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SUBJECT: Armor of God - Ephesians 6:10-20
QUESTION: Please explain the various pieces of armor
ANSWER:
Here is some information to help you in your study of God.
The Whole Armor of God
Ephesians 6 tells us to put on the "whole armor of God."
What does it mean to put on the whole armor of God? What
does that armor do for us? What are the components of that
armor and what does it protect us from?
These are some of the questions I have asked myself for
quite some time. Each day I learn something new about what
it means to put this armor on. In this paper, I will present
each of the pieces of armor that are given to us in
Ephesians 6 and look at each one in detail. On the surface
it does not seem that there is much to this. However, there
is a great deal of understanding to be gained from looking
at the armor of God.
Let us begin by taking a first glance at Ephesians 6:11-20.
First, we will look at the entire set of scriptures
pertaining to the armor of God. Second, we will look at each
piece of the armor and discuss it. I will warn you that I
will be using a Hebrew/Greek/English Interlinear Bible for
the verses that are stated in this paper. Although sometimes
it can be hard to read, it shows the raw language (in
this case the Greek translated to English) in
which that passages were written.
Ephesians 6:11-20
11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to
stand against the wiles of the devil.
12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against
principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the
darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high
places.
13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye
may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done
all, to stand.
14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth,
and having on the breastplate of righteousness;
15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of
peace;
16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall
be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.
17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the
Spirit, which is the word of God:
18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the
Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and
supplication for all saints;
19 And for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I
may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the
gospel,
20 For which I am an ambassador in bonds: that therein I may
speak boldly, as I ought to speak.
The "Whole" Armor
Notice that verses 11 and 13 tell us the "whole" armor of
God. It is quite obvious why we are given this instruction
twice.
Just like the soldiers of that time would never put on only
certain pieces of their armor neither should we.
It is very important that we make sure that all of the armor
of God is on us. We have battles that we have to fight. If
we have the "whole" armor of God on, we will win those
battles. Should we find ourselves in a position where we are
not guarded by all of the armor we need, we may end up
wounded to some degree or another. If we do not put any of
the armor on we will end up losing the battle and losing our
lives (spiritually speaking).
The Enemy
Reading through these verses we are told what enemies we
will have to face. Our enemies are revealed to us. The
ultimate enemy and the source of all the these enemies is
also revealed to us. Let us look at a list of our enemies.
1.The Devil, i.e., Satan, the evil one (Verses 11 and 16)
2.Rulers (Verse 12)
3.Authorities (Verse 12)
4.World’s Rulers (Verse 12)
5.Spiritual powers of evil (Verse 13)
As you already know, Satan will do anything to keep us away
from God. His attacks are strong and he is a powerful
adversary. However, God does protect us. God reveals to us
our enemies. God reveals to us that our real adversaries are
not the flesh and blood of human beings, but the Satan
influenced minds of those who would seek to destroy us.
The Battles
We already know the identity of our enemies. We already know
that Satan is the force behind those enemies because he
himself is ultimately the only enemy we have. All others
that would be our enemies are influenced by Satan.
What can we expect to see in those battles against our
enemies?
1.The "wiles" of the devil (Verse 11)
2.Fiery darts (verse 16)
That about sums it up. Satan is full of fiery darts (figuratively,
of course). He will not only come after us but
come after us with a vengeance. He will use all of his
"wiles" to try to get to us. He will try to deceive us and
trick us in every way he can. He will try to turn us against
one another, teach us lies and cause us to turn away from
God.
We are not in a physical battle for physical things. We are
in a spiritual battle for spiritual things. Physical battles
that could cause us to lose our physical lives are not as
important as spiritual battles that could cause us to lose
our spiritual life to come. Because our physical lives are
but a small space in time, they are not as important as our
spiritual lives to come.
Holding Ground
The battles can be intense. The battles can make us
weary at times. However, we must hold our ground. We must
fight to the end.
We are told in verses 14 and 15 to "stand." God wants to see
us standing after "all things have been worked out." God
wants to see us at that Last Day in a standing position. He
wants to see that we have won the battles and, ultimately,
the war.
As we will see, God gives us the tools we need to be the
ones who will "stand" at the Last Day.
