Ephesians 6:10-20 This Means War!
Much of the last half of the book of Ephesians could be summarized by these words written by Paul to his protégé Timothy. “So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. Have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies; you know that they breed quarrels. And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.” (2 Timothy 2:22-26, ESV) Paul reminds Timothy that as we represent Christ in our world some may see the error of their way and seek repentance and salvation escaping the grasp of the devil and eternal damnation. But the problem is that the devil does not want any Christian to succeed.
In these next few verses Paul is exposing a side of reality that many would prefer not know about. Here Paul is going to introduce us to what is known as the Armor of God. Armor, as in battle armor, whether you know it or not when you said ‘yes’ to Jesus you entered into a war. This war can be called several things and as discussed in Chapters 19 and 20, “the sons of disobedience” (see Ephesians 5:6) and those that live in the dark will attempt to disrupt your Christian walk in any way possible.
Before we continue we need to fully understand that God is the Creator, He created all things including those that oppose Him. He alone is omnipotent, omniscient and omnipresent; none of His creation shares any of these attributes. However, we know that we will face persecution from the world and from dark forces (read Matthew 10:16-25; 13:1-9, 18-23; Mark 4:1-9, 13-20 and Luke 21:10-19). To encourage us, Paul wrote in his letter to the church at Rome, “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28, ESV) and “What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31, ESV) Paul also wrote, in regards to our own sin that, “No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.” (1 Corinthians 10:13, ESV) Later in the Bible both Peter and the apostle John wrote words to encourage us, “Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.” (1 John 4:4, ESV) and “then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment until the day of judgment, and especially those who indulge in the lust of defiling passion and despise authority.” (2 Peter 2:9-10, ESV) Always remember, “And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:20b, ESV) God is always with you, no exceptions!
Paul wants us to take notice that God will provide all that we need. It is His strength, His armor and His war. But whom are we fighting? Well you’re not going to like it but our enemy is for the most part completely invisible! We may see people but the power and influence behind these people are beyond our ability to see and hear directly.
10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. 11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. 12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.
Paul often used the expression, “put on,” as if we were clothing ourselves (see references in Chapters 17 and 18). In Romans 13:14 he said we were to “put on” the Lord Jesus Christ. Just like our clothes that go wherever we go, we need to make Jesus part of everything we do and that includes wherever we go. Remember if someone sees you, they essentially see Jesus. If that makes you nervous just follow this general rule of thumb, if you would be embarrassed or ashamed if Jesus saw you do something, then don’t do it. Here Paul says we are to “put on” the whole armor of God. Just like putting on the Lord Jesus Christ, we are to dress once and stay in our armor.
The only way for us to be strong in the Lord is to remain connected to Him (read Romans 4:20 and Ephesians 3:16). We need to believe that God will fulfill His promises to us and that He will provide everything we need, that applies for our current needs as well as provide for our salvation. Understanding these verses, regarding the armor of God, will help us remain strong and confident in the Lord. We are to put on the whole armor of God for the same reason a warrior needs to protect all parts of their body when facing an enemy before heading into battle. We have several areas in our daily walk that need to be protected as well. If there are any vulnerabilities in our armor our enemy could easily exploit them.
When Paul uses the phrase, “flesh and blood” he is referring to other human beings. He is saying that we will not be directly wrestling with people and things we can see and relate to in our world, but forces that are not visible. Since we cannot see what we are ‘wrestling’ with we need to really pay attention to what the Bible says about our enemy. Being ‘cloaked’ is a real advantage both offensively as well as defensively!
The rulers, authorities, cosmic powers and spiritual forces are the fallen angels that became the dark angels and demons that follow the devil. Paul also implies that they are very well organized as they are widely depicted in the Bible (read Daniel 10:13-14; 20-21; Ephesians 1:21; 2:2 and Colossians 1:13).
The word ‘evil’ has several definitions and is most often referred to as being the opposite of good, perhaps the best definition of what is evil is anything that keeps us from pleasing God or following Jesus.
