Ephesians 6:10-13 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. 11 Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12 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. 13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

I was saved – wonderfully saved by faith in Christ is a little church called the Church of God when I was 17 years old. I am now approaching 61 years old – though I feel like I’m 80! Over the last 44 years of following my Master and Savior Jesus Christ – 25 of those years being blessed to be in the ministry – I have heard numerous sermons about the “Armor of God”. I have been in classrooms and Bible schools where teachers talked about putting on this armor so we could “go out and fight the devil”. Some of our songs even speak of us – like the Crusaders – going out to do battle.

Onward Christian soldiers!
Marching as to war,
With the cross of Jesus
Going on before.
Christ, the royal Master,
Leads against the foe;
Forward into battle,
See, His banners go!
Onward, Christian soldiers!
Marching as to war,
With the cross of Jesus,
Going on before.

Interestingly though, this passage in Ephesians does not speak of the Armor of God as an offensive weapon but a defensive weapon – which makes absolute sense!

Our Offensive Weapon Against The Devil Is
A Sure Salvation And A Daily Conversation

When you read the context carefully you see this truth. We are told to put on the WHOLE armor of God not so we can attack the devil, but so that we can STAND AGAINST the WILES of the DEVIL.

The Bible gives us a good illustration of this in the life of David. On the day that David fought Goliath the King of Israel – Saul – decided to help David out. The Bible says:

1 Samuel 17:38-39 … And Saul armed David with his armor, and he put an helmet of brass upon his head; also he armed him with a coat of mail. 39 And David girded his sword upon his armor …

Now the King’s armor is the very finest of armor. Designed of fine chain mail and the best bronze and steel, it was not only very secure but it was very beautiful. David put on the armor – but David was a lot smaller than Saul. The Bible tells us that Saul was a head taller than anyone else in Israel (see 1 Samuel 9:2) – probably over 6 feet tall. How big was David? The Bible doesn’t say (see 1 Samuel 16:12), so David was probably of average height. Armor was designed to fit the wearer. When David tried on the armor he refused it, saying:

1 Samuel 17:39 … I cannot go with these; for I have not proved them.

David had not proved or tested Saul’s armor – but he had proved or tested the armor of God. “The Lord that delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, He will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine!” (1 Samuel 17:37).

This is a great truth we need to understand. We battle a spiritual evil – the devil. Our battle is not with one another nor even with the lost of this world. It is with Satan – the enemy. You CANNOT battle a spiritual enemy with physical armor.

You need the Armor of God!

Our enemy is the DEVIL. The greatest thing the devil has done in the world today is to teach people that he does not exist, or else he is some harmless little red man with a pointy tail sitting on our shoulder. Some even believe that the devil is just an impersonal force – or a human characteristic. This is just not so.

The word for DEVIL is the Greek διάβολος diábolos, {pronounced dee-ab’-ol-os} which means “the slanderer or the accuser”. It is interesting that the completion of our salvation and the fulfillment of the Kingdom of God does not occur until the devil – who is a real person – is vanquished from Heaven:

Revelation 12:9-11 And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. 10 And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night. 11 And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.

This passage in Revelation tells us much about the devil, that old dragon called satan. The devil constantly accuses us before the Throne of God. The devil has access to Heaven at this time. Just as he did in the life of Job the devil slithers into the throne room of God to accuse those who are the Children of God. Those who belong to God overcame the devil by

the BLOOD OF THE LAMB, and by
the WORD OF THEIR TESTIMONY

This was what the shepherd David trusted in. Not physical armor, nor even in his sling and rock. He trusted (1) in God, and in (2) what God had done for him in his life. These are our OFFENSIVE weapons.

These two things are our offensive weapons against the devil. That which overcomes the devil is the Blood of the Lamb – our trust in God that Christ alone made payment for our sins. The other weapon we have against the devil is our KNOW SO salvation, our certainty that the Blood of Christ is applied to our lives. When you are certain of your salvation then You do not LOVE YOUR LIFE unto the death.

David was not worrying about death.
The God Who saved him from the lion and the bear would save him from Goliath!

The Christian with the know so salvation – a certain knowledge that Christ has saved him and is with him forever – that Christian does not fear death. For the Christian who is the Christian indeed death is a promotion. Why? Because Jesus has not only PROMISED this:

John 11:26 whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die.
Believest thou this?

Well DO YOU? Do YOU believe His promise for yourself? Then this calm assurance that Christ’s Blood has saved you and guaranteed you life eternal is the greatest weapon you have against that devil. If you have received Christ as Lord and Savior then PRAYER is as natural to you as is breathing. Younger Christians – those very young in the faith – need to learn that their assurance of salvation and constant companionship of God in Christ is that which drives the devil away from us. This is the weapon that the devil cannot defeat.

