You ask why have you chosen this to write about today. Well, my friends it is because each of us will experience the attacks of the enemy. And as the days draw closer to our Lord's return the attacks will increase. There are times when God is getting ready to use you for His glory and an attack will come, the enemy will attack a weakness, or a spot of weakness. He will attack your thoughts, he will attempt to take your income, even your life. These are areas where I am attacked yours may be different but it does come and will come. I want you to be ready so you will be able to stand against any onslaught of the enemy. Always remember the word says "No weapon formed against you shall prosper". Also in Ephesians 6 Paul speaks of the armor of God and what it consist of and what its purpose is. Remember that Paul was looking at a Roman soldier when he wrote this, the armor he describes is the armor of the mighty Romans who were victorious in battle. This armor was to protect areas on their bodies that would be a deadly wound if the enemy penetrated. The same with God's armor it is to protect the areas of our bodies that would be a deadly wound, for us God's people. I will not quote each verse but speak of each piece of armor, This is found in Ephesians 6:14-18
The first piece is the belt that is girded about our waist, it is called the belt of truth. Now on a soldier this belt had medal strips hanging down to protect their private area and it also held their dagger, their sword and their small hand to hand combat shield. When we the children of God place the belt of the truth of God's word around our waist, it holds everything else in its place. God's word is true that is the first thing we have to agree and stand on,
The second piece is breastplate of righteousness, for a soldier it guarded his heart from a fatal blow, for us we have put on the righteousness of Jesus Christ, His righteousness is imparted into our hearts and by His righteousness we stand.
The third piece is have the feet shod with the gospel of peace. You need to understand a soldier did not wear flip flop shoes to battle, their shoes had spikes of the bottom, so that when in a battle and if it were muddy they could get their feet dug into the ground and during the battle they would not be thrown down because they were standing securely. This for Christians is simple we are to be grounded in the gospel of Jesus Christ, He is the Prince of Peace and He has secured peace for us with the Father and we have His peace in us. Knowing this the enemy cannot destroy our peace nor steal our peace for we are grounded in the Him and we stand secure.
The fourth piece is the shield of faith. As a soldier they had two shields one was a hand held small shield, the other was approximately 4 to 6 ft tall and was covered in leather. This leather they had to keep well oiled so it would not become dry and cracked (Hmm does it remind you of something) right before a battle they would dip it in water so that it saturated with water and when the enemies fiery darts came the watered leather would but out the fire. (Hmm does it remind you of something). These shields could also interlock and when the enemy advanced the shield bearers would form a circle about the warriors and raise the shields up like a tortoise shell and protect the warriors from the arrows. So as a Christian this shield of faith that we carry needs to stay well oiled, refreshed in the water, and sometimes we need to lock our faith with other believers in the battle. There is a difference in a dart and a fiery dart. Satan will from time to time send a dart into your thinking, but once you begin to dwell on it and not dismiss it, it will turn into a fiery dart and consume your thinking.
The fifth piece is the helmet of salvation, A soldier wore this to protect his head (no brain damage). When we are saved we are instructed by the word, to renew our thinking. This helmet of salvation will enable us to think differently and align our thinking up with the word. Now when the enemy sends a thought we will recognize that does not line up with the word and cast the thought out.
The sixth piece is the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Just as a soldier used his sword to battle the enemy we are to use God's word to fight the enemy for us. Jesus when tempted in the wilderness by Satan, used the word of God when speaking to him, and he had to leave. Same with us when we speak the word out loud even just to ourselves, the enemy cannot fight against us and as we speak the word out loud our faith will grow.
Then Paul tells us to pray always, praying in supplication in the Spirit, he tells us to be watchful to the end with all perseverance and supplication. In other words he is telling us not to surrender to the enemy, but in all things be prayer, continue don't give up, to be watchful of the attacks. In the scripture it says be watchful to the end, the end of what? Well to either the end of live here on this earth when we depart this world, and the other meaning is for those who are still alive when Jesus returns be watching, be praying, stand fast, He is Coming; Praise the Lord, we have a King and He will return for His bride.
So my friends on this journey let us maintain the faith, be courageous, stand fast, pray more, study the word, gather with fellow Christians, and love more and give of yourselves, this is the example Jesus set before us.
Be blessed you are victorious in Jesus !!
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