Last week we talked about how Goliath was tormenting the armies of Israel and we see that the Israelites not only were afraid but basically had lost hope of winning their battles. We know this because no one, not one person was willing to go out and fight this giant called Goliath. The reason any of us lose hope and become fearful is because we have our eyes on the problem at hand and get our eyes off the Lord God Almighty. We must keep the Word of God before us day and night in order to be rooted and grounded in His Truth, and to be strong in our faith in God.

We ended the lesson last week talking briefly about the armor of God mentioned in Ephesians 6:10-17. Also I had mentioned that when David went out to fight Goliath he took with him his staff, his sling, and the five stones that he took from the brook. (1 Samuel 17:40)   Now just in case any of you are wondering, the staff and sling are not actually listed in Ephesians as part of the Armor of God, I just saw a correlation there when I read the Scripture: the staff as the Word of God and the sling as the power of God. That being clarified let’s begin our study this week about the Armor of God.

The Belt of Truth; there is no greater power than truth. Jesus said in John 14:6, “I am the way, the truth, and the life”. In Mathew 28:18 he tells us, “All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth”. So it is imperative that Christ dwell in our hearts through faith. The basic truth we need to know is that God so loved the world that He sent His only begotten Son to save us, not to condemn us. (John 3:16-17) We cannot understand deeper revelation without first understanding this basic truth.

The Breastplate of Righteousness; this righteousness comes from Jesus only. We take on His righteousness by believing and confessing Him as Savior and Lord. (Romans 10:9-10) We learn from Isaiah 53:6; 2 Corinthians 5:2; and 1 Peter 2:22-24 that He became sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.  Being righteous means we have right standing with God.  He sees us through the Blood of Jesus that cleanses us from all iniquity.  We need this righteousness (His righteousness) in order to be able to come into God’s presence without fear or condemnation.

Having feet fitted with readiness that comes with the Gospel of peace; we are to be ready at all times to share with anyone that Jesus loves them, died for them, and rose again, is alive and now intercedes for them. (Hebrews 7:25) The only way we can have this readiness in our heart and mind is to continually renew our mind with the Word of God as instructed in Romans 12:1-2.

The Shield of Faith; used for protection when under attack from our enemy. Ephesians 6:16 says this “shield of faith” quenches all the fiery darts of the wicked one. God told Abraham, “I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward”. (Genesis 15:1) We also learn from 2 Samuel 22:31 and Galatians 3:29 that God is a shield to all who trust Him; and if we are Christ’s, then we are of Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise. Therefore God is our shield too. Now let’s tie this all together with John 1:1 and 14, “In the Beginning was the Word and the Word was with God, and the Word was God; and the Word became flesh and dwelt among us”.  We learn to use the Shield of Faith with our words. When we speak the Word of God, we activate the Power of God. This is why it is so very important to know the Word; so we are ready at any given moment to speak forth His Word and activate the Power of God.

The Helmet of Salvation; a helmet is for protecting our head, our brain, our thinking capabilities. If we want the rest of the Armor to function correctly we must have a helmet that functions properly; which means we must think correctly. We must think about what we are thinking about; we must monitor our thoughts continually and consistently. We must bring our thoughts into the obedience of Christ, casting down every thought and imagination that exalts itself against Him. (2 Corinthians 10:3-5) The Bible tells us in Proverbs 23:7 that how we think in our heart is the way we are.   So our thinking is very critical to our ability to have strong faith and to walk in faith.

The Sword of the Spirit; is the Word of God; a sword is not only for averting attacks against us, but also for advancing our attacks against the enemy. The Sword of the Spirit cuts both directions. Again we are back to the Word of God and I must repeat – we cannot properly or powerfully fight against our enemy (the devil) without knowing the Word of God, and obeying the Word of God.

I hope this study has helped you, encouraged you, and inspired you to learn more about how to wear the Armor of God that He has provided for us.