Too many who profess themselves to be “Christian” have placed their faith not in the Lord Jesus Christ, but in the stuff that God has allowed them to have. The Book of Job was written to teach us that the greatest gift that God gives us is not our stuff nor our families nor even our lives. The greatest gift that God gives us is HIS PRESENCE. You only secure HIS PRESENCE by giving yourselves to Christ.

The Armor Of God Is Necessarily DEFENSIVE

Ephesians 6:13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

The Bible tells us to “take unto you the whole armour”. God offers salvation in Christ as a gift of God – no purchase necessary. As a Child of God the Lord also offers you the defensive armor of God. The Lord says to take unto you. It is offered to you, and must be received. As the defensive armor is presented, the Apostle speaks of the most sensitive areas first. He starts out with:

Ephesians 6:14 … Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth

Why did the Lord start out with the loins or the crotch area. It is no secret that a man can quickly be brought to his knees – no matter how powerful he is – by a quick blow to the groin area. One of the wiles of the devil is to take a God given, natural sexual appetite, and draw us to worship that feeling and sensation. It is no surprise that the devil’s grip on America has grown every year along with the almost rampant promiscuity as well as immodesty. The average American woman dresses to entice and to show off parts of her body. The Bible tells us in:

1 Timothy 2:8-10 I will therefore that men pray every where, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting. 9 In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety; not with broided hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly array; 10 But (which becometh women professing godliness) with good works.

God calls us to pray every where. But our prayers are to be God honoring, prayers of faith. God calls on women to not only pray, but also to adorn themselves in modest apparel. The devil can take the immodest dress of anyone and turn it into an opportunity to entrap our minds and hurt our walk with God. Again, if you look at any of the Biblical lists of sin you will inevitably find that the first and foremost sins of the flesh involve the loins

Galatians 5: Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness…

Romans 13:13 Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying.

2 Peter 2:18 … For when they speak great swelling words of vanity, they allure through the lusts of the flesh, through much wantonness, those that were clean escaped from them who live in error.

God calls us to Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth. Not the truth of the world, but the truth of what God our Father has said. The Lord Jesus Christ came to save us FROM our sins, to bring us into the family of God, and to teach us that lust is not love, and self gratification is not the way of peace.

Ephesians 6:14 …. having on the BREAST PLATE of righteousness;

An enemy blow to the groin is dangerous and must be guarded against, but your chest area also needs protection. One of the wiles of the devil – the methods by which he attacks us – is to strike at our hearts. He does this by warping our sense of right and wrong. The Bible warns us:

1 Timothy 6:10-12 … the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. 11 But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness. 12 Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses.

The child of God by faith in Christ is to follow after righteousness, to set our hearts on being like the One Who saved us. The Scripture says:

Ephesians 5:1-2 … Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children, and walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us …

An unrighteous Christian is a traitor to Christ!

Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!

Our protection against the devil is that we love God with all our hearts, and imitate Him in Christ Jesus!

Ephesians 6:15 And your FEET SHOD with the preparation of the gospel of peace;

We stand on our feet. We cannot stand against the devil if we are not standing in Christ’s Gospel. If we are standing in our own human goodness we will fail. When we fail, then the devil, that slanderer, will accuse us and discourage us. If we are standing in our ability to keep the Law of God then when we fail – and we will fail – then the devil will take this failure and cause us to lose all hope. But is our feet are shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace. The word translated preparation is the Greek ἑτοιμασία hetoimasía, {pronounced het-oy-mas-ee’-ah} which is found only here in the New Testament. The devil will do his best to trip you up. You are best prepared for his attacks when you are standing strong in the Gospel of peace.

Ephesians 6:17 Above all, taking the shield of FAITH, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.

The Bible tells us that:

Hebrews 11:6 without FAITH it is impossible to please {God}: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

The shield of faith is what you keep in front of you as the enemy attacks. The stronger your faith in God, the greater this shield will be.

The Source Of The Armor Is The Word Of God

Ephesians 6:17-18 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: 18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit

Salvation covers your head like a helmet. But suddenly after listing all the defensive weapons he now speaks of a defensive weapon – the Sword. The Roman warrior carried more than one sword, just like a soldier today carries a rifle and a pistol. The μάχαιρα máchaira, (pronounced makh’-ahee-rah) was a very short sword or knife that was used only when the enemy got in too close to use the long sword. It was a defensive weapon – much like a concealed carry pistol is a defensive weapon.

Please note that the sword is not called our sword. No, it is the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. This sword is empowered not by us, but by God the Holy Spirit. It is the Word of God that gives us the various pieces of armor. It is the Spirit of God Who explains the Word of God – the Scripture – to us. We ourselves do not protect ourselves, but God does. We ourselves do not fight the enemy – God does. This is why prayer is so very necessary.

Without prayer we will not be armored, for without prayer we will not read, understand,
and apply the Word of God to our lives.

Prayer is how we as God’s soldiers hear our Commander. It is through prayer and study of God’s Word that we become effective warriors in the battle against evil and darkness. May God lead you into a deeper walk with Him, and touch your hearts with His Word!