Opening Illustration: Not putting sunscreen on my youngest at the beach. Earlier this year, my family spent a few days at the beach (the best place to vacation…) The first morning we were there, I did what every husband should do and let my wife sleep in. Wives, does that get an amen? I took on the task of getting the supplies out to the beach and putting sunscreen on the kids. There was a moment when I thought to myself, “Rachel is going to be so proud of me.” Right before we walked out of the door, I double checked and said to my kids, “Everyone has sunscreen on, right?” After three resounding “yeses,” we went out to the beach. Fast forward to that evening, I remember looking at one of my kids and thinking, “Huh, they look a little red.” Well, by the time we were heading to bed, I looked over at this particular child and noticed that little redness turned into straight red lobster-ness. I went back to this child and said, “I asked you if you had sunscreen on and you said, ‘yes.’”  The response: “I did. I had it on my face, but you never put it on my body.” I had a lot of time to think about my mistake because the sunburn was so bad that this child (and me) did not sleep for the next 3 nights because of the pain. There was one thing I needed to do above everything else when it came to being at the beach: Send them out with the right protection!

Today, we reach the final words of Paul’s letter to the Ephesians. We reach his final instructions to that church and to us. And it’s this: Put on the Victor’s armor and get out there. God has given us everything we need for our protection and our fight against Satan. The problem is that there are many who have no idea what God’s armor is. There are also some of fail to put it on. And then there are some that are so fearful of getting spiritually burned, that they actually don't get out there. Here’s what we are about to learn: none of those are options. Our only option is to put on Jesus’ armor – the Victor – and get out there. Put on what God has given you and live the life God has called you to live.

Open your Bibles to Ephesians 6. We are in our second to last week in the book Ephesians. Sermon Series: Ephesians: Masterpiece in Progress. My hope is that through these weeks, in this book of the Bible, you’ve learned that in order to live our lives and live out our relationships, we have to be filled with the Holy Spirit. Our passage today puts down the final stamp of that truth. Let’s read God’s alive and powerful Word with expectancy. Read Ephesians 6:13-17. Pray. We just read that there are six pieces of Jesus’ spiritual armor that we are to put on as we live out our lives. We are going to cover each one, so we’ll move them at a decent pace. Before we get into the pieces of the armor, let’s look at the posture we have to maintain against Satan. Here’s where we start: Christians can’t be wobbly. 

1) Christians can’t be wobbly. (vs. 13) Before I read verse 13, what did we learn last week from verses 10 through 12? We are in a spiritual battle. Satan and his demons are real and really want to render you spiritually obsolete. He’s a cunning enemy, but his power is limited because of our powerful God. The last thing we talked about last week is that you have surrender yourself to Jesus. If you want Jesus’ armor and God’s power, you can’t rely on your own power. Because of all that, what do we see in verse 13: ¹³ Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm. According to verse 13, whose armor are we putting on? God’s armor. When Paul was writing this letter, I’m sure he had a Roman solder in mind. But I think Paul’s main inspiration for this armor was Jesus. Isaiah 11 says this about Jesus: “He will wear righteousness like a belt and truth like an undergarment.” Isaiah 59 says this about Jesus: “He put on righteousness as his body armor and placed the helmet of salvation on his head. He clothed himself with a robe of vengeance and wrapped himself in a cloak of divine passion.” Each of these pieces of armor that we are told to wear are what Jesus wears. These aren’t just random pieces of armor that Paul randomly throws in at the end of his letter. Each of these pieces of armor have to do with what we fill ourselves with. Which is why Paul said back in chapter 5 that we must be filled with the Holy Spirit. In order to put on Jesus’ armor, we have to let go of ourselves and let Jesus fill us. It’s when we are filled with the Holy Spirit that we are able to put on Jesus’ armor.

Why do we put this armor on? What does the second part of verse 13 say? “so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm.” We put on Jesus’ armor so we can resist stand and stand firm. We put on the armor so that we don’t fall flat on our face because of Satan’s schemes. Illustration: Kids punching bag filled with water. One of the best gifts I gave my kids are those inflatable punching bags. The ones that you fill up with water at the bottom. Do you know which ones I’m talking about? Do you know what happens the first time a kid steps up to one of these punching bags and delivers a big right hook? That punching bag comes right back at them and delivers its own jab. And without fail, that kids ends up failing down. Now before you think I’m a cruel parent, why is this a good gift for a kid? Because it teaches them to hold their ground. The next time they get up, they are alert, aware, and ready for the counter punch. The next time up, they get ready, they get stability, and when that bag comes back at them, that bag has no impact on them. They go from wobbly to standing firm. Here’s the good thing for us: we don’t have to get spiritually punched in the face to learn to stand firm. We just put on the armor of God. We wear what Jesus wears by being filled with the Holy Spirit. So, how do we stand our ground? Verse 14 gives us the first piece of armor: the belt of truth. Putting on the belt of truth means this: Live and move in God’s truth. 

