting, etc. come first because that is what gets his quality time and effort year after year. Because of that we need to examine our own lives often to see if our actual values and beliefs are lining up with Christ. Anything less gives the enemy a foothold in our mind and then in our life.

Salvation or the hope of salvation guards our minds with the truth of who we are and what we have in Christ and motivates us to stay true to the values and actions Christ calls us to hold in our minds and hearts. The enemy nearly always attacks our thought processes first with doubt, accusation, or condemnation and we need to actively push back against these false beliefs. Too many times, the whispers of the enemy go unnoticed or unchallenged or we believe that those thoughts come from us so we don’t know what to do with them. I always encourage believers to pay attention to their thoughts and if any are contrary to God’s word then we should first assume that a spirit is tempting us, renounce those thoughts, declare what is true, and command any unclean spirit to leave us immediately and never return.

In many cases, the thought ceases immediately and does not return. If the thought actually originated with us and not a spirit, then we have lost nothing and have still spoken truth over the lie even if it came from us and have reinforced God’s word in our hearts and mind.

Salvation, biblically, is not just the forgiveness of sin and eventual life in heaven but it is the promise that God meets our every need in this world as well as the world to come – every need, not every want. Satan’s biggest lie is that we have desires which are “needs” that God won’t provide so we need to search outside of God and his will to have our “needs” met. That was the lie in the Garden and is still his favorite. Our understanding of salvation and God’s promises guards our minds against those lies. Paul said that he had learned to be content with seasons of plenty and seasons of little because he believed in each season God would still meet his essential needs. Salvation gives us that assurance and is a great safeguard for our minds. It is indeed our helmet.

Ask yourself where your thinking is about God’s care and promises for you. You may need to realign some thoughts yourself as I often do and remember to differentiate between your actual values and beliefs and those you aspire to as a believer. Where there is a contradiction renounce it and declare God’s truth over the lie. Be blessed.

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 saints. (Eph.6:13-18)

In his discussion of wrestling against spiritual powers, Paul, in addition to other weapons and armor, tells us to take up the shield of faith. The Roman army used various shields but, according to Strong, the word Paul used here denotes the large rectangular shield that covered the entire body. They were made in such a way that they could be hooked together with the shields of other soldiers to form an almost impenetrable wall in combat.

In so many words, Paul suggests that faith is the ultimate defense against any assault of the enemy. Faith is believing God. It is not just believing in God or that God exists, but it is believing that whatever God has said or promised is true and can be absolutely trusted. Satan deals in doubt and half-truths designed to undermine our faith and trust in God. He has operated that way from the beginning. In the Garden, Satan raised questions about God’s integrity and his commitment to Adam and Eve’s good. Satan twisted the words of God, suggested that God was withholding wisdom out of his own desire to keep Adam and Eve from being all that they could be, and simply declared that God was a liar when he told Adam and Eve that they would not actually die if they ate from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil as God had said. His words created doubt in the hearts of the first man and women about whether God and his word could be trusted. Once doubt cast its shadow, they abandoned the directives of God and went their own way resulting in the loss of their place in paradise.

Satan still deals in smoke and mirrors, threats, lies, and accusation. Faith in God quenches the flaming arrows of the enemy. Ultimately the answer to every temptation is to stand invariably on the Word of God. Of course, that requires knowing the Word. It also requires a firm conviction that God is good and that God is love. That conviction is what makes us willing to do all things God’s way because we believe that “His way” is always in our best interest because he always loves us.

Jesus modeled this principal throughout the gospels. When confronted with temptation in the wilderness, Jesus declared the word of God in response to Satan’s offers. After three attempts to draw Jesus into agreement with him, Satan abandoned his attack and left. James tells us to “Resist the devil and he will flee from you” (Ja.4:7). But how do you resist the devil? The verse immediately prior to the one just quoted tells us to “Submit, therefore, to God.” In the original language the word translated “submit” means to surrender, to yield, or to line up under your commander as a soldier standing in formation.

