Spiritual Warfare

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devils schemes. 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. 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. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with tour feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the Gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. (Ephesians 6:10-17)

We must fight for survival on earth. We cannot survive unless we fight in a world where sin prevails. The famous French writer Victor Hugo once said, What is your mission today? What is your mission　tomorrow? It is to fight. What is your mission forever? It is death." The　situation is more serious for Christians, because our enemy, he devil, prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour, steal, kill and destroy. In order to overcome trials and to stand boldly before God, we must put on the full armor of God. The devil has established his kingdom in the air and keeps systematically attacking us by using his government, fallen angels and demons. Our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the spiritual forces of evil in heavenly realms. This is what we must put on the full armor of God.

1-The bible tells us to buckle the Belt of Truth around our waists.

The waist is the center of the body. When one hurts his waist, he cannot stand upright, and he collapses. What does the waist stand for? It stands for the faith of Christians. We can live stable lives only when our faith stands firm. Then we will clearly know where we have come from and what we live for. We will have clear attitudes toward life. Our faith should nor be shaken. What do we need to prevent our faith from being shaken? We need the belt of truth. Wrong faith disables and destroys our lives. John 8:32 says. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. What is the truth? The truth is our Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus said, I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me (John 14:6). To buckle the belt of truth means that we need to firmly to firmly stand centered in Jesus Christ. We must buckle the belt of truth in Christ around our waste.

2-The Bible tells us to put on the Breastplate of Righteousness.

We need righteousness to stand before God without shame, and it means our protection lest the devil should accuse us. No matter how hard we try, we can't stand before God without shame. None of us is so perfect in personality that the devil can not find something to accuse us of. God assembled the Israelites at Mt. Sinai and gave His commandments to them. God gave them commandments and proclaimed that he who kept them would live but no single person has kept them. The Bible say, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). And it is also written. There is no one righteous, not even one (Romans 3:10). Since man has fallen and become corrupt since Adam and eve, there is no one who is perfect and righteous.

To survive in a corrupt world, people cannot help competing with one another, and consequently, no one sticks to righteousness, truth and holiness. When we examine ourselves by using the mirror of God's law, all of us will be exposed as sinners. No one can attain righteousness by his efforts or labor.　What should we do then in order to stand before God with the breastplate of righteousness? Since God knows that man cannot keep the law. He sent the Lord Jesus Christ to us. Jesus, the Son of God, came to earth as a sinless man, took all the sins of man, was crucified and put an end to sin once and for all time... not for a month, a year, ten years or a hundred years. Since the Lord is the eternal Gad, the eternal God Himself came as a Man and took our sins and put an end to sin for eternity.

This is the grace of God. This is God's miracle and mystery. If He had forgiven our sins for only a year, we would be sinners again the following year. If He had forgiven our sins for only ten years, we would be sinners again ten years later. The Bible says that the Lord, once made perfect, became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey Him (Hebrews 5:9). The grace and redemption of Jesus Christ is eternal. When we accept the Lord Jesus as our Savior, God will see us as made sinless thought Jesus Christ. When we come to Jesus, although we are sinful and filthy and ready to be forsaken. He will forgive all our sins and pour the Holy Spirit upon us so that we will be changed and live for the glory of God. We receive salvation once and for all, but we need to keep changing and become sanctified by the Word and The Spirit of God. Romans 3:23-26 says, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement through faith in His blood. He did this to demonstrate His justice, because in His forbearance He had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished-He did it to demonstrate His justice at the present time, so as to be just and the One who justifies the man who has faith in Jesus. Since God has judged sin through the crucifixion of Jesus Christ; God is just. Since all our sins are forgiven through His crucifixion, we are forgiven and made righteous. God has demonstrated the great grace of His salvation in this manner. Therefore, to put on the breastplate of righteousness means putting on the sign of forgiveness which says, Made righteous by faith in Jesus Christ. The Breastplate protects our chests from arrows and swords. Unless we have the confidence that we are forgiven, we are likely to fall from an attack by the devil.

3. The Bible tells us to fit our feet with the readiness that comes from the Gospel of Peace

1 Corinthians 2:8-9 says, None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. However, as it is written: No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him. The Lord tells us to put on the shoes of the Gospel of peace that He prepared, which goes beyond all our imagination. God does not want us to run the race barefooted but to put on the shoes of the Gospel of peace and be protected.　

What kind of shoes should we wear? We should wear shoes of forgiveness and righteousness, shoes of God's love and the fullness of the Spirit, shoes of the promise of healing from physical and mental diseases, shoes of the promise of blessings and the deliverance from curses and poverty, and shoes of eternal life and heaven. We must put on these shoes of faith and step forward. We must put on these kinds of shoes everyday to live, successfully. Wearing these shoes　stands for victory. When we try to live on our own, we will fall and fail. However, when we live in the power of God, we can succeed. This is why we need to fit our feet with the readiness that comes from the Gospel of Peace. We must put on these shoes of faith and step for -ward. Since we put on the shoes of forgiveness and righteousness, we can have the assurance of salvation. Since we have received the Spirit and become a member of God's house; we are no longer forsaken orphans, and we can trust and pray to God our Father joyfully with all our hearts like a well-watered garden. Since Jesus is our Healer, we must have confidence that we are healed both physically and spiritually. Although we are depressed we must march forward, putting on the shoes of faith in God’s blessing and the deliverance from all curses. Even when death is near, we must step forward, wearing the shoes of faith in eternal heaven. When we arm ourselves with faith and fit our feet with the readiness that comes from the Gospel of peace; God will work in us and manifest Himself to us with signs.

