The Cage and the Key

Part 5: Getting Ready for Battle

    Chances are you definitely know that you should never go into battle with out some sort of gear and maybe a weapon.  Ephesians 6:10- 18 talks about what kind of gear we are suppose to protect ourselves with. IF you have Christ, you can put on any and every piece of armor that He provides for us.
    First is the belt of truth. Now, we all know that belts help hold up your clothing. What the heck is the belt of truth? And where do I get access to it?  Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life." (John 14:6). "In the beginning, was the Word and the word was with God." (John 1:1)  The Bible is the truth. A belt could also hold all of your tools, like police officers wear a belt to hold their gun, taser, and handcuffs.  Unlike a police officer uses their tool belt to hold physical things, we use our belt to hold together our spiritual being, and to hold our other tools that the Lord gives us, such as common sense and our gifts and talents that were given to us individually.
    Next is the Breast plate of Righteousness. What does a breastplate regularly do/protect?  A breastplate protects our heart and vital organs. What is the metaphor here? The definition of righteousness is the quality of being morally right or justifiable. The Breastplate (or our relationship with Christ) helps protect our hearts from the blows from the enemy.
    Next is the Shield of Faith. The Shield is typically the first line of defense in a one-on-one type attack. We must use our faith as our first line of defense against Satan. Now what is faith? Faith by definition is complete trust or confidence in something or someone.  We HAVE to have faith in Christ that he will be our first line of defense.
    After the Shield, come the Helmet. The Helmet of Salvation. What does a helmet typically do? Protect your head and mind from the hits aimed at one of the most valuable organs we have. As you will see in later chapters, the mind is a powerful thing. And therefore it is important to protect it. We must use our salvation to protect our mind from Satan getting in our head and telling us lies.
    What kind of weapon is better than a double edged sword? A sword is both and offensive and defensive weapon. Swords can be used to protect from harm OR to attack or kill the enemy. A sword is a good choice for battle, but only if you have had proper training.  Believe it or not, but the sword is the word. Hebrew 4:12 describes the word as being an active and living things that is sharper than a double edged sword. The Spirit uses the sword and the power of the Lord to save souls as well as strengthen the mature soldiers. The more we know and understand the word, the more useful we are to God and doing his will.
Putting on all the armor can seem scary in the midst of a large battle, but it is also important to know, that even though we have all this armor on, Christ is still RIGHT there with you. He will never leave you nor forsake you. He is personally walking the road he laid out for you, and he is guiding you. He will never put you through something that he can't carry you through.