Greetings,
When the Holy Spirit comes into a person’s life through salvation in Jesus, it is a powerful moment. There is an equally powerful moment when the Holy Spirit awakens you to the gravity of the sin in your life and shows you the victory that we already have in Jesus. We no longer have to be slaves to sin. The power and consequence, spiritually speaking, have been paid for in full and are no longer counted against you as unrighteousness.
When we look at the armor of God in Ephesians 6:10-20, we see that the helmet of salvation and the breastplate of righteousness are given to us. Jesus gives them to us and He is the one responsible to ensure that they always are perfectly placed. We must trust that He knows what He is doing and walk in confidence that we are walking with His salvation and His righteousness adorning our humble bodies. The belt of truth is also given to us and we must accept it as Jesus wraps His arms around us and tells us of His deep and abiding love for us.
The shield of faith is a gift -- we can choose to believe in and trust the armor we are given, or believe the enemy's lies and take up an alternate shield, one of pride, money, power, self-reliance, doubt, discouragement or anything other than faith. When we have a confident faith in God through Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit, there is nothing that can stand against us. The shoes of the gospel of peace would be a wasted gift on us if the enemy convinces us to hide behind a false shield. It is only in trusting in the Lord that we can be confident that He is leading us. The shoes of the gospel and the sword of the Spirit, the word of God, work together to destroy the lies from the enemy and allow us to understand and walk in the victory that is found in Jesus.
As a pastor, there is little that is more exciting than to see someone who has been a believer “get it” -- when a person understands that sin no longer holds victory over them and you see people walking in the light of the gospel and using the word of God as an offensive weapon. What joy can be found in knowing that there is nothing that we could do to earn the favor of God but that God, in Christ, through the Holy Spirit calls you His own. There is no fear when we confidently walk in the full armor of God!
Notice there is no armor for our backside. Jesus is our rear guard and our strong tower and we can find comfort and confidence to move forward in Him because He has already won the battle, disarmed the enemy and claimed victory. The enemy is a defeated foe, death has lost its sting, the grave holds no victory, and standing in front of us, a multitude of people wanting to hear the joyful sound of the gospel of peace marching up to them and the sword of the Spirit cutting lose the bonds and setting them free from bondage to sin and death.
The beauty of a person reconciled to God is overwhelming. The free power found in a soul that lives life moving forward in the full armor of God is unstoppable!
"Then my head will be exalted above the enemies who surround me; at his sacred tent I will sacrifice with shouts of joy; I will sing and make music to the Lord." ~Psalm 27:6
"Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord; let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation." ~Psalm 95:1
"Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing waters and like loud peals of thunder, shouting: “Hallelujah! For our Lord God Almighty reigns." ~Rev. 19:6
Praise God that if you trust Jesus as your savior, you share that victory.
Love ya,
As a pastor, there is little that is more exciting than to see someone who has been a believer “get it” -- when a person understands that sin no longer holds victory over them and you see people walking in the light of the gospel and using the word of God as an offensive weapon. What joy can be found in knowing that there is nothing that we could do to earn the favor of God but that God, in Christ, through the Holy Spirit calls you His own. There is no fear when we confidently walk in the full armor of God!
Notice there is no armor for our backside. Jesus is our rear guard and our strong tower and we can find comfort and confidence to move forward in Him because He has already won the battle, disarmed the enemy and claimed victory. The enemy is a defeated foe, death has lost its sting, the grave holds no victory, and standing in front of us, a multitude of people wanting to hear the joyful sound of the gospel of peace marching up to them and the sword of the Spirit cutting lose the bonds and setting them free from bondage to sin and death.
The beauty of a person reconciled to God is overwhelming. The free power found in a soul that lives life moving forward in the full armor of God is unstoppable!
"Then my head will be exalted above the enemies who surround me; at his sacred tent I will sacrifice with shouts of joy; I will sing and make music to the Lord." ~Psalm 27:6
"Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord; let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation." ~Psalm 95:1
"Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing waters and like loud peals of thunder, shouting: “Hallelujah! For our Lord God Almighty reigns." ~Rev. 19:6
Praise God that if you trust Jesus as your savior, you share that victory.
Love ya,
Chris