We submit to God by aligning ourselves with Him and his word and surrendering our thoughts, our words, and our ways to his. When we do that, the devil flees because he cannot exercise any power or authority over those whose faith is truly in God. That faith shields us from every attack and extinguishes his attempts to draw us away from the God who is our protector. To those who love and serve Him, God says, “If anyone does attack you it will not be my doing. Whoever attacks you will surrender to you…no weapon forged against you will prevail and you will refute every tongue that accuses you” (Isa.54:15-17). That promise applies not only to your enemies in the natural realm but also in the spiritual realm as well. Therefore, take up the shield of faith and ask the Father for even greater faith on a daily basis. When the enemy comes against you today, be strong in the Lord, stand on his Word, and wield the shield of faith.

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 saints. (Eph.6:13-18)

Paul continues to use an analogy between the armor worn by Roman soldiers who were everywhere in Paul’s world and the spiritual armor we need to wear to overcome the enemy in our world. He began with a belt of truth, moved to a breastplate of righteousness and now addresses the shoes of the soldier declaring that our “feet should be fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.” The ordinary foot soldier wore “clavata” which were sandals with nails protruding from the sole that gave them strategic traction in loose dirt when climbing or holding their ground. That is probably what Paul had in mind.

The word “readiness” means to always be ready for action – ready to move, ready to fight, ready to defend, and ready to fulfill the mission. In relation to the “gospel of peace,” we must always be ready to defend the gospel, stand on the gospel, and declare the gospel. In many ways, the gospel simply is the good news that through the sacrifice of Jesus, man can make peace with God and be reconciled by the grace of a God who longs to restore his relationship with each of us. It is both an offensive and defensive weapon.

It is defensive when the enemy comes to accuse and condemn. When he schemes to create doubt in our heart about our relationship with God, the message of the gospel should continually reassure us of our relationship with Him. Many believers forget the message of the gospel of grace because they have not shared it enough with others to write in permanently on their own hearts. When Satan comes to whisper that our spiritual performance has not been sufficient for salvation we must stand on the message of the gospel that our salvation has never been about our performance but about his sacrifice.

As an offensive weapon, it is the weapon that constantly and powerfully takes ground from the enemy. When pushing back the boundaries of darkness, the first victory must be in the hearts of men who hear and are captured by the good news of Jesus. When enough hearts have been surrendered to Jesus then families surrender. When enough families surrender then culture surrenders. When enough of the culture has surrendered then entire nations enter the kingdom of light.

The church’s primary mission is to preach the gospel and make disciples of all nations (Mt.28:18-20). Notice that the command of the Great Commission is to make disciples of entire nations not just a few individuals within a nation. If we are not taking ground we are loosing ground. The church quit taking ground in America 50 years ago and now we have lost huge chunks of cultural real estate. Only the passionate and faithful preaching of the gospel of peace will retake that ground and return righteousness to America and America to God. The church in America took off its sandals but needs to cinch them up again with a readiness to declare the Lordship of Jesus with a demonstration of power. The church has been on the defensive in America and Western Europe in recent decades but has the power in Christ to put Satan on the run if we have the will. The gospel of peace is the power of God for salvation (Rom.1:16) and the truth of that gospel enable us not only to stand but also to advance.

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 saints. (Eph.6:13-18)

The second part of God’s armor that Paul lists is righteousness. We are to wear it as a breastplate. I believe Paul is referring to righteousness as a quality of faith and character that guards our hearts from the attacks of the enemy. As believers, we possess righteousness in two ways. First of all, the Father declares us to be righteous on the basis of Christ’s sacrifice. “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Cor. 5:21). We also possess a righteousness in proportion to our righteous living. The first thing every believer must know and stand on is that our salvation comes from a righteousness that has been imputed to us by the grace of God because Jesus paid the price for our sins. Our salvation does not initially stand on the basis of our own efforts and it is not sustained by our own efforts. We are saved by grace and continue by grace. The enemy would have us believe different.

