“12. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. 17. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: 18. Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints; 19. And for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel, 20. For which I am an ambassador in bonds: that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak. ”
In college, I had the opportunity to work at a hunting store. It was the opening day of archery season when a young man brought his bow into the shop. He handed me the bow and said something is wrong with it. I asked the young man what kind of problems he was having with it. He went on to say that he had missed a deer that morning. He was a little frustrated and figured there had to be something wrong with the bow. I asked him if he had shot the bow again on the target, he responded, no. I looked the bow over and found no cracked limbs, crooked cams, or any type of defect. One conclusion we could come to is that he is not familiar with his equipment. That’s just the way hunting goes, sometimes we miss. Sometimes we miss because we know what we did wrong. There are a high percentage of hunters that don’t really know why they miss, but the real truth is, they are not familiar with their equipment. Archery season is just months away. Whether the back yard or a local club, start spending some time getting to know your equipment. We call that practice. Try some targets or even a 3D course. It takes time to know your hunting tools, and the only way to accomplish this is to put some time into it.
Looking at Ephesians, we can see a great importance in knowing your equipment. A pastor once explained verse 12 like this, We are not fighting against the individual(flesh and blood), but against the ideas. Basically, all these names mentioned are the ones who try to influence society for how real life should be. For example, we fight against evolution, atheism, abortion, homosexuality, good works salvation, etc. As believers, we battle against these ideas because they are contrary to the Word of God. How exactly do we fight against these things? It goes back to our equipment! Are you familiar with your spiritual equipment? You cant find the victory without the right equipment!
Ephesians 6 gives us a list of different equipment needed in the Christian walk, but the focus today comes from vs 17, ” And take…the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” Are you familiar with your Bible? Do you know how to use it? Are you allowing it to be the final authority in your life? If your not, that would mean your living by the ideas of society. There are three quick things that our equipment (the sword, the word) will help us accomplish for the Lord in verses 18-20. First, it equips us for prayer, vs 18, “Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit…” What are some things you are praying for today? Is it pleasing to God or is it a fleshly lust? As we live in the Word of God, He will teach us how to pray and the things that are most important. Psalm 37:4 “Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.” God wants to do big things for us, but you must answer this question, will my desires bring glory to God? Second, it equips us for perseverance, vs 18, “…and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints. Perseverance is persistence. The devil wants to stop the work of God at all costs. The devil will bring anything in your life that he can, to stop your work for the LORD. Many Christians will go through storms! Many of them jump out of the ship or turn back to the land they came from because they are not allowing their equipment (the Word of God) to guide them. There are some seasons that the hunter goes to the field without spending as much time in practice as they have in past years. Even though they were once familiar, they find themselves unsuccessful. Christians are sometimes the same way. In the past, they lived in the Bible. In the past, they saw great victories. The present becomes stale and dead because they put down the Word of God. The Word of God will help you stay persistent, but you must keep it close! Third, it equips us for preaching, vs 18 and 19, “…that I may open my mouth boldly, to make know the mystery of the gospel…that therein I may speak boldly…” Paul is such an honored man even though he has been gone for a long time. We read about these great things Paul did for the Lord, but notice that it was the Holy Spirit that worked through Paul, vs 19, “that utterance may be given unto me.” Paul was a great preacher of the gospel. Why? He said it was because of his equipment! His Prayer, his Perseverance, and his Preaching all came through “…the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” We need to stop walking the Christian faith in our own power, we must allow the Word of God to strengthen us and the Holy Spirit to give us boldness in our day to day witness! How are you with your equipment today? Do you know it? Are you allowing it to be your final authority? Before you end this devotion, read over the context verses again! Have a great day!
Memory Verse Week 7/11/21
Ephesians 6:17
“And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”
