Now would you open the word of God with me please
to the book of Ephesians and the sixth chapter
as we continue our study in the armor of God.
Today we focus particularly on verses 15 and
16 of Ephesians 6. And having shod your feet
with the preparation of the gospel of peace,
in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith,
with which you will be able to extinguish all
the flaming missiles of the evil one. A Christian
soldier who does not have his armor in place
is as good as dead. The state of spiritual warfare
is one which is perpetual. All of our lives we
are confronted by it and its reality. However,
we need to keep in mind that there are periods
of more or less intensity. The Apostle Paul seems
to have those hot spots in mind as he writes
this chapter, those times when the spiritual
warfare heats up in our lives, for he refers
in verse 13 to the evil day. He says that you
may be able to resist in the day of evil. What
is he talking about? Well, in one sense, this
whole age could be described as the day of evil,
for evil man is in charge in the human sense
in this world. Satan is the god of this world,
the god of this age, the ruler of darkness who
dominates. And yet in the context here, the apostle
seems to have those times in our lives. when
we particularly are battling in a fierce way
with the evil one. He says that especially in
those times when the war is hot, that you may
be able to stand against the evil one and resist
him. Can you imagine a soldier deployed on the
front line of a hostile zone who doesn't take
it seriously? who just plays with the idea of
being a soldier? How long would you want to be
around such a person? Would you want him guarding
your back? A number of years ago, I served as
a volunteer police chaplain in Covington, Kentucky,
as I was pastoring a church there. I found it
to be a fascinating experience when I was able
to see the other side of Covington. Usually when
a preacher would come around, there would be
a certain facade put up. When you're traveling
with a policeman, as far as the people know,
you're just another cop. And so I was able to
see what life is like on the seamier side of
an inner city. We were trained for that, and
one of the things that was impressed upon us
in the training was how important it was that
if we got into a difficult situation, which they
tried to keep us out of, and we tried to avoid,
believe me, if we were to get in a difficult
situation, we were to stand back to back with
our partner, our policeman, and we were to guard
each other from the rear. How would you like
to be back to back with a person who's supposed
to be guarding you and helping you, who is taking
it all like a game? who was playing at it. You
wouldn't like it very well, would you? I wouldn't
either. It would be foolish and dangerous to
be in such a circumstance. And yet, sadly, there
are many soldiers of Jesus Christ who think this
whole thing is a game that we're involved in,
in spiritual warfare. Believe me, this is deadly
serious business that we're talking about in
these weeks. For we have an enemy who desires
to absolutely destroy our life's effectiveness
for Jesus Christ. He will be satisfied with nothing
less than the total ruin of you and your potential
in the service of Jesus Christ. This is very
serious as we talk about spiritual warfare. And
when the apostle says, take up the armor of God
so that you can stand, He's not saying that this
is an option for us to think about when we want
to be spiritual for a few moments. He is saying
to us that this is an absolutely vital action
for us to take every day of our lives, that we
must be conscious of the warfare around us, that
we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against
the unseen, invisible forces of darkness. Under
Satan. And that wrestling hand -to -hand in combat
with them, we must have on the armor of God or
we will be their victims for sure. There is no
doubt about it. So what is the armor of God?
Well, we saw last week it involves the belt of
truth. This foundational piece of a Roman soldier's
army guarded his intestines and strengthened
the lower part of his back. It furthermore allowed
him to tuck in his toga so that his legs would
be free and he could be mobile and flexible and
react quickly in the time of war. For the Christian,
the belt is one of truth. That is, truthfulness
in the innermost being, integrity, honesty, a
life that rings with genuineness. And then he
talks about the breastplate of righteousness,
the breastplate, of course, that piece of armor
that protected the vital organs in the chest
area. For the Christian soldier, that breastplate
is righteousness, not the righteousness that
we have imputed to us by our faith in Jesus Christ,
but a life of righteousness, righteous deeds,
holiness in lifestyle that protects us against
the accusation and the attacks of the enemy.
One of the best ways for us to be in trouble
in spiritual warfare is to live a life that is
loose in the world. A life that plays with morality
and right and wrong. A life that walks as close
as possible to darkness without trying to step
into it. A life that is not separated. A life
that has hypocrisy. He tells us here that the
breastplate... that protects the vital organs
of our spiritual man is a righteous life, the
kind of a life that causes us to walk before
the world blameless. That is, we cannot be accused
justly of doing wrong. All of us have been reminded
in recent days and months of the importance of
a life that is genuine and truthful, a life that
is righteous before the world. Now he talks about
the shoes that we're to wear. He calls them the
shoes of peace. He says our feet should be shod.
