Armed by the King

Guys, I have a confession to make. I’m a twenty-five-year-old Bible college graduate, and I JUST realized that the armor of God is, well, God’s armor. And even though this is a new discovery for me, it was old news to Paul’s original audience, the church in Ephesus. The Bible frequently uses different words or phrases to remind readers of another part of the Bible. And that’s exactly what’s going on in this passage. When Paul tells his audience to put on the “breastplate of righteousness” and the “helmet of salvation,” they probably said, “Oh yeah, like in Isaiah!” Check it out Look at Isaiah 59:17. Sound familiar? These pieces of the armor of God are what He Himself puts on to deal with sin and unrighteousness. Then, look at Isaiah 11:1-5 and 52:7-10. Ok, these references are a little bit harder to see in English, but let me explain. Isaiah 11:5 talks about the “Branch” wearing righteousness and truth like a “belt” or “undergarment.” It may sound odd, but that “Branch” is Jesus, and He’s the one wearing a belt of truth! Isaiah 52:7 talks about the feet that bring good news, and now we know the good news is the gospel of Jesus—His perfect life, His death in our place on the cross, and His victorious resurrection from the dead! Kind of reminds you of the shoes of the good news, doesn’t it? So why does this matter, other than to impress your friends with Bible trivia? Because, as citizens of Jesus’ kingdom, we are at war with Satan, sin, and death. We are called to go after the spiritual powers of evil with everything we’ve got, resisting sin and promoting justice. And nothing but God’s own armor is going to protect us in that fight. He is the only One who can equip us to battle evil alongside our resurrected King. But don’t worry—we know Who wins. • Taylor Eising • In Ephesians 6:13, the command to put on the armor of God isn’t given to individual Christians—it’s given to the church as a whole. We aren’t supposed to do this on our own. Who can you lean on to help you stand strong in Jesus? • What sins are you fighting with right now? How does Jesus help you in this fight? Bring your battles to Him in prayer. A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Ephesians 6:10 (NLT)

Read Verses:

Isaiah 59; Ephesians 6:10-20