Ephesians 6:13 "Use every piece of God's armor to resist the enemy in the time of evil, so that after the battle you will still be standing firm."
In this passage in Ephesians six Paul reminds the Christians in Ephesus that they are at war. They are not at war with another nation or group of people, rather they are at war against evil and Satan. Paul instructs them to wear the proper armor one would wear into battle. Many think Paul uses the common Roman soldier as an analogy here when he speaks of helmets, swords, and shields. But Paul was more likely alluding to images of the coming Messiah mentioned hundreds of years earlier by Isaiah in chapters 11, 52, and 59. The messiah would arrive wearing "righteousness as his body armor" and the "helmet of salvation." Paul says the armor Christ was to wear is exactly how we are to arm ourselves.
Satan and his demons are big and bad. Make no mistake about it. And if we are following Christ in any way, they are coming after us. We are in a spiritual war and we need to have some spiritual weapons. Paul tells us to be like Jesus and wear the same armor Jesus would wear...the belt of truth, helmet of salvation, etc. Satan will attack us. He will tempt us. He will lie to us. He will attempt to deceive us and kill us. We are to be prepared and armed properly. So are we? Am I? What have I done today to prepare myself? Have I been using his sword and shield? Am I relying on that? Am I relying on God? The battle is here. I better be prepared!
Dear Jesus, help me to arm myself and be prepared for the battle. Give me strength to defend against the evil one today. Amen.