Now there's a word for you. I don't remember
the last time I said to my kids, be sure you've
shod your feet before you go out. The word shod
is actually the past tense of a verb, shoe. It
means we're to shoe our feet or we're to put
on the shoes that he calls here the preparation
of the gospel of peace. Now, shoes are important
to soldiers for two reasons. In the first place,
protection. Even back in those days, the enemy
often seated the battlefield with sharp objects
or even pointed stakes to injure the footman.
Of course, a foot injury would then make the
soldier ineffective in the battle, for he would
only limp. He could not move quickly to the foray.
The same kind of thing has been practiced in
guerrilla warfare and refined into an art, if
such a thing could be called an art, in Vietnam.
I well remember the stories those years ago now.
of the boots which our soldiers had rotting in
the jungles, so that basically their feet were
unprotected much of the time. And new kinds of
boots had to be made to withstand the particular
rigors of jungle warfare, as well as the booby
traps which were set up by the Vietnamese guerrillas.
Protection, that's what boots are about. But
boots are also required for stability. In those
days, the soles of the boots which the soldiers
wore were made out of a heavy leather, into which
were embedded pieces of metal. These pieces of
metal provided a cleat effect, like we use today
on track shoes, for example, or golfing shoes.
So that their boots would have cleats and there
would be firm footing when they stood their ground.
Or there would be the possibility of quick moves
and their feet would not slip. And so shoes were
important for both protection and stability.
And so it is for the Christian soldier. We need
footing which will enable us to fight victoriously.
Now he says here that our feet are to be shod
with a particular shoe. These are not Nikes that
we're to put on, but it's called the preparation
of the gospel of peace. The word preparation
in some translation is brought across as readiness,
the readiness of the gospel of peace. The word
actually comes from a verb. which means to be
equipped. And it's in fact used that way with
that thrust over in Titus chapter 3 in verse
1, where he says, Remind them to be subject to
rulers, to authorities, to be obedient, to be
ready for every good deed. So the idea is being
equipped or to be prepared for something. So
it seems to me that he's telling us here that
we are to be equipped or prepared for the battle
so that our feet are shod with the gospel of
peace. That will give us solidity. That will
give us firmness in the fight. But what is the
gospel of peace? Is that the gospel of Jesus
Christ, his death, burial, and resurrection?
Well, praise God for that gospel and the way
that that word is used, but I think that there's
another twist on it here in this context. The
word gospel in its simplest form means the good
news. The good news of peace. I believe what
the apostle is saying to us is that we need to
have our shoes, as it were, as our shoes, the
good news. that we are at peace with God. I believe
the peace he has in mind here is that positional
peace that we have as those who have been justified
by faith. Romans 5 .1, Therefore, having been
justified by faith, we have peace with God through
our Lord Jesus Christ. In that same chapter,
he goes on to describe us before our salvation.
as those who are helpless, ungodly, sinners,
enemies. In Colossians, he says that we were
hostile against God. In other words, there was
no peace. No peace between us and God before
we were saved. But when we trusted Jesus Christ
as Savior, there was peace established because
we were reconciled with God. The cause of the
lack of peace was removed. That is, our sins
were washed away, taken away, and forgiven. And
there was put in place of that warfare, peace.
I may this morning be talking with someone who
is at war with God in your life. There is hostility
between you and God, and the basic reason, my
friend, is because God is holy, and we, in our
natural state, are sinners. Our sin offends a
holy God, and His proper response as a holy one
is wrath and judgment and warfare against sin.
But that same holy God is the same one who came
into the world in the person of Jesus Christ
that He might deal with that sin problem. Jesus
Christ died for our sins, according to the Scriptures.
He was buried. He was raised again on the third
day according to the scriptures. That is the
gospel, the good news of what Jesus did. He,
as God come in flesh, has dealt with that sin
problem so that you and I who are sinners can
come to him and have that sin forgiven. And once
that sin has been dealt with, by our repentance
and faith in Jesus Christ, then the Holy God
looks at us and no longer is there a cause for
warfare, but there is peace established between
us and God. My friend, you need that kind of
assurance in spiritual warfare. You need to know
that there is peace between you and God. That's
what Paul is saying. Let your feet be shod. with
this equipment, that you are at peace with God.
