Christian Combat - God's Armor: What to Take — David Guzik

We're starting this morning in Ephesians chapter 6. We're going to focus in on verses 16 and 17. We're in the fifth part of a six-part series that we've titled of the two pillars of Christian combat.

Today, we're going to focus on the armor of God in the second aspect of it again. That'll be verses 16 and 17 of Ephesians chapter 6. Let me read. I'm going to start at verse 13 just so we get an idea of the context.

The Whole Armor of God and the Two Pillars of Christian Combat

Paul writes. Therefore take up the whole armor of God that you may be able to withstand in the evil day and having done all to stand stand therefore having girded your waist with truth having put on the breastplate of righteousness and Having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace.

Above all taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one and Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God. We've been talking in this series about the two pillars of Christian combat and The first pillar that we spoke about in their very first week together.

With this whole idea of the strength of God in our life. And how we have to be strong in the Lord or it doesn't matter how much armor you put on an emaciated weak person. They're not going to be able to fight effectively.

That's why the first pillar of Christian combat is found in Ephesians 6 verse 10 where Paul writes. Finally my brethren be strong in the Lord and in the power of his might. That's where Christian combat begins.

It begins by being strong in the Lord, but once you're strong You still need the armor of God. And in this previous week and in this week We're talking about the armor of God, and we're presenting it in the whole picture because the whole armor of God is important.

But I want you to notice in verse 16 these two verses that we're going to focus on today verses 16 and 17 Paul says above all taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one and Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.

In verses 16 and 17 he lists three items of our spiritual equipment for Christian combat the shield of faith. The helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit Which is the Word of God. Now if you noticed in the first two words of verse 16 He began by saying above all.

When we hear those words it makes us think that the last three items that he mentions are the most important. You know he mentioned the first three items the belt of truth the breastplate of righteousness and the shoes or the combat Boots.

So to speak of the gospel you might think well those are of lesser importance because in verse 16 He says above all I want you to know that in the language and in the grammar that the Apostle Paul Originally wrote with that's not the idea the idea of above all.

Isn't that the last three items are more important than the first three. The idea instead is that above all? Means in addition to the previous I'll say that again. Above all means in addition to the previous so it's wonderful to have those first three items of spiritual armor.

You have the belt of truth. You have the breastplate of righteousness and you have the shoes or the combat boots of the gospel of Jesus Christ. But in addition to those We have to put on these three items of armor that he mentions in a secondary sense.

Having Armor Versus Taking Armor

Now here's what else I want you to notice is that there's a difference between having armor and Taking armor. Let me read these verses to you again beginning of verse 14. And I'll emphasize my reading of it to sort of point this out look at verse 14.

He says stand therefore having girded your waist with truth having put on the breastplate of righteousness and Having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace. Now verse 16 above all taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one and Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God.

Do you see the difference there? The first three are presented in the sense of having this is armored to have and sort of to have as a foundational starting constant equipment all the time. But then in the critical moment of attack there's armor for you to take in other words some of it's on you all the time and you live in a constant awareness of the truth of God and you Live in a constant awareness of the righteousness that you have in Jesus Christ and you live in constant connection with the gospel of Jesus.

But then at the critical moment of attack, there's armor that you have to take. You have to take it up and battle with it. Think of a firefighter there the firefighter is at the fire station and they walk around and sort of standard issue firefighting.

Uniform all the time, you know a t-shirt and pants and special shoes. There's certain things that they wear with them all the time while they're on duty at the fire station. But then the alarm bell rings right and they they get ready for their positions and I don't think they slide down poles anymore.

But it's a nice thing to picture in your mind. They slide down the pole. And they put on those special overalls with the boots in them and they put them on and then they put on the special jacket right and they grab the helmet and they put it on and then they take the axe and then they jump on the truck and They go at the critical moment of battle now.

If they weren't wearing the right shoes and pants and shirt underneath all of that. They'd be very uncomfortable and ineffective. So they have to have the uniform that they wear. But then at the critical moment when they're needed they need to take Special things and use them.

