The Armor of God (Ephesians): Our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world, and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. How can we stand firm and fight our spiritual battles? By putting on the full armor of God: truth, righteousness, the gospel, salvation, faith, God’s word, and prayer. Recorded on Jul 28, 2024, on Ephesians 6:10-24 by Pastor David Parks.
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Our series, Ephesians: The Gospel in Life, serves as an epilogue to Finding Life in Jesus’ Name from John’s gospel. The Apostle Paul’s letter to the Ephesians reveals much about how the life found by faith in Jesus actually works. This series will touch on themes of grace, identity, purpose, family, the church, spiritual warfare, and more. If you’re considering the life of Jesus or if you’re ready to follow him today, this series is for you.
Sermon Transcript
This summer, we’ve been working through the book of Ephesians in a sermon series called The Gospel in Life. We’ve seen that Ephesians is a powerful little letter from the Apostle Paul to the church in Ephesus in modern Turkey that is all about how the gospel and our union with Christ changes everything — our identity, direction in life, relationships…everything. I hope this series has been helpful to you and to your faith and your understanding of what it looks like to apply the gospel to every area of life. Next week, we’ll start a new sermon series on the OT book of Ruth, which is all about finding the faithful love of a redeemer in a world full of bitterness and tragedy. But first, today, as we bring this series to a close, Paul ends his letter by considering the spiritual battles that we face and how we might stand strong in the armor of God. 25 years ago, there was a huge sci-fi movie that came out called The Matrix. The basic idea of the plot was that this computer hacker discovers the secret reality behind what everyone else thought was real life. Neo took the red pill, and his eyes were opened, and he came to see the dark forces keeping humanity in this virtual reality simulation called the Matrix. Neo joins the rebels who are fighting back against the machines using kung fu (obviously), which made a lot more sense back in the 1900s. But, try as I might to find a less conspiratorial reference for our text today; I kept coming back to The Matrix. Because for all who have the eyes to see, the Apostle Paul pulls back the curtain today on the hidden reality behind what everyone thinks is real life. At the end of his letter, Paul reveals that there are dark spiritual powers at work in the world. It’s not just that people can choose good or evil and sometimes choose evil (although, that is true). And it’s not just that sometimes bad things happen because our world is broken (which is also true). But also, there are spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms in opposition to God and enemies of God’s people. If we ignore this, it won’t change this reality. It only makes us more vulnerable to their manipulation. But as alarming as this might sound, we don’t have anything to fear. In Christ, and because of the armor of God, even the weakest one of us can be strong and stand firm against these powers — even when the day of evil comes. If you have your Bible/app, open it to Eph 6:10. We’ll unpack this as we go.
Ephesians 6:10–13 (NIV), “10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.” For the last three weeks, we’ve been considering how the gospel changes our relationships. Now, here, and through the end of the letter, Paul shifts his focus from relationships to the spiritual battle of life. Now, it might seem like this teaching is coming out of nowhere since we were talking about relationships, but Paul already warned (back in Chapter 4) that if the church fails in its charge to make disciples — not only helping people come to faith in Jesus, but growing/maturing in their faith, their knowledge of the truth, and their unity with other believers — then they would be vulnerable to “…the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming.” (Eph 4:14). Now, here, Paul explains that there is a greater power behind the dark power of human cunning and deception. There are schemes of the devil, the personal spiritual power in opposition to the Lord and his people, and his work in the world. Led by Satan, which means Adversary, there are rulers, authorities, and powers — there are spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. And these spiritual forces are not uninvolved in the affairs of this world. They are engaged in a battle, seeking to manipulate, mislead, confuse, and corrupt that which is good, noble, beautiful, and true so that there might be division, discouragement, destruction, and death. They work to generate fear, guilt, shame, hopelessness, condemnation, confusion, hatred, and murderous rage. They traffic in lies. Paul mentions the devil, our great adversary, but he also mentions the rulers, authorities, and powers of this dark world, which he describes as spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. I think we’d probably all want more information about these creatures than Paul gives us here. But he simply presents this as the hidden reality behind what everyone thinks is real life. So, in light of this reality, Paul exhorts the Ephesians to be strong. But how? How might we have the strength to win these spiritual battles? Paul says, “…be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.” I wonder how often Christians try to fight their battles according to our strength or by worldly means of power. He doesn’t say, “Be strong in your wealth and in your mighty net worth.” Money doesn’t protect you from the spiritual forces of evil. He doesn’t say, “Be strong in your fitness and in the power of your beauty.” or “Be strong in your education and in your mighty intellect.” or “Be strong in your politics and in your candidate or party.” What does he say? “…be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power [lit. the strength of his power].” Why? The answer is so critical to understanding the world we live in — “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood.” In other words, the true battle (the battle under the battle) is not against other people. It’s not against ourselves, either. When we get caught up in a struggle with people we’re not fighting at the right level. Paul tells his friends in Ephesus, “Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.” He repeats this in v. 13., saying, “…so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.” But what is the armor of God? And how do we put it on so that we might stand?
