Armor of God
Where is your armor?
“Put on the whole armor of God - that you may be able to stand...” Paul in Ephesians 6:11
I have found in recent struggles with depression a never-ending circle of fighting the same battles. Where is the victory and relief God promises? In a book titled Ephesians, in the Bible, the Apostle Paul writes in chapter 6 of our need for armor. Spiritual armor. In reading through these verses recently it seemed odd to me that I should „wear‟ all this armor, only to hide in a foxhole waiting for the enemy to lob another grenade my way.
The armor described in the Bible is spiritual analogies, the first being to don the „belt‟ of truth, second – the „breastplate of righteousness‟, etc. So, I Googled these passages trying to learn what Paul was teaching. I read commentaries from saints who lived in the 1700s (Henry) and 1800s (Darby). John Darby wrote this armor doesn‟t have as much to do with our relationship with God as much as it does with standing firm in our battle with Satan. Henry writes the armor will preserve us in the battle. Really?
In reading about Roman armor, and their battle tactics, it soon became apparent why I failed in the way I applied God‟s armor. I put on the armor and hid out. However, when you think of it, the Roman army did not conquer the world by hiding in foxholes. They armored up to fight and took that fight to the enemy.
I recall a pastor, Buddy Hoffman, teaching about the „gates of Hell shall not overcome (the church)‟ Matthew 16:18 KJV. Now this verse is normally assumed to mean that Hell will not overcome us - the body of believers. However, Hoffman pointed out that since gates are stationary, the verse means that we are to go against Hell; its gates will not prevail against us. I take this to mean we are intended by God‟s design to take the fight to our adversary, our enemy who seeks to discourage and destroy us. But, how do we fight?
To survive on the spiritual battlefield, we must have the protection of God, beginning with His truth. To don the „belt‟ of truth we take His words and live by what is taught in the Bible. This means reading the Bible, claiming the promises given to us. What kind of promise helps to stand against the hell coming after us? Look at Hebrews 13:5: „...for he has said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you." Joshua 1:5 & 9 are verses of the kind I need to know if I‟m ever to launch a counterattack life against Satan.
These promises in which God will never leave or forsake us, gives strength when we know God will not leave us. We are never alone and never will be.
In His word, God has given us many promises, which are grounded in truth. This fact is meant as the foundational armor on which all the other armor hangs. Gird yourselves with (wear) what is true. Stand firm in the face of an enemy who lies to us, telling us through circumstances and feelings the lie of being defeated. God‟s truth says we are already more than conquerors and... we‟re just getting started!
Romans 8:37 – This chapter is full of promise…