In part 2 of this article, I outlined the critical importance of knowing who you are in Christ. It must be a total heart revelation. It is in this revelation, and being brought to maturity, that we are able to engage in spiritual warfare and see the kingdom of darkness regress.
Often, we hear Ephesians spoken of as the Scripture that relates to spiritual warfare. I will now go through each verse and present my understanding of the passages.
Verse 11
Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
Paul tells us that in order to stand, it is necessary for us to be whole. That is, to defeat the devil, it must be via a person who does not have major gaps in their life whereby the devil is able to have stronghold. As Jesus said in John, “…..the devil has nothing in Me” If you have deficits in your life, the devil is able to manipulate those flaws and you are exposed to attack. Accordingly, we are looking at a disciple who has matured through training and testing and is able to understand the tactics of the enemy and through a solid knowledge of God’s Word, is able to counter-attack and see the devil flee.
Verse 12
For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.
I outlined the meaning of this verse in Part 1 of this article. Again, I must state perhaps the obvious. No soldier can effectively engage an enemy without first understanding their methodology. Their response to their enemy must then be purposed, resourced, and tactically staged under the authority of a commanding officer. The same principles apply to us as we engage the forces of darkness.
Verse 13
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.
Notice how the verse declares to take up the whole armor. It would be completely useless to a soldier in a fight to know that they have a weapon beside them, but never picks it up and actually uses it to fire at the enemy. Having it must be followed by a proactive decision to use the weapons at hand.
However, to use a weapon effectively, it once again comes down to being trained. Once trained, a soldier gets to practice. I remember in the army being trained to use a machine gun. I think I learned more in the first few seconds of holding the weapon as it fired than I did in understanding the theory. The same is true in our Christian walk. We must first learn what to do and then learn how to do it! All of this must happen under an umbrella of maturity, humility and accountability.
Verse 14
Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness
Notice the position of encounter – that of one standing! We are to take the enemy in a full on position and be in the standing position. When you stand in the face of darkness, it very quickly identifies you as someone who comes armed and ready to fight, except in our case, our victory is always assured because when we come by the leading and power of the Holy Spirit, then, like our Jesus, we will win. Praise the Lord for His awesomeness!!!
The waist has a belt of truth about it. Now remember that Paul’s analogy refers to a uniform of the Roman soldier. The waist band also held the weapons which were strapped to the soldier’s side. The weapons were attached to truth. The truth was the freedom and life of the individual, but it was the cause whereby life and battles were conducted. You could only effectively go to conflict if you had a full belief in what you were doing.
The breastplate obviously covered the chest. The vital organs of the soldier were protected by a direct strike from an arrow, knife or sword. We too must have our hearts protected by the knowledge and the revelation of the truth that we are carrying about our waist. The truth that we know will set us free, and we are free to walk in the authority and power of the One who has sent us forth. Such a revelation, accompanied by a humble lifestyle which is totally dependent upon God cannot but help be protected by the King Himself! Truth, righteousness and a life of maturity under a veil of humility is the basis by which all people can achieve greatness in Christ. This is why Jesus said to first seek His Kingdom and His righteousness, and then, all over things would be added. These criteria form the basis on which other things can be built.
In part 4, I will finish my comments on verses 15 to 19.
