Put On The Whole Armor Of God

Sermon on Ephesians 6:10-20

Text: 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. 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. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 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. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
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 Lord’s people. 19 Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, 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.

There are certain games that boys like to play and certain games that girls like to play. This is not to say that there is no crossover between the two. However, there are certain things that boys like to play that girls may not. One of these is being a soldier. The little boy pretends to be a soldier. He may put on something that resembles an army helmet. He picks up a stick and it becomes a gun. Suddenly, he is ready to move out against the enemy. This morning in our text, the apostle Paul speaks of a uniform that is provided for us, but it is not for playing. We face a very real battle, so we need to be prepared. The morning, my fellow Christian soldiers, PUT ON THE WHOLE ARMOR OF GOD. 1. We Face A Very Real Enemy. 2. Protection Has Been Provided. 3. A Support Network Is In Place.

Before any battle is begun, each side needs to make sure that they know all about the enemy that they will face. In our modern-day, airplanes, satellites and drones bring back information about the opposing side. They tell of things like the number of opposing soldiers and the types of weapons that they have. All of these things are important as the one side gets ready to do battle with the other.

Paul also does the same thing for us. He tells us all about the forces that are opposing us. First of all, he introduces us to the leader of the opposition. He says, “Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.” The devil himself leads the enemy against us. He has been fighting against God’s people from the very beginning. Ever since Adam and Eve were first on the earth, Satan has been doing his level best to conquer all the people he can. He wants to take as many people as possible with him to share in the sufferings of hell forever. Satan leads the attack on us.

Satan is not alone. The forces that he brings with him are very formidable. Paul writes, “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.” We are up against quite a force. Satan leads an army of angels who are also dedicated to bringing as many people to hell as possible. They are not flesh and blood, Paul says. They are powerful beings. They are intent on conquering all that they see. They, too, have been at this since the Fall into sin.

Sometimes, people think of Satan and his forces as people in red suits with horns and a pitchfork. They try to downplay the power of Satan. However, he is a very formidable foe. He and his army have had thousands of years of practice leading people astray. Sometimes, we think that we are smarter than we really are. When we are tempted, we think that we are strong enough to do it just one time, and then never to do it again. We offer arguments why we should not do it, but for every argument offered, a counter-argument is advanced. In addition, the devil is very sneaky. He is always looking for ways to flank our defense. If he cannot undermine our doctrinal position, he will get us to relax our moral standards. If he cannot overthrow our faith all at once, he will try to wear it away little by little. If he cannot get us to fall into a gross sin, he will try to lead us to be proud of the fact that we are so much better than everyone else. Satan looks for gaps in our defense and tries to exploit them. Satan and his forces are always on the attack.

Sooner or later, we will all face the “day of evil,” as Paul calls it. Many people in the Bible did. Job did. On one day, he lost all of his possessions and all of his children. Later, his health was ruined. Satan attacked with the hope that Job would fall. The Apostle Peter also faced his day of evil in the courtyard of the high priest on Maundy Thursday. There Satan put him to the test, as one person after another asked in Peter was connected with Jesus. Peter fell, calling upon heaven as his witness, that he did not know or had even heard of Jesus. We, too, will face our days of evil. However, when that day of evil does come, Paul says, “put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground.” Put on the armor of God, so that you will not fall to Satan’s attacks.

Let us look at the armor that God has given us. First of all, we need to remember that Paul, as he was writing this letter, was in prison in Rome. It is even possible that he was chained to a Roman soldier as he wrote. So, Paul writes to the Ephesians using language describing the armor of a Roman soldier.

Paul says, first of all, “Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist.” Each Roman soldier wore at least one of three wide leather belts. One was a breech-like apron, worn to protect the lower abdomen. That belt was the first one that was put on, for all of the rest of the armor was attached to it. The Roman soldier might also have a sword belt and a belt designating rank. Our belt is called “the belt of truth.” Only when we have the truth securely wrapped around us can we be truly secure. The devil is called “the father of lies.” He will use any means to get us. When we have the belt of truth securely wrapped around us, however, we can withstand his attacks.

The next piece of armor Paul calls attention to is “the breastplate of righteousness.” The Roman soldier wore a piece of metal that covered him from the shoulders to the waist. This piece protected his heart, lungs, and abdomen from possible injury. These vital organs needed protection. Satan, also, would attack us, trying to get at our vital organs. He comes to us and reminds us that we have not lived the perfect life that God demands. We have failed to be perfect. We deserve eternal punishment. However, the breastplate of righteousness wards off this attack. This righteousness is not ours, but that of Jesus Christ. He lived a perfect life. He suffered an innocent death in order that all of our sins would be paid for. Now the devil can no longer accuse us of sin or make us doubt our salvation. Jesus’ breastplate of righteousness has been given to us.

