Ephesians 6:10-20
Related Sunday School Lesson, Family Bible Series, July 10

 

While many of our daily struggles are not spiritual in nature, Ephesians 6:12 gives us a quadruple warning of what and who we are up against. The Bible indicates that Christians are engaged in a real battle against real enemies and God gives us a strategy for victory in spiritual warfare.

 

Your Enemy, the Devil

God warns us against the "wiles" or "schemes" of the devil (v.11). This refers to the many different strategies and tactics he uses to attack believers. What is the purpose of these attacks? The devil is trying to ruin our testimony; to steal our joy; to confuse us with doubt; to shake our faith; and to cause us to become weak and ineffective for Jesus.

That is why the Bible instructs us to stand fast against the enemy and to be strong in the Lord. The battlefield is no place for passive observers; we will have to "wrestle" in order to be victorious (the Greek pale indicates hand-to-hand combat).

 

The Full Armor of God

God does not send us into battle unprepared; He gives us protection. The Ephesian believers would have been familiar with the battle gear of Roman soldiers, so Paul used it as an image for the Christian's spiritual protection. As Roman armor was state of the art protection from enemy attacks, the Christian's armor is all the protection we need to keep our hearts and minds from being injured. We must put it on piece by piece - deliberately, thoughtfully and intelligently.

First, Paul lists the belt of truth. The Roman soldier wore a thick leather belt to hold his tunic in place and to attach his sword and other weapons. It was probably the first thing he put on. If it were not in place, his armor would not be secure. The belt of truth pictures a commitment to the truth of the Word of God. We put on the belt of truth when we hear, read, study, memorize, or meditate on God's Word.

Knowing the truth is so important because the devil is a liar (John 8:44). He twists the truth, conceals the truth and tells half-truths in order to keep us from trusting God. The devil is a deceiver and a destroyer; he deceives in order to destroy. We must be committed to the truth. It is the only way to victory in spiritual battle.

The Roman soldier's breastplate was a metal cast of a man's torso. It protected his upper body, including heart and lungs, from the arrows and spears of the enemy. Our breastplate of righteousness pictures a lifestyle of trusting obedience to God. We put it on when we are obedient to all that we understand that Christ is asking of us.

A soldier needs good footwear for the battlefield. A soldier who can't keep his footing while he is fighting is vulnerable to the enemy's attacks. In The Jewish War, Josephus described the Roman soldier's footwear as "shoes thickly studded with sharp nails." The shoes of the gospel of peace picture the peace that comes when we trust Jesus for salvation. It is this peace that will "guard our hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." We dare not go into the battle without it, for confusion, fear and turmoil will make us weak. Peace protects our minds from confusion and our hearts from fear of the enemy.

Sometimes a Roman soldier carried a small, round shield, but the word in verse 16 indicates the shield of the heavy infantry. These shields could be four feet high and over two feet wide and were made to interlock so that a row of soldiers could lock shields and form a wall of iron.

The shield of faith pictures our faith in the character and promises of God. The purpose of our shield is to extinguish the devil's "fiery darts," anything he throws at us to cause us to doubt or disobey the truth. Remember, the devil wants to deceive us. Our faith in God's word and His character catches those fiery darts mid-air and extinguishes them with the truth.

The Roman soldier's helmet was designed, or course, to protect his head. A blow to the arm or leg would be painful, but a blow to the head could be fatal. Our helmet of salvation pictures the thought processes of the Christian, "the mind of Christ" (1 Cor. 2:16) that protects us from believing the devil's lies or becoming distracted from our focus.

The Roman soldier's personal weapon was a short, double-edged sword. It was a cut-and-thrust weapon used in hand-to-hand combat. Paul says that Christian soldiers have a sword, "the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God." We can use this sword defensively when we apply its truth to doubt, temptation and discouragement. This is how Jesus nullified the devil's lies in the wilderness (Matt. 4:1-11).

We can also use our sword offensively. When the Word of God is taught, it pulls down strongholds of spiritual blindness, ignorance and error. When it is shared in counseling, it pulls down strongholds of bitterness and negative thinking. When it is shared in witnessing, it brings conviction, salvation and life.

 

Praying in the Spirit

The four "alls" of verse 18 tell us how to keep in contact with our Commander-in-Chief. We must pray at "all times" for God's guidance and protection. We must pray with "all prayer and supplication." "Prayer" refers to general praying, our ongoing fellowship with God, while "supplication" refers to specific praying. We must pray with "all perseverance," careful not to let down our guard or fall asleep at out post. We must pray for "all the saints," our fellow soldiers involved in the battle.