I believe that David knew something about this
as he wrote Psalm 56. Would you turn back there
with me for a moment? The 56th Psalm. David is
really in a predicament. As he pens these words,
the inscription tells us that he was in Gath,
in Philistia. And the Philistines had seized
him. He had gone there because of Saul's warfare
against him. Saul's desire to take his life.
He fled, went down to Philistia. And now he has
been taken prisoner by the Philistines in Gath.
Interesting story as it's related to us in the
book of 1 Samuel, the 21st chapter. But in that
situation where he was in danger and in trouble,
notice how he says it in verse 2. My foes have
trampled upon me all day long. He says they fight
proudly against me. Verse 5. All day long they
distort my words. Their thoughts are against
me for evil. They attack. They lurk. They watch
my steps. As they that have waited to take my
life, does that remind you of your fellow workers?
Are you in an office situation like this? Do
you need to put gaff over the door of your office?
Do you feel like you live there with David? Or
is that what your school is like? They lurk for
me, he says. They watch my steps. God knows his
servant's heart aches. In fact, David prays,
put my tears in thy bottle. Are they not in thy
book? He says in verse 9, Then my enemies will
turn back in the day when I call. This I know,
he says, that God is for me. What was it that
gave David his stability in Gath in that time
of danger? When the enemies were on him, pressure
was intense. What was it? How could David write
a psalm like this, of crying out to God with
confidence and faith? He says, when I'm afraid,
I will trust in God. What gave David that kind
of stability? I'll tell you what it was. He knew
that God was for him. That's David's way of saying
what Paul said. Let your feet be equipped. with
the good news of peace, that God's on your side.
No longer are you estranged and enemies, but
God's on your side. God is with you in the midst
of that battle. My friend, that assurance will
give you strength, stability, and protection
against the enemy. The Apostle Paul put it this
way in that familiar verse in Romans chapter
8. It says, what shall then we say to these things?
If God is for us, who is against us? A rhetorical
question. The answer is nobody can be successful
in being against you if God is for you. Do you
have the assurance today that God is for you?
That he's on your side? If you do, that breathes
peace into your soul in the midst of spiritual
warfare. That will protect your mind. That will
give you stability as the enemy lurks and stalks
and watches you. It will enable you to stand
in the day of evil to know that God is on your
side. Wear those shoes, my friend. You know,
it's interesting as you look at this text in
Ephesians 6, that the verbs in verses 14 and
15 suggest to us that these pieces of armor are
to be permanently in place and never removed.
The ones we've talked about, the belt of truth,
the breastplate of righteousness, the shoes of
the gospel of peace. The tense of the verbs suggests
that we are to put those on with... permanent
results. The picture seems to be this, that when
a Roman soldier had a lull in the battle, he
would rest. But as long as he was in the battle,
there were certain parts of his armor he never
took off. He might lay down his sword. He might
take off the heavy helmet from his head. His
shield he would put to his side. But he would
not dare take off his shoes. He would not take
off that breastplate or the foundational piece
of it all, that belt around his waist. Those
would remain in place. The point is this, my
friend. As you and I go through spiritual warfare,
we are to be careful never to allow these pieces
to leave us. They are to be in place permanently
in our lives. Integrity. Honesty. Genuineness.
A life of good deeds. blameless conduct, holy
living separated from the world and its lifestyle.
The assurance, the good news that God is at peace
with us and we are at peace with God and he's
on our side. But now he comes to another important
piece of the armor. The verb is the same, but
the tense is different as he goes on. For he
talks about taking up the shield of faith. The
point here with the shield that we'll look at
today and the helmet in verse 17 and the sword,
the point seems to be that these are to be ever
ready at our side, ever present with us, so that
we can take them up at a moment's notice. The
shield of faith. To the soldier, the shield was
vital protection. This shield that is mentioned
by the apostle was one that was four and a half
feet by two and a half feet in dimension. It
was usually rectangular. This makes it in contrast
to that small, round, convex shield that we sometimes
see in drawings and depictions of the Roman soldier.
