Bible Studies

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by Gary Sims
08/18/03
Not For Sale
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The Epistles
Ephesians 6:10-20 – The Armor of God
Key Verses:

10: “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His power.” – After outlining ways that Christians should live out their lives in response to the magnificence of God’s love, Paul closes his letter with a final appeal to all believers: remain strong and abide in His love.
11: “Put on the whole armor of God.” – Paul leads us into a metaphor for how we are to prepare ourselves for a life of discipleship that uses the Roman soldier as a model.
12: “For our battle is not against the enemies of blood and flesh…” – Evil and darkness exists in the world but Paul’s stresses that humankind is not the source of this evil. To do so would countermand Christ’s teaching to love your neighbor as yourself.
14: “Stand therefore, and fasten the belt of truth around your waist.” – He begins to outline the tools of discipleship that can be used to help us stand firm in the Lord. Truth girds and supports us in everything we do.
14b: “and put on the breastplate of righteousness.” – Our relationship with God brings our hearts into alignment with His will and His purpose for our lives.
15: “As shoes for your feet put on whatever will make you ready to proclaim the gospel of peace.” – We are to “Be Ready” to take the gospel wherever He leads.
16: “take the shield of faith…” – Trust in and rely on God in all things for His plan is good.
17: “Take the helmet of salvation” – Fill yourself with the knowledge of Christ’s promise of eternal life.
17b: “and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” – Know and understand the scriptures that God has provided you for all circumstances you face in life.
18: “Pray in the Spirit at all times.” – Always turn first to God for His loving support and guidance.

Points to Contemplate:

Are you strong in the Lord? Are you strengthened by His love for you? If we, as Christians are to prepare, “to put on the armor of God,” for what are we preparing? Do you recognize that during those times in your life where you feel weak, frail and exposed that God is the first place you should turn? That it is through our vulnerabilities that God does some of His best work? That becoming God-centered in our lives is what Paul is calling us to do in these verses?
Are you a soldier for God? Or do you have difficulty with Paul’s war-like metaphor? Are we at war with the evils of darkness? Are we, as emissaries of the Truth and the Light, under attack? Is spiritual warfare to be our focus as Christians? If you should personalize Paul’s message and only focus on issues you face within your life, do you see that there are times that you need a reliable defense system in place? Are there times when the pressures of life seem to be pushing in from all sides, almost in suffocating fashion? Have you experienced situations where you feel isolated and alone; that you, seemingly, are the only one around that cares about truth and holiness? Have you ever been following a call that God has placed on your heart and suddenly found yourself enmeshed in resistance, push-back, scorn and ridicule? How can we survive these types of situations and still remain faithful to God’s call?
Truth: Have you discovered that a firm foundation for your life is established through a relationship with God and your belief in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior? Righteousness: Are you allowing God to change your heart, to transform and sanctify you, so that you are brought into alignment with His perfect will for your life? Readiness: Are you prepared to go wherever God leads you in order to proclaim the Good News of the Gospel to the world? Faith: Are you confident that God will be with you at all times and that He would not lead you into situations that the two of you could not handle together? Salvation: Does the knowledge of God’s grace and promise of eternal life for you help to erase any doubt that may creep into your mind and heart? Spirit of God: Are you growing in your knowledge and understanding of how the Holy Spirit is teaching, guiding and providing you with real-life answers to real-life problems and issues? Prayer: Are you in prayer at all times and in all situations?

Promises of the Gospel:

Paul is teaching us that as we respond to God’s calling in our life, as we learn to accept His grace and abide in His love that we will also find ourselves and our faith exposed to all the storms of doubt and ridicule the world has to offer. He suggests that we can prepare ourselves for these storms, that we can gain strength through our relationship with God and in our faith that He will never abandon us. Whereas we may find difficulty with Paul’s metaphor of spiritual warfare, we can also not deny that as we respond to God’s calling in our life we frequently find ourselves exposed and vulnerable. In times like these we need armor. God can protect you. Trust Him, depend on His faithfulness, immerse yourself in His truth, and pray fervently. Then, equipped with His armor and His love, go boldly forth where He leads.

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Rod Smith

22 Aug 2003

This is beautifully written. There is good use of layout technique such as bullets, color, and bold headings.
A very important topic too, and let's believe many will put on this spiritual armor every day after reading this.

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