BY HAROLD LEE
May 9, 2009
Well, Good Morning, Everyone! I’d also like to say “Hello” to everyone out there listening, watching, perhaps even delayed. I know there’s some that actually download the archives and watch it later today. I’d like to welcome you too.
While Mr. Buchanan was giving the announcements, he
mentioned Mother’s Day. The flowers
today are so—I think maybe representative of that—beautiful! So I panned down. I know people have asked me, “Well, can you
ever show the flowers?” So we did get a
shot of the flowers during the announcements and that’s
As all of us figuratively looking behind us at the Spring Holy Days and forward to Pentecost move away from our baptism in the sea and we make our journey toward the Promised Land, like our forefathers we have the pillar of fire; we have a cloud to follow. And any of us that deviates from that will find that we will very quickly become lost. And we will fall prey to the predators that are always just out of the light, just in the darkness, in the shadows, if you will, ready to pick up any stragglers that happen to become disoriented and lost.
If I remember correctly, when we lived in
And even wild animals will hunt and they will take the stragglers. They will pick up the ones that tend to fall out of the pack, that tend to become lost and disoriented. And even they will do that.
Brethren, as we make our journey, we must not be ignorant of the fact that God miraculously delivered us and He’s the one that’s leading us. He is the one that we’re following. But we also need to remember, we are very vulnerable if we do not take a personal responsibility in walking the path that we’re on.
Look over in 1 Peter chapter 5. Peter gives us a warning about this vulnerability as well as some very important steps that we must take. 1 Peter 5 and I’ll just start in verse 6. It says,
1 Peter 5:6. Therefore humble
yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due
time, 7) Casting all your care upon Him,
for He cares for you.
Now consider for a moment here in this one verse or two verses is the declaration of God’s entire plan. The exalting obviously is referring to the attainment of the city that’s mentioned in Hebrews 11, the resurrection and the marriage of the Lamb. But notice it begins with action on our part. The journey starts with an action that we take. Before the attainment of the city, we must humble ourselves before God. And that humbling is a lifelong process that starts with our repentance, our commitment to follow Him wherever He leads us, and to remain teachable during the entire journey.
Don’t turn there—three times it’s written in the Bible that
“God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” Write these down: Proverbs 3:34, James 4:6, 1 Peter 5:5. Our journey starts with humility and that
must accompany us throughout our entire walk.
1 Peter 5:8. Be sober,
Continuing on verse 8,
1 Peter 5:8b. be vigilant;
because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom
he may devour.
Brethren, this is a danger that all of us face! In the past, I think in some of the sermons,
Al has read—don’t turn there—Luke
Luke 22:31. And the Lord
said, “Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has
asked for you, that he may sift you
as wheat.
And He’s mentioned that this has and it continues to happen to us. This was not just for Simon, that this is an ongoing thing because Satan is the accuser of the Brethren. He goes before God and accuses us. And he asks for us so that he can sift us. He is seeking to devour not just a few but all of us. And, Brethren, we’re all vulnerable to this.
Now what can we do knowing that we’re vulnerable? Are we just to be chewed up and spat out? Has God given us tools that can protect us and serve us on this journey? Verse 9,
1 Peter 5:9. Resist him,
steadfast in the faith,
So there is to be a resistance. There is to be an action on our part and that action is to resist him.
Set a mark there because there’s two Scriptures that we have. I want to fill in a little more complete picture of this “Resist him, steadfast in the faith.” Turn over to James chapter 4 and verse 7. James 4 verse 7, it says,
James 4:7. Therefore submit
to God. Resist the devil and he will
flee from you.
Now let me build on this thought. If we resist Satan, who is seeking to devour us, being steadfast in the faith, Satan will flee from us.
Now one more Scripture to fill in. Look over in Luke chapter 4. Again I want to build this. If you look at the complete account of Jesus Christ being baptized of John, receiving God’s Spirit as a dove, being driven into the wilderness for forty days, and being tempted of Satan, you will see as our Pioneer, as our Prototypon, the One that goes before, the One that blazes the trail, He was also showing us what we were all going to go through in the same way being baptized, receiving God’s Spirit, and then us going through a forty year—forty day, a day for a year principle—but our testing throughout our life. The difference is, of course, we know He did it perfectly without sin. And, Brethren, we fall through and sin. And we have to repent. We have to be forgiven.