This was what was called a scutum. There was
a large iron frame around wood, on the front
of which would be laid several layers of leather.
That was this piece of armor. Often that leather
was soaked in water before the battle for a very
practical reason. For the enemies at times shot
flaming arrows against the Roman soldier. As
the arrows hit that leather and wooden shield,
they would go in and the wetness of the leather
would immediately extinguish the flame in the
arrow. These shields provided full body protection.
Remember that people in that day were not as
tall as people today. So that they could easily
get down behind a shield four and a half feet
high and be fully protected. In fact, if there
was a rank of men who all put their shields up
at the same time, it formed a solid wall of protection
for the soldiers who were hiding immediately
behind those shields. That is the shield that
Paul has in mind when he says that you and I
are to have at hand at all times. For immediate
deployment, the shield of faith. What is that
faith? Well, faith very simply is believing what
God says. Faith is reliance. Faith is trust.
As someone has said, it is not believing in spite
of the evidence, it is obeying in spite of the
consequences. That is faith. Keep in mind that
faith, is only as valid as the object in which
it is placed. There is such a thing as foolish
faith. Faith is only as valid as the object in
which it is placed. That gives it its value.
Everyone in the world exercises faith. There's
not one who doesn't. Even the atheist has to
have faith that there is no God. But then he
exercises faith every day in his life in very
small and minute ways. Faith is a part of living.
It is the object of faith. It's what we're trusting
in. It's who we're relying on that makes all
of the difference in the world regarding our
faith. Obviously here he's talking about our
believing God. And he suggests that the evil
one, Satan, shoots at us flaming missiles, arrows
or darts. In those days, darts and arrows could
be tipped with what was called tow, T -O -W.
That was the coarse and broken part of hemp or
flax, which had been separated by... from the
finer part, by an instrument. It would be tipped
with that material and then dipped in pitch and
then set afire. And as it was blazing, the enemy
would shoot that flaming missile toward the soldier
on the other side. And you can imagine the excruciating
pain when one of those arrows found its mark.
For not only was the arrow able to pierce the
body, but it pierced it with fire. It was a terrible
weapon. And that's why the soldiers developed
this shield, to protect themselves. They could
duck down behind that shield, and the shield
may be covered with arrows, but they would not
strike the soldier, because he was protected.
The apostle says that Satan, uses, as it were,
flaming arrows against us. These, of course,
are not material or physical arrows, but spiritual
ones. Thoughts, primarily. Satan uses these arrows
in a spiritual sense to tempt us. Alluring, deceitful
attractions or desires are in mind here. Arrows
of self -centeredness, fear, impurity, greed,
pride, or doubt. He seeks to get his darts to
stick into us. And to burn there in our minds,
to burn with ungodly desires or evil responses
or troubling doubts, we've all experienced those
arrows when they found their mark. We must be
protected against these arrows or we are in deep,
deep, deep trouble. Taking up the shield of faith
against these arrows means this. When those arrows
come, we are to immediately apply against them
what it is that we believe about God as it may
relate to that issue of the moment. Satan sends
at you a dart of a particular kind. This flaming
arrow is coming into your mind. You have a choice
at that moment to allow it to stick there and
burn. Or you can raise against that arrow something
that you believe about God that will shield you
mentally and spiritually against it. For example,
Let's suppose that Satan shoots at you a dart,
a flaming dart of doubt regarding your salvation.
You can allow that dart to hit your mind and
to burn in you until it consumes you with doubt
and wonder and fear. Or you can raise against
that arrow a shield of faith in what God has
said. about himself and about salvation. Salvation
is by grace, not by works. God is a God who cannot
lie. God is a faithful God. If I believe not,
yet he abides faithful. I don't know what it
may be that you believe about God that will answer
that particular flaming, dart, but you better
get it in place quick before it does its damage.
I think that we have an example of Paul in this
regard in 2 Timothy chapter 4. Paul's imprisoned
here for the last time. He knows he's in trouble.
He doesn't know yet the end result of it all,
that is, whether he will be released or not.
He speaks, beginning in verse 9, about his difficult
situation. has forsaken him. Others have left
for one reason or another. Only Luke is with
him. He's without the books which are so dear
to him. He wants them. There is the work of Alexander
the coppersmith against him. He says in verse
16, at his first defense on this occasion, there
was no one who supported him. All deserted him.
