Ephesians 6:10-13
Eph 6:10-13 “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.”
Sometimes Christians forget that we are at war with Satan, the one who has been here since the beginning of man, and who is wise when it comes to leading mankind astray. He is not eternal as is God, but he has been around for centuries. deceiving man in every way he can. He has the practice, and we often minimize the damage that he does in the Lord’s church, and in the world.
Paul makes the call in Ephesians 6 concerning the fact that all Christians are at war with Satan. What can we do?
The first thing Paul mentions is that we must . . . “be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might.” Many Christians battle Satan, but not with the power or the might of the Lord. We try to defeat Satan ourselves. Hence, he still overcomes the world, and many Christians today.
We forget that we are at spiritual war with Satan.
We forget that we made commitments to the Father, Son and Spirit, and we need to realize that they will be there to help us as we face the temptations in our lives.
God gives us the strength to fight the temptations that we face. But we have to realize. . .
1. We are at war, and that war will continue until we die or the Lord returns.
2. We have the armor of God that can and will help us in the battles of life. Why do we put these things on? Because of the “wiles of the devil.” He has a lot of practice in discouraging Christians, and even teaching doctrines that causes Christians to doubt God’s word.
3. We must stand against that which stands against God.
4. Our war is not with flesh and blood, but with the powers, principalities, the rulers of the darkness of this age, against the spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.” Satan’s minions have done their best in denying that God exists, therefore we should not follow God nor His word. They cast doubt constantly on the truths of Scripture. The governing authorities of the world deny that God exists and does not allow any discussion of the matter in secular school. Truly the world is dark, and while it seems it is growing darker, remember that Jesus is the light.
5. Paul again emphasizes that Christians need to STAND. Ephesians 6:13-14. Are you and I standing for the truth? Has Satan drawn away many hearts by denying Scripture (he did this in the Garden of Eden – Genesis 3); or by constantly pointing out our failing and shortcomings? Yes. But we cannot give in or give up.
6. Our armor is defensive and offensive. The waist is dressed in truth. Brothers and sisters, we need to know the truth. Hence, spend the time you can in God’s word.
7. Righteousness is vital to win. We are to live as our commander has exemplified in his life. We need to set the example to a world that living righteously can be done.
8. Our feet are dressed with the gospel of peace. Peace! What a word – peace with God, and our fellow man, if we all follow the Lord and His way. Right living by all men – living by Scripture, can bring about peace – hence, heaven will be a place of peace, joy and comfort. We need to walk in the way of peace now!
9. We must have faith – not in ourselves, but in God and in His word. Men sin. Men make mistakes; and men compromise the truth. God’s word is the only source of information we have to know who God is, and what he expects of us. Man’s opinions do not count – the word of God does. Knowing that faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God, (Romans 10:17), we need to grow in our faith by spending more time in study and prayer. The world has and will attack our faith. Our children need to know the truth.
10. Finally, we find that we are to have the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit. The helmet protects the head – brothers and sisters we need to be careful what we allow into our minds and hearts. Always seek the truth! To be able to find against the lies of Satan the world, we need to know the word of God – most importantly, we need to know how to use the word of God. We cannot use our weapon if we do not know how the weapon can protect us. We must use our weapon as we stand for the truth. We sometimes forget that the Bible is the word of God, also the sword of the Spirit.
Above all we need to be a people of prayer. Remember God hears the prayers of those who love and obey him. The battles going on in the world today are against “spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.” Christians have to get involved.
Beloved, we are at war – the war started in the Garden, and will not end until the Lord comes again. Fight for your family and the salvation God offers them. Love those who sin against you, realizing that they, too, sin and struggle with the battles with Satan in their hearts.
In war we can’t stop until we gain the victory. Jesus paid the price so we could win – we just need to keep fighting for our families, for the church, and for the world.