That's the difference we're talking about the armor to have and the armor to take so we fight with the whole Armor, but there is armor to have and there's armor to take. The having comes first but now let's consider what we do with this armor that we take and we take it up from Situation to situation as the moment demands and I want you to think about those Demanding moments in Christian combat those demanding moments in your spiritual warfare.

Taking Up the Armor in Spiritual Attacks

Let's say that moment when a flood of Depression or discouragement it feels like a black cloud and it comes and it's lowered upon you. That's a spiritual attack. It may have a biological component to it.

It may have an environmental component to it, but it's a spiritual attack as well. Are you familiar with that kind of attack? Are you familiar with that critical moment when the attack comes? Well, that's the moment when you need to take up the armor of God.

I know with that flood of depression or discouragement with that black cloud is like, you know when I experience it sometimes. Right here at church on Sunday morning. Right before I'm going to preach.

It doesn't happen a terribly often. But occasionally it does where I'll be under just such intense dark gloomy spiritual attack right there as I'm Worshiping God and all that the people are worshiping and the worship teams doing their job and the whole congregation is worshiping and I'm just sitting There thinking I can't go up there and do this.

Who am I? Look at my life. Look at all the places. I fall short. Look at how much I need to be cleansed and forgiven by the blood of Jesus. Who am I to go up there? I'm I can't do this. I think. And I just it's feeling overwhelmed and dark and like a cloud lowers over and you just think oh Let's say God this this is it.

You know, I mean, I just can't do this anymore. And and you know, and I write out my resignation letter in my head and I say well God I just I just can't go on anymore. And and I think well, it's too late this morning, right?

I can't ask I'm here and I guess I got to do it this morning. I think that I guess this will be the last time I mean this will be it and Then you know oftentimes if you've ever noticed in spiritual text Satan almost overplay his hand.

You'll get a little exaggerated and then it sort of key you off on something and I think well, you know If this is the last time I'm ever going to speak to these precious people. Then I want it to be the best message that I can possibly give right your last one should be your best one.

I think okay Lord just help me to just and then all of a sudden I turn my focus on the Lord and not on Myself and I just think okay. God just get me up there and get me started and God does great things just wonderful things.

Again, I'm very grateful that that's not a common occurrence for me. But when it happens, it feels terrible and at that critical moment of attack I need just like you need I need to take these Aspects of the armor of God that the shield of faith and the helmet of salvation and the sword of the spirit to take those aspects of the armor and put them into action.

How about those other demanding moments in spiritual warfare a time when something that's relatively smaller? Insignificant in your life and it takes on a proportion. That's way out of measure. I Mean if somebody could follow you around with a video camera and and show how you're acting and how you're reacting to things that are Relatively small and insignificant and play that tape back to you later.

You'd be horrified. You say that was me. Why this is nothing and look at what a big deal. I'm making over this friends. I want you to see that may have an environmental component to it. It may have a biological component to it.

But it is a spiritual attack as well. And at that moment of attack, you better take up the armor take it up. That's what it's there for. About when you have an opportunity to speak with somebody about what Jesus has done or is doing in your life.

And all of a sudden you feel like you've never been so ashamed to be a Christian. Isn't that strange? I mean at other times it's like well, come on I love to talk to people about Jesus but so often right when that opportunity comes.

Wow. The attack comes spiritually and you just feel almost depressed and overwhelmed. That's time to take up the armor. Or how about the time when when you sense that God wants you to do something God wants you to follow through maybe something.

You've heard something you've learned and then all of a sudden a dozen reasons come flooding in your mind. Why you can't do what God is telling you to do. That's spiritual attack, isn't it? Or when you just seem to have a sense of a panic or or helplessness in your life.

Friends so often these things that we don't immediately perceive them to be spiritual attacks. But that's what they are. You're in Christian combat and God says in these critical moments I want you to take the shield of faith and I want you to take the helmet of salvation and I want you to take the sword of God's Word and Use those things to meet the need and to triumph in that critical moment of attack.

The Shield of Faith Against Fiery Darts

So, how do we do it? What does it mean to take the shield of faith? Well, let's look at our text again verse 16 He says above all taking the shield of faith. With which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one.

