Bible Study
The whole armor of God is the complete set of Christian protective gear consisting of salvation, righteousness, truth, peace, faith and the spoken Word, worn always in order to withstand or resist the devil.
To put on the whole armor of God is to be continually conscious of, and unflinchingly committed to proclaiming who we are and what we have in Christ while living in this reality.
Like we stated in Part 4, the armor of God is not a combative tool, no, we are not fighting with the enemy, rather we stand in the victory that Christ has already won for us.
Our reference scripture has been…
“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. Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints”
Ephesians 6:13-18 NKJV
Please read up on the Helmet of Salvation in Part 3, the Breastplate of Righteousness in Parts 4 and 5, the Belt of Truth in Part 6, the Shoes of Peace in Part 7 and the Shield of Faith in Part 8.
Today we continue with another component of the whole armor of God; the sword of the Spirit…
The Sword of the Spirit
The Sword of the Spirit is the Word of God
The Sword of the Spirit is the only offensive component of the armor of God, the rest are defensive. The Sword of the Spirit operates as both offensive and defensive. It is interesting to note, that of the usual regular offensive tools in a soldier’s armory (bows, arrows, spear, sling, rod, etc), it is the sword that makes the list of whole armor of God.
What is peculiar about the sword? A soldier’s sword is usually made of 2-edged sharp blades that can cut, pierce/thrust. According to Hebrews 4:12-13, the Word of God, (referred in Ephesians 6:17 as the Sword of the Spirit) is potent and can permeate the 3 parts of man (spirit, soul and body). It is therefore an ultimately effective tool.
“For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God. Everything is naked and exposed before his eyes, and he is the one to whom we are accountable.”
Hebrews 4:12-13 NLT
Now while everything about this armor, and indeed everything we know about God is based on the Bible (the written Word of God). Notice that 2 of the components of the armor of God seem to be speaking to the same thing specifically; the Word of God; the Belt of Truth and the Sword of the Spirit.
What do we know about the Word of God? It is documented as the Holy Bible, written by men as they were inspired by God. The Word is Jesus Christ.
So this Word is both the Truth and the Sword. How?
The way I understand it, the Truth is the written Word of God while the Sword of the Spirit is the spoken Word of God.
How do we wield the Sword of the Spirit?
By speaking and declaring the Word.
To sit under the teaching of the word of God is great, to read the Word all year round is awesome, wonderful. These inscribes the Word on the tablets of your heart, in your spirit. But that is just becoming equipped to use the Sword of the Spirit. Until we open our mouths and speak the Word we are not wielding the sword of the Spirit.
Examples of wielding the Sword of the Spirit
In lack….
Surely, my Father shall supply ALL of my needs according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:19).
For worry….
I do not worry about a thing, not about food, clothing or shelter. For my Father clothes the lilies of the field which neither toil nor spin, He feeds the birds of the air which do not sow or gather into barns, He will surely take care of me (Matthew 6:25-34). So I cast all my cares upon the Lord, because I know that more than anyone else, He cares for me (I Peter 5:7). I take on the yoke of Christ, I preach the Word in and out of season, I am fully committed to the Father’s business (Matthew 6:33-34).
In trials and temptations
I am born of God and so I overcome the world and the evil in it (1 Peter 5:4). I am not alone, the Godhead resides in me, for I am in Christ, Christ is in the Father, and Christ is in me (John 17:21). The Holy Spirit indwells my body leading, guiding, teaching, and comforting me (John 16:13). I have the exact same life of God in me, eternal life is in me and greater is He that is in me than the one who operates in the world (I John 4:4). CHRIST IS IN ME….that is my HOPE of GLORY/VICTORY/MANIFESTATIONS. Halleluyah! Christ is in me. I owe no man nothing except Love. I am born of God, God is love and so I am love (I John 4:8). And love conquers all things, love never fails I Corinthians 13). I win in my my relationships and interactions. I win by the Spirit of love in me.
For confidence to proclaim the good news
I have authority in the name of Jesus to preach, to teach and to make disciples of all men (Matthew 28:18-20). I have boldness and utterance (Ephesians 6:19). I have authority in the name of Jesus over satan and his agents. I have authority in the name of Jesus to heal the sick, to not die from poison, to cast out demons, to release the oppressed (Mark 16:17-18).
For Direction..
My spirit bears witness with God’s Spirit in me that I am God’s son. I am born of God, I am a son of God and so I am LED by the Spirit of God (Romans 8:14, 16). The Holy Spirit leads me in the right direction. I have and follow the Good Shepherd, Jesus, He leads me to my pleasant places (Psalm 23, John 10:14).
For healing and health
God sent His Word (Jesus) and healed all my diseases (Psalm 107:20). Himself TOOK my infirmities and BORE my Sicknesses in His Body on the cross (Matthew 8:17). Jesus Took Them All. He bore my griefs, He carried my sorrows. He sustained wounds and bruises for my transgressions and iniquities, carried the full punishment, paid the full price. By His wounds/stripes I am healed (Isaiah 53:5). He defeated sin, sickness and death. No sin, no punishment, I am free from the curse! Free from sin, free from sickness, free from the death. He took upon Himself the chasetisement for my peace. I have peace. Oh! Jesus took it all! I am free (John 8:36).
Halleluyah!!!!
I am sure you can write up many more for yourself. We have the Word of God for every situation and circumstance. Praise God! We wield our Sword by speaking the Word.
The Sword of the Spirit is the Word of God. It should be drawn always, wielded by speaking it continually; in all times and seasons.
We are to stop rehearsing (magnifying) what the enemy is doing by saying and speaking it to every Tom, Dick and Harry, no, speak the Word, magnify the Word. Speak it and hold on to it until your miracle manifests, then share your testimony widely with everyone (magnify God). This is not to say do not seek help if you need it, please seek counsel and maybe reach out to a trusted saint to pray the prayer of agreement with you if you need to. But yearn, desire, seek to grow in your faith also and the way to do that is to deepen your relationship with the God (through the Word and prayer), this builds your understanding of God and boost your confidence to take on faith feats on your own.
Do not leave your sword sheathed, pull it out; speak it, Magnify the Word and Works of God. Halleluyah!
These declarations are not just mere words. God’s Word is spirit and life. So this is actually a spiritual exercise which must be done in faith.
We know that God and His Word are the same. And the Holy Spirit never leads us outside of the Word of God. In John 15:26 and John 16:14, Jesus says the Holy Spirit will take of Him and declare to us as well as testify of Him (the Word)….
“But when the Helper comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify of Me.”
John 15:26 NKJV
“He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you.”
John 16:14 NKJV
The Holy Spirit bears witness of the Word…
“..….And it is the Spirit who bears witness, because the Spirit is truth. For there are three that bear witness in heaven: the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit; and these three are one.“
I John 5:6-7 NKJV
The age of struggling to follow rules and stringent dogmas ended with the Holy Spirit coming. When we dwell on the Word (by reading, studying and meditating) continuously we provide the Spirit a template to act on (selah) either in prayer or in our outward expression of Christian character or living.
Have you not read about God’s promise of a New Covenant in Jeremiah 31? …
“But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. No more shall every man teach his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord ,’ for they all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the Lord . For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.”
Jeremiah 31:33-34 NKJV
And there in lies the beauty of walking in the Spirit always, of being led by the Spirit always…..Victory, success, fruitfulness is guaranteed. Halleluyah!!! When we walk in the Spirit we will do nothing else but the Word.
“But if you are guided (led) by the [Holy] Spirit, you are not subject to the Law.“
Galatians 5:18 AMPC
Please join me next time as we continue this study by looking at ‘praying always in the Spirit’.
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