New Armor for Battle

May 31, 2009


Background Scripture: Ephesians 6:10 – 18
Lesson Passage: Ephesians 6:10 – 18

Today, there is much said about cyberspace and the possibilities of harm being done on a massive scale by terrorists that might attack computer driven enterprises around the world. These enterprises range from those with heavy individual consequences such as personal identity theft to international concerns about national militaries that are subject to be compromised by the new techno-terrorists. One conclusion that is constantly brought to the forefront of the discussion is that conventional anti-terrorists methods are insufficient and ineffective to protect against the many threats that exist in cyberspace. There is worldwide large scale development underway even now to find methods to counter these perceived as well as already demonstrated threats. Cyberspace is a very new reality and systemic of a society that has become heavily dependent on information technology to function.

Christians are also confronted with a new reality. We are beings that have been made spiritually alive through Jesus Christ. Our spiritual life is fraught with the possibilities of harm being done on a massive scale by spiritual beings that we are unfamiliar with. Our old methods of dealing with physical threats are insufficient and ineffective to protect us from the many threats that exist spiritually. Our lesson today shares with us some very good news. We don’t have to start a large scale development to find spiritual solutions to these threats. God provides us with all of the protective armor and weapons we need to be successful. This armor and weapons have been proven to be effective in spiritual warfare. We are admonished to take all of these spiritual tools, the whole armor, and use them for our benefit and protection. They come with a warning that the enemy we fight is very different from us. Spiritual enemies are not flesh and blood. That quickly eliminates using our “five senses” to aid us. Our hearing of God’s word is used to give us faith and faith is used instead of sight to guide our movement. When one examines the armor, it can be noted that the armor is what should constitute the character of a Christian. This includes truth, righteousness, the gospel of peace, faith, and salvation. If these principles of character are missing or violated, the person is exposed to spiritual harm. The Christian’s weapon is the word of God—the sword of the Spirit. As with any weapon, care should be exercised in its use to avoid unintended harm or collateral damage. All of these address the individual saint. It is not enough to simply be one in the number but each saint must be equipped to be capable of fighting the good fight of faith. The fight is made universal for all saints through prayer and supplication. The Christian’s strength and power come from God. The saints are successful in spiritual warfare because of the power of God working in their lives. We have new armor because this is for us a very new fight. However, the warfare itself is as old as time and the armor is battle tested and proven.

Robert C. Hudson
May 21, 2009