The greatest attack on our faith comes from the enemy planting seeds of doubt in our hearts through thoughts of condemnation and accusation. As soon as we feel condemnation we assign the thoughts and feelings to God. At that moment, we sense rejection and begin to feel as if we are on our own in this world and will need to earn or work our way back into his graces. Those of us who feel alone will typically shift into a “high-control mode” because if God is not caring for us then we have to take care of ourselves, provide for ourselves and protect ourselves. We become number one in our lives. Our grace for others, our patience, and our forgiveness are curtailed because each of those actions makes us vulnerable. Both relationships and faith go south when we are feeling condemned and rejected by God.

However, condemnation and accusation are NOT from God. Satan is the “accuser of the brethren” (Rev.12:10) and for those in Christ there is no condemnation (Rom.8:1). Knowing that our righteousness is a result of our position in Christ rather than our condition in this world guards our heart from the attacks of the enemy. It is true that the Father expects us to mature and grow in righteousness as believers, but there is never an expectation of perfection. The enemy constantly hoists that standard as a source of accusation and discouragement but we do not have to live perfect lives because we have a perfect savior.

Even though the blood of Christ gives us a righteous standing in heaven, we should still be committed to living righteously. Our own righteous behavior is a safeguard to our hearts because it keeps us aligned with the Father and prevents the enemy from gaining any kind of foothold in our lives. Paradoxically, part of being righteous is consistently acknowledging our own unrighteousness before the Father rather than pretending a self-righteousness. John reminds us, “If we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin. If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 Jn.1:7-9). Satan would have us think that sin after salvation separates us from God and the greater the sin or the greater our awareness of sin the greater the separation.

But John is clear that to claim to be sinless on the basis of personal righteousness is a delusion at best and most probably a lie. However, confession of sin keeps us in the purifying stream of Christ’s blood and is intended to take away the shame and stain of sins we may commit. The spiritual discipline of confession slams the door on Satan and allows our standing as righteous and our desire to be righteous to continue to guard our hearts against the attacks of the accuser. Righteousness, then, is the breastplate of the believer. God has given it to you so wear it with confidence.

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 saints. (Eph.6:13-18)

Having made his case for the believer’s daily battle against spiritual forces of evil, Paul goes on to enumerate elements of our faith that constitute God’s armor. Remember the word armor in the Greek is panoplia and includes both armor and weapons. The idea that our armor is the “armor of God” implies that our armor and weapons originate with God. They come to us from God’s armory, are designed by God, and empowered by God. They cannot be shaped or empowered by man. They must be divine weapons not weapons of the world (2 Cor. 10:4).

Paul begins with a call to stand firm in the face of the enemy – to give no ground and to refuse to let the devil push us around. I remember Graham Cooke commenting on the propensity of most believers to simply give in at Satan’s first volley rather than turning the tables and coming at him with all we’ve got. James tells us to resist the devil and he will flee from us. Jesus himself declared that the gates of hell would not prevail against his church – and we are his church. The people of God should not fear Satan. Satan should fear the people of God. We have armor. We have weapons. We have Jesus who has all authority in heaven and on earth. We have the host – the armies – of heaven to back us up.

Paul, then, tells us to stand immoveable on the day(s) Satan comes against us. We should keep in mind that Satan rarely comes against us with a frontal assault. His first choice is always to draw us out of God’s will in some area of our life so that the natural and spiritual consequences of sin roll over us like a rockslide. If he can seduce us in one area that we begin to withhold from God for a season without repentance, he will gain a foothold in that area which soon becomes a stronghold. The armor of God keeps us aligned with the Father so that no door is left open for the enemy to enter.

He begins with truth. He may be instructing us to always be truth tellers but I believe his emphasis here is in knowing and standing on the truth of Jesus Christ, the Word of God. Jesus said, “You will know the truth and the truth will set you free” (Jn.8:32). “Truth” in this context means a reality that stands firm – an unchanging reality. Jesus came to blow away the smoke and mirrors of Satan’s lies and to enlighten our own darkened understanding so that we might know what reality truly us. God told Adam and Eve the truth – you eat, you die. Satan clouded that reality when he declared that they would not die – at least not in the physical sense, at least not right away. Adam and Eve believed the lie and here we are.