Next, Paul says, “with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.” The Roman soldiers wore heavy leather shoes, thickly studded with hob nails. They gave him a firm footing as he fought. So also, we are to put on the shoes of the gospel of peace. We can be sure that the gospel message of Jesus is a firm footing. We do not have to worry if what we read is true, that we are forgiven. God says so, and because God does not lie, it is true. No matter what Satan may throw at us, we have a firm footing in the gospel of peace.

The next piece of armor Paul talks about is, “take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.” The Roman soldier’s shield was 4 feet tall by 2.5 feet wide. It was curved in the shape of a half-circle. It had an iron frame, with several layers of leather stretched across it. Often, there would be a metal boss in the center. Before the battle, it was customary for the soldier to soak his shield in water, so that the flaming arrows shot at him would be extinguished. The devil shoots flaming arrows at us. Think about how, in the movies, the flaming arrow hits its target and the flames spread. This is also the intent with the flaming arrows of Satan. He may shoot an arrow of doubt, hoping that one little doubt may get us to doubt God’s goodness altogether. Perhaps one little sin can lead to others. One false belief may get us to fall completely away from God. However, with the shield of faith, these can all be put out. When doubt comes our way, we put it out by trusting in Jesus. When sin comes, we say “No,” because we want to follow God to thank him for all that he has done for us. The shield of faith protects us from Satan’s arrows.

Next, Paul tells us to “Take the helmet of salvation.” The Roman soldier had a bronze helmet with cheek pieces. It was very strong. Nothing short of a hammer or an axe could penetrate it. We are also protected. Once we have been brought to faith, no matter what Satan may throw at us, we cannot lose our salvation. God promises that he will keep us safe in his hands. Our helmet of salvation, protects us from Satan’s attacks against our eternal dwelling. Because we belong to Christ, salvation is ours.

The final piece of armor is, “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” The Roman sword was a short, straight sword made of iron. It was about two feet long and three inches wide. The Christian sword is the Word of God. By using the Word of God, the Christian can defend himself against every attack of the devil. If the devil raises doubts about salvation, you can point out that God’s Word tells us that, whoever believes in Jesus is saved. If the devil raises doubts about God’s love for you, as you face difficulties in your life, you can point to passages like Romans 8:28, “we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him.” By using the Word of God, we defend ourselves from Satan’s attacks.

You know, also, that a sword is not only a defensive weapon. It is also an offensive weapon. With the sword, Roman armies conquered the world. So also we can be victorious over the devil and his armies. We use the Word of God to conquer the world as more and more people are brought to faith in Jesus as their Savior. Just like a real sword, the more we practice with the Word of God, the better we will be able to use it.

God has not just given us weapons and armor at our disposal. He has also set up a support network for us to fall back on. He says in verse 18, “pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.” We know that we can come to God for help, when we face those days of evil. He promises to hear us and help us. Paul also reminds us of another branch of support. “With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.” We pray for those around us, who may be facing their own particular day of evil. We show our support by presenting requests for others to our God in prayer. Knowing that there are others who care enough about you to pray for you, greatly supports you.

Paul also asked that the Ephesians pray for him. He was about to stand in front of Caesar. He prayed that he would be given a voice that spoke boldly. Paul asked for their support in prayer. We also pray for those who speak the Word of God. We pray that they would continue to speak God’s Word truthfully and faithfully. There will be temptations to hedge on certain things do that they will not offend. However, the law must do its cutting, before the gospel can do its healing. May God give to all who speak his Word a renewed zeal and strength to go on as they are also involved in this great fight.

Some wars are over quickly. Some go on for years and years. You and I are in a battle every single day of our lives. The devil will try new tactics to get us to fall. However, we thank the Lord that he has given us the means to defend ourselves. He has also given us people who pray for us. Most importantly, he has guaranteed our victory. Jesus Christ has conquered the devil for us. He continues to fight for us. My dear fellow Christian soldiers, the battle is hard and long. Yet, victory is in sight. May each of us fight on, equipped by God and supported by our fellow soldiers. As the hymn writer wrote, “Stand up, stand up for Jesus! The strife will not be long; This day the noise of battle, The next, the victor’s song. To him that overcometh A crown of life shall be; He with the King of glory Shall reign eternally.” Amen.