2) Live and move in God’s truth. (vs. 14a) Look at the first part of verse 14. ¹⁴ Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness. Paul starts with the belt. A soldier’s belt would have done a lot more than just hold up their pants. The belt would have been a foundational piece of armor that would have held the tunic together and a place that would hold the sword and place to connect the breastplate. For a soldier to tighten up their belt, it would have been a preparation for war. We see in other Scripture there is the calling to “gird up loins”. This is a call to preparedness. In addition, the belt would have been decent size piece of leather that would have protected the stomach and kidneys. The stomach and kidneys were often considered the most vulnerable and exposed parts of a soldier. If we want to protect the most spiritually vulnerable parts of our lives, God’s truth must be wrapped around us. This means two things:

1. God’s truth must be paramount in our lives
   • The revelation of God in Christ and the revelation of God in Scripture must be what our lives are founded on
   • We have to live in God’s truth
   • Soak your soul in God’s Word
2. We must move in God’s truth
   • The Christian is marked by truth, by sincerity, by integrity
   • Satan loves to use dishonesty
     • Illustration: Ancient pottery wax
       • In ancient times, the finest pottery was very thin
       • The reason it was the finest is because it was the hardest to make
       • It would often crack during the firing process
       • What dishonest pottery dealers would do is take in wax and fill in the cracks
       • The cracks would be hidden under the painting or glass
       • But when the pottery was held up to light, the cracks would show themselves
       • The honest dealers would mark their pottery with the saying, “Without wax”
     • The longer you fill in the dishonest cracks in your life, the longer you are leaving the most vulnerable part of you exposed to Satan.
   • Live in God’s truth. Move in God’s truth.
     • Fortify your life with God’s truth.

If you do that, it’s a lot easier to wear this next piece of armor. Here’s what we see next: Choose right living.

3) Choose right living. (vs. 14b) In verse 14, we see the body armor or the breastplate of righteousness: ¹⁴ Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness. We are told to put on God’s righteousness. Now, I don’t think Paul is directly talking about our imputed righteousness or our positional righteousness. That kind of righteousness is what we receive when we become a follower of Christ. You all have heard me talk about how when we accept God’s free gift salvation, that Jesus wraps His righteousness around us. Objectively, that is true. Christ puts His righteousness on us. But I don’t think Paul is directly after that because he talks about the helmet of salvation in just a few verses. What I think Paul is after is our righteous acts. What is objectively true will be subjectively revealed. If we have Christ’s righteousness, then we will act like we have Christ’s righteousness.

Why are our righteous acts a way to stand firm against the Satan in spiritual warfare? Let me say the same thing in two ways:

1. Our righteous acts – our right living – will seal off demonic entry points
   • Or to be it in the negative
2. Our unrighteous acts will create open opportunities for the demonic

You either shut the door or close the door. Here is what Christians are good at: Pulling the door to without fully shutting is. We love that little crack – that little hint – we don’t want to fully close the door on that little sin we don’t think is hurting anyone else. Illustration: I saw another pastor illustrate this in a way that really stuck with me, so let me try this with you all[1] There is part of us this drawn to do things outside of God’s design. Our former way of life is always trying to draw us. That’s what this match represents. Then, we live in a world system that cultivates evil. And when we let these two pieces come together, that’s when destruction happens. When we look at this flame, we think it’s not that big of deal. We’re okay to let it burn because it seems like it’s in control and not really going anywhere. Here’s the problem – here’s why we have to put on the breastplate of righteousness: Satan loves to come along and blow it all up! (Use Spray Can). Our righteous acts starve the flame so that Satan can’t blow it up in our lives. 

What’s beginning to happen is that there is some urgency starting to build in these verses with the armor. Paul makes it clear with the next piece of armor. Here’s what we see next: Always be ready. 

4) Always be ready. (vs. 15) Look at verse 15: ¹⁵ For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared. Roman soldiers would wear these half boots. The toes would be exposed. The soles were really strong. And they would be tied to the ankle. This helped the soldiers with two things: 1) Being able to march for long distances; 2) And not lose their footing. What are we supposed to be ready to do? With God’s armor, we are given two offensive weapons. One of these two offensive weapons are the shoes – the footing – that carry us into battle. I think the CSB translation writes verse 15 well: “and your feet sandaled with readiness for the gospel of peace.” When you take the hope of Jesus out into the world it not only stops Satan’s work on other people’s lives, but it stops Satan work in your life. Quote: “Giving the gospel away is one of the best ways of experiencing its power in your own life. The best way to taste the power of God for your own soul is to venture something on it…The more ready we are to move with the gospel, the more life and power and joy and security we will know in the gospel.” – John Piper. Satan preys on those who are idle. You have to move forward. You can’t win the war against Satan if you’re sitting around, not ready. The only way to overcome Satan is beating him in the battle. 

I like this next piece of armor. Here’s what we learn about the shield of faith: Remember who you belong to. 