The heavenly places can refer to the sky, space or the location where we understand where Jesus and His Father reside. Paul is not saying that evil exists in heaven with God, he is saying that these forces inhabit realms we cannot see or perceive.
Paul will now list five defensive tools and two offensive tools to guide us in our daily walk and minimize any battles we may get into. Note that each tool has a specific function. Paul undoubtedly spent countless hours either attached directly to a Roman guard or one was very near to him during his incarceration in Rome where he wrote this letter. His description of God’s spiritual armor is similar to the armor and weaponry a Roman soldier or guard would have been trained to use. Since we are involved in a war and need to be battle-ready we also need to be trained on how to use these tools. So you might want to call this section, “Warrior Training 101.” Spiritual protection of a warrior is probably more vital than their physical protection as this affects not only the present, but also eternity.
13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. 14 Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. 16 In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; 17 and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, 18 praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, 19 and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak.
Paul also knew that he was not the first one to use these metaphors. Isaiah, while writing about the future kingdom of Israel, said that a new shoot would come out of the stump of Jesse, referring to the coming Messiah (Jesus), said, “Righteousness shall be the belt of his waist, and faithfulness the belt of his loins.” (Isaiah 11:5, ESV) Then later again referring to Jesus as the promised redeemer, Isaiah said, “He put on righteousness as a breastplate, and a helmet of salvation on his head; he put on garments of vengeance for clothing, and wrapped himself in zeal as a cloak.” (Isaiah 59:17, ESV) Both verses emphasized the need for righteousness just as we, as followers of Jesus, still need righteousness for survival, of course it is still and always will be, His righteousness that counts, not our own!
Paul regularly emphasizes the need for us to stand firm (read 1 Corinthians 16:13 and Galatians 5:1). This means there is to be no wavering of faith or retreating in our positions or walk with God. With God, we are to either stand firm in our faith or move forward in our faith. That is why we need to be proactive in learning God’s Word, if we wait until we are under attack it may be too late.
The world is under the influence of the devil and evil, it seems like regardless of where we look we see opposition to God and His church. There is no doubt, we are currently living in evil days. Society today appears to applaud only those things that are opposed to the Word of God.
As discussed in Chapter 14, there is only one truth. Here Paul refers to truth as a belt (see Isaiah 11:5; Luke 12:35 and 1 Peter 1:13), something that would hold whatever clothing that is being worn to stay in place, which was even more important in Paul’s day. Who and what we are depends on the truth of the gospel and God’s Word. If we start off with the wrong premise or twist something to make it different than what God taught us, we will fall quickly and fail in our ministry. Without truth to hold us together we would probably stumble or end up snagging a lie that could just as easily discredit us or destroy us.
As pointed out above, righteousness is very important (see also Isaiah 59:17; 61:10 and 1 Thessalonians 5:8), okay, that’s an understatement, without God’s righteousness, we have no power, no wisdom nor ability to do what God calls us to do. More importantly for us we have no access to salvation without His righteousness. Looking at the metaphor, a breastplate would be used to protect a person’s heart, lungs and other important organs critical for life. God’s righteousness allows us to live in an unrighteous world. However, if we falter with temptation or fall for any destructive lusts, at minimum we risk loosing our ability to witness for Jesus. Don’t let sin take you away from what God has for you to do.
In life shoes are more than a fashion statement, they protect the feet from all sorts of terrain. Without shoes a person could not go very far without injury especially in areas that have not been previously trodden or paved. If we keep our shoes on we can be ready to move out and proceed quickly without delay. In the same way we are to be ready to offer the gospel at any time and at any place (see also Exodus 12:11; Isaiah 52:7 and Romans 10:15).
Not only are we to be ready at all times and be in the right location, we are to be prepared to share the gospel story regardless of circumstance. Our faith will shield us from lies, insults and accusations that might be hurled at us as well as provide access to our salvation. The evil one that Paul refers to is the devil who is also known as Satan, the serpent, Lucifer and many more titles (see also Matthew 13:19).
