This Means War

Read Ephesians 6:10-20

The sooner the believer in Christ recognizes that he is in a war with Satan and his comrades, the better.  The conflict between good and evil has existed since the beginning of time, and every person is thrust into the middle of it at birth.  Due to our sin nature, we begin as the enemies of God.  With each sin we commit, we pledge allegiance to Satan in this invisible war.  But, by the grace of God, when we are born again through salvation, we enter into peace with God, which throws us into war with Satan.  We switch sides and change allegiances.

Satan would like for believers to see him as a cartoon character with a tail and a pitchfork looking for someone bending over, so he can give them a poke in the posterior.  The majority of our culture is too sophisticated to accept the reality of a real Devil.  Yet, the Bible clearly teaches that the Devil exists and that he is active in our world.  The truth is Satan is like a wounded animal, desperately using all his energy to destroy anything in his path.  He knows his time is short and has unleashed all the fiery darts of hell to destroy individuals, families, and churches.

Christians need to understand that the Christian life is not a playground, but a battleground.  It is not a waltz, but a war.  We need to get off our showboats and climb aboard our battleships.  Instead of being asleep in our barracks, we need to be alert on the battlefield.

In Ephesians 6, we are introduced to the Christian armor that God has given us to fight this warfare with.  As Paul was writing this epistle, he was in a Roman prison, chained to a Roman soldier.  I am sure he watched as the soldiers put on each piece of armor, and the Holy Spirit led him to make this analogy.

The believer should acquaint himself with each piece of armor mentioned in Ephesians 6, knowing that each one protects us from a specific tactic of Satan.  Satan wants to deceive us with error, so we must put on the belt of truth by studying God's Word, the only source of truth.  Satan wants to defile us with sin, so we must put on the breastplate of righteousness, recognizing our weaknesses and carefully avoiding temptation in those areas.  Satan wants to disengage us from being a witness to the lost, so we must put on the shoes of the Gospel of peace, sharing our faith with others and seeking to win the lost to Christ.  Satan wants to distress us with the fiery darts of hell, so we should take up the shield of faith, trusting God not only to save our souls but also to provide for our daily needs.  Satan wants to demoralize us with doubts as to our secure future, so we are to put on the helmet of salvation, possessing complete assurance of our eternal home in Heaven.

Each one of the previous items are defensive weapons to protect us, but we also need an offensive weapon.  God has graciously provided that as well.  We are told to take the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.  God's Word is not only a defensive weapon to protect us from error, but it is also an offensive weapon to attack Satan with.  Jesus quoted the Scripture to defeat Satan in their epic battle in the wilderness.  We should learn to fight temptation with the powerful Word of God.  Hebrews 4:12 describes it as a two-edged sword.

Another offensive weapon God has provided is prayer.  Paul mentions that we are to pray always in verse 18.  We are to pray all through the day, being led by the Holy Spirit, refusing to get discouraged when we don't see immediate answers, and interceding for other believers and their needs.  We can stand by staying on our knees.

The key to victory in this daily warfare is to fight in God's power and not our own.  "Be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might", Paul instructed.  Let's wage war against Satan by putting on our armor daily as we enter the battlefield of life.  Know that Satan is after you, your family, and your church.  Though he is a destructive force, he is also a defeated foe.  1 John 4:4 says, "Greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world."  In the power of Christ, we can win this war in allegiance to our Master, the Lord Jesus Christ.