The armour of God is given to us, to help us, as believers, to stand our ground, stand firm, and when we have
done everything – to stand. There is a ground we need to take – a stance we need to have, and as Christians, we
need to be in position with the full armour of God “put on”. This implies that there is something we need to be
doing.
In a world that is rapidly changing, a world that is twisting truths and bringing in so many doubts, fears, lies and
manipulations, Christians need to take a stand now more than ever before.
As Christians, we need to be doing two things in this age – growing up and standing up.
Ephesians 6:11 “Put on the full armour of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the
devil.”
Ephesians 6:13 “Therefore put on the full armour 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.”
1 Peter 5:9 “But resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being
accomplished by your brethren who are in the world.”
1 Corinthians 15:58 “Be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord.”
Philippians 1:27 “Conduct yourself in a manner worthy of the Gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see
you or remain absent, I will hear of you that you are standing firm in One Spirit, with One mind, striving together
for the faith of the Gospel.”
1 Corinthians 16:13 “Be on the alert, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong. Let all that you do be done
in love.”
To stand firm means to be steady, sure, unwavering and not easily moved. In all these passages a very clear
message comes through. Our actions should match our message, and our outward behaviour should align with
our inner convictions, informed by the gospel. All we must do is look to Jesus. In every circumstance and
situation we should ask ourselves, perhaps not “What would Jesus do” but rather “What did Jesus do?”
Paul often uses the imagery of a soldier or an athlete when talking about how we should act as Christians.
Training is a discipline – ask any soldier or any athlete and they will tell you that training doesn’t just “happen”. It
is deliberate, intentional and structured. It can be painful, for long periods of time – and any soldier or athlete
who has ever been in training will tell you that there are many times, and opportunities for them to give up, to
simply walk away and say “it’s too hard”. Yet, they know that these are the things they have to do so that they are
ready to fight a battle or enter a race.
As Christians, we are to train ourselves through constant use, for righteousness and for battle – in being able to
distinguish between good and evil. The questions must be asked – are some of the “evil” things (and
remembering that, biblically speaking, evil is anything that is opposed to God; which is the opposite to God and
that which is contrary to God) – so, are the evil things we see in the world, and in our own community, and even
in our own families – are these things simply a result of Christians not standing firm where we needed to stand?
Ephesians 6 tells us, “Our fight 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 places.”
Now is the time for Christians around the world to grow up, and stand up.
The enemy is ramping up, he is on the prowl, like a lion, seeing who he can devour. He has come for our children,
our marriages, he has come for our peace – he comes to steal, to kill and destroy. He wants to steal your peace,
your joy, your faith – he wants to kill your dreams, your vision, your hope and he wants to destroy your future, your
marriage, your children and our society. And the thing that scares him the most is a Christian who knows who
they are in Christ, who stands firmly in the finished work of the Cross, who walks in the authority of the blood and
the name of Jesus and who is united with his brothers and sisters in Christ.
He fears a Christian who is ready to fight.
I don’t know about you, but I think it is time we put away our toys and pick up our swords. I think it is time for us
to get serious about being about the Father’s business – about declaring His Gospel to those who don’t know him
and delivering a message to the devil that we will not be beaten down, we will not live in fear, we will not be
defeated – BECAUSE GREATER IS HE WHO LIVES IN ME, THAN HE WHO LIVES IN THE WORLD!
It’s time to check our armour – to make sure it is all in place, and that it is battle ready.
So let’s do an inventory.
1. The Belt of Truth: We should first be girded in truth. It is the first piece of armour we are instructed to put
on. If everything we do is first based in truth, then we will fight from a position of strength. If we aren’t
sure of what is true, if we waiver in our definition of truth – it is very easy for the enemy to attack. If we
don’t know what we stand for, we’ll fall for anything is a well-known saying – for Christians, if we don’t
know the truth in which we stand, we will fall. Turn off the TV, social media, You Tube and open up His
Word – the Word of Truth – put it on – gird yourself in it, stand firm on it. Refuse to compromise, refuse to
be lied to. Put on the belt of truth and be battle ready.
