Welcome to the Daily Blade . The Word of God is described as the sword of the Spirit , the primary spiritual weapon in the Christian's armor against the forces of evil . Your hosts are Joby Martin and Kyle Thompson , and they stand ready to equip men for the fight . Let's sharpen up .
Speaker 2All right , welcome
back . This week we're looking at different passages of Scripture that reveal to us , and remind us , christian men , that we were born for battle . So today we're going to look at what should be a very familiar passage to everyone , and that's Ephesians 6 , verses 10
through 20 . I'll read it now Finally , be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might . Put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil . Put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil , for we do not wrestle against flesh and blood , but against the rulers , against the authorities , against the cosmic powers over this present darkness , against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places . 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 firm . Stand , therefore , having fastened on the belt of truth , having put on the breastplate of righteousness and as shoes for your feet , having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace In all circumstances , take up the shield of faith with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one , and take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the spirit , which is the word of God , praying at all times in the spirit , with all prayer and supplication To that . So , similar to 1 Corinthians 16 , 13 that we talked about yesterday , this exhortation by the apostle Paul is towards the end of his exhortation to the church in Ephesus . So in a lot of ways , this is the climax of Paul's letter . So this is where he's basically telling the reader look , there's a war going on . You've got to be ready . You were born for battle . God will give you the tools to win . Rely on him and not yourself . So let's go ahead and break it down . Verse 10 , finally , be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might . So you might be strong , and a lot of you guys are , but you'll never be as strong as the Lord Because , duh , you
are not the source of the strength needed for this battle , god is .
Speaker 2Verse 11 , put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil . So the armor isn't ours . Okay , we didn't make it . We couldn't make it even if we wanted to . But it is our job to put it on and not just some of it , all of it , or the whole armor . Right , you know , that's what we need to put on .
Speaker 2And each part of the armor coincides with a part of the gospel Verse 12, . For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood , but against the rulers , against the authorities , against the cosmic powers over this present darkness , against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places . Okay , so this is giving us the nature of the battle . So most of us in modernity have never seen real battle . And to those listening right now that have served my country and any country in that way , I am forever in your debt . But that's not the kind of battle Paul's talking about . This battle isn't against a rival country or people group , or really any people group for that matter . It's against spiritual forces of evil and darkness Verse 13, .
Speaker 2Therefore , take up the whole armor of God that you may be able to withstand in the evil day , and having done all to stand firm standing , therefore , having fastened on the belt of truth . So what does a belt do ? It holds everything together , and it does so from the center , from the core . What is the truth discussed here ? That's the objective truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ . And having put on the breastplate of righteousness . What does a breastplate do ? It protects your heart and your most vital organs , and without it we're supremely vulnerable . And what is the righteousness discussed here ? This is our right standing before God , which is imputed to us by God . We can't earn it Verse 15, .
Speaker 2And as shoes for your feet , having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace . So what do shoes do ? They protect our feet and they allow us to be stable and ready . And so what is the peace discussed here ? It's a peace that comes from knowing that we have been forgiven by God through Christ . Verse 16, . In all circumstances , take up the shield of faith with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts or arrows of the evil one . So what does a shield do ? It keeps you safe from the enemy's attack . What are the flaming darts of the evil one discussed here ? It's Satan's favorite attacks of temptation and doubt and unworthiness and accusation .
Speaker 2Verse 17, . And take the helmet of salvation . So what does a helmet do ? It protects our heads and our minds , right ? How does this helmet affect our salvation ? It reminds us that we have the assurance of salvation because we can be sure of our God and the sword of the spirit , which is the word of God . So if you're a Daily Blade listener , you already know this . What is the sword good for ? It is a primarily offensive weapon , and it is the only offensive weapon described here . And how can the Word of God be an offensive asset ? Because it is God-breathed , it is authoritative , it is today and forever relevant and it is sufficient for all things . So God already gives us what we need . We just need to put it on and ready ourselves
for battle . See you back here tomorrow .
Speaker 1Thank you for listening to today's episode Before you go . If you want to help equip other men for the fight , share this podcast around and leave us a five-star rating and review . Stay sharp .