Ephesians 6:16-17 (NKJV) 16above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. 17And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God;
In our study of resisting the devil as we submit to God, we have been looking at the armor he has given us to protect us in the battle. Although the sword of the spirit and the shield of faith have an offensive capability, the armor as a whole is defensive in nature. It is impossible for soldiers to win if they are injured. Even if the wound is not fatal, it will diminish the ability of the soldier to be effective in the battle. In many cases a nonfatal wound will totally remove the soldier from the fight. Our war in the spirit is no different.
Throughout history, the army who can best protect themselves from the enemy’s weapons have been the ones who had the greater chance to win. In the body of Christ, we find many wounded soldiers who are no longer in the battle. Some are physically sick; some are emotionally and psychologically so wounded they cannot continue and others are simply so discouraged that they give up. In the natural military, the best medical care possible is provided. God has provided his healing touch to restore those who are injured, however, if we can avoid spiritual injury all together, that is much more effective than treating it after the fact.
To this end God has given us a belt or girdle of truth, a breastplate of righteousness, battle shoes of the gospel, a helmet of salvation and the sword of the spirit, the Word of God. These are not clothes that you put on, but ideas and principles that you must understand and believe. As you grow in the knowledge of the truth and learn how each piece of armor protects areas of your spiritual life, you will become more able to withstand the attacks and pitfalls that everyone experiences in life.
You may still get wounded, but the wounds will be less serious and easier to get over. In my life, though things have happened that were difficult, I have never been so wounded I could not continue in the fight. Paul said something similar.
2 Corinthians 4:8-9 (NKJV) 8We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; 9persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed—
I have also experienced the pressures of life, but I have never been crushed by them. I have certainly been perplexed; every Pastor has felt that emotion both for them selves and for the people for whom they are responsible. Yet with all the difficult things I have seen in others and in myself, I have not come to the point of despair. I have always known that God was in control and my emotions have been stabilized by that truth.
I have been persecuted, I have been abandoned, sometimes by people very close to me, and I have been struck down. I have failed and I have been discouraged but in all of it I can honestly say I have not been destroyed. I am nearing 50 years of ministry and 60 years of experience as a born-again believer, and I am still in the fight. More than that I am still winning battles. I believe one reason for this is the understanding of the armor of God that is at my disposal. I wear it, I fight in it and I have overcome every opposition as it protects me.
The final piece I want to look at is the shield of faith. I am a faith teacher. I believe faith in God is central to the life of every Christian. On our web site, Practicalbiblicalwisdom.com, you will find a number of books on faith. There is no way I can take a deep look at faith in this space. However, I want to look at how Faith works as part of the full armor of God Paul is teaching about in Ephesians. All of the armor is important but it all flows from the Word and is activated by faith. Faith is the connection between us and the Father. Whatever truth from the Word I believe and make a part of my life will work to protect me from the “wiles” of the enemy. Nevertheless, as a part of God’s armor it has a specific role to play.
As with all the armor Paul describes, the imagery is of the Roman battle armor. This was so ubiquitous in the world of Paul’s day that everyone knew about it. Their armor is a major part of what made the Roman army unstoppable. The Romans had two types of shields. One was the small round shield often used by cavalry. The shield Paul is describing is a large Oval or square shield. This shield was carried by the infantry. It was able to be connected to the shield on either side of it creating a wall when the circumstances called for it. Those behind the front line could lift their shields over their heads creating an “over all shell of protection.”
In the same way our shield is a force that not only releases the power of the truths that make up the armor but protects us in ways that enhance the rest of the pieces. The Roman shields protected against threats they did not see coming. Anything that might get through their body armor could be stopped by the shield. The shield protected them from threats that might be too heavy for the armor alone. Since the shield is an “above all type of protection, it could protect from threats they did not see coming. The armor was powerful, but the shield and the armor together were even more so.
The other important feature of this large shield was its ability to connect to other shields. One soldier with shield and armor was formidable, but when a whole block of troops put their shields together, it was almost impossible to stop because they were impossible to get to. All these elements can be applied to faith as part of our armor.
The shield of faith is what causes the armor to work. As we continually cultivate our faith in the peace of God, the righteousness of God and the salvation that is ours in Christ, we enable those truths to protect us with increasing strength. They are always there but they are activated as we believe them. Active faith in all the elements of the armor causes them to catch things that might get through our armor alone.
The more we believe what God has provided, the more automatic the protection becomes. I know that there were times in my life where I might have been overcome by some of what I faced, but my faith in the elements of the armor of God protected me to the point that I never even knew they were a problem.
Just as the Roman shield’s effectiveness was enhanced as they were joined together, so is our shield of faith. I have been blessed with a powerful believing wife, so I am never alone in the battle. If I was, my shield of faith would protect me, but when we agree, our faith is multiplied. This multiplication continues as we join with more of the body of Christ. One of the things that the Lord taught me as I grew in ministry was the power of bringing people into agreement. When we faced challenges as a church, I always went before the congregation and shared the situation with them. We would pray and believe God together. In this way we saw God move in mighty ways in finances and many other things.
It was common for armies to use arrows tipped with burning pitch. These were the “fiery darts” Paul spoke of in Romans 6. The Roman shield was constructed to deal with them. The shield was made from layers that made it capable of stopping the arrows. It would also be moistened so that when the fiery dart stuck into it, the moisture began to extinguish the fire. The devil often makes bad things even worse. He adds fire and fuel to the fire. When one thing goes wrong it seems like others follow. It seems that the fire will defeat us even though the trial itself has not. However, we should not fear. It may seem the fire is not going out, but our shield is designed to deal with it and as long as we keep trusting God, we will see victory in the end.
Take up this powerful shield of faith and see what the Lord will do even in the worst trials.
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