4. The Bible tells us to take up the Shield of Faith

Shields are used to protect us from the enemy's sword and arrows. In the course of our lives, the devil keeps shooting arrows, throwing spears at us and attacking us with swords. The devil comes to steal, to kill and to destroy. The devil does not visibly reveal his identity. He comes to us in various forms of disguise through our wives, husbands, children, neighbors and so on. That is why we need to be thoroughly armed and take up the shield of faith. When we look at situations, we are likely to be shaken. When we rely on our surroundings, we may be shaken when a situation goes wrong. To live successfully and to avoid the arrows of the devil, we must have faith in God Who loves us, and we must march forward. We must know that we are loved by God and that we have become His children. We must not despair but know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose (Romans 8:28).

We must have and preserve our faith, trusting in God's power. We must trust His love and His never-changing Word instead of drifting or being shaken. Think of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. When Nebuchadnezzar summoned them and was furious with rage, he said, If you do not worship it, you will be thrown immediately into a blazing furnace. What did they say? They replied to the king, If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and He will rescue us from your hand, 0 king. But even if He does not, we will not serve your gods or worship, the image of gold you have set up (Daniel 3:17-18).

This shows that they had absolute faith in the love of God. The reason why we should have the shield of faith is because God has given His one and only Son to us. He proved His love for us. He demonstrated His love for us not only by words but proved His love for us when He was crucified, suffered and died, shedding His blood, and His body was torn. He redeemed us from our sins and thus proved His love for us. We can have confidence in these proven facts and for this reason, we can trust God and Jesus Christ. Since God and Jesus love us, we can be confident. Since we know that God loves us under all circumstances, we can trust that God who Is greater than all things. He will deliver us from all difficulties and make all things work together for our good. The Bible says, But my righteous one will live by faith. And if he shrinks back, I will not be pleased with him (Hebrews 10:38). Even during financial crisis, we must have confidence that God will never leave us nor forsake us. We should never tremble in our situations.

5. The Bible tells us to take the Helmet of Salvation and the Sword of the Spirit

Helmets protect our heads-the source of our thoughts. When we put a helmet on our head, we protect our head. When the Bible tells us to take the helmet of salvation, it means that we should remember the precious blood of Jesus Christ and His grace of redemption. We should believe our good God who wants us to prosper in spirit, in body and in circumstances, and that we should hold on to positive thoughts. We must be positive and productive. We must always think of positive steps from sin to salvation, from rejection to love, from disease to healing, from poverty to riches, and from curses to blessings. When we think negative thoughts about other people, accuse and blame them, we will become negative.

We need joy to live powerfully. The Bible tells us to rejoice all the time. What do we need to have joy? We can have joy when we think of the cross of Jesus. Since we believe that Jesus loves us and pours His grace upon us through the cross, we can say to Him, "Lord, give joy to me. Give your joy to my heart as vitamins to the body. Help me put on the helmet of joy." When Christ fills our hearts with joy, we will be positive, active, creative and productive, and we will have the power and courage to live. I pray that you will wear the helmet of salvation and joy. I urge you to pray to God for joy. We should do more than ask for salvation and health. We should go further and ask for joy, for it is a vital element needed in our lives.　The Bible continues to tell us to have the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. Hebrews 4:12-13 says, For the Word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow. In our struggle against the devil, our words or theories have no power. Since the more devil is far more clever and powerful than man is; man cannot overcome him. To overcome the devil, we need the Word of God, which is God's wisdom and power. Two Corinthians 10:3-6 says, For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of god, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

Therefore, we must interpret everything by the Word of God. We should interpret all things by His word and overcome the devil by the Word of God. Then the devil will flee from us in seven directions. There is nothing except the Word of God, which can drive ort the devil. When we stand on the Word of God, His Word will be with us. When God is with us, who can be against us? One John 4:4 says, You, dear children are from God and have overcome them, because the One who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.

Since the Lord is with us, when we stand firmly on the Word; we can succeed. To live successfully and to stand boldly before God, we must be armed. Let's check ourselves: Do we have strong waists? Is the waist of faith centered in Jesus Christ? Or is it shaken and bent due to heresies? Do we have our breastplates in place? Do we have the as durance that we are forgiven and made righteous by believing in Jesus? Or are we always negative, saying, "I am a sinner, I failed and am forsaken, so I despair." We have to check whether we are cleansed by the blood of Jesus, and as righteous ones, try to sanctify ourselves through the Word and the Spirit of God. We must examine whether we have our breastplates in place or whether we trust human knowledge, counseling or efforts in the course of life and fail. Have we put on our shoes of faith? We must check them, too. Have we put on our shoes of forgiveness and righteousness? Have we put on our shoes of faith so we can believe that we are loved in God's household? Have we put on our shoes of healing? Have we put on our shoes of blessing? Have we put on our shoes of eternal life? We must check these things. Do we have the helmet of salvation? Have we put on the helmet of joy? If we have not, pray, "Lord, put the helmet of joy on me. Fill my heart with joy and positive, active and creative thoughts. Put the helmet of salvation on me." Do we read the Bible? Are we armed with the sword of the Spirit by reading the Word of God? Do we have the sword of the Spirit and do we do everything according to the Word of God?　After having made all these preparations, we must pray earnestly to God. After being fully armed, praising and praying to God, we can ask for God's help and live successfully. We must be fully armed... not disarmed. We must examine ourselves with today's message from the Lord. When a soldier goes to war, he must take his helmet, shoes, gun-belt and weapons with him, otherwise he will be killed. During our morning prayer time, we should check ourselves... whether we are fully armed or not.

Let us start each day with fervent prayer, wearing the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the shoes of the Gospel of peace, the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, and then we can be more than conquerors in life.

by David Yonggi Cho