Welcome!
Today: The battle is real!
Passage: Eph 6
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. (Eph 6, NIV)-emphasis added
A soldier need to be fully equipped, keep communicating with the commander and be positioned in the right place.
Faith is usually spoken of as a weapon, than a shield. But here, faith is mentioned as a shield against the flaming arrows of the enemy
The enemy is not simply sitting. He is firing flaming arrows one after the other. A shield is not something we wear, but is held in the hand
The soldier need to strategically shift and hold the shield against the arrows
What are the kinds of arrows the enemy fires at us?
Discouragement, disappointment, distractions, divisions,……
See what Jacob has to say about his son Joseph:
22 “Joseph is a fruitful vine, a fruitful vine near a spring, whose branches climb over a wall.[j]
23 With bitterness archers attacked him; they shot at him with hostility. 24 But his bow remained steady,
his strong arms stayed[k] limber, because of the hand of the Mighty One of Jacob, because of the Shepherd, the Rock of Israel, (Gen 49, NIV)-emphasis added
If you are chosen by God, you will face the same as Joseph. But if you are strong in your faith in God, He will help you stand. Joseph faced opposition from his own family/brothers, at work (Potiphar’s house) and against his morality; but he survived.
Salvation is the helmet-the protection. The powers of darkness are in the terrestrial realms. While the shield of faith protects us from the earthly attacks of satan, the helmet of salvation will protect us from the attacks from the satanic realm above (Eph 6:12, Gen 49:26)
Prayer and the word are the two most important weapons against the devil
How are we doing in that area? Aren’t we weak in prayer, praise and the word?
Pray in the spirit. Get it right (1 Cor 14:13-15)
Have a blessed day!
BG
Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank you for your grace and help. Help me to withsatnd the attcks of the enemy in various areas of my life. You helped me so far, and you will, in the present and the future. Thank you Lord. Amen
“In a war, you either win or loose; there is no other outcome”