"the full armor"
Ephesians 6:11
I've got a cut on my hand, and I have no idea how it got there. Does that ever happen to you? I kind of slowly came to the awareness that something was hurting, but I didn't recall banging or cutting myself on anything. And what's worse, there wasn't even anything there! I couldn't see a cut of any kind, no blood, no redness, nothing. It wasn't until the next day that I could see what I had done to myself, and of course, I still don't know how or when I did it.
And I've got another place on that same hand where I cut myself a few weeks ago. That one was a pretty good gouge, and it's healing slowly, I think because it was deeper than just a cut. Now, I have a hunch of how I did that one. It involved a claw hammer and an old dresser. Let's just say I needed the dresser to fit in the trash can.... Then later that afternoon, when I noticed I was bleeding a little, I figured I had injured myself when I was destroying the dresser.
But the thing is, in both cases, I had been hurt, and I didn't even know it. It only became painful later. And I think there's a warning in this. Ephesians 6:11-18 is a passage of warning that many of us know very well. It's about "the armor of God". The parts of the armor include the belt, the breastplate, the footwear, the shield, the helmet and the sword. Now, if you'll notice (or even if you won't), with the exception of the sword, they are all defensive. What does that tell you? How about: beware! Obviously, I don't know when I wasn't being careful, because I don't know when I cut myself. But I am pretty sure of when I gouged myself, and I was being careful when I did that dresser-destroying! I knew very well I had a hammer in my hand, and I made sure of where I was aiming, and that I didn't swing down toward myself, etc. And I still got hurt!!
Verse 12 says our struggle is against the rulers, the authorities, the powers of this dark world, and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. We're talking sneaky, tricky, and when-you-least-expect-it attacks here, people! God's "full armor" is designed to protect us: head, heart, and all the rest. But it can't do a thing for us, if we don't have it on. And we are never not vulnerable. Middle of the night, spending time with loved ones, doing whatever you love the most... You never know when someone is going to say something unkind, or when satan is going to bring a worry to your mind you thought you had beaten, or open up a wound you thought had healed. And the irony is, the more protected we think we are, the more vulnerable we are. "When you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don't fall!" (1 Corinthians 10:12)
Our armor is truth, righteousness, the gospel, faith, certainty of our salvation, and the Word of God.
The dangers are many. But the victory is certain.
~ "And pray in the Spirit on all occasions,
with all kinds of prayers and requests.
With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying" ~
Ephesians 6:18
No comments:
Post a Comment