12/16/2017
Are you completely dressed and ready for the day, or have you professed your belief in God and Jesus Christ, but not clothed yourself in those things they provide you that will protect you against the world? On top of that, are you ready to wrestle with the issues pertaining to God’s will for your life that require you to be more than an unthinking creature?
“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.”
Ephesians 6:13 ESV
The armor of God covers, and protects, us from head to foot. We are covered by such pieces of protection as truth, righteousness, peaceful readiness, faith, and salvation. Thus clothed, we are then provided with a weapon that we can use to fend off the enemy; we are given a sword, which is the Word of God. All of this is covered by scripture:
“Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God,”
Ephesians 6:14-17 ESV
We are prepared in this manner so that we can do something very specific. It isn’t to defeat the world singlehandedly, but rather to pray.
“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, and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel,”
Ephesians 6:18-19 ESV
Praying is not a passive activity, but a verb... an action word that refers to our calling out to God. It is coupled in this scripture with another action word... supplication. We often confuse this word to mean “giving in” or “yielding our will”, but this word does not mean to yield ourselves; it is to actively beg and plead. We often use the term wrestle. Do you wrestle in prayer?
Let’s not be confused... In the Bible, the greatest example of wrestling isn’t with the world, or within ourselves, but with God. Jacob, a con man, and scoundrel, wrestled with God. Alone and distraught, he wrestled all night long until finally his hip was put out of place, and he was crippled. Wrestling with God is not something a seeker does; no, it’s the act of a rebel, or a renegade, and it leaves its mark on them.
God clothes us in His armor to protect us against the world... not so that we can wrestle with Him. If we had to wrestle with God in order to obtain His blessing, the church would be filled with limping saints. In fact we wrestle with the world, and with the effect it has on us. It is to this end that we are dressed in armor and given a sword. Oswald Chambers alludes to this as well when he writes these words:
“Always distinguish between God’s order and His permissive will, i.e., His providential purpose towards us. God’s order is unchangable; His permissive will is that with which we must wrestle before Him.” - Oswald Chambers
Chambers makes a clear distinction between wrestling with God Himself, and wrestling with our own understanding of how His will involves and inserts us in a fallen world.
The world would like to pull us towards itself. It is like a rip current that sweeps a swimmer away from the shore. Without an understanding of how to properly defeat it, even the strongest of swimmers would certainly drown. God equips His children with that understanding through His Word, and supplements it with all of the other tools found in Ephesians 6.
Are you ready for a swim? Are you ready to wrestle with the world as it attempts to dissuade you from delivering the gospel message? Are you prepared to do those things that will allow you to rescue yourself from the world’s grip, it’s rip current, or to save another soul who is being swept away? If not, then it is time to dress yourself in the armor of God, and pick up the sword of His Word.
Prayer:
Father, I thank you for dressing and equipping me for my struggle of prayer against the world, and the affect that world has on me. I thank you for your Son Jesus Christ, and your Holy Spirit who clothes me in the armor you have prepared for me, and teaches me to use your Holy Word to defend myself. Go with me Lord as I face my own doubt and embattled faith. Give me strength and understanding as I confront an enemy that is attacking me from both within, and without, my walls. Wrap me in your armor to repel all blows and allow me by your Word, to sufficiently wound my adversaries that I can deliver the victory of Christ to you. You are my defender Lord, and my champion when the odds are overwhelming; keep me safe within your protection, and hear my prayers as you deliver those strokes of your mighty hand that are beyond my ability. I praise you in my struggle, I praise you as I wrestle to overcome the doubts in me, and I praise you in the victory that you alone can guarantee. Hear my pleas Father; hear me as I reach out to you in supplication asking fervently for the strength to understand and accomplish your will in my life.
Rich Forbes