Armor

Full Armor of God

How do we view the Spiritual armor in Ephesians 6:12?

Do we place such a high priority on it that we put it on daily?

How do we put it on?

Ephesians 6:10-18 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 saints.

Let’s take a look at each piece.

Ephesians 6:14-18
{14} Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist…
“Please let me see where I have been believing a lie and let me live in truth.”
 John 14:6 Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
 John 8:32 “Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."

…with the breastplate of righteousness in place,
“My rightness with God is what Jesus did on the cross, not whether I sinned today. My position with him is no different after my sin than before. I confess and continue to proceed. There is no “two steps backward and one step forward”. My righteousness IS Christ abiding and living in me.”
 Rom 8:1 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus,

{15}…and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.
“Lord use me today somehow, some way whether to encourage, exhort or share Christ. Put nails through the bottom of my shoes so that I am immovable.”
 2 Timothy 4:2 Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage--with great patience and careful instruction.
 1 Corinthians 15:58 Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.

{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.
“I step behind the shield of faith the size of a door…my increased faith is making it a wall around me. I will exhibit great faith as the Holy Spirit grants this.”
 1 Corinthians 12:7 Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good…9 to another faith by the same Spirit…
 Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; 6 in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.
 2 Corinthians 5:7 We live by faith, not by sight.

{17} Take the helmet of salvation
“I pray that I would capture every thought and make it obedient to Christ. That I would speak statements full of faith, and trust in what God has spoken to me that He will give and provide.”
 2 Corinthians 10:4-5 The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. 5 We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.
 Philippians 4:8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things.

… and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
“This sword reaches up to heaven, in the heavenly places and I use it to do battle with the enemy and the kingdom of darkness advancing the Kingdom of Light.”
 Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.
 Matthew 4:10 Jesus said to him, "Away from me, Satan! For it is written: 'Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.'"
 Colossians 3:16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly ...
 2 Timothy 3:16-17 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.

{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 saints.
“Holy Spirit pray through me now and throughout today.”
 Romans 8:26 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.
James 5:16 Confess [your] faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.
Ephesians 6:17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

When coming into spiritual warfare, fighting by prayer for a loved one, a missionary trip, a ministry in the church, a prayer burden...you will have backlash. This is GOOD. When the enemy fights back and all hell breaks loose around you know you are doing good for the Lord. You are right where you are supposed to be...on your knees standing in the gap for your loved ones, friend, missionary members, ministry, church, pastor...

This is a validation that the kingdom of light is battling the kingdom of darkness and if the enemy can re-assign demons to your life, your walk, your situations and get you to GIVE UP PRAYING, then he will have succeeded.

Once you have pleaded the blood of Jesus over you and your family and have asked the Lord to cover you in Jesus, you have used your "Shield of Faith". You are standing in faith.

But notice in this text we are to put on "the FULL armor". Now it is time to offensively approach this attack while remaining steadfast in our prayer for the recipient. We do this by openly speaking God's word..." the sword of the Spirit, which is THE WORD OF GOD.".

The devil is a defeated foe and he only gains ground in our life through fear and intimidation. This is what causes us to stop praying, to stop sharing, and to stop ministering. So as he begins his assault on you, pick up your sword and use it. Speak it out loud so he can hear it. Here are scriptures that we can write on a 3x5 card and use on his next assault.

Proverbs 12:28 In the way of righteousness there is life; along that path is immortality.
Psalms 91:9-13 If you make the Most High your dwelling— even the LORD, who is my refuge— 10 then no harm will befall you, no disaster will come near your tent. 11 For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; 12 they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone. 13 You will tread upon the lion and the cobra; you will trample the great lion and the serpent.
Romans 12:21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
1 John 4:4 You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.
Psalms 23:4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
Isaiah 54:14 In righteousness you will be established: Tyranny will be far from you; you will have nothing to fear. Terror will be far removed; it will not come near you.
Psalms 112:7 He will have no fear of bad news; his heart is steadfast, trusting in the LORD.
Galatians 1:4 who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father,

Let's aggressively approach the assignment God gives us to pray for, a prayer burden, or someone that is going on a mission trip that asks us to pray for them and their team, a lost relative or co-worker, ministries, our pastors or whoever and whatever the Lord lays on our heart. When we are faithful to do so and the enemy validates your effectiveness of your prayers by his backlash let’s keep standing pleading the blood of Christ and using God's word, His word, to fight him so you can stand in the gap and pray and bring glory to your savior Jesus Christ by advancing the Kingdom of Light!