July 12, 2012: Ephesians 6:10-24
Notes:
After Paul provides specific guidelines for Christian behavior with husbands, wives, children, fathers, servants, and masters, he now turns back to general guidelines for the church as brothers and sisters in Christ who are joined together in battle against for the cause of Christ. In this section, Paul addresses the following:
- Get prepared for battle (vs. 10-11)
- Put on the armor of God (vs. 12-17)
- Pray (vs. 18-24)
Get prepared for battle
The first step of battle is preparation, and that requires Christians to recognize that three things:
- Recognize the mission for the battle (v. 10)
- Be strong and stand.
- Recognize the source for victory:
- Strength in the Lord
- The power of the Lord
- Recognize the enemy to battle against (v. 11)
- Our battle is against the devil.
- Our preparation helps us to stand against the methods of the devil, including:
- Schemes
- Devices
- Deception
- Entrapment
- Enslavement
- Recognize the forces that the enemy uses (v. 12)
- Forces not armed through flesh and blood, but through Spiritual mechanisms placed in key places:
- Principalities – chief rulers of the spiritual realm.
- Powers – authorities placed by the spiritual realm to rule over men.
- Rulers of darkness – authorities who dictate the propagation of the dark devices of this age.
- Spiritual wickedness in high places – the evil leaders (with ultimate authority) behind the conception and implementation of the dark methods described previously such that they would tempt men and cause them to fall.
Put on the armor of God
Paul now illustrates the devices we can use for our Spiritual battle.
- The armor and its provision (v. 13)
- The armor enables us to withstand or hold our ground through the day of evil.
- The armor enables us to stand for God, claiming new ground as we defeat our foes.
- The armor and its elements (vs. 14-17)
- Belt (or girdle) – truth of God – the gospel of Christ.
- Breastplate – righteousness of Christ along with living a holy life.
- Shoes (or boots) – prepared to share the gospel – saved, ready, knowledgeable and confident in the gospel.
- Shield – faith – trusting God to provide the victory and defend your cause, which is Christ.
- Helmet – salvation – the claim of salvation through the One and Only Way – Jesus Christ; claiming the Power that comes only through His blood.
- Sword – the Word of God – be ready with memorized key verses to call upon in battle.
Pray
Preparation and armor are important, but victory also requires prayer. Paul addresses the need for prayer in three ways:
- Pray for one another (v. 18)
- It is important to be in consistent prayer for those who battle alongside – your brothers and sisters in Christ, or as Paul describes: all the saints.
- Praying always – in a constant attitude of prayer, watching for needs among the church.
- Persevering in prayer in spite of difficulties and inconveniences.
- Asking God to supply what is needed in each case to obtain the victory.
- Pray for ministers of the faith, such as Paul (vs. 19-22)
- Pray for those in ministry to have liberty to speak and spread the truth of encouragement to believers.
- Understand that those in ministry represent Christ among the lost nations and need intercession to help preach with boldness and authority.
- Pray that ministers would have opportunity to communicate their results and victories as a manner of encouragement for other believers.
- Pray and honor those who serve God (vs. 23-24)
- Recognize the provision of God and pray that God would continue to supply:
- Peace
- Love
- Grace
- Honor God through recognition of His provision through prayer.
Questions:
- Who does a Christian battle against?
- What are the methods used by the enemy in this battle?
- How does the enemy try to defeat the Christian?
- Why is it important to be prepared for spiritual battles?
- What are some examples of spiritual battles that you have faced?
- What type of armor does God provide to help Christians fight and win the battles we face? How can you ensure that your armor is ready for battle?
- Why is it important to memorize Bible verses as preparation for the battles we may face?
- Does God expect a Christian to fight spiritual battles alone? Why or why not?
- If you had a friend who was in a spiritual battle, what are some ways that you could help?
- Paul states that we should be “praying always”. Knowing that God’s Word is always true and always has a purpose, is it possible to pray always? If not, why would God have Paul write this? If so, how can it be done?