TEXT: EPHESIANS 6:10-18
Life is littered with defeated Christians who never discovered how to stand strong in this evil broken world. Many Christians, do not realize they are living on a battlefield and not a playground. They have depended on their own moral strength, their human wisdom, their high ideals and a personal commitment to justice. They faced evil in a naked encounter, without being clothed in the armor of God.
Brethren, we as soldiers in the Army of Jesus Christ are faced with a 3-fold assault going on against us – the world, the flesh and the devil. Our own old nature, our flesh want our old life back, the world trying to drag us back and the devil making sure it all goes according to its plan. Our old nature fights against the Spirit of God and against the things of God in our life!
Some of you did not want to be in church today, didn’t feel like reading your Bible/Open Heavens and didn’t feel like praying. The devil wants to DISTRACT, DISRUPT and ultimately DESTROY you. He wants you as a Christian to be weak, feeble and ineffective. Beloved children of God, we should not be overwhelmed with the situation as we know that God fights with us as we fight in His power and with His armor. Paul says “From now on, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his power. Put on the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.”
Paul exhorts us, encourages us and commands us as believers to be strong in the Lord and put on the full armor of the Lord. We must not be strong in our opinions, our experiences, our bank accounts, our careers/professions, our knowledge or our college degrees. Proverbs 3:5 reads “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding”. Ephesians 6: 13 -18 instructs us to “put on the full armor of God, stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace, take up the shield of faith, 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”.
PRAISE THE LORD!