Luke chapter 4 verse 13, it says,
Luke 4:13. Now when the
devil had ended every temptation, he departed from Him
So again He resisted and he departed. But let’s continue.
Luke 4:13b. until an
opportune time.
Even with Christ! And with us, Satan will flee but it’s not an event. It’s not you do it and then you can move on. He’ll be back, Brethren. He is lying in waiting “until an opportune time.” He is, as we’ve said, he’s an opportunist and he will attack not only at our most vulnerable point, but at our most vulnerable time. Again and again, not just once!
This is not just a battle we’re fighting. It is a war which consists of many skirmishes and many battles, time and time again. A war is just not a single event, but there’s many battles. And there’s many skirmishes. And it goes on and on.
In other words, the tools are required not just for a single point in time, but these are tools that are required for our entire journey. And we need to view those tools as a soldier would his armor. And, Brethren, we need to look at that and consider it as if our very survival depends on it.
Okay, back to 1 Peter 5 verse 9. It says,
1 Peter 5:9. Resist him,
steadfast in the faith,
And remember that’s not an event. That’s over and over and over again.
1 Peter 5:9b. knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world.
And that is Strong’s 81, adelphotes. And it means the brotherhood or the brotherliness by your Brethren. That word is also translated “Brethren.”
Let me read this out of The New Jerusalem Bible. It says,
1 Peter 5:9. Stand up to
him, strong in faith and the knowledge that it is the same kind of suffering
that the community of your brothers throughout the world is undergoing.
Now keep in mind that some of the things he was addressing was to show them that their trials, the trials that they were experiencing, were not just unique to them. And they were going through some very heavy trials and tribulations.
Just go back up to the previous chapter to chapter 4 of 1 Peter and verse 12. It says,
1 Peter 4:12. Beloved, do
not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though
some strange thing happened to you;
I think I mentioned in a previous sermon that the occasion
of this epistle was to the very persecuted Church in
As we understand today, two thousand years later almost, this “brotherhood” again was not just geographic. It was not just in an area, but in a much broader sense in the dimension of time. We would say, “Down through the ages.” We still share this brotherhood in that we have the common goal, a common calling. And, Brethren, we experience common trials. Perhaps not to the extent that we give up our lives by being killed, but remember we are called to give up our lives for one another, for this way of life. No one has been exempt from this.
Okay, just skip back down to 1 Peter 5 and verse 10. It says,
1 Peter 5:10. But may the
God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you
have suffered a while,
Think about that! That’s a necessity. That is part of it.
1 Peter 5:10b. after you
have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you.
11) To Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.
Brethren, we have throughout time, throughout the ages, the one commonality that everyone that God is working with. We have and we are suffering. The road that we walk is painful, but that walk is one for perfecting the saints just as we read in Ephesians 4. It’s not because God just enjoys doing it. It develops us. It allows us to understand.
I think about if God had called us and sort of put us on a hill behind a well, let’s say in a gilded cage so that we could watch the world, how would we ever connect with man’s sufferings at a gut level? How would we ever go through things and see that God would deliver us?
What we experience is necessary at many, many levels. And while it hurts and it’s painful, Brethren, it’s what makes us what we are. It’s what gives us the experience and develops us. And I think most importantly, it allows us to see that our Father that’s made promises through Jesus Christ, “I’ll never fail you nor forsake you,” will come through with those every time! We can depend on it.
Brethren, we’re in constant danger! And we have to be on guard against our adversary. And one of the items—and I apologize for keeping coming back to it—but one of the items that I’ve mentioned in the past two or three sermons is in regards to our vulnerability as we get closer to the goal, as we get closer to the end.
And I’ve pointed out and I’ll mention it again the Israelites. Remember? They committed adultery with the Midianites right on the shore of the Jordan River after the forty years just as they were about to cross over. Twenty-four thousand lost their lives in sight of the end!