Ephesians 6:14-17 (NIV), “14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” The Apostle Paul was a Jewish man who was a scholar in the Hebrew Bible, but he was also a Roman citizen. As such, he pulls the imagery of the armor of God from both the Hebrew Bible and the Roman culture he lived in. Most of the elements of the armor of God can be found in the book of Isaiah in the OT of our Bibles. Sadly, we don’t have time this morning for a deep dive into that, but that would be fun. But Paul adapts these Biblical elements of armor into the pattern of the armor of the Roman soldier, which the Ephesians would’ve understood immediately. The Roman army was the elite fighting force on the planet at this time. And Paul was intimately familiar with Roman soldiers as he was guarded by them for the last years of his life as he was kept under guard while awaiting his trial in Rome. But for us who are maybe a little removed from this historically/culturally, let’s look at a picture of the armor of a Roman soldier of this time. We can see the helmet, breastplate, belt, and sandals or leather boots that the soldier wore would provide protection for their vital organs. The shield, too, was mostly a defensive tool. Roman soldiers had a formation they called the tortoise, which was when they would lock their shields together to be protected from spear and sword attack from the front and from arrows above. It was highly effective. Soldiers might have a short sword in their belt. This is the only offensive weapon that Paul mentions here. Turning from the armor of the Roman soldier to the armor of God, we find that the belt is a belt of truth. Jesus said when you know the truth, the truth will set you free. Paul says the truth serves to protect you, as well. Knowing what is true helps protect you from being deceived or led astray. The breastplate is the breastplate of righteousness. This is about conducting yourself according to what is right — about being committed to thinking, saying, and doing what is right as defined by God. Our good works are not the way of salvation. We are saved by the grace of God and through faith in Jesus. But when we are saved, we are saved into a new way of life of following Jesus. When we actually follow him (and we don’t simply claim to follow him), it leads to a life of righteousness. And the way of Jesus helps protect you from evil. Humbly but faithfully following Jesus guards your heart, from which every other thing flows in life. Standing firm, by the way, requires already having the belt of truth buckled around your waist and the breastplate of righteousness already in place. You aren’t going to be able to stand firm very well if, on the day of testing, it’s the first time you’ve ever thought about what’s true or you’ve never thought about trying to do or say what is right. In other words, the Christian must put on the armor of God before the battle. Be a person who seeks the truth and is committed to the truth, who tries hard to say/do what is right, who knows/remembers the gospel, and a person of faith who knows they are saved because of the word of God. If this is who you are and this is how you live your life, you will stand firm in the day of temptation, in the day of evil, no matter what demonic force is working against you. V. 15 says our feet must be “…fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.” I say it all the time, but Christians need the gospel just as much as anyone. Pastors need the gospel. Everyone needs to hear and believe and then be reminded again and again of the incredible truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ. We never graduate from our need for the gospel. For it is the “…power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes.” The gospel not only liberates us from bondage to sin and death, but it protects us from spiritual attack as well. v. 16 mentions the shield of faith: “…with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.” Faith is a protection. But the protection comes from the object of our faith, not the strength of our faith. If the gospel is true, then we believe in the creator of the heavens and the earth. We trust our lives to the one who died to save us. Even a little faith in him is enough. But the more we grow in our faith, the better. The more faith, the less fear. The more faith, the more hope, joy, peace. The more we actually believe that “the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.” (1Jn 4:4). V. 17 mentions the helmet of salvation. Just as a commitment to do what’s right protects your heart, the knowledge of your salvation protects your head. When you might be tempted to become discouraged or fall into despair, remembering how and why you are saved can restore peace and joy. Finally, Paul mentions “ the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” The Bible is the verbally inspired word of God. God has spoken through human authors to reveal himself and his will to the world. Everything else is defensive, protecting us from attack, but the Bible is our only offensive weapon. “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” (Heb 4:12). This is the full armor of God: knowing the truth, living according to righteousness, believing the gospel, having assurance of salvation and faith, and standing on the word of God. The Christian, properly armed, can stand firm against anything in heaven or earth or under the earth. But just as a Roman soldier by themselves would be more vulnerable than a whole battalion marching in formation, so a Christian by themselves is more vulnerable than a Christian in the community of the church. But how might we help one another fight these spiritual battles? How can we lock our shields together and stand strong together when the day of evil comes?