2. The Breastplate of Righteousness: This piece of armour is designed to guard our heart and our
emotions. If you know you are the Righteousness of Christ – that you have been saved by faith, through
grace – that you are not depending on your own righteousness but His – that you have been blood bought,
justified and redeemed then your heart and emotions will be protected. When the enemy comes with
lies, doubts and fears – when he comes to remind you of your past – you can boldly and confidently say
“that trick doesn’t work on me, I know who I am, and I know whose I am.” Your heart is protected by
understanding the righteousness you now have as a child of God. Stop listening to the lies, keep your
breastplate securely in place so that you keep your heart protected and the enemy cannot penetrate it
and attack you.
3. Shoes of Peace: An important piece of the armour; and not one that is optional. The right pair of shoes
are important. Don’t believe me? Try keeping up with three young adult daughters at Joondalup Shopping
Centre in high heels. Proper shoes enable the feet to go from place to place. We need peace now more
than ever – and we need to be taking that peace out into the world. An undaunted sense of this mission –
to go, into all the world and proclaim the very good news of the gospel to every nation, tribe and tongue,
keeps us, as Christians headed in the right direction.
4. Shield of Faith: For a Roman soldier, a shield was used as a form of protection. It could be held up to
deflect attacks, but was also used as an offensive weapon to knock enemies over with force. The Roman
shield at the time was called a scutum. This type of shield was as large as a door and would cover the
warrior completely.
What a beautiful picture of our faith – used to deflect, used to knock over the enemy of fear and doubt
with force and covers us completely. We are told to take up our shield – we have to deliberately choose
faith in all circumstances. Faith can not only protect us from the blows of the devil, it can help us push
back against him.
When fighting as a group, a phalanx of soldiers could position their shields so as to form an enclosure
around themselves called a testudo (Greek for tortoise), this was especially helpful to protect against
arrows launched from the walls of the cities they were attacking. When we band with other Christians in
faith, in a phalanx position, it strengthens our own faith – when we fellowship with believers and help
each other fight our fears and doubts with faith, we form a stronger barrier against the devil.
5. Helmet of Salvation: When a soldier suited up for battle, the helmet was the last piece of armour to be
put on. It was the final act of readiness in preparation for the battle. A helmet was vital for survival,
protecting the brain – so too, the Helmet of Salvation protects our thoughts, our will and our decision
making.
Statistics show that close to 80% of people in bike crashes who suffer a head injury, were not wearing a
helmet. I wonder if that statistic also applies to the number of Christians who sustain injuries from the
enemy aren’t a direct result of not wearing their Helmet of Salvation.
The mind truly is our battlefield and the enemy loves to cripple Christians by attacking their thoughts,
memories, decision making and perspective. We need to understand that the Helmet of Salvation is not
referring to a once off event where we invited Jesus into our heart but also the ongoing, everyday, eternal
state of being sanctified by his Word, justified by His righteousness and set apart for His purposes. We
need to wash our thinking through particular filters that form the truth of who we are as redeemed,
chosen, saved and delivered children of God.
Filters like – “I am now a new creation, the old has gone, behold the new is here!”; “I can do all things
through Christ who strengthens me.”; “Greater is He who is in me, than he who is in the world”; “I am
more than a conqueror” – we need to make sure our thinking, memories, will and decision making is
undergirded by the truth of the finished work of the Cross and the authority of the name of Jesus.
We are not powerless – we are powerful and created to fight for ourselves and others in the heavenly
places.
The helmet usually protected the ears – we must be careful what we are listening to. It also protected the
eyes – we need to watch what we are choosing to look at. And just as importantly, our mouth – particularly
important to protect our mouths and watch what we say.
6. Sword of the Spirit: The Sword of the Spirit is the only weapon listed in Ephesians 6 that was designed
to defend and attack. All other weapons are designed to help us stand firm; but the sword also helps us
to take ground and push the enemy back.
The sword mentioned here belongs to the Holy Spirit. He supplies us with this sword through the Word,
and like a trainer, He teaches us how to use it properly. Paul tells us that we are to take up the Sword of
the Spirit which is the Word of God. For us, this means that the best offence in Spiritual Warfare is the
truth of the Bible, the reality of our salvation in Christ and what the Holy Spirit reveals to us.
In order to use a sword to the fullest effect, a soldier must be trained with it. It requires time, discipline
and effort.
We too, should be trained in the Word of God. If we do not know how this weapon works, it will do us little
good in battle.