The strongest warning to the seven Churches is to the last one. Right at the end, just before the return of Jesus Christ, who is ready to marry His Bride!
There’s a saying, “Familiarity breeds contempt.” But familiarity also breeds carelessness. Consider that! There is a, perhaps, a satisfaction in saying, “I’ve been around for ten, twenty, thirty, forty, fifty years.” But, Brethren, there is a danger. And that’s what we ought to focus on. There is a danger in that.
You know that there are higher and I’m looking now at the world and just how, because we’re humans and we have the same issues. There is a higher rate of industrial accidents with repetition events, repetitious tasks—I’m sorry. If somebody does something over and over and over, you tend to take your mind out of it and just let your hands do it. And the longer one does that, the more vulnerable they are.
Even in your driving! We’re the most vulnerable in familiar territory when we drive. I looked this up just to try to get some facts. Progressive Insurance, all of you have seen those. They did a study of 11,000 of the auto insurance policy holders who had reported accidents in one year as to how close to home they were when the accident happened. 52% were less than five miles from their home. 52%! An astounding 77% were within fifteen miles of home. And only 1% of the accidents occurred more than fifty miles away. Accidents are more than twice as likely to occur one mile from home compared to twenty miles. One mile or less 23%! And 1% of the reported accidents were greater than fifty miles.
Brethren, as God’s people move closer to the end it becomes
more apparent that this process of conversion and walking the path that God has
called us on—it’s not a walk in the park!
It’s not a stroll. And I think if
any of you look back at the early days of your calling, while academically we
know that our lives and the road that we were called would be difficult, I
daresay none of us knew the magnitude of what was ahead of us! And that’s not all wrong. If the Israelites knew what was ahead of them
and they knew the whole path, they probably wouldn’t have left
Look over in Romans chapter 13. Romans 13 and verse 11, it says,
Romans 13:11. And do this, knowing the time,
Brethren, this applies to us today!
Romans 13:11b. knowing the
time, that now it is high time to
awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is
nearer than when we first
believed. 12) The night is far spent,
the day is at hand. Therefore let us
cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light.
If you want a title for today’s sermon, it is The Armor Of Light.
Our adversary, who we are to resist, who will flee and come back again and again to attack us—God is with us and He will direct our steps, but we must make choices to walk and to resist, to do what God has given us, to wear the protective equipment that we can win the battle. And we know that that battle is not against flesh and blood, but it’s against principalities in high places.
Those of you that are historians of man’s war—and I know in the Church perhaps that’s not as large an audience. I mean there’s people in their basements—I don’t know of anybody; I’ve seen these—that they have these dioramas set up with the little soldiers and they redo the battles, the famous battles of this, that, and the other. But those that are historians of man’s wars know that many of the effective weapons that were developed to be effective in warfare required several iterations before they were perfected.
The first one out of the box I remember we went, when I was in the military back in the early sixties, went from the M1 to, I think it was the M14 at the time. And here was the— it used the NATO 7.6 millimeter rounds, on and on. The only thing was is about every tenth round it would jam up. So while you could get ammunition off of the Frenchman that was in the trench next to you, the gun wouldn’t work. And they spent many iterations working on that and trying to get that before it was really considered battle ready. The downside was it took many casualties before that.
Even in defensive terms, prior to World War II, the French were very concerned about being overrun by the Germans. And they spent ten years building a very impressive defense called the Maginot Line. Those of you that studied that time in history, the Maginot Line took ten years. It was a fifty mile bunker, concrete emplacement with underground bunkers. There was actually a narrow gauge railroad for moving troops and supplies, barracks, these huge guns on these emplacements every so far. And the French felt very secure. This was an impenetrable fortified concrete and steel structure.
And when the Germans attacked, all they did was went around
the end of it. They said, “We’re not
going to attack there.” They just went
through
Brethren, the armor of light that we’re putting on is not untested armor. It’s battle hardened. And it’s proven. In fact, there is a 100% success rate as long as the soldier keeps it on and uses it. There is no armor in any battle that’s a 100% effective except the armor of light.