Loins Girded with Truth
In verse 14-15, we are told to have our loins girded with
the truth. Girding is a wrap around covering. It is the
first piece of armor that is put on and also the one that is
most close to us. Also, girding covers nakedness. God wants
us to keep His truth close to us. He wants us to make sure
that His truth is the first thing we put on. Once we learn
His truth, we need to cover ourselves with it. We need to
make sure His truth is close to us and that no lies enter
into us.
The Breastplate of Righteousness
In verse 15 we are told to put on the breastplate of
righteousness. A breastplate covers the heart and the
internal organs. The breastplate of righteousness covers
our heart. It guards our heart from being pierced. God has
written His law on our hearts and in our minds. If we allow
our heart to remain uncovered, we will not be obedient to
the law and will eventually forget it and deny it.
Feet Shod With the Preparation of
the Gospel of Peace
In verse 15-16 we are told to have our feet shod with the
preparation of the Gospel of Peace. Our feet lead us to many
places. We need to make sure that wherever we go, we spread
peace. The Gospel of Christ is the Gospel of Peace. By our
example and our devotion to God’s way of life we will spread
the Word. God expects this of us.
The Shield of Faith
In verse 16 we are told to take up the shield of faith.
Notice, Paul says "ABOVE ALL having taken up the shield of
faith." The shield of faith protects us greatly. We
normally think of a shield as a small round dish, called a
buckler. However, in Christ’s time, a Roman soldier had a
shield that was rectangular in shape and as tall as he was.
This provided for a great covering to the soldier. When the
soldiers were fired upon with flaming arrows, they were all
able to crouch down behind the shields creating a barrier
that would be almost impossible to penetrate.
The shield of faith protects us against ALL the fiery darts
of Satan and allows us to quench those darts (verses
16-17). Notice that it says ALL. This is very important
because we can overcome Satan and ALL of his attacks as long
as the shield of faith is with us.
The Helmet of Salvation
In verse 17 we are told to put on the helmet of salvation. A
helmet is designed to protect the head from any blows it may
receive. God wants us to put on His helmet of salvation so
that our minds are protected from Satan. We must always
keep God’s plan of salvation in mind and keep focused on His
kingdom that is to come. God has written His law on our
minds
and in our hearts. The helmet of salvation protects us from
forgetting His laws, His way of life, His plan of salvation
and,
ultimately, His Kingdom that is to come.
The Sword of the Spirit
In verse 17-18 we are told to take the sword of the Spirit.
The sword of the Spirit is God’s Word. The way to obtain the
sword of the Spirit is via all prayer, petition, watching
and perseverance. (verses 18-19). We must pray to God for
knowledge, understanding, wisdom and application of His Word
in our lives. We must pray in the Spirit. At the same time,
we must be watchful and persevere each and every day.
Prayer keeps us in contact with God. Petition, i.e., asking
for God’s help, allows God to work with us and teach of His
Word and way of life. Watchfulness keeps us aware of our
surroundings and what things may come about. We should
always be watching the events around us. We should always be
watching for Satan’s attacks and be on guard to defend and
protect ourselves with God’s Word. And finally, perseverance
helps us to get back up again if we are overpowered and
knocked down. We should never quit in our battles against
Satan. We should always be prepared to fight and to get back
up if we are knocked down.
Conclusion
God tells us to put His WHOLE armor on. If we do not put ALL
of these pieces of armor on, we could be destroyed by
Satan. We need to:
1.Keep God’s truth close to us.
2.Keep our hearts guarded from lies.
3.Make sure we spread peace wherever we may go.
4.Keep the shield of faith in our arms to guard us from the
attacks of Satan and his principalities.
5.Hold on to the sword of the Spirit which is the Word of
God so that we are able to defend ourselves. Remember, when
Christ was tempted by Satan all He used was the Word of God
to ward off the attacks of Satan. We must do the same.
6.Pray to remain in close contact with God.
7.Petition God to help us and give us His armor so we are
protected from all evil.
8.Watch all things around us so we are able to see warning
of coming attacks.
9.Persevere so that we are truly trying hard to live God’s
way of life. We must never give up when we are caught off
guard. We must always strive to be rid of any evil and
replace it with God’s goodness.
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