God’s truth is a window into eternal realities and absolute right and wrong. Satan’s first line of attack is always to woo us away from that truth just as he did in the Garden. In a sense, everything else hangs on knowing and believing what is true – what is real. When we know God’s truth and stand on it, Satan has no point of entry. When Jesus was tempted by the devil in the wilderness, he stood on the truth revealed in God’s word and Satan soon gave up the game and left. One of the church’s great challenges today is that by and large, believers no longer know much of the truth. Real Bible study has given way to devotional books and light reading. Those things are not wrong but should not replace serious study and time in the Word.

Most believers today have no chance of defending their faith based on the Word of God. Many believers have attached themselves to favorite preachers and teachers who present one slice of the biblical pie over and over but don’t present the whole counsel of God. As a result, a believer may be well versed in grace but not holiness, self-esteem but not self-sacrifice, or in end-times theology without knowing the teachings of Jesus on faith and character. When we are familiar with only one facet of God’s will it is easy for Satan to lie to us about other parts of his will.

God’s truth is a foundational weapon of spiritual warfare and is essential in these last days. Paul warns us when he says, “The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron” (1Tim.4:1-2). Everything hangs on God’s truth. He expects us to know the truth ourselves not just to depend on others to know if for us. Our first line of defense is knowing the eternal realities that God’s Spirit has revealed to us. Study to know.

More about God’s armor in my next blog.

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.  Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.  For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.  Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. (Eph.6:10-13)

In this section of scripture and others, Paul paints a picture of unseen spiritual warfare that is going on all around us. A legitimate question is whether or not we play a role in that warfare or if God is simply orchestrating things in the spiritual realm that we have no particular part in.

To begin with, let’s go back to Daniel 10, which we referenced in the last blog. Daniel prayed. An angel was sent. War broke out in the spiritual realm. Even an archangel got involved in the ongoing battle. It all began when Daniel prayed and continued to pray. I believe Daniel’s persistence in prayer for twenty-one days is what prompted God to release Michael to go to the aid of the first angel. If he had stopped praying, he may never have realized the answer he needed. There is resistance in the spiritual realm to our prayers being answered.

In 2 Kings 6, we see Elisha surrounded by the armies of Aram and trapped in the small town of Dothan. His servant panics when he sees the army encamped around the town. However, Elisha, who knew he was a hunted man, must have prayed daily for protection and when his servant alerted him he was essentially unconcerned. “Don’t be afraid,” the prophet answered. “Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” And Elisha prayed, “O Lord, open his eyes so he may see.” Then the Lord opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. As the enemy came down toward him, Elisha prayed to the Lord, “Strike these people with blindness.” So he struck them with blindness, as Elisha had asked” (2 Kings 6:16-18). Our prayers put the armies of heaven into play to fight against the enemy as he comes against the people or the will of God. It may be one angel or a company of angels but much more is going on in the spiritual realm on our behalf than we can imagine.

When we command demons to relinquish their hold on another human-being, angels are there to enforce our commands as we represent the commander of the armies of heaven and command in his authority. In one sense, angels were created to minister to us (Heb.1:14) but in many cases they minister with us. While John was receiving the vision we call the Book of Revelation, he was so overcome by the presence of a great angel that he forgot himself and almost worshipped the angel who corrected him immediately. “At this I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, “Do not do it! I am a fellow servant with you and with your brothers who hold to the testimony of Jesus” (Rev.19:10). As fellow servants, we and the angels both are sometimes involved in accomplishing the will of God on the earth – we labor in the seen realm while they labor in the unseen realm on the same heavenly mission.

What we fail to realize is that we live and operate in both the natural and the spiritual realm as those who are already seated in heavenly places, who already possess eternal life spiritually, and whose prayers, commands, and declarations set the armies and the Spirit of God into motion. John Wesley said, “God does nothing except in response to believing prayer.” But when we pray in alignment with God’s will, our prayers shake the heavenlies. God intends to rule the earth through his people. Spiritual warfare is just that – letting God push back the dominion of darkness through us as we pray, command, declare his word over situations, share the gospel, and do as Jesus would do – healing the sick, casting out demons, cleansing the lepers and even raising the dead. In doing so, we join Jesus in destroying the works of the devil (1 Jn.3:8).

