Armor of God
Eph. 6:10-18 KJV Prison Epistle
By: Pastor David M. James
Repitition: There is much repetition in the Chriatian walk and preaching..
We humans learn only from repetition, remember grade school?
Learning new words, countries, states, remember math flash cards?
All repetition it is imparative for us to learn and walk it out.
Eph. 1:3-6 KJV (preface) He adopted us, and equipped us to do battle here on earth
Ephesians were told to Sit, Walk, and finally Stand against the wiles of the devil. This is the last phase of their training. (our training)
Main Text: Eph. 6:10-18 AMP
V10: draw your strength from Him. Not from past battles, (secular world view vs God’s view)
Pauls boasting, 11 Cor. 1:9, 12:-10, Heb. 11:34 kjv
V11: baby Christians cannot do battle alone. Church attendance, hunger for the Word, and humility are invaluable to growth in Kingdom life.
Joshua 7:10-12 NIV, (Israel embraced satanic stuff in their lives)
Knowingly bringing idols, detestable things into your home, or wearing new age sun’s and moons, will destroy your defense. Ignorance of God’s laws are no excuse, we all own Bibles, or have always had access to one. (people laugh at me for teaching the truth, they also laughed at Noah, then the floods came and they all perished)
Whole armor: 7 pieces (complete number)
Heavily armed:
Successfully stand: Sit (learn) Walk (out what you learned) now stand
Strategies & deceits: If you make peace with your sin, the armor will not protect you in battle. (explain make peace) Unforgivness, living in a fornication/adultery relationship, disowning Jesus (no witness)
V12: Who is the enemy? Not flesh and blood but spirits that have gained the right to rule through:
The fall: Gen. 3:19 beginning of Spiritual Poverty, but thru Salvation JC set us free!
Sin, transgression, iniquity, gives spirits authority over lives, areas, territories. (Apostolic authority)
V13 Stand your ground on the evil day:
Work: Ex. 14:13a “Stand still and see the salvation of the Lord!”
Psa. 46:10 “Be still and know that I am God”
Home: Hidden sin is open season on ground already fought and won.
You can bring in evil, sickness and disease that will attack others by your lifestyle/sin.
Entertainment (muse-not to think)
V14a Belt of Truth, belt holds all the armor together, James 1:8 KJV
“A double minded man is unstable in all his ways”. Stand on the Word!
Hidden sin in your life is a Right of Passage for Satan to destroy your life.
“tighten the belt” 2 Tim 2:15 KJV
Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. What is your excuse for not being here on Thursdays for Bible Study?
Read the news, this world is looking for Truth, it cannot be found in politics. The politicans whom you and I vote for, lie, cheat, steal, fornicate, to position themselves for office. Then we expect them to act with morals?
V14b Breastplate of Righteousness/Integrity
Integrity moral rectitude, right standing w/God AMP
Before salvation we were full of self righteousness. Isaiah 64:6 Tells us our self righteousness is as filthy rags before God. Lepers rags full of stinky pus.
The power of the Gospel: Dismantles mans self-righteousness,
Rom. 5:1 AMP. We are declared Righteous! Act like it!
V15 Shod: Horses are shod with correct shoes for the terrain they will work on.
We must also prepare ourselves for the venue of spreading the Gospel.
Studied, fasted, prayed, alert, readiness, dressed for the occasion.
The Gospel is effective when you have tear stained eyes, and bent knees of prayer for the lost.
By living a life of repentance we are armed against temptations to sin,
You need a peaceable and quiet mind, not easily provoked, nor prone to quarrel: but show all gentleness and all long-suffering to all men, and this will certainly preserve you from many great temptations and persecutions that come with spreading the Gospel.
Peace, When we walk in a room, people should feel the Peace of God’s anointing on us.
First: There is Peace with God, reconciliation, when were born again and the barrier is removed.
Second: There is Peace in God, as we learn to grow and trust him in Faith.
Isaiah 26:3 KJV Perfect Peace is who’s mind is stayed on Him, Constantly gazing on the Savior.
Walking in peace is not the absence of the enemy or the battle. Peace is knowing the enemy is defeated!
He still has big teeth and very sharp claws, but he is defeated, why?