Notice the admonition that follows, as we continue on, to
keep it and properly use it. Notice!
Romans 13:13. Let us walk properly,
as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in
strife and envy.
Just set a marker there.
The armor of light is first and foremost one important thing. Look over in John chapter 1. You probably know where I’m headed with this. John 1 verse 1, it says,
John 1:1. In the beginning
was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2) He was
in the beginning with God. 3) All things
were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. 4) In Him was life, and the life was the light
of men. 5) And the light shines in the
darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. 6) There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. 7) This man came for a witness, to bear
witness [to] the Light, that all through him might believe. 8) He was not that Light, but [he] was sent to bear witness of that
Light. 9) That the true Light which
gives light to every man coming into the world.
If we consider the different roles that Jesus Christ fills
in our lives, we will come to appreciate Him more and more. Consider the Israelites. He caused
Look over in Psalm chapter 18. We know that Jesus Christ was the God of the Old Testament, the One that was written about in all but just a very few cases. Psalm 18 and verse 1 and this is a Psalm of David. Psalm 18:1, it says,
Psalm 18:1. I will love You,
O Lord, my strength. 2) The Lord
is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I
will trust; my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. 3) I will call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised; so shall I be saved from my enemies.
David clearly saw God as his everything! And all of that that God provided led to his salvation. David saw God as something that one should be immersed in. “My rock, my fortress, my deliverer, my shield, the horn of my salvation, my stronghold,” something that was to be put on and worn as a protective set of armor.
Okay back to Romans 13. I’ll reread verse 13. Romans 13 and verse 13, it says,
Romans 13:13. Let us walk
properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and
lust, not in strife and envy.
Remember before you put on something, you have to take off the old clothing. whatever you were wearing previous to that, and that’s what you remove. And then we replace it with the armor of light.
Verse 14,
Romans 13:14. But put on the
Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.
So you take off something. We take off revelry and drunkenness, and lewdness and lust, and strife and envy. That’s the old clothes. That’s the filthy rags. And then we put on this armor of light which is Jesus Christ.
If you think about a soldier today, a soldier has to carry his flap jacket which is his defensive armor. He also has to carry his rations, his tent, his bedroll, his shovel, his maps, his flares, and on and on.
Look over in Matthew chapter 11.
Millions of dollars each year are put into research on how to reduce the weight of the provisions that a soldier takes with him. There is now those—there’s a whole area of science that are attempting to use nanotechnology to make lighter materials. Lighter and let’s say, “Stronger materials.” MIT Professor Edmond Thomas and he leads the Institute for Soldier Nanotechnologies. I just want to read. It says,
The idea would be to get a soldier’s pack weight, now about 90 to 120 pounds, down to the elite weight of 40 pounds or less. The cost of the suit is yet to be determined because the army must figure out how to use it.
Can you imagine going into battle with 90 to 120 pounds on your back because you have to carry all of your provisions with you? If I remember right, this is in the mid-sixties when I had to carry a backpack. I think they weighed then about 60 pounds and I could be off, but I remember even then you would be on a road march and they would start cutting into your shoulders and your arms would get numb. And to think that they’ve almost doubled or maybe more than doubled in weight, it just boggles my mind.
But Paul tells us as we’ve just read in Romans that we don’t need to burden ourselves down with those things.
Matthew 11 and verse 28, it says,
Matthew 11:28. “Come to Me,
all you who labor and are [What?] heavy
laden, and I will give you rest.
That word “heavy laden” is a single word, Strong’s 5412, phortizo. And it means to load up as you would load up a vessel or an animal, to overburden with ceremony or spiritual anxiety, to lade by a heavy laden. The origin of the word, 5414 which is phortos, refers to the cargo of a ship which is overloaded and therefore, it’s about to sink or it’s unstable, it’ll capsize. This Greek word is only used twice in the New Testament and it’s used in the context of overloading of religious requirements placed on the people. Don’t turn—Luke 11:46 where
Luke 11:46. He said, “Woe to
you also, lawyers! For you load men with
burdens hard to bear, and you yourselves do not touch the burdens with one of
your fingers.
