Ephesians 6:10-17 says, “Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:”
God took the time to not only tell us we are in battle against a real enemy, He also told us how to be prepared for battle. We have been studying through this in our Sunday school class at church and it has been such a good study. Our Sunday school teacher is former military and he was able to make so many similarities between physical and spiritual scenarios. It really helped this passage to be more real to us.
There’s tons in this passage of very simple yet important principles. Today I just want to focus on the sword of the Spirit. The Lord gave me some thoughts as this was taught.
We have been commanded to put on this armour. It is not a suggestion. It is absolutely necessary. At salvation you became enlisted in spiritual warfare and you were issued armour. It’s up to you to use it.
The sword of the Spirit I believe is the Word of God. It is a weapon. The Bible tells us it is a two-edged sword. As with any weapon in any scenario, you must train with it. Become familiar and comfortable with it. If you don’t, you’ll never use it. This would be like someone wanting to carry a firearm for personal protection. They take a class to be able to conceal carry, buy a weapon, and never fire it, clean it, or learn how it works. They have the weapon, but they aren’t going to use it. It isn’t any good to them like this. If you don’t pick up your Bible and read it Monday through Saturday, you aren’t familiar with your spiritual weapon. You’ll never use it because you don’t know how. Hearing someone read it to you once or twice on Sunday is not enough.
When you’re unfamiliar with your weapon you don’t know the promises contained inside, you can’t find encouragement in it, advice, direction, or comfort. Yes it is a weapon, but there is also safety and comfort found in protection. That is what God’s Word offers us.
Another option is that you try to use it, but you aren’t effective with it. If that same person with a concealed carry firearm never trained or practiced with that weapon, pulls it out in an emergency, they may miss their target and others get hurt. They may have a weapon malfunction and not know how to clear it. They may pull the trigger and nothing happens because the weapon wasn’t loaded like they thought. When we try to use the Word of God without proper training, we aren’t effective. The enemy isn’t stopped, others can be hurt by our efforts, or we use it in a way it wasn’t intended by God to be used.
When we misuse God’s Word, others are hurt. Some of you have experienced that by a church, friend, or family member. It really hurts. It is hard to heal from that. Don’t be that person who hurts others with Scripture.
Don’t be a liability.
Know your weapon. Study it. Memorize it. Trust it. Ask for help to understand it better. Be in church to hear the sermons taught from it. Read it daily. Ask God for help as you read.
When you know it, you can help others to know it, too. You can use it effectively to comfort, encourage, and correct when needed. Your husband, children, and others need you to know how to use your Bible correctly. Your children must be taught to know their Bible.
Our enemy is real and we must be ready. Satan knows the Bible, too. And he will do all he can to get you mixed up, confused, overwhelmed, and on the side lines.
Be strong in the Lord and the power of His might and put on the armour He has given you.
With Hope in His Service,
Heather
Proverbs_31Life 