He says, may it not be counted against them.
You get the picture here of a man who is very
lonely. A man who has literally poured out his
life for the sake of other people. Seeing them
one to Jesus Christ and established in the church,
and now in the hour of his excruciating need,
he stands alone. And only one man, Luke, is there
with him. And when he must stand before the Roman
officials to be charged, no one comes. Out of
the thousands of people who had been influenced
by his life. Can you imagine the kinds of flaming
arrows that could have come in his mind at that
time? Oh, look how you've wasted your life, Paul.
These people don't really care about you. See,
you're all by yourself in the hour of need. You've
poured yourself out for others. Now no one cares
for you. But notice in verse 17 what he believes
about God that protected him from those fiery
missiles. See that? Because he believed that
about the Lord, the Lord is with me. I'm not
alone. He's standing with me and I have his strength.
You see, that protected Paul in that hour of
warfare. against whatever the flaming arrows
may have been that Satan shot in his direction
and that there were arrows, you can be sure.
I had a personal example of this this week. As
a matter of fact, as I have been dealing with
this matter of spiritual warfare, I have found
in my life an intensity of warfare, the evil
one against me. This week, before I really concentrated
on how to apply this shield of faith, God gave
me an illustration that he later showed to me.
I was seated at my desk reading the scriptures,
and all of a sudden, like a flood hit me, I was
overcome with grief and sorrow over my mother's
death. Now, many of us have lost loved ones,
and we know that that's something that we deal
with, and that's a very normal thing. We shed
tears, and we shed tears for a long time. You
don't get over that kind of a hurt quickly or
ever fully. But suddenly I found myself sobbing
uncontrollably with this sense of grief and loss,
and vivid thoughts of my mother came to my mind.
Emotional energy charged through me, and for
several minutes I could do nothing but sit at
my chair and weep. I just wept. And from somewhere
within me, the Spirit of God I know, there came
the command to do something. And I reached down
to my desk and I picked up my Bible. And I held
it up in the air and I spoke out loud. And I
said, I don't care how I feel. I believe that
Jesus Christ is the resurrection and the life.
And I believe that to be absent from the body
is to be present with the Lord, which is very
far better. And though I feel that I will never
see my mother again, I know that I will see her
again in heaven. And do you know, as I began
to speak what I believe about God, the shield
of faith began to go up against those fiery darts.
And within a matter of but a minute or two, All
of that emotional charge that had been flowing
into me ceased. And my soul was at peace. I did
not realize at that moment what was happening.
But as I began to study this passage in more
detail and pull out the application that I wanted
to share with you this morning, God said to me,
Galen, do you understand what happened this morning
when you were seated at this desk? And I said,
yeah, I see now. I see what was going on. I don't
know what the flaming arrows may be coming into
your mind today. But I know this. There are many
of you under attack at this moment. My fellow
soldier in Jesus Christ, stand firm. And guard
that vital territory that God has given you.
Don't give it up for anything. And I charge you
today to pick up the shield of faith and to begin
to confess what you know and believe to be true
about God against those fiery darts coming into
your mind. And I want you to know that you will
experience the quenching. of those fiery -fought
darts and arrows. They will be extinguished in
your life, and though they may thud against you,
they will thud against that shield, and you will
be protected from falling in the spiritual battle.
That's how it works. That's why it's so essential.
We have an enemy who will not be deterred by
merely wounding us. He is not satisfied with
inflicting a little pain. His ultimate goal is
to destroy you. And he will be successful unless
you take up the armor of God and stand in the
strength of Jesus Christ. We continue with the
armor next week. Let's bow together. Father in
heaven, thank you for the armor you have provided
for us against this evil, wicked enemy. Forgive
us for playing in the battlefield. for not taking
seriously what is so deadly serious and real.
I pray today that there will be hundreds of soldiers
of Jesus Christ who will freshly pick up the
armor and stand his and her ground. Frankly,
Father, some of us have to admit areas of defeat
in our lives. We acknowledge that and confess
it. There have been arrows that have hit their
mark in some of us, and we are burning today
with self -pity or lust or greed or pride. Thank
you for being willing to extract those arrows.
as we humble ourselves and acknowledge our mistakes
and our sins. Show us, Father, how to protect
ourselves and to be aggressive in the battle
against the enemy. We pray this in Jesus' name.
Amen.