Good Morning to All,
Ephesians
6:11; “Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the
schemes of the devil”.
Do you remember this one?
Oh, I
may never march in the infantry,
Ride in
the cavalry, shoot the artillery,
I may
never fly o’er the enemy;
But I’m in the Lord’s
army!
We used to sing that in Sunday School and
loved it. It had the mandatory actions
that you performed for each section. We
sang it fairly well; we knew the words and, like most kids, we liked the
actions. I don’t know if we listened to
the words that closely or not but we sang them.
The words are very true; we are in the
Lord’s army. Maybe not so much because
of the actions we take but more because of the actions the devil takes. Often times, people like to think that by
being a Christian we are immune to the devil’s assaults. Some like to believe that nothing bad will
happen in our lives because we are Christians.
Sometimes, when a person begins to come to worship and to faith, they
stop soon afterwards because life didn’t get any easier.
The real truth is that your life may
actually get harder. The attacks by the
devil will actually increase. At first
you may question this but realize that the saints who are heaven are safe. The devil can never touch them there. Those in the world who are lost or are
unbelievers, the devil already has; he doesn’t need to engage them. That leaves the true believer, you and me, as
the place where the battle rages; we are the front line battlefield where the
shelling (or scheming) is fierce.
This is why Paul tells us to put on the
whole armor of God. You are in the
battle zone; you are the target. The
devil will taunt you and attempt to beguile you with his lies. So we must be ready to go into battle each
day. This is where our daily repentance
as we remember the blessings of our Baptism fit in. This is where our daily devotional and prayer
life come in. This is putting on the
armor in order to do battle with the devil.
Without God’s armor, we are helpless. Without God’s protection, we will fall early
and easily. Yet God has promised to
guard and protect us. God has promised
to give us the tools and the strength to withstand the devil’s onslaught. We only need to trust in God’s Word and hold
fast to his promise. Through this, we
will ultimately be victorious. It is by
God’s grace and his benevolence that we will always come out the victor.
Gracious
Father, we stand up to the devil because of your mercy and grace. Guard us by your holy hand and strengthen us
as the devil attacks. Be with those who
are especially vulnerable and in tremendous need of your protection. Hide them in the shadow of your wings. In Jesus’ precious name we pray amen.
God’s Peace,
Pastor Bret
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