A helmet is used to protect the head, this is a vital piece of the armor, as it not only protects the head from physical harm, it also protects the brain, our central processing system, from trauma (ultimately affecting all other parts of the body). This metaphor extends into the process of thinking and includes the information that goes into the brain. Who we are, our personalities, our priorities, our values, etc. are formed by our worldview. Even though we may be similarly trained or taught, everyone has a unique worldview. A Biblical or Christian worldview, at minimum, would include the essential doctrine of salvation, however our enemy is alive and very active trying desperately to minimize the effect of God’s Word, hoping to squash God’s plan of salvation (as manifested through false teachers, see 2 Peter 2:1-22 and Jude 3-19). The devil often resorts to counter attacks using lies which can include the counterfeit truth of cults, alternate religions, pseudoscience (such as evolution vs. Creation, etc.), misleading philosophies, and of course insults that are intended to attack one’s character and accusations that attempt to persuade others against your way of thinking. Our faith in our promised salvation allows us to filter out anything that is contrary to what we believe is true.
The sword is the first offensive weapon mentioned (see also Hebrews 4:12 and 2 Corinthians 6:7), the sword of the Spirit is the Word of God, the Bible. The Bible not only contains the Word of God (as some people believe), it is the Word of God from cover to cover. The Bible can be used offensively to show the truth about the gospel and Jesus’ free offer of salvation and it can be used defensively to expose the lies and false claims of the evil one. If we did not have the Bible we would not know of God’s plan of salvation. Since the Bible is the source of that truth, it has always been under attack. These attacks include lies propagated to question the legitimacy of Scripture such as claims that the Bible contains contradictions or that the Bible is full of errors. The Bible is historically accurate, archaeologically supported and prophetically true, plus there have been more copies of manuscripts found than any other ancient literature. Remember, if a lie is told often enough by a few, it soon will be thought as being true by those who do not know any better.
Paul tells us that the second and final offensive weapon is prayer (see also Colossians 4:2-4), prayer is absolutely essential for all Christians. It provides a way for us to talk with Jesus at any time and any place. Paul also tells us that we should consider praying at all times. This may seem impractical but it would keep our hearts and minds on Him! We also know that prayer is essential for people to come to Christ, we always need to pray for those that are lost, that their hearts will be open and ready to hear the gospel message and we need to pray for God to give us the opportunity to offer that message. The word supplication simply means to ask earnestly. Paul says we should pray in the Spirit. There are a number of interpretations of what that means, however in context this means we need to accept the Spirit’s guidance as we pray as He will keep us aligned with God’s will. This is especially important as things and people change around us. Paul pleads with us to stay awake and keep alert regarding those changes and for us to keep on praying and while we are praying we need to pray for other Christians too. If we regularly lift each other up in prayer our ministries will be far more successful!
We then read that Paul was requesting prayer for him to be more bold in proclaiming the gospel, here possibly the greatest evangelist ever recorded in history is asking to be bolder, what does that say for us? Paul is asking to be more bold! We should share in his enthusiasm and desire to be more bold for God! Not everyone is called to be an evangelist (Remember Chapter 15) but everyone is to be ready to share the gospel message (never forget the Great Commission, see Matthew 28:16-20).
As Christians we can become weary, especially in the days we live in. Many times in the Old Testament the Israelites were warned that their disobedience would be judged. In the Book of Judges, a time where God guided His people through godly individuals called judges, we read the story of Gideon. Due to a widespread problem of disobedience, God allowed the Midianites to oppress the Israelites for several years. They finally came to their senses and started to ask God for help but thought that God had abandoned them. An angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon and he almost immediately started to question the angel, “Please, sir, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all his wonderful deeds that our fathers recounted to us, saying, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt?’ But now the Lord has forsaken us and given us into the hand of Midian.” (Judges 6:13, ESV) Gideon would gradually warm up and ultimately became a mighty man of valor for God, but notice how he, like many today, couldn’t see where God was and assumed the worse. Many nations today are in conflict and are rapidly turning their backs on God. Paul wants to encourage us that even though things around us may not look good, God is still in control so remember to always stand firm!