Last week I told you we would conclude our study of Ephesians this week…well, I was wrong. As I began studying, the Holy Spirit showed me that there was far too much to cover in one class period. That’s what I get for running ahead of God!

Let’s read our verses for today:

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. (Ephesians 6:13-17 NASB95)

Verse 13 begins with "Therefore" because in the immediately preceding verse covered in our last class, Paul identifies our enemy and his helpers and we discovered that they are not flesh and blood (human), but spirits and as such, we will need supernatural weapons in our warfare. Here Paul urges his readers to put on the full armor, take the weapons, and withstand Satan, all of which we do by faith. Knowing that Christ has already conquered Satan, and that the spiritual armor and weapons are available, by faith we accept what God gives us and go out to meet the foe. The day is evil, and the enemy is evil, but "if God be for us, who can be against us?" (Rom. 8:31)

The phrase full armor (panoplia / pan·op· lee ·ah) describes both the defensive and offensive weapons of a soldier. The defensive weapons consisted of the shield, helmet, greaves and breastplate, while the offensive weapons were usually a sword and a lance or spear. The helmet protected the head and sometimes covered the face; the breastplate protected both the soldier’s front and back from the neck to the waist and the greaves protected the legs from the knee to the ankle. The shield was used to give further protection to the face and to protect the legs above the knee. The sword was usually short; a secondary weapon used for close fighting, while the lance or spear was the primary weapon used to inflict wounds from a distance. The garment that was wrapped around the soldier’s waist and secured the breastplate was called a girdle, which also held the sword, often carried in a protective sheath.

As Paul begins to describe these spiritual weapons, he starts with the girdle and calls it truth. Satan is a liar (John 8:44) and cannot tell the truth…God is truth and cannot tell a lie. Just as the girdle held the breastplate in place and sword ready for use, so truth is the integrating force in the life of a believer. A person of integrity and a clear conscience can face Satan without fear, but unless we practice truth, we cannot use the Word of Truth.

Paul continues with the instruction to put on the breastplate of righteousness. The breastplate was made of metal plates or chains and covered the soldier from neck to waist both front and back. In Paul’s mind it symbolizes both the righteousness of Christ (2Cor. 5:21) that protects the believer on the outside (Saving Grace) and the righteousness of Christ (Eph. 4:24) that protects the believer on the inside (Living Grace). The life we live either fortifies us against Satan’s attacks or makes it easier for him to defeat us (2 Cor. 6:1–10). When Satan accuses the Christian, it is the righteousness of Christ that assures the believer of his salvation. But our positional righteousness in Christ (Saving Grace), without practical righteousness in the daily life (Living Grace), only gives Satan opportunity to attack us. We must live the Christian life in exactly the same way as we began the Christian life (Col. 2:6) or Satan will defeat us every time…we can trust Christ no less to live His life in an through us than we do to save us.

The next part of the armor Paul describes is footwear. To "stand" and "withstand", requires firm footing. Roman soldiers wore sandals with hobnails in the soles to give them better footing in battle…you cannot be effective in battle if your feet are slipping! Here Paul says that the Gospel of Peace gives the Christian firm footing.

The Greek word for gospel is euaggelion (yoo·ang· ghel ·ee·on) and appears 46 times in the New Testament and is generally understood to mean "good news". It is variously translated "gospel of Christ"; "gospel of God"; and "gospel of the Kingdom" all of which communicate very good news. Here Paul connects it to eirene (i· ray ·nay), a word that appears 92 times in the New Testament…89 times it is rendered "peace"; once "rest"; once "one"; and once "quietness". The Hebrew equivalent is "shalom" which carries the idea of "wholeness".

The title "God of Peace" is uniquely Pauline and appears in Rom. 15:33; 16:20; Phil. 4:9; 1 Thess. 5:23; and Heb. 13:20. Although the exact title is not used in 1 Cor. 14:33 and 2 Cor. 13:11, God is described as "…not a God of confusion, but of peace…" and "…the God of love and peace…." In 2 Thess. 3:16, the title "the Lord of peace" is best understood as referring to the Lord Jesus. Strong’s Lexicon says that in Christianity eirene (i· ray ·nay) describes "the tranquil state of a soul assured of its salvation through Christ, and so fearing nothing from God and content with its earthly lot, of whatsoever sort that is."

Paul precedes the phrase Gospel of Peace with a word that only appears once in the New Testament: hetoimasia (het·oy·mas· ee ·ah) that means "readiness"…to be prepared. When it is connected to the word hupodeo (hoop·od· eh ·o), translated "shod", it carries the idea of a firm footing or foundation. The Gospel of Peace is the firm footing or foundation of the Christian life…everything else is built on that!