Well, the first thing we see is that quite obviously the shield is connected to faith it's the shield of faith and Sometimes we just need that shield don't we you feel like you're attacked. You're assaulted on every end that the attacks just keep coming.

You need something to defend yourself. Oh sure. The arrows are being shot at you and and you can take a few arrows stuck into you and you can dance around some others. But the bottom line is if you don't have an effective shield.

You're not going to be able to endure very long in the attack and we just need something to prevent us from being a pincushion for the enemy. So you need that shield? Faith plays such an essential role in the defense that we have in spiritual warfare.

And that's what the shield is all about right defending yourself against these attacks. Friends my simple question is for you is do you have faith in God and can you put it up at that critical moment of? attack.

Now, of course, I have faith in God. I'm here this morning. Aren't I pastor? Of course, I believe in God. Well, I want you to understand that in our culture in our society in our way of thinking right now.

We make a huge mistake. Because we usually think that knowledge is equivalent to faith. In other words, you may know a lot of spiritual facts. I think we have a very high level of knowledge in our congregation and I I commend you for that.

I think we're a biblically illiterate and a biblically educated group of people. I think there's amazing resources of spiritual knowledge right here in this room. If I were to give you a quiz and have you fill it out that we did we get wonderful grading on it but there's a difference between knowledge and Faith, isn't there?

Because you can intellectually know something but faith makes it real in your life. Faith says I'm going to put my trust in this piece of knowledge. It's not just going to stay in this compartment in my brain titled things.

I know Faith means things I believe and trust in so I'm not asking you to put up the shield of knowledge. Now, please don't anybody think for a moment that I'm downgrading knowledge. I think you can't have true faith until you have knowledge.

How can you really trust in something until you know it? I'm just saying that knowledge in itself doesn't go far enough. Faith includes knowledge, but it goes beyond it. So don't put up the shield of knowledge put up the shield of faith.

That's what you need to do. God. I trust you God. I believe in you. I'm not trusting in myself. I'm not trusting in this friend or neighbor. I'm not trusting in what I have. I'm not trusting in even what I know.

I'm trusting in you God. Now, how can you tell whether or not you have this faith again? I think it's a hard thing to discern because we so easily Think that knowledge and faith are the same and you may be measuring your level of faith.

By looking at how much knowledge you have but no let's talk about faith in your life. How can you tell? Well, I think that if a person has faith in their life There's going to be at least three characteristics maybe many more than this.

But three came to my mind as I was preparing for our talk this morning. First of all I believe that if you have faith in your life Fear will not be entrenched in your life. I'm not talking about passing fears.

We all deal with passing fears. But fear and faith are almost opposites. If a person has real fear they don't have real faith in God. And if fear is entrenched in your life I don't think that you have the shield of faith that God wants you to have and maybe you have a little bit of faith.

Maybe you have a shield that's about the size of dinner plate. And that's what you've been trying to defend yourself with but that's not what God really wants. And if fear is entrenched in your life You should take that as a warning sign that that you're really lacking in faith.

Here's a second sign I think that when when you really have faith you have peace in the present. There's just a peace in your life. Ladies and gentlemen, God is in control. He's enthroned in the heavens and he controls everything that's around us.

God is in charge and if I really have a relationship of faith and trust with that God, how can I be? Without peace with what's going on right now so again, if there is a Conspicuous lack of peace in your life.

I think that's an indicator that you don't have as much faith as you should. Here's a third indicator that you have a hope and an optimism about the future. Friends, that's how it is when you really believe God you have a hope and optimism about the future.

I mean you're excited. Well because you know that in the end of the book it says we win. That's how the story ends folks. Now our future is more glorious in front of us even as good as God been to us in the past.

He only has good things in front of us. He wants to move us from glory to glory and You have that sense as an abiding hope and optimism in your life now. Honestly, if you look at your life and say well fear is not entrenched.

I don't think I measure it very well there. I don't have much peace at the present. I don't have much hope and optimism about the future. Then I'm glad you're here because God wants to build more faith into your life and you're already off on the right foot.