Continuing on in Matthew 11, it says
Matthew 11:29. “Take My yoke
upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you find
rest for your souls. 30) “For My yoke is easy and My burden [My cargo, the
manifest, the bill of lading] is light.”
Remember when the Israelites left
Brethren, we can clearly see that Jesus Christ, the Armor of Light—hearken back to the sermon—is living in us, inviting Him into our lives, our desire to follow Him and put Him on. I want to spend sometime examining that armor of light to see the tools. I want to go back to 1 Peter 5 and 9 and reread that and use that as a launching point for this. 1 Peter 5:9, it says,
1 Peter 5:9. Resist him,
1 Peter 5:9.
1 Peter 5:9b. steadfast in
the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood
in the world.
These words “steadfast in the faith” show that it’s a key element in the armor. We’ll revisit that later.
Just go to Hebrews 11, Hebrews 11 and verse 6. Of course, this is the “Faith Chapter” so you know we’re going to be talking about faith. Hebrews 11:6, it says,
Hebrews 11:6. But without
faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must
believe that He is, and that He is a
rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
Brethren, remember that faith in God is the absolute assurance that He will deliver on His promises. Hebrews 11 gives a long list of those that were so convinced that they altered their lives. They made changes in their lives and in their situations. They lived their lives in a different manner because of that.
In my opinion, though, the greatest demonstration of faith is not contained in Hebrews 11. In fact, I daresay it’s one that we don’t always even consider. I want to tell you about it and then you study it in your own time.
We know at one time there were two God Beings that existed before there was anything physical. And these two Beings developed a plan where They were going to expand Their Family by a process of first creating physical matter and then of creating and then of redeeming man. And One of the Beings who had everything including eternal life was required to completely give it up and had to completely trust in the other One to follow through on those promises.
The One that created the physical universe gave it up and was born flesh and blood human and remember at that point no longer possessing that eternal life. There was a clock that was ticking in Him, just as it ticks in us. This God Being at that point was dying, was physical just like we are. There was a clock that was ticking and would have run out. And that Being allowed Himself to be taken, tortured, and killed. And His consciousness ceased. It didn’t exist anymore. But had absolute trust that the other Being would follow through on His promises.
The God Family had already demonstrated Their commitment to this project. They’ve put up everything that They’ve had. To me for a Being that had eternal life, that had so much trust in the other One that He gave it up, knowing that the other One said, “This is the way We’ll do it. And I will resurrect You. You will be back here. There will now be a Bride for You as a result of this,” and had never looking back! To me that’s greater faith than any of them in Hebrews 11.
Reread Hebrews 11:6.
Hebrews 11:6. But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is,
The New Jerusalem Bible says that, “He exists.”
Hebrews 11:6b. and that He is a rewarder
And my words are that “He will follow through on His
promises.”
Hebrews 11:6 cont. of those
who diligently seek Him.
When we examine this armor of light that we put on, which we’ve clearly seen is Jesus Christ, I think that there’s two different paths we could take to get to the same point. We could study the attributes of Jesus Christ and emulate those or we could go to the place in the Bible that that armor is specifically discussed in the Scriptures.
I wanted this to be a single part sermon with Pentecost coming. So we’re going to do the latter.
Look over in Ephesians chapter 6, Ephesians 6. And keep in mind that you can cross reference this by just looking at Jesus Christ who is that Armor and His attributes. And again I maintain you will come to the same place. Ephesians 6 and verse 10, it says
Ephesians 6:10. Finally, my
brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.
Take note of that! And, as I mentioned, put on His attributes that we put on.
Ephesians 6:11. Put on the
whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of
the devil.
I want you to consider that word “stand.” In warfare there’s two positions. The first is what we know as the defensive position. And that’s when you are standing your ground. The second position is to attack.
Just set your marker there in Ephesians and let’s go over to Job 41. We know that it’s Satan that is out to get us. Let’s look at this concept of either standing or attacking. Job 41 and 1. And I’m just going to skip through this to get some points. Job 41:1. God was asking Job. It says,
Job 41:1. “Can you draw out
Leviathan with a hook,
Now remember that’s an offensive position. That’s trying to get him to come out.