The real work and the real enemy lie in the spiritual realm. We cannot conquer forces in the spiritual realm with weapons of the world but only with divine weapons that launch the power and authority of Jesus into hearts and into situations. If we are going to be angry, offended, or resentful those emotions should be directed toward Satan not toward the people he manipulates. Couples who fight, should start fighting the devil, not one another. Even when we stand against a force consumed by evil such as ISIS, we must remember that there are spiritual realities behind the movement that must be defeated through prayer, fasting, and other divine weapons or after ISIS that spirit will simply raise up another group filled with violence and hatred.

The church is focused too much on this world and approaches too many issues with weapons of the world rather than weapons that wield spiritual power. State-of-the-art buildings, celebrity guests, political clout, light shows, smoke machines, sports programs, and coffee bars are not wrong in themselves but these are weapons and tools used even by Vegas casinos. Holiness, prayer, love, authority, and the declared Word of God are the weapons that will win the world and the day for our struggle is not against flesh and blood. That is not only true for the church as a whole but for us as individuals as well.

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.  Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.  For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.  Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. (Eph.6:10-13)

There is an armor that has its origins with God. Paul instructs each of us to put on that armor – literally to dress ourselves. There is an intentionality in that directive. Each believer must initiate the process and, in order to be fully ready for the battle, must put on the whole “panoplia” which includes not only armor but weapons as well. Paul is clear that without the armor and weapons that God supplies we cannot stand against the assaults of the enemy. Paul’s statements here echo his directives regarding divine weapons in 2 Corinthians 10. We cannot stand against the enemy in our own strength or defeat him in our own wisdom. We must receive and wield what God provides.

Paul continues to emphasize the necessity of standing in God’s strength and putting on God’s armor because our real struggle is not against human adversaries but against those that exist in the spiritual realm. Paul uses the word “wrestle” to describe the struggle. It is a Greek word that specifically describes wrestling in the Greek game, the Olympics. When you think of Olympic wrestling, it is not guys in striped tights flying off the top ropes and whacking each other with folding chairs. Rather, it is a sport involving strategy (schemes), strength, and endurance. One interesting rule dictates action on the mat. Wrestlers are expected to force the action, and they receive passivity warnings from the referee if they don’t. A wrestler deemed passive is then at the mercy of his more active adversary, who is given the option of putting his opponent in the par terre (on the mat) position, which generally makes it easier to score points. Passivity on our part, in the realm of spiritual warfare, also gives the enemy a great advantage.

Paul goes on to speak about rulers, authorities and cosmic powers in this spiritual realm we war against. He is speaking about ranks of demons and their roles. Several translations use the word principalities instead of rulers. In the book of Daniel, the prophet prays for an interpretation of a dream God has given him. After twenty-one days of praying and fasting, an angel appears and tells him, “Do not be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to them. But the prince of the Persian kingdom resisted me twenty-one days. Then Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, because I was detained there with the king of Persia” (Dan.10:12-13).

The first angel is one of the hosts of heaven (a member of the armies of heaven – See Rev.19:14)). As he attempted to fulfill his mission, he was opposed by a demonic spirit referred to as the Prince of Persia. This high-ranking demonic spirit ruled a spiritual principality over the nation of Persia. We can assume that his mission was to promote Satan’s agenda in that nation and to command lesser demons under his authority. He was powerful enough that he withstood the angel that had been sent by the Lord for twenty-one days. Only when Michael, one of the chief princes (an archangel), was sent to aid him and take up the battle was the first angel able to fulfill his mission.