Because the Bible says that faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God and you're hearing it this morning and God wants To build up more faith in you. Now look at how he says that faith. Functions in our life is the spiritual shield.

It's in verse 16 again. He says above all Taking the shield of faith. With which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. You see the idea is that there are these flaming arrows being shot at us.

That's the idea of fiery darts. Don't think of a guy, you know throwing darts at a dartboard and he lights one on fire and that's a it's a flaming arrow is what Paul's referring to and Imagine yourself in battle and they used to do this in the ancient world.

Paul's drawing on a picture from ancient warfare. How when the two armies were gathered together and facing off against each other that one of the armies and maybe both of them. They would get archers and they would shoot hundreds if not thousands of fiery arrows to go and to go over the enemy lines and to go right into the battle lines of the opposing troops and.

The idea behind shooting all of those flaming arrows was not simply to hope to injure another soldier by hitting them with the arrow. But you can imagine the sense of fear and panic and dread. That those flaming arrows would cause among the troops as they started to rain down from the heavens among your troops.

It would just make you terrified and fill you with a sense of panic and fear. You would just want to run. What does Paul say that we need to do when we have that sense we need to take the shield of faith.

Now they specifically constructed shields among Roman soldiers to defend against those flaming arrows. The shields were not made of metal they'd be made of wood or metal covered with strips of wood so that the flaming arrows would hit into the wood and be extinguished because they would even Moisten the wood with water so they could extinguish these flaming arrows and the soldiers would get all together and link their shields one with Another so it would be an impenetrable wall and the flaming arrows would come and they'd either be knocked off or stuck into the wood.

Which would extinguish them and they could stand strong against the flaming arrows of the enemy. Friends, how about you you ever feel like that sometimes that a Thousand flaming arrows are being shot at you right now.

That your mind is filled with thoughts and feelings and imaginations. And fears and lies and they just descend upon you a hundred times in a second. Lift up that shield of faith lift it up. Take it. God's giving it to you right now.

He says this is my shield of faith. Take that shield and All of those things the thoughts the feelings the imaginations the fears the lies. Those are all Examples of fiery darts shot at us and it's the shield of faith that will extinguish them.

Look how vulnerable we are without the shield of faith. You take that away and what are you trying to do? You're trying to dodge arrows. That's not going to work very well. Let me say when Satan shoots those flaming arrows at us.

He's a pretty skilled marksman, isn't he? He knows our weak spots. Satan knows my hot buttons. He knows the things that really get me annoyed or into the flesh and he knows how to aim right at those with a fiery Arrow, well, if I lift up the shield of faith, it'll never hit its intended target, but it'll be extinguished by the shield of faith.

I Say Lord, I believe in you. I trust in you. I trust in your word. I'm lifting up the shield of faith. Well, there's a second aspect of this spiritual armor that we're to wear and he discusses that here in verse 17 He says and take the helmet of salvation.

The Helmet of Salvation and the Hope of Glory

Well that the helmet is connected to the salvation now. There's a different with few different ways. I should say that we could talk about this. You could say well in what sense does he mean that that salvation is like a helmet that protects our head by the way.

You shouldn't think of a metal helmet. Most Roman soldiers didn't wear metal helmets. I mean that was sort of pricey and expensive to outfit a whole army with metal helmets. Usually it would be like a leather cap that was studded with metal studs.

And so it would be almost as effective as a metal helmet, but not as heavy and cheaper to make for a whole army. Well salvation covers your head like a helmet and no wise soldier is going to go into battle without a helmet.

You pick that up and you put it on at the critical moment when the attack comes. Now in what sense does Paul mean that salvation is a helmet for us, you know one of the best things you can do when you're reading the Bible is let the Bible interpret the Bible and Paul tells us what he means by the helmet of salvation in another passage.

It's first Thessalonians chapter 5 verse 8. You don't have to turn there. I'll read it for you in that passage. He says this. But let us who are of the day be sober putting on the breastplate of faith and love and as a helmet the hope of salvation.

In other words the helmet is connected to salvation and the hope of our ultimate salvation as Seen in first Thessalonians chapter 5 verse 8. You see that passage again as I just read it speaks about the helmet of salvation connection to the hope of salvation.

