Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil.
I remember discovering the WWII section in my elementary school library. It was like finding a secret treasure. The first book I read was called Battle for the Atlantic, Then I read everyone one they had. There was something fascinating, noble heroic about that history.
That is what drew me to those stories? They speak to the human heart & condition? The struggle between good & evil, average people who rise, fight & sacrifice for a greater cause. The inner wish that we would be so noble and sacrificial in our own lives. The dream of being part of something truly significant.
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.
The truth is, We live in a war zone. If you have ever stepped up to really follow Jesus you have felt this. If not, you may not realize it yet. When you take your faith with Jesus seriously you become a target of His enemy. The whole purpose is to prevent us from going deeper in our relationship with Jesus, His family & especially His mission. He wants to disrupt Jesus’ work through us! This happens especially when you are on the verge of a spiritual breakthrough.
Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm.
Spiritual enemies require spiritual weapons. You cannot fight deception with security systems, muscles, knives, bullets, or bombs. We must prepare spiritually in advance. It’s important to stay ready and train because we don’t know when or how the attack will come. We need His whole armor.
Thankfully, God gives us armor to stand strong in His mission. Like protective gear for athletes and first responders, How much more important to take up the spiritual protection Jesus offers us for the most destructive battles you will ever face.
Eph 6:14 Stand firm therefore, having girded your loins with truth,
John 8:32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.”
Last weekend we started the series discovering that we can stand firm in life’s battles through deepening trust in God’s truth. Satan’s oldest strategy is to intentionally deceive, confuse or blind us. It worked in the Garden of Eden. It has worked ever since. But it doesn’t have to. In Christ God has given us the truth of His word to give us light and direction in the darkness of this world. If we will just learn to embrace it, digest it follow it because we trust it we can stand even in the face of the trickiest deception.
Ps 119:105 Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.
Psalm 119:160 The sum of Your word is truth, and every one of Your righteous ordinances is everlasting.
Join us the next two months as we learn about the Spiritual protection God has designed for us and how we can best make use of it. Catch up on the first lesson at www.parkviewfamily.com. Of course I’d love to see you this weekend as we continue the series as well. In the mean time ask yourself. “How strong is your stance? Will you strengthen it by fully deeply embracing God’s truth?
John's sermon thoughts 