“Because the Bible tells me so!”
How many of you are ashamed to take their Bible to work to read on break, or to Starbucks?
V16 Above all. Shield of Faith.
Prov. 4:13-16 NIV Avoid battles if possible (Tim. 2:1-3) Live peacable lives
The Shield is what you hide behind to fend of the firey darts of the enemy. Lies and false insults hurled at you by people influenced by the devil. How many of you know people can be influenced by satan? Even believers.
1 Pet. 1:5 Tells us we are kept by the FAITH. A soldier would not last in battle if he did not have any FAITH in his shield and you won’t either.
1 Cor. 10:13 Tells us the Shield of Faith is the WAY OF ESCAPE, use it!!
Roman Soldiers locked their shields together for greater strength. We need each other! That is why we try to schedule corporate prayer the first Tuesday each month.
V17 Helmet of Salvation
Satan always attacks the MIND first. He attacks with lies, half truths, gossip.
He uses deception, lies about you, maybe what someone has spoken in anger about you that is not true.
1. After a while you listen and he hooks you with the Bait
2. He builds a stronghold in your mind you cannot remove. A stronghold is a fort or a prison. Forts are designed to keep others out. A Prison is designed to keep others in.
Satan attacks the mind with trash AGAIN, AGAIN, AGAIN, AGAIN, AGAIN ETC. He will not give up until he finds a weakness in your ARMOR. IF you watch entertainment with cussing, you will never stop cussing when your mad, you keep feeding it!
He uses RATIONAL Strongholds seem to make sense as he twists the truth. (Python spirit)
He uses IRRATIONAL Strongholds, which do not make sense at all. (beguiling spirit) to draw you away from your devotness to God.
II Cor. 11:3 AMP (read)
Noticd the word “cunning” with reference to the devil. The enemy is subtle and clever to distort your understanding, and most especially, to attack your devotion to Jesus.
One of the most frequently asked questions that comes up among church leaders had to do with the apparent lack of commitment of members. People will attend church on Sunday morning looking so Pious, yet they fail to live like Christians the rest of the week. Others receive the Lord, baptized, even perhaps baptism in the HG, are excited and faithful for a while. And then they vanish. Or perhaps they still keep coming and never grow beyond pre-school.
That is a beguiling spirit at work in their lives. You should have and develop a natural progression in the things pertaining to the Kingdom of God.
It should no longer be a fight to grow, but great satisfaction to learn verses etc.
How many of you still read Proverbs every morning?
How many of you try to learn a new verse every week? Each month? Each year?
John 8:32NIV,(they shall know the truth, free) No truth, no victory, no joy, just religion.
2 COR 10:15 tells us, “We must bring our thoughts or mind games captive to Christ. Failure to take our thoughts captive will cause opression. “Oppression”, means to Powerfully Dominate and Manipulate. That is what Satan does to us, if we allow him.
V17b Sword of the Sprit
Rhema, spoken Word of God. It cuts both ways, going into you and going out to others.
RHEMA is the Spoken Word. Spoken Clearly, Unquestionable and to the point.
Have you ever reasoned in your mind that something was ok, you did it, until another Christian who witnessed you, performing the act confronted you, and you realized how wrong it was?
How about speeding in your car, 15 miles over the limit, because ALL the cars are doing it? Then you look in the mirror and you see flashing lights, that is what RHEMA is!
Prov. 2:10NIV For wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul.
You can’t speak with authority what you do not know and believe in.
V18 Pray in the Spirit
Tongues: your own heavenly prayer language, (develop it or be left behind)
All manner of prayer and entreaty(to plead as to presuade)
Alert and watch with strong purpose and perseverence
Interceeding
Why are prayer meetings the least attended?
I can pray at home?
I have email prayers?
PDJ’s opinion of the problem is, I do not really believe in prayer down deep. Sometines it works, sometimes it does not. “It is all we can do is pray” Get out of the way people and let God work!
God is not a Coke machine. He if full of Wisdom: yes, no, wait.
I know you have heard all of this before, but I keep
hearing the same thing from the body of Christ.
The same complaints, the same defeats, the non-victorious life.
That is why once again, repetition will win!
Change this time, victory this time,
success this time in Jesus Name!