Ephesians 6:18-20 (NIV), “18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. 19 Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.” How can we help one another fight our battles? Through faithful, persistent prayer. Pray all kinds of prayers in the Spirit and keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. I love what Dr. Cohick says about this. “We might think of prayer as the army supply line that brings bullets and butter to the soldiers on the front line. Without ammunition and food, the soldier has no strength or defense.” (Cohick, NICONT, p. 428). Even the mighty Apostle Paul needed his friends in Ephesus to be praying for him. Even after many years of training as a pharisee, which brought incredible depth to his biblical knowledge, and after many years of ministry as the apostle to the Gentiles after becoming a Christian, Paul still needed prayer to declare the mystery of the gospel without fear. A Christian on their own is an emergency. Everyone needs help sometimes. Everyone gets tangled up in fear at times. So, everyone needs prayer — including your friends, family members, church leaders, and more. Be alert. You never know when a flaming arrow might strike. But the armor of God and the prayers and other ministry of our brothers and sisters in Christ and the Spirit of God himself will sustain us so that even the weakest among us is able to be strong and stand firm. There are many examples of this, both positively and negatively, in the Bible. I think of the demonic attack in the Garden of Eden, where Adam and Eve are tempted to question God’s word and are deceived by a lie. They lost the battle that day. Or I think of the temptation of Jesus in the wilderness. Three times, Satan tempted him, and three times, he responded with the Sword of the Spirit, quoting the word of God. He won the battle that day. But nowhere in history was there a greater defeat of the rulers, authorities, principalities, and powers of darkness than the cross of Christ. “And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.” (Col 2:15). On the cross, Jesus Christ, the Son of God, used the tool of the devil, a tool of death, as a means of defeating death. Jesus died and was buried, but on the third day, he rose again from the dead, winning the war by conquering the power of sin, death, and hell. So today, the war is won, though the battle continues to rage. But one day, Christ will return, the dead will come to life, and all will stand before their Maker. And he will judge the living and the dead. He will judge the physical and the spiritual realm. And he will make all things new.
Ephesians 6:21-24 (NIV), “21 Tychicus, the dear brother and faithful servant in the Lord, will tell you everything, so that you also may know how I am and what I am doing. 22 I am sending him to you for this very purpose, that you may know how we are, and that he may encourage you. 23 Peace to the brothers and sisters, and love with faith from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 24 Grace to all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with an undying love.” This is God’s word. Now, as we wrap up this letter, I think we’ve talked at length about our union with Christ and how the gospel changes everything. So in application for today, I’d like to come back to this theme of spiritual battle. In talking with many people over the years, I’ve noticed that some Christians tend to either over-spiritualize their lives and the world around them or they tend to under-spiritualize their lives and the world around them. When they over-spiritualize their lives, they tend to look for and see spiritual influence/manipulation behind every rock and tree, behind every victory or difficulty, behind everything. While other Christians tend to under-spiritualize their lives or the events of the world around them. Basically, only things that they can see, hear, and feel are real. Even if they believe that God exists who is Spirit, so therefore, there must be something beyond this materialistic world; functionally, they live as if there is no spiritual realm. Our passage today doesn’t allow us to under-spiritualize our lives or the world around us. According to the whole Bible, there is a spiritual realm that God has made, and in some ways, it is more real than the physical realm we can observe with our senses. If we ignore this fact, we will be vulnerable to spiritual attack because we won’t be paying attention — we won’t be ready when the day of evil/temptation comes. But for those who might tend to over-spiritualize their lives, notice what the armor consists of, notice what your weapons are by which we might fight: these are just the normal elements of a regular-old Christian life. Some of us pray for and long for (and I don’t think this is wrong) a unique, special manifestation of spiritual power. But there is real spiritual power in the basic Christian life. Learn what is true, do what is right, believe the gospel, have the assurance of your salvation and of faith, share the gospel, defend yourself against attacks, and use the word of God. You will be able to stand. Let us pray.
