Armor of God (Ephsians 6:10-18) Establishment of Armor

Now that we've looked at the different pieces of armor and what they mean to us, it is helpful to understand exactly how do we put on this armor.  Knowledge alone does not do us much good.  Throughout these verses we are called to be active

v. 10:  be strong,
v. 11:  put on...take your stand
v. 13:  put on...be able to stand...to stand
v. 14:  stand firm
v.16:   take up the shield
v. 17:  take the helmet...
v. 18:  and pray in the Spirit, be alert...always keep praying

As Believers there are three of the pieces of armor that we already have on.  These are established by our position in Christ.  These are referenced in past tense within the verses.

1. having girded - belt - Truth
2. having put on - breastplate - Righteousness
3. having shod - shoes - Readiness/Peace

The protection of these pieces is made possible when we receive Christ.  We are being commanded in these verses to stand firm in these areas/items.

The last three items - shield, helmet and sword - we are told to take up (as in we don't necessarily already have them).  These three items help us to continue to win the battle.

A few additional items that may help in understanding each of these pieces of armor and how to don and wield them.

Breastplate - God justifies us with His Righteousness.  The enemy will often tell us, "You are not good enough to be a Christian."  My answer is, "That does not matter." 

Romans 8:33 - Who will bring a charge against God's elect?"  - I am God's elect!

We are in Christ, so we are already forgiven.  We are the righteousness of God in Christ

2 Corinthians 5:21 - God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

To confess (homologeo) means to acknowledge or agree.  As Believers we don't confess to be forgiven, we are already forgiven.  We confess in order to clear the way for the fruitful expression of righteousness in our daily lives.

Shoes - Peace/Unity
In the Body of Christ, common doctrine is not the basis for fellowship; common heritage is.  We are all children of God.  I've found some of the brothers and sisters in Christ who I've come to depend on and trust the most are the ones who I see eye to eye with the least in regards to doctrine.  That is okay, we are still part of the same body and love one another.

Helmet - Salvation
I am a child of God, and nothing can separate me from the love of Christ (Romans 8:35)

People experiencing spiritual conflict tend to question their salvation or doubt their identity in Christ.  I know, I for one have struggled with this alot in the past.  I've often thought of myself as being a "fake Christian" and thought fellow Believers were able to see right through me and see me for the fraud I was.  This was a lie from the enemy to keep me from being effective for the Lord.  As long as I was worried about whether I was truly saved and concerned with how other Believers saw me, I was not able to focus on God and the battle at hand.

Sword - Word/Spirit
In this verse Paul uses rhema instead of logos for word.  "Spoken Word" is what this means.  Why is this important?  Satan is a created being and does not know exactly what we are thinking.  He can make some pretty good guesses at times, but he can not read our thoughts as God can.  This is important for two reasons:

1. When rebuking the enemy, especially when using Scripture as Jesus did, do so out loud.  The enemy can't hear your thoughts, so you need to speak the Word of God against him out loud, just as Jesus did when he was tempted.
2. Your unspoken communion with God is your private sanctuary.  The enemy can not eavesdrop on you.

We are in a battle, Beloved and the enemy would like nothing better than for us to be unprepared.  In order to fully understand the battle we are in and the protection we have through God's armor, we must first learn to run to God and lean on Him.  The more we pursue Him, the more we will understand and be able to stand in His Power to defeat the enemy. 

I recommend reading all of Ephesians to better understand who God is and who you are in Him.  I'll be adding more from the previous chapters in Ephesians soon.  I believe this is critical because without understanding who you are in Christ, the armor does not fit correctly.  Incorrectly fitting armor leaves gaps for the enemy to sneak in and deal some devastating blows.