In verse 16, the Holy Spirit leads Paul to use a shield to describe the Christian’s faith. It is very important for us to understand that the faith that shields is not our faith, but the faith God gives us when we exercise our "mustard-seed faith" to trust Him. Shields came in various sizes and shapes…some were small and round; others were more oval in shape and still others were square or rectangular…larger shields were about four feet high and two feet wide. Some shields were designed to interlock so that a line of soldiers could literally form a wall of protection as they advanced toward the enemy or a barrier as they stood their ground. This reminds us that as individual Christians we are not in this battle alone…we can "interlock" with other believers who are exercising the faith Jesus provides when He comes to dwell inside and form a wall of protection against Satan and his forces.

The shield, like "living faith", is a defensive weapon. It protects us from the spears, lances, swords and fiery darts of Satan. In Paul’s day, arrows were dipped in an inflammable substance and ignited before being shot at the enemy or at structures that would catch on fire. These "fiery darts", though the flame they carried was small, could start an incredibly destructive inferno. Satan continues to shoot "fiery darts" at the hearts and minds of believers: lies, blasphemous thoughts, hateful thoughts about others, doubts, and burning desires for sin. If we don’t use the shield of faith to quench them, we will get burned every time.

Never forget that it is not our faith "in the Son of God" that quenches the "fiery darts" and shields us from the spears, lances and swords of Satan, it is the faith "of the Son of God" that gives us protection. Notice what Paul says in Galatians 2:20: I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me. (NASSB95)

I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me. (KJV)

I looked through all the translations I have on my computer (27 total…17 I can read) and found both "faith in" and "faith of" used, but here’s my question: If I have died, how can I have any faith? Can a dead person have faith? If my resurrected "new self" is the Spirit of Christ, then the faith I now have is His faith. Right? I believe the context requires me to acknowledge that the faith by which I live this new life is not faith in my faith, because my faith died when I was crucified with Christ; it’s not even my faith in the faithfulness of Jesus, because I don’t have any faith apart from Him; but rather it is the faithfulness of Jesus Himself who now lives inside me. Only His faithfulness gives me protection from Satan! Once again, the focus of the Christian life is not on my faith, but on the faithfulness of Jesus who lives inside.

While they are settling for less than all that Christ offers, I believe it truly is…Jesus will take a person any way they come. Remember the stories of healing? Jesus commended some for their faith, but healed others who did not seem to have any faith. God’s working in our lives does not hinge on our faithfulness, but on His faithfulness alone.

In verse 17, Paul uses the phrase helmet of salvation.

Satan’s attacks always come to our minds…sometimes he uses the physical or emotional, but it’s always aimed at getting us to make a choice, a decision, against trusting God and depending on Him. The helmet of salvation refers to the mind that has received the salvation of God and is now controlled by Him. When God controls the mind, Satan cannot lead the believer astray…if God is not in control of the mind, the believer is helpless against Satan’s attacks. He is a master at twisting thoughts and ideas, even Scripture, to suit his purpose.

The phrase "truth as it is in Jesus" is a misquote of the Bible and implies that there is truth apart from Him. The Scripture actually says there is no truth except in Jesus…if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught in Him, just as truth is in Jesus… (Ephesians 4:21 NASB95)

See how easily Satan can twist even the Bible?

The last spiritual weapon Paul lists is the sword of the Spirit.

What is the sword of the Spirit? Paul says it is the word of God.

It is exactly what it says it is…any word God speaks. As Christians, we believe that the Bible is the Word of God…and it is!

I don’t think anyone doubts that God spoke before the Bible came into existence or that God will continue to speak when we get to heaven. I believe that God speaks to believers even now, but I believe that Satan does as well. As a safeguard, we need to check the voices we hear against what God has said in the Bible because not every voice we hear is from God (1John 4:1).

By contrast, the sword used in battle, inflicted wounds that brought pain and death; the sword of the Spirit inflicts wounds that bring pain and life.

Another of Satan’s deceptions is the idea that the Word of God is only effective if we as Christians use it. A physical sword needs the arm and hand of a soldier to give it life, but the sword of the Spirit has it’s own power source…it is living and active according to Hebrews 4:12: For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

The full armor of God is a picture of Jesus Christ! Sadly, many Christians have been struggling to "put on the full armor of God" by their own activity. Many of them have discovered what David discovered when he tried to wear Saul’s armor to go out against Goliath…it doesn’t fit!

If you want to be protected by the full armor of God, you will have to allow Jesus to be your life. The full armor of God only fits Jesus!

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