Arm Yourself

When you join an army, first and foremost, it is the armor that is focused on, not the weapons.
A soldier not properly armored is more likely killed or wounded in battle.
The first thing the soldier in Christ must do is “put on the whole armor of god” Eph 6
This first step is an active step, if you don’t put it on then you won’t be protected. Remember that partial armor offers only partial protection.

God’s soldier wears six basic pieces of armor: HELMET OF SALVATION, BREASTPLATE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS, BELT OF TRUTH, GOSPEL BOOTS, SHIELD OF FAITH, and SWORD OF THE SPIRIT.

The Helmut of Salvation: Protects the mind of Christ in you from the relentless attacks of the enemy. Remember that the enemy is a liar; He will twist the Word of God (Luke 4),
He will plant seeds of distrust in you to get your to question your relationship to God (Genesis 3).

The Breastplate of Righteousness: Gives protection to our new hearts created in us by God (Ezekiel 11:19, 18:31, 36:26). “For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” (Rom 10:10) Second, the Breastplate covers our sin stained past, we have all sinned and fallen short, we are new creations, therefore it is no longer I that live, but Christ that lives in me. We have been clothed with Christ and when God looks at us he see the righteousness of Christ if we choose to put on Christ.

The Belt of Truth: Truth is vital to a solder. Knowledge of the enemy and their position helps protect that soldier from injury. The belt of truth also protects our weakest and most vulnerable area. When a soldier lives by the truth he will overcome the enemy. “You shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free.” (John 8:32).

Gospel Boots: the gospel brings people from one place to another, just as a soldier must be ready to move to protect themselves. People that accept the Gospel, are brought out of sin and eternal separation from God, and led forth in peace unto eternal life. The gospel is our defense against an unseen enemy that accuses us to God. We must be ready to spread the gospel where ever we go.

The Shield of Faith: The shield defends us from the FACTS OF LIFE. We live, we die, that’s all there is. If you cannot see it, if you cannot touch it then it doesn’t exist. Jesus said he was the way, the truth, and the life. What ever the facts of life maybe Jesus is still the truth, still the king of kings, and lord of lords, and there is nothing that can come upon us the he doesn’t have the answer for!!

The Sword of the Spirit: The sword of the spirit defends us in the heavens. The word of God is life to those that hear and receive. A soldier able to properly use his sword can defend against more than one attacker at a time. Soldiers in Christ who properly wield the sword of the spirit and word of truth can withstand whole armies of hell itself and remain untouched and even victorious over those same attackers.

If you are now fully armored, clothed in Christ, then it is time for you the soldier in Christ to arm your self! God has bestowed on you weapons of warfare that are mighty, not carnal. These weapons when used being a soldier in Christ can defeat anything the enemy might attempt.

There are some weapons that come immediately to mind Prayer, Fasting, and of course the Word of god, but let us remember that our god is a vastly superior being that offers us every spiritual blessing in heaven (Eph 1:3). The lord has given weapons that must be trained with and implemented in a soldier’s life to be effective. Today we look at the weapons: Humility, Grace, Consistency, Fellowship, Encouragement, and Love.

These weapons are centered in Eph 3-4 and are but a few of the weapons available to the soldier.

Humility: Eph 3:8, “To me who am the less than the least of all the saints.” What powerful weapon humility becomes in the face of pride. When the soldier becomes spiritually humble, there is no way for pride to destroy that soldier, there is no conflict left to resolve.

Grace: (Eph 3:2, 7) Paul offers Grace to others. When a soldier in Christ offers grace to those around us, the same grace that we ourselves have received, we then defeat the enemy of offense, and bitterness. The soldier in Christ wars against bitterness and lying, anger, malice, and any negative and divisive action or emotion that does not glorify God. We wield grace we defeat the enemy.

Consistency: Eph 4:14 we should not be tossed to and fro by the storms of life. The word tells us that our yes should be yes and our no should be no (Matt 5:37). We need to have some answers to life’s wars, we need to know what we believe and stand firm in those beliefs. Eph 6:11, 13 “and having done all to stand, stand therefore…” A lack of consistency in the soldier’s life is a sure sign that soldier is AWOL.

Fellowship: Eph 4:3 Fellowship strengthens the soldier for battle. Fellowship creates a unity in the army of god. We need each other; we need to fellowship also with Christ. We need to spend time with the Captain of the Host! Eph 3:17, 18, 19. When we have fellowship with him, when he dwells in us, then there is no enemy that could defeat you. “If God is for us who can be against us!”

Encouragement: Perhaps the strongest of all these weapons mentioned here, encouragement can lift the soldier’s spirit and help him to over come even the darkest of all situations. We are called to encourage one another daily (Heb 3:13). Man to man encouragement is vital to any group of men, sports, military, church, etc. Encouragement becomes a weapon that can help a man over come a lack of self esteem, or can help heal wounds from previous battles. A church of strong and encouraging men is unstoppable.
Love: The love of Jesus for you the soldier is:
• Unimaginable
• Immeasurable
• Unfathomable
• Unbelievable
• Unreasonable
• Unsurpassable
His love gives confidence, his love builds strength, his love is mercy, his love is graceful, his love is uplifting, his love endures forever; his love is amazing, and so much more!!!
The weapon of loves expression was commented on by Christ himself when he said that the law hangs on this “love the lord your god with all your heart, all your mind and all your strength, and the second is like it love your neighbor as yourself.”
Scriptures declaring and defining this weapon are two numerous to list here, but here are just a few, Rom 13:8, Gal 5:13, Eph 4:2, 1 Peter 1:22, 1 Peter 4:8, 1 John 4:12.

A soldier must be prepared through the word of God, and praying always if he hopes to be able to fully defend and fight against the unseen enemy of his soul. We need each other in this fight, and the soldier of Christ must always remember that it is the Captain of the Host the ultimately is in charge of this war. He has already won the war, and has chosen to offer you the victory!!!