The Sword of the Spirit is the only weapon that doesn’t get dull or blunt with use – the more you use it the
sharper it gets. I promise you this, you can’t overdo your knowledge of God’s Word. And just like Jesus
was able to do in the wilderness, your greatest attack when the enemy comes at you with lies and half
truths and temptations is to boldly, and confidently say “It is written…”
God is calling us to a higher plain and a higher walk with Him. He’s calling us to a deeper holiness, boldness,
godly character and integrity. He’s calling us to walk in His anointing, a deeper realm of glory and fervency with
His Spirit.
We don’t do this in our own strength. Doing all we can do to stand also requires that we stay alert. In the same
chapter of Ephesians, in the very next verses, Paul urges us to “Be alert and always keep on praying for all of the
Lord’s people.”
And I think this is one of the most interesting aspects of the armour of God – there is nothing to protect our backs.
Yet the people of God long knew that their enemy would often sneak up from behind and pick off the old, tired
and infirm.
So why did Paul not instruct us to put on armour that would protect our back?
I think it is meant to work like this….invite 2 people up…
The way the Roman soldiers in Paul’s day commonly fought in close up combat was “back to back”. A fellow
soldier would stand with his back against yours and together you would fight together, literally having each other’s
back.
What a great picture of us as Christians.
If, being fully clothed in the armour of God, we entered the battle with our fellow brothers and sisters and fought
a common enemy together, back to back; I believe we would not only stand our ground, but we’d also be able to
take back the ground the enemy has stolen in our marriages, our families, our community, our schools and even
our nation.
I saw this in practical terms here last weekend. An awesome word preached, and three young men came forward
for prayer, all young adults – a teenager, a father and a father to be. Men filled with the Holy Spirit and more years
of experience prayed for them, and one by one older men, fathers of the faith came out of the congregation, stood
behind these young men and contended for them. This is church – this is how we are to meet each week. Praying
for each other, encouraging each other in our most Holy Faith, supporting our Pastors and our leadership, getting
on with the job of being about our Father’s business – which was always about those in the house, and those not
yet here. Can I encourage us as a church – don’t be too quick to leave at the end of the service, stay, pray, lay
hands on each other – share burdens, comfort, encourage and strengthen each other.
I have personally been going through a really tough season, my mum is in Palliative care and we are gathering
around her in love. I so know that the peace I have, the strength I have comes directly from those who have been
praying for me, sending me texts of encouragement and just letting me know that I am part of a family. Yes I have
God my Abba, Jesus my Saviour and the Holy Spirit my comforter and I will always be grateful for that, but I am
so blessed that I have the human extension of that power and that love in all of you.
If Christians everywhere entered the fight and said “Enough is enough”; drew a line in the sand and said “I’m
standing firm” – I have my belt of truth girded firmly around my waist; my shoes are built for the purpose of
declaring the gospel of peace; my heart if protected by the breastplate of righteousness, my shield of faith is
firmly in place and my thoughts, decisions and perspectives are seated in the Helmet of Salvation – I have the
mind of Christ; the Sword of the Spirit – the dynamos power of the Holy Spirit and I am praying on all occasions –
If Christians took this stance right across this city, and this nation – I believe we could take serious ground.
So where are you today soldier?
When the battle cry goes out where will you be?
Are you over there, distracted – too busy or not paying attention?
Are you tired, battle weary – you fought once, but you’re not sure you’ve got it in you to get back into the fight?
Are you simply not here because you didn’t think you needed to come to every battle?
Have you fallen back because you didn’t think it was important to turn up for training and you’ve just discovered
you’re not as fit as you used to be?
Or are you sitting down trying to frantically sharpen your sword because you fell out of the habit of reading your
Word?
Or are you on the sidelines – maybe with a group of people who are upset about the way things are done, who
have become offended or are simply mumbling and grumbling instead of getting into the testudos formation?
I know this may sound condemning, and I don’t mean it to be – I’m hoping this Word will bring conviction,
repentance and a wake up call for all of us – I’ve certainly been challenged whilst preparing it; I’ve had to get
before God and tell Him I’m sorry for not being available for the battle that continues to wage all around me.
Don’t be missing in action. The cry is going out to all the soldiers of the army of the Lord. The principalities and
powers of darkness are on the attack – they particularly want to shut Christians up and shut churches down –
you are called to battle and if you need to focus, if you need to report to God for instructions – to repent and seek
Him for forgiveness, or simply to get battle ready – then today is that day and the altar is open.
God is in this house, and He is so glad you are here – but He wants you and your family in position so He can
protect you.
Stand Firm – get ready – charge into battle.
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