My friends when you have the hope of salvation in your mind. You're focused on the fact that God will triumph in your life and see you through to the end. Do you ever worry about that? Do you ever get so discouraged that you wonder if you're ever going to make it have you ever thought of just turning your back on?

This whole Christian life and sort of checking out on it sometimes I meet people and They talk about their Christian experience in the past and they say something like that. Well, I tried that. And they've given up on it.

It hurts when you talk to people like that. Well friends they needed to put on that helmet of salvation of the hope of their salvation and they need to say I'm Confident that what God says is true and he who began a good work in me will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.

He began that work and he's going to complete it. He's going to see me through to glory. I have that hope I'm going to heaven. And even though that the flaming arrows come at me even though the attack comes against me God has not put my salvation in the devil's hands.

He can't take away my salvation. Thank you, Jesus. I have this hope of salvation and my rest my hope my comfort is in that I'm going to heaven and nobody can take that away from me and you start thinking about your heavenly destiny.

And the fact that right now though the battles hard and discouragement and despair comes against us we know that we're going to win out and one day we'll look back on all of this today and have a smile on our Face and rejoice in the work that God did on us.

Well I want you to think about yourself a million years from now a Million years from now when you're in heaven's glory and you look back on the 60 or 70 or 80 or 90 years that you had Walking this earth.

It's gonna seem like an eye blink. Is it well that was no time at all. That was five minutes before the whole game started didn't even matter. I mean right now it seems like this life will never end and your trials will never end and the Discouragement will never end friends in the in the standpoint of your whole existence out all eternity.

This is the smallest piece of the pie that you can even imagine and you can make it through. You really can put that helmet of the hope of your salvation on God is going to see you through to the end.

See my friends that this is not just the assurance that we are saved. But it's the assurance that we will be saved and that God will triumph in our life. And one of Satan's most effective weapons against us is discouragement.

You ever see those movies where they open up the weapons cabinet and all these marvelous weapons there in this cabinet or in this room. There they are mounted on the wall. Well Satan has a weapons cabinet or a weapons room and he opens up the door and he looks at it.

Oh, these are all my weapons and he looks at some of his favorite weapons in there. Well, there's lust. Oh, he likes that weapon, doesn't he? And there's no there's fear. Oh, that's a good one. I've used that one very well.

But then I think right in the center right in the center of his weapons. There's two on Satan's favorite weapons his most effective weapon. It's discouraged. It's despair. He wants you to feel discouraged.

Like you'll never win like you'll never get over it like God's victory. You'll never be seen in your life. But friends when you're properly equipped with the helmet of salvation, it's hard to stay discouraged.

Why you almost want to say to the devil bring it on. You can't do anything to me. Oh sure. You can you can hurt me you can torment me. You can make it difficult for me, but you shall not triumph in my life.

Because he who is in me is greater than he who is in the world and he who began a good work in me will Complete it until the day of Jesus Christ. That's exciting news. Well, so look how vulnerable we are without the helmet of salvation.

Man, you take that away from us and and and we can so easily fall so easily. Discouraged or when we fall into that place of discouragement we get stuck in it. Friends, let's face it. We all get discouraged.

Don't we? But with the helmet of salvation, we won't stay stuck there. We'll say well, no, I'm gonna put on I'm gonna really recognize my heavenly Hope and rest in that. Well, finally in and far more quickly than we'd like to let's take a look at the third item of spiritual warfare.

The Sword of the Spirit and the Word of God

Again, verse 17 and take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. Well friends, I want you to see that the sword is connected to the Word of God. God's Word. I don't have to put a fancy interpretation on this.

It's what Paul says right there in verse 17 the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. The idea here is that the Holy Spirit provides a sword for you and the sword is the Word of God. So, how are you going to use this sword in spiritual battle?

Well, you're not going to run around the room and find the devil and chase him and beat him over the head with your Bible. You can't use the Bible in a superstitious way. You know, some people are almost superstitious with their Bibles.

Where they put it in their house and how they treat it and that friends. You don't need to be superstitious about the book. Although I suppose it's not wrong to pay it some due reverence and some due respect.