Job 41:1b. or snare his tongue with a line which you lower?
God’s asking Job if he could taunt and engage Satan like God can. Again, I’m going to skip over that. But that’s what God was saying. He said, “Look, can you do what I can do? Can you engage him in a battle and can you taunt him?”
Verse 8,
Job 41:8. Lay your hand on
him; remember the battle— never do it again!
9) Indeed, any hope of overcoming him is false; shall one not be overwhelmed at the sight of
him?
I want to relate an incident. This is a long, long time ago in a place far, far away. Freda and I had witnessed this incident. And I want to be a little vague about this. I want to protect any identities. But there was a Church member, a very wealthy, very prosperous Church member; had a large business, employed dozens of people, big house, cars; had everything material that someone could want. And one day in a public setting within the hearing of a number of people this person actually taunted Satan saying words to the effect that Satan should hit him with his best shot. I don’t know what brought that up, but when he said it, Freda and I looked at each other. I was just aghast when it was said. And I said, “He doesn’t realize what he’s doing, what he just said!” Over the next couple of years this person lost his business, lost his house, laid off his workers, used up his savings, lost his health, lost family members and within a couple year period was gone. He was still alive, but I mean everything that he had he lost. No more. And he had taunted Satan.
It says in verse 26,
Job 41:26. Though the sword reaches him, it cannot
avail; nor does spear, dart, or javelin.
27) He regards iron as straw, and
bronze as rotten wood. 28) The arrow
cannot make him flee; slingstones become like stubble to him. 29) Darts are regarded as straw; he laughs at
the threat of javelins.
Brethren, there’s not a human being that can take on Satan! The armor that we wear is not for attacking in an offensive battle. And we must remember that.
Through the ages the army that was in the defensive position had the advantage. They could dig in and construct their trenches. In more modern times they could dig their foxholes. They could build their gun emplacements, their bunkers. Their rear supply lines could be established. The support structures could be set up.
And the army that was on the move was at a disadvantage. The attacking army was at a disadvantage. And the advantage was to those that were defending and that were dug in. Remember the army on the move had the 120 pound packs on their backs. The defensive army didn’t. The army on the move had to contend with the terrain. The defensive army could choose their positions.
The armor of light that we put on is not for an offensive attack. It’s for defending ourselves.
Look over in Psalm 31 and verse 1. Psalm 31:1 it says,
Psalm 31:1. In You, O Lord, I put my trust; never let me be
ashamed; deliver me in Your righteousness. 2) Bow down Your ear to me, deliver me
speedily; be my rock of refuge,
Remember you’re not on the attack with a rock of refuge. You leave that when you go on the attack. You’re on your own.
Psalm 31:2b. a fortress of
defense to save me. 3) For You are my rock and my fortress; therefore,
for Your name’s sake, lead me and guide me.
A fortress, a defense, is a stationary place. Again you don’t take a fort and attack with a fort. You defend against an attack. And it’s just what the name implies.
Look over in Psalm 59.
While turning there, I want to mention that in Proverbs 18 the Bible uses the analogy of the difficulty of taking a fortified city. I’ll just read it, as you’re turning, out of The New Living. Proverbs 18:9, it says
Proverbs 18:9. It’s harder
to make amends with an offended friend than to capture a fortified city.
And again it’s very difficult.
Psalm 59 and verse 1, it says,
Psalm 59:1. Deliver me from
my enemies, O my God; defend me from those who rise up against me.
In other words, who attack me, who come after me.
Psalm 59:2. Deliver me from
the workers of iniquity, and save me from bloodthirsty men.
Verse 9,
Psalm 59:9. I will [Notice
this!] wait for you,
In other words, “I’m defensive. I’m in a defensive position. I’m not going to go out on the attack. I’m going to wait for You.”
Psalm 59:9b. O You his
Strength; for God is my [What?] defense. 10) My God of mercy shall come to meet me;
God shall let me see my desire on my
enemies.
Verse 16,
Psalm 59:16. But I will sing
of Your power; yes, I will sing aloud of Your mercy in the morning; for You
have been my defense and refuge in the day of my trouble. 17) To You, O my Strength, I will sing
praises; for God is my defense,
my God of mercy.