5) Remember who you belong to. (vs. 16) We see the shield of faith in verse 16: ¹⁶ In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil. The roman soldier’s shield would have been a big shield – about 4 feet by 2 feet. It was made of two pieces of wood glue together and then covered with linen and leather. A key purpose of the shield was to stop the arrows. Arrows would typically be dipped in some kind of flammable material and lit before they were launched in the air. Roman soldiers would literally defend against fiery arrows. We have an arrow that is constantly launching an attack on us. The enemy will attack your identity. Satan will tell you things like: “No one likes you.” “You aren’t good enough.” “You are attractive enough.” “You don’t belong anywhere.” The enemy will attack your purpose: “What you are doing doesn’t matter.” “You will never be a good dad.” “You will never be a good mom.” “You will never be the husband or wife you should be.” The enemy will throw fiery arrows at you that attack your beliefs: “Is God real?” “You aren’t really saved.” “Your church family doesn’t care about you.” “You can’t be saved; just look at all the things you’ve done.”

What do you do when the arrows come your way? You pick up the shield of faith. Quote: “The devil’s darts no doubt include his mischievous accusations which inflame our conscience with what can only be called false guilt. Other darts are unsought thoughts of doubt and disobedience, rebellion, lust, malice or fear. But there is a shield with which we can extinguish all such fire-tipped darts. It is the shield of faith. God himself ‘is a shield to those who take refuge in him,’ and it is by faith that we flee to him for refuge.“ – John Stott. When those arrows start flying, you pick up the shield of faith and you remember who you belong to. You are a child of God and Satan can never touch that. 

Do you see the picture in front of us? The belt of truth; the breastplate of righteousness, the readiness of feet, the shield of faith. We’ve got two more. Let’s look at the helmet of salvation briefly. 

6) Know your future. (vs. 17a) Look at the first part of verse 17: ¹⁷ Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. At first glance, you make think, “I’ve got this one. I’ve accepted Jesus as my Savior, Lord, and Treasure.” Remember who Paul was writing to? He was writing to the church in Ephesus, so the assumption was that they were already follower of Jesus Christ. Putting on the helmet of salvation means you are living in the assurance of your salvation. It’s a perspective. Satan loves to keep you shortsighted. Satan loves to take your eyes off heaven and put it on the world. Satan loves to tell you, “Take a look around. Enjoy as much as you see because this is as good as it gets.” Please hear me on this one: This isn’t as good as it gets. Our future in heaven is far beyond the best things of this world. Putting on the helmet of salvation means looking to your future in heaven with God. The helmet of salvation may be the best piece of armor we have for the next 4 to 5 months. As we near the election in November – and as the world ramps up – just remember, this isn’t your future. We have something far more incredible ahead. 

Here’s the last piece of armor: the sword of the Spirit. This is one that some of you have been waiting on…“Yeah, give me that sword and let me have it at!” Here’s the last thing we see: Fight back with God’s Word. 

7) Fight back with God’s Word. (vs. 17b)  Look at the second half of verse 17: ¹⁷ Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. The sword of the Spirit is what? It’s God’s Word. It’s the Bible. It’s Scripture. Before I read God’s Word on Sunday mornings, have you picked up on what I say? I typically tell you that “God’s Word is alive and powerful, so let’s read it with expectancy.” I didn’t make that up. It comes from Hebrews 4:12: “For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires.” When God’s Word is read, it has the spiritual power to convict people. It has the power to show them what’s really going on in their soul. It has the power to prick people’s consciences. It has the power to stab people spiritually awake. God’s Word also has the power fight off Satan. What did Jesus do when He was tempted by Satan? He used God’s Word! He quoted Scripture. Think about that: if Jesus used God’s Word as a way to fight off the temptation of Satan, how much more should we use God’s Word!

I don’t tell you to read your Bible just because I’m a pastor and that’s what I should do. (Well, that is partially true…) I tell you to read God’s Word because I know it’s power. I know that it can change you from the inside out. I know that it can be used to fight off the temptations of our enemy. God’s Word cuts off the enemy. If you want to fight back against the demonic, you must know God’s Word. The deeper you go in God’s Word the more effective you will be in battle against Satan. 

If I’m sitting in your seat right now, here is probably what I’m thinking and feeling: “That a lot. I don’t know where to begin.” “I don’t know if I can fight in this spiritual warfare.” Let me go back to where we started…What area of your life is the most spiritually vulnerable and exposed? Whatever area that is, that’s where you start. Are you living in God’s truth? Is it wrapped around you like a belt? Is there an area of your life that is consistently seeing unrighteous acts? Do you need to put on the breastplate of righteousness? Have you been stationary for so long that it’s time to get your feet ready? Put on the shoes of the gospel of peace. Are you letting Satan’s fiery arrows continue to pierce your heart? Hold up the shield of faith. Have you lost sight of what’s ahead? Put on the helmet of salvation. Do you know God’s Word so that you can fight back? It’s time to draw the sword of the Spirit. Let’s all be kingdom warriors. Let’s all join together and claim back the ground that belongs to the Lord. Let’s fight against a defeated enemy. Let’s put on the Victor’s armor. And let’s go out there. Let’s pray.

[1] https://summitchurch.com/GetFile.ashx?Guid=6a548862-2efc-4a2d-a88a-f6a7b33739b1

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