Take Up The Whole Armor Of God

“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.”

(Ephesians 6:13)

Walking with God as we do life is good, but it’s not easy. Opposition abounds on every front. The Christian has an enemy and it’s not the government, our culture, or some radical movement. As stated in I Peter 5:8 our adversary is the devil, and he ever works against every child of God. Spiritual warfare may be mysterious, but it is not a myth. Ephesians Chapter 6 teaches us how to deal with our adversary. Paul’s instruction is clear…. “Take up the WHOLE armor of God”. As believers we are not to “pick and choose” which pieces of the armor we want and which ones we don’t want. In fact, it is only by putting on the armor in its’ entirety that the Christian is able to withstand in the evil day and after doing all they know to do…stand. In a present-day situation, a soldier doesn’t get to choose what he or she will wear - it’s already determined. And so, it is with us.

Paul’s instruction is neither vague nor confusing. We are to put on the breastplate of righteousness. The soldier’s breastplate gave protection to his heart. When we place our trust in Jesus and what He did on the cross to take the penalty for our sin---we trust in His righteousness and not ours. In spiritual warfare, Satan attacks our relationship and standing with God - but when we put on….Jesus’ righteousness, Satan’s attack is blocked by the breastplate of Jesus’ righteousness!! The provision of this piece of armor, for the heart, shows the importance of guarding our heart. Proverbs 4:23 says, “Guard your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life”. Christians that are haphazard and negligent in guarding their heart/spirit will never experience victory and in reality, set themselves up for defeat. How do we guard our spirit? We guard our spirit by guarding our mind (our thoughts), our eyes (what we look at), our ears (what we listen to) and our feet (where we go).

In Revelation, Chapter Twelve, Satan is called “the accuser of the brethren”. One of the unchanging devices of the devil is to undermine the believer’s faith and try to get them to doubt their salvation. The devil…. the accuser of the brethren, tries to remind us of our past and present faults, failures, and frailties. We must remember, “There is therefore NOW…..NO CONDEMNATION to them that are in Christ Jesus, to them that walk not after the flesh but after the Spirit”. Our confidence…. our place and position with God is not predicated on our performance but, on HIS righteousness. Titus 3:5 says, “Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us…”!! PUT ON THE BREASTPLATE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS!! No wonder Isaiah said: “I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God: For He has clothed me with the garments of salvation, He has covered me with the robe of righteousness”.