Make Use of This Equipment

Today’s passage is Ephesians 6:10-24.  Let’s go!

Ephesians 6:10-12 (NIV) 
¹⁰ Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 
¹¹ Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 
¹² For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 

On verses 10-12:  Through these verses Paul reveals an important truth:  Whenever you find yourself fighting with other people, remember that beneath the surface our ultimate struggle is a spiritual one — not so much against flesh and blood, but against Satan, whose goal is to steal, kill and destroy your life (John 10:10).  Spiritual warfare is real.  But as we can see in the verses that follow, God has given you everything you need to stand up against every attack of the enemy.

Ephesians 6:13 (NIV) 
¹³ Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 

On verse 13:  In verses 13-18, Paul describes what he calls the “armor of God”.  He says that if you put this armor on, you will be able to stand your ground against the enemy.  What exactly is the “armor of God”?  Each part of this “armor” is an aspect of our relationship with Christ that we must hang onto, especially during spiritual warfare.

Ephesians 6:14 (NIV) 
¹⁴ Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist…

On verse 14a:  The first piece of armor Paul refers to is “the belt of truth”.  God’s truth is like a belt that holds your life together.  So when Satan tries to deceive you with lies, hang on to the truth of God’s promises.

Ephesians 6:14 (NIV) 
¹⁴ …with the breastplate of righteousness in place

On verse 14b:  The next piece of armor is “the breastplate of righteousness”.  Satan loves to attack your heart.  He loves to draw your heart away with all sorts of temptation.  You need a breastplate to protect your heart against Satan’s heart attacks.   That breastplate is God’s righteousness.  It’s remembering that Jesus Christ has accepted and cleansed you of all your sin.  It’s also believing that you will be happier and better off in the end if you follow Jesus instead of chasing sin.

Ephesians 6:15 (NIV) 
¹⁵ and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 

On verse 15:  When we are not at peace, we’re not ready to take on the challenges in front of us.  In fact, every additional challenge only becomes another reason to be frustrated when you’re lacking peace.  God’s peace is like a pair of shoes that you wear so that you are ready to go out and step foot into whatever ugly conditions are out there.  How do you experience the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace? By stepping foot into God’s presence, surrendering your burdens to Him and being still, knowing that God is with you (Philippians 4:6-7).

Ephesians 6:16 (NIV) 
¹⁶ In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 

On verse 16:  Faith, according to Paul, is like a shield that can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.  Verse 16 says “In addition to all this” because you can’t use any of the other parts of the armor of God without faith.

Ephesians 6:17 (NIV) 
¹⁷ Take the helmet of salvation… 

On verse 17a:  In 1 Thessalonians 5:8, Paul describes the helmet of salvation as the hope that Jesus is coming again to take us home.  When Satan tries to attack your mind with hopeless thoughts, hang onto the hope that Jesus will triumph in the end and take us home to be with Him.  That’s putting on your helmet of salvation.

Ephesians 6:17 (NIV) 
¹⁷ …and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 

On verse 17b: The Greek word Paul uses for “sword” (Machaira) does not mean a long Samurai sword but a short dagger used in hand to hand combat.  The Greek word Paul uses for “word of God” is rhema, which is God’s word spoken to your heart.  That rhema word is like a sword, a dagger, which you can use to fight the enemy in a specific situation.

For example, I will never forget the rhema word God spoke to my heart when I was preparing to plant a church.  He said, “You don’t ever have to worry about what to preach every Sunday”.  That promise has helped me tremendously whenever I prepare a message to share with people at Thrive.  On the day that He spoke that rhema word into my life, it’s like He gave me a sword — “the sword of the Spirit” — by which I can fight any worry, self-doubt and stress.  The Holy Spirit wants to arm you with rhema words too.

Ephesians 6:18 (NIV) 
¹⁸ And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints. 

On verse 18:  The final weapon Paul mentions is praying in the Spirit.  What does it mean to “pray in the Spirit”?  It means to pray with an awareness of and a dependence on the Holy Spirit’s power.  This is not just limited to praying in tongues, although I find the ability to pray in tongues to be an extremely helpful tool in spiritual warfare and a gift worth asking God for.  Even if you don’t pray in tongues, you can still pray with an awareness of and a dependence on the Holy Spirit’s power.  Christian, remember that the Holy Spirit lives in you and is here to help you pray (See Romans 8:26).  So don’t just rely on your own power or wisdom when you pray, but pray with an attitude of dependence on the Holy Spirit.

“on all occasions“: I encourage you to pray wherever you go.  Keep the conversation with God going in your heart.  It’s hard to do that when you’re constantly depending on your mind and strength to help you form words to pray.  That’s why praying in the Spirit is so beneficial.

“with all kinds of prayers and requests“:  Don’t just pray “Help me God” prayers.  Take time to communicate with God through various types of prayers, including praise, worship, confession of sins, giving thanks, surrendering burdens and listening to Him.  Pray with your mind and pray also with your spirit.

“always keep on praying for all the saints”:  Remember that “the saints” are not an elite group of Christians, but all Christians everywhere. Don’t just pray for yourself, but get into the habit of regularly praying for others.

Ephesians 6:19-20 (NIV)
¹⁹  Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel,
²⁰  for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should. 

On verses 19-20:  The fact that Paul would request the Ephesian church to pray for him (v19) shows how dependent Paul was on prayer and how we too should pray for our church leaders.

How about you?  Are you a man of prayer, a woman of prayer?  Blessed is everyone who takes Ephesians 6:18 seriously and tries to live it out.

Ephesians 6:21-22 (NIV) 
²¹ Tychicus, the dear brother and faithful servant in the Lord, will tell you everything, so that you also may know how I am and what I am doing. 
²² I am sending him to you for this very purpose, that you may know how we are, and that he may encourage you. 

On verses 21-22:  From Paul’s sending of Tychicus to the Ephesian church, we can learn 3 lessons on how to maintain a good long distance relationship: (1) Go out of your way to keep in contact (v21-22); (2) Let people know how you are and what you are doing (v21); and (3) Be encouraging to the people you’re reaching out to (v22).