“Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm. Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness. For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared. In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil. Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”
Paul described an unseen spiritual war that we are fighting as we follow Jesus (see yesterday’s post). In today’s verses, we get a bit more understanding as to how we can fight this war. Paul uses a metaphor of a suit of armor to describe the spiritual weapons we have at our disposal. One thing to notice is that spiritual weapons are designed to overcome evil with good. Thus, the result of using our spiritual weapons is life and health rather than death and destruction.
What can you do today to fight this spiritual war? Here are some tips:
1. Read the Bible (like putting on a belt to secure your clothing)
2. Do the right thing (gives you basic body armor because Satan can’t accuse you if you haven’t done anything wrong)
3. Sit in the peace of the Gospel (you can run faster when you aren’t trying to earn God’s approval in your own strength)
4. Lean into the reality that the kingdom of God is real (faith will protect you from a whole lot of lies)
5. Memorize Scripture (when Satan attacks your thinking you’ll have a quick comeback)
Here’s your freedom for today: God has equipped you to win. Sometimes we forget that we are in a war on God’s team, rather than all of these battles belonging to us. Some people say, “God is fighting your battles,” but it is more accurate to say, “God has invited you to help win his battle.” Why would God not give us all the equipment we need to win his war? It wouldn’t be very strategic to withhold the proper equipment from your own army. Today, pick just one of the strategies listed above and get some practice using your spiritual weapons.