The Full Armor of God
Recently, I heard someone teach a lesson on how we don’t need the armor of God if we continually praise / worship God through good times and bad. They used the example of David and how he didn’t use any armor to defeat Goliath. He drew from the time of preparation as a shepherd to defeat the giant…time that included praising/worshipping God along with taking care of sheep which includes defending them from would be assailants. Simply because David was confident in what God had equipped, or rather, created him to do, he knew that there was no way he would miss taking out the enemy…who had openly been defiant to the God of Israel.
In all of this I can completely see the truth in what was taught. But my question for God was; why then does Your word tell us to put on the full armor of God? The word of God is truth and our manual for life’s issues. Why wouldn’t we need the armor of God? The Lord answered my question in this manner. The armor of God isn’t just speaking out that we’re literally putting on the spiritual armor. It’s found in each piece of armor itself. (See Ephesians 6:10-18)
1. The belt of Truth…the Truth being the Word of God…reading it on a regular basis…learning/knowing who God is through His word. The belt is a foundational piece of armor that holds other pieces of the armor in place. The word of God is our foundation to knowing who God is and how to live our lives out in a Godly manner.
2. The breastplate of Righteousness…truly knowing that you are righteous because and only because of the work that Jesus did on the cross for all mankind. Jesus is righteous and He has made us righteous. When God looks at us, He sees us through the Righteousness of Jesus…making us Righteous. The breastplate guards our heart and all other vital organs.
3. The shoes of Peace…walking in peace and love, imitating Jesus, the Prince of Peace…learning about Jesus from the gospel of peace.
4. The helmet of Salvation…full knowledge and confidence in Salvation through Jesus Christ…the Savior of all mankind. That knowledge protects our mind from the lies the enemy uses to try to break us down and destroy us.
5. The shield of Faith…continual growing and deepening our Faith in God…knowing that He is for us, trusting and believing in Him without a doubt. The shield used to quench the fiery darts the enemy uses to try to take us out of commission.
6. The sword of the Spirit…speaking the Word of God out to situations in our lives or the lives of others…the Word of God, when spoken, does not come back void and it accomplishes what He wants it to accomplish. (See Isaiah 55:11) It is also sharper that a two edged sword. (See Hebrews 4:12)
7. Praying in the Spirit…praying without ceasing, continual communication with God (See 1 Thessalonians 5:17) …prayers led by the Holy Spirit…not out of our own understanding or interpretation of things and not restricted to praying in tongues only.
All seven things listed are a form of worship to God. Honoring Him in these things, basically putting Him first in our lives is a form of worship to the God of the Universe. And adding to that…
8. Praising God in word or song is putting our focus…our attention on God…worshipping Him…making and keeping Him the Center of our lives our everything.
When we live a balanced life, this spiritual armor is one way God covers us…protecting us from the enemy.
Be sober; be vigilant; because your adversary, the devil, roams about like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour. 1 Peter 5:8
The definition of vigilant is: 1. keenly watchful to detect trouble; wary. 2. ever awake and alert
It says for us to be keenly watchful or ever awake and alert because the devil is seeking whom he may devour. The way that is stated let’s me know that not everyone “is available” to be devoured. You see it’s very easy for us to get out of balance. Of course we’re not perfect and this is a journey we’re on…a journey where we learn and grow in God. He watches over us and when we do get out of balance, His mercy and grace covers us. But, it also shows me that we have a part to do in all of this. As Joyce Meyer says, “We have a part to do and God has a part to do. He will not do our part and we cannot do His part.” Being vigilant and staying “on task” is very important. The life of a follower of Jesus Christ is not a walk in the park…that is, as long as you are continually growing.
Now I’d like to touch on the fact that there are seven item listed in Ephesians for the armor of God. Seven is the number in the Bible for completeness and spiritual perfection.* It’s no surprise to me that there are seven items that comprise the full armor of God. Oh…but what about number eight…praising and worshipping God in word and/or song? I’m glad you asked! The number eight signifies new birth, new creation or new order.* Just as eight people were saved from the Great Flood and repopulated the earth, this was a new birth of the world population, a new order of things.* Or just as there are eight notes in a musical scale…the eighth note is also the first note in the next octave…also a new beginning.*
So, even though praising and worshipping God is not listed with the full armor of God, it is a type of armor that we use in spiritual warfare…number eight…a new order of things, a new creation or a new beginning. It doesn’t make the other items obsolete. It sums up the seven pieces of armor listed.
Now this brings me back to the beginning of this lesson...a new beginning. (Ha! ;D I couldn’t resist that!) Even though I didn’t doubt what I learned from the teaching that day…I wanted to understand it more thoroughly. I praise God for who He is! His word says that if we lack wisdom, all we have to do is ask for it and He will give it without reproach. (See James 1:5) This is a wonderful example of just how faithful God is to answer our prayers…and also how His word, when spoken, does not come back void. How awesome and amazing He is!!
Selah
Taken from Dr. Ed Vallowe’s “Biblical Mathematics”
Also, see my Day2DayDevo http://actnowday2daydevo.blogspot.com/
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