The Armor of God

[ayin jade]

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. 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. 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. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 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.

Ephesians 6:10-18

One thing that has impressed me in studying this passage is the comparison to Roman armor. Someone knowledgable on such armor once told me that the breastplate was meant to be seen, and was often decorated. Therefor, in this passage, our righteousness is meant to be seen. Another thought that comes to mind, is that all but one part is defensive only: the sword of the Spirit, the word of God. That is our weapon, how we fight the devil's tricks. Reading the bible, knowing His word, understanding the biblical principles, that is how we fight back against evil as it comes against us.

I would love to hear anyone else's thoughts.

[WayneB]

Awesome passage of Scripture!!! It is one of my favorites because it reveals to all of us where the real battle is taking place and how to protect ourselves.

My contribution?

Flaming arrows? They can do permanent harm if they stick in the flesh, can't they? They continue to damage deeply until removed. Have you ever seen a person in a burn unit? Not just an arrow that leaves a minor scar from a small entrance wound BUT a flaming arrow that destroys flesh and scars permanently! Not much different with our spirit when under attack. We need to keep the SHIELD OF FAITH up at all times and use it to protect ourselves from those flaming arrows!

Be blessed,

Wayne

[Jedi4Yahweh]

Hi,

I guess you must have heard that a Roman Soldiers Armor did not provide protection for his back or rear. Meaning if a Soldier ever began to retreat and run away from the battle he would be unprotected. Its the same in the Kingdom of God we are protected as long as we stand firm in our faith and continue to faith the good fight of faith and press in but if we ever turn back and retreat we go unprotected.

God bless,

[traveller]

Great analogy in comparing it to the Roman armour Jade! Another aspect about this is that their shields locked together, to form a unified wall of defence! When the children of God stand together, no power of darkness can prevail. It's like that song "He Reigns" when it says

And all the powers of darkness

Can't drown out a single word

When all Gods children sing out

Glory glory, hallelulia, HE REIGNS

Great thread!

[BobTriez]

We need to keep the SHIELD OF FAITH up at all times and use it to protect ourselves from those flaming arrows!

Isn't that the truth!

Great thread Jade....this topic has been very real in my life as of late...I think more folks need to realize where the battle is actually taking place....

I guess you must you have heard that a Roman Soldiers Armor did not provide protection for his back or rear. Meaning if a Soldier ever began to retreat and run away from the battle he would be unprotected.

Well, if we follow Hebrews 12:2 and keep our eye's fixed on Jesus we don't need to worry about a retreat do we!

Hebrews 12:2

2 Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

God bless,

Bob

[Jedi4Yahweh]

Well, if we follow Hebrews 12:2 and keep our eye's fixed on Jesus we don't need to worry about a retreat do we!

Hebrews 12:2

2 Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

God bless,

Bob

Sure we need to be concerned about this because all of us at times feel like giving up the fight. We need to be reminded to keep focused and continue in the fight. We must be reminded that God takes no pleasure in those who turn back. Obviously Paul would have not reminded us to keep ours eyes fixed on Jesus if he wasn't concerned with people losing focus.

God bless,

[BobTriez]

Obviously Paul would have not reminded us to keep ours eyes fixed on Jesus if he wasn't concerned with people losing focus.

Not to derail, but did Paul write Hebrews ? ( not being argumentitive...I just didn't know we knew who wrote the book of Hebrews ).

The rest of what you said I sure agree with though! It is SO easy to lose focus, for sure! I have a few accountibilty partners that make sure I'm focused all the time and I them....that is SO important!

God bless,

Bob

[traveller]

Obviously Paul would have not reminded us to keep ours eyes fixed on Jesus if he wasn't concerned with people losing focus.

Not to derail, but did Paul write Hebrews ?

C'mon Bob! That's not only derailment, but a train wreck!

[Jedi4Yahweh]

Obviously Paul would have not reminded us to keep ours eyes fixed on Jesus if he wasn't concerned with people losing focus.

Not to derail, but did Paul write Hebrews ? ( not being argumentitive...I just didn't know we knew who wrote the book of Hebrews ).

The rest of what you said I sure agree with though! It is SO easy to lose focus, for sure! I have a few accountibilty partners that make sure I'm focused all the time and I them....that is SO important!

God bless,

Bob

Yeah most biblical scholars will tell you that the writing pattern and key phrases and words indicate that Paul wrote the book of Hebrews.

God bless,

[BobTriez]

Obviously Paul would have not reminded us to keep ours eyes fixed on Jesus if he wasn't concerned with people losing focus.

Not to derail, but did Paul write Hebrews ?

C'mon Bob! That's not only derailment, but a train wreck!

Sorry....I usually do not get the honour of derailing topics, so....actually I went back to edit while you were posting I think to qualify my statements a little better. This really is not the thread to see a train wreck take place

God bless,

Bob