This section of scripture reveals that both angels and demons have specific territories and people to whom they are assigned. In the book of Revelation, it also appears that angels are assigned to churches (see chapters 2-3). If angels are assigned to churches it is not a stretch to believe that demons have also been assigned. If we have guardian angels then it is also a small stretch to believe that we may also have demonic spirits assigned to harass us and oppress us, at least from time to time. In the spiritual realm there are armies with different ranks of commanders who receive orders from the top. Jesus is the commander of the armies of heaven (Rev. 19) and Satan commands those in the dominion of darkness. There are strategies, campaigns, wars, etc. that take place in the invisible realm and we, as believers, play a significant role in those wars. More about our part in the next blog.

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.  Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.  For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.  Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. (Eph.6:10-13).

In my last blog, we looked at Paul’s teaching regarding worldly weapons and divine weapons in 2 Corinthians 10. He is clear that the church must employ divine weapons infused with divine power because the real battles are fought in the spiritual realm. Paul pulls back the curtain on the spiritual realm in the text above.

He begins by counseling us to be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Strength is found in the Lord as he releases his mighty power. The word for power here is not “dunamis” but “kratei” which means the force inherent in a person or thing such as the withering force of a category five hurricane. When we speak of the power of a king, we usually mean the power that he can command in his armies. The power does not rest in him personally but in the numbers of those that serve him. This power (kratei) actually rests in God with or without angelic armies to back him up. That word makes sense when we remember that God alone not only spoke the natural universe into existence but the spiritual realm as well – including his angelic armies. So our strength is to come from trusting in the Lord and the power that he personally brings to bear on our situation. That power is greater than anything we can imagine, so that is a very good place to stand.

Secondly, we discover that God expects us to take up the battle and to stand against the enemy. My first response to that revelation is that I would much rather God just handle things for me. He has the power and might to sweep away the enemy without me leaving the house and some days that would be my great preference. That however, is not how God operates. Many of the events and doctrines of the Old Testament were “types” and “shadows” of things to come (see Rom.5:14; Heb.11:19; Col.2:16-17; Heb.10:1). In other words, they were imperfect forerunners or hints of greater realities that God would bring to pass in the future that still give us insights into the reality. For instance, Moses was a “type” of Jesus who was sent by God as a deliverer for God’s people. The temple sacrifices and the festivals were “types” and “shadows” of the sacrifice of Jesus, the Lamb of God. The Red Sea crossing was a “type” of baptism. The Promised Land of Canaan was a “type” of our salvation.

After forty years in the wilderness, God brought a believing generation of Hebrews to the brink of the Jordan River to enter the land he had promised to Abraham and his descendants. The problem was that Canaan was still full of powerful tribes and walled cities like Jericho who had no intention of giving up the land. It would have been no problem for God to destroy these enemies without any effort on the part of the Hebrews. In 2 Kings 19, the king of Assyria laid siege to Jerusalem. King Hezekiah truly was helpless to defend the city but cried out to God for deliverance. The text says, “That night the angel of the Lord went out and put to death a hundred and eighty-five thousand men in the Assyrian camp. When the people got up the next morning—there were all the dead bodies! So Sennacherib king of Assyria broke camp and withdrew” (2 Kings 19:35-36). God is clearly able to deliver us from our enemies without us breaking sweat. On occasion he does, but that is not the norm.

The norm is that God’s people fight. He goes with us and goes before us but we are called to put on armor and fight. Even when previous generations have won victories, God still leaves us battles to be fought. Joshua did not drive out all of the opposing tribes in Canaan. After his death there were still tribes and cities that had to be conquered. We are told, “The Lord had allowed those nations to remain; he did not drive them out at once by giving them into the hands of Joshua. These are the nations the Lord left to test all those Israelites who had not experienced any of the wars in Canaan (he did this only to teach warfare to the descendants of the Israelites who had not had previous battle experience)” (Judges 2:23-3:2).

Those tribes were tribes who worshipped idols and those idols represented demons (Dt.32:16-17). God still calls on us to fight against demonic forces today. In the battle, we draw closer to God, increase our faith, and gain strength. In the battle we learn the realities of the spiritual realm, the authority of our King, the heavenly joy of victory, and the comradeship of those who go to battle together.   More about Ephesians 6 in my next blog.