Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil (Ephesians 6:11 KJV)
The armor of God is what we use to either defend ourselves against demonic assaults or launch an attack to destroy their operations. Proper use of the armor of God begins with a proper understanding of what they are.
First, note it is called the “armor of God.” However, God does not put on the armor; we do. It is called God’s armor because He gave them to us, and He uses them to defeat the enemy through us. You are God’s battle-ax, and those weapons work through His power at work in us ( 2 Cor. 10:3). God shuts Satan’s mouth in and through you ( Ps. 8:2).
Second, the word “armor” is used figuratively. When Paul wrote it, the immediate literal sense was the military attire of a Roman soldier. As Rome dressed up each roman soldier for battle, God has dressed up every believer to defeat Satan and his demons. The key then is understanding the symbolic or spiritual sense of armor. The word armor sums up two critical ideas: clothing and weapon. Therefore the key to understanding the armor of God lies in understanding the meaning of clothing and weapon in this context.
Clothing in scripture spiritually represents our state of being(e.g., robes of righteousness) or behavior (e.g., sheep’s clothing). The armor of God, like clothing and weapon, is the conditions of our hearts and our behaviors that protect us from demonic assaults and enable us to destroy demonic activities. In essence, God’s armor describes the thoughts, feelings, and desires in our hearts, the words we speak and things we do, as well as the spiritual condition of our hearts that have a direct effect on demonic activities in our lives. This is so simple yet extremely important.
God’s armor is not some mysterious spiritual weapon for some super-spiritual believers. It is your spiritual condition(e.g., the helmet of salvation), the truth you know( belt of truth), state and way of a righteous life( breastplate of righteousness), what you have accepted as true( shield of faith), the words you speak( sword of the Spirit) or the firm-footing or readiness in us that comes when we preach the Gospel( shoes).
God’s spiritual armor is not as complicated as it often appears to be. It is not something you put on when praying and binding demons in the air or the sea! You have some armor with you every day, whether God’s armor or your own armor— at work, at home, in Church, on the bus, that business meeting, in class, etc. God’s command is for us to put on His armor because we all already have one ( our own)—the thoughts, feelings, desires, words, and actions in your life constitute an armor. When they are aligned in the way of the Spirit, they constitute God’s armor, and He can then use your life as a battle-ax to defeat Satan in your life.
Put on God’s whole armor!
Meditate
How would you describe God’s armor in your own words?
Apply the Word
God’s armor is effective ( 2 Cor. 10:3-4). Sometimes I think we have created a system of spiritual warfare that is far from what the scripture describes in many Christian circles. If you want divine results, pay attention to what God says His armor is and put it on.
Pray
Ask the Father to help us understand His armor and how to use it effectively.