But don't think that you can fight off the devil by taking a little Bible and tying it around your neck. You don't think it'll ward him off like a legend say that garlic a ward off a vampire. It doesn't work like that.

Matter of fact if the devil was coming right at you and you held the book up in front of him and go like this that would matter nothing to him, but If you used the sword of the Spirit if you use the Word of God against him.

And said right into his face the principles and the promises and the words of Scripture. He couldn't stand before that. That's the idea now in this sense. We see that the sword is both an offensive and a defensive weapon.

That's important to emphasize. The sword is defensive because we take blows from Satan. We block them with our sword to be sure but then we also venture forth with the sword and administer Offensive thrusts and that makes it unique among all the other spiritual armor, right?

This is what we want to do. We want to take the Word of God and stick it to the devil when he comes against us. It's really that simple, isn't it? So when temptation or despair or discouragement or fear or that black cloud to spend descent upon you.

Then you battle back by filling your mind and your lips and your heart and your thinking with the Word of God. We take the Word of God and we depend on it and we use it of course the classic example of this is Jesus himself remember when he was tempted in the wilderness and Satan comes along and he says well since you're the Son of God.

Why don't you take one of these stones and command it to be made bread? Of course, Jesus was very hungry after 40 days of fasting very vulnerable to that temptation. Jesus didn't try to chase away the devil or say nah, or I don't believe you.

What did he do? He got out the sword and he thrust him good with it. He said the Bible says it is written Thou shalt not know man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.

Oh that made Satan real back now. He came back again with a second temptation and a third temptation. But each time Jesus answered back with the Word of God and gave Satan a good strike back. And sent him off.

Not for good. Satan came back and tempted Jesus again. The French he'll come back, but we can send him away with the Word of God. Now to use the sword in spiritual battle. You need to remember a principle that Jesus spoke of in the Gospel of John chapter 14 in verse 26.

The Holy Spirit Brings Scripture to Remembrance

He made this promise to his disciples, but the helper the Holy Spirit whom the Father will send in my name. He will teach you all things and bring to remembrance all the things that I said to you. Understand that it's the Holy Spirit's job to bring to remembrance.

What we have learned with that sword. In other words, you can't just take this Bible and put it on your head and say God pour into me all of this truth. No, you've got to know it first and then at the critical moment the Holy Spirit will do what he'll bring it to your remembrance.

He won't create the Word of God in your mind. No, you need to know it first. But he'll bring it to your remembrance at the critical moment. And then you take the sword and you administer that blow to Satan.

That will answer his every lie his every attempt to deceive and discourage and to bring this sort of attack against us. I want you to think of a soldier or a gladiator in training. There is he's practicing the sword thrust right this move and that movement there is he's working through the whole routine now.

He has to practice that beforehand. And if he's a good soldier if he's an excellent fighter when he's in actual combat. The memory of all that practice will come back to him like second nature and he'll be able to use it friends.

That's why you need to be in the Bible. Not just here on Sunday morning, but in your daily life. You need to be in the word. That's when you're practicing your sword thrust and no you're not in combat right at that moment perhaps.

But when the critical moment comes you'll be able to take up the sword and use it just like you practiced in that critical moment. I guess my point is simply this. Effectively using the sword takes practice.

That's what you have to have. Effectively using the sword takes practice as God teaches you in your word. You're going to be able to do it. So friends think of how vulnerable we are without the sword of the Spirit without the Word of God.

Becoming Christians and Taking Up the Armor

You can never put away the enemy. Oh, you can block his blows and such but you can't send him running without the Word of God. So here we are. We're in the firehouse, right? Now first of all, maybe some of you you've never become firefighters.

So you need to become Christians. You need to become a follower of Jesus Christ. And then when you do you'll be issued your your equipment to have right the armor to have. The breastplate of righteousness the belts of truth the shoes or the combat boots of the gospel and you have those on.

But now here we are all together in the fire station and the bell rings. The attack comes to you, doesn't it? What are we going to do? Well, we're going to take that armor that's made available for us to us in that moment of attack.