Okay back to Ephesians 6. Ephesians 6 and we’ll pick it up in verse 12. It says,
Ephesians 6:12. For we do
not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against
powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in heavenly places.
I’ll read that out of The New Revised Standard.
Ephesians 6:12. Our struggle
is not against enemies of blood and flesh, but against the rulers, against the
authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness, against the
spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.
And The Revised Standard says,
Ephesians 6:12. For we are
not contending against flesh and blood, but against the principalities, against
the powers, against the world rulers of this present darkness, against the
spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.
As we continue I want you to notice use of the word
“stand.” Keeping in mind it not only
means a defensive action like “Stand still and see the salvation of the Lord,” it also means to gain the
victory. It’s the same word, Strong’s
2476.
And I’m giving you the definition before we actually read it in
context. Histemi, (his-tay-mee), I think is the way it is
pronounced, again Strong’s 2476. It means to abide, to appoint, to bring, to
continue, to covenant, to establish, to hold up, to lay, to present, to stand
by, to stand forth, to stand still, and to stand up.
Verse 13,
Ephesians 6:13. 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.
To prevail, to be standing when the battle is over. It conveys both the victory and the patience of the saints in letting the armor of light that we’ve put on protect us from Satan and his attacks.
Continuing on verse 14,
Ephesians 6:14. Stand
therefore, having girded your waist with truth,
In my last sermon, I was reading the Millennial Prophecy in Isaiah 11—and don’t turn there—but was reading and I’ll just quote it to you, verse 5. And it talked about
Isaiah 11:5. Righteousness
shall be the belt of His loins, and [the] faithfulness the belt of His waist.
And I just want to repeat. Remember that a belt that one wears in a way it holds everything else up. It supports everything else. If you don’t have a belt to hold up our clothing, we’re going to be exposed and we’re going to be vulnerable. A belt is also an item that completely encircles. It doesn’t just go part of the way around. It wouldn’t do any good to have a belt that was just a half a belt. In other words, a person completely surrounds themselves by it. And a belt is also very close to a person. A loose belt is worse than no belt at all. If you think about a loose belt hanging down, the weight of it going to help pull the loose clothing off. So a belt not only has to encircle, it has to be very close. It has to be very intimate and tight. And a belt that girds must close us and it must completely enclose us to be effective.
We are to be immersed in truth. What does that mean? Look over in John 17. John 17 and verse 16, this was in the prayer that Jesus offered up right before His capture. It’s probably not a good word “capture,” because He turned Himself over to them. Before He surrendered Himself to His captors, maybe that’s a better word. John 17 verse 16, it says,
John 17:16. “They are not of
the world, just as I am not of the world.
18) “Sanctify them by Your truth.
Your word is truth.
We’re to gird our waist with the truth. We are to put on the armor of light. “Your word,” what God tells us. But remember Jesus Christ was also the Word. And that brings us back to the full circle of the armor of light and the original, because we know that Jesus Christ was the Light. We read that in John 1:1. He is also the Word of God, which is truth. And we have, as I mentioned, both the written and the living Word which we were to completely encircle our lives in. It’s to be close to us. It’s to regulate our lives. Our desire should be to learn how to apply those words of truth in our daily lives.
And that source is the beginning, but there has to be another aspect of that. You see knowledge alone is not enough if that knowledge does not lead to actions. I got an e-mail yesterday and I just wanted to—it’s called “Quote Consider.” And I’ll just read the quote. “Bible study is of value only in the proportion as the knowledge revealed is incorporated into your character in actually living it.” And that was Herbert Armstrong, “Why Were You Born?” 1957. Knowledge in itself without it leading to actions is just that. It’s just something that you carry around in your head.
Ephesians
Ephesians 6:14. Stand
therefore, having girded your waist with truth,
Encircling yourself. In other words, it covers you.
Ephesians 6:14b. having put
on the breastplate of righteousness,
See there’s action. There’s not just the truth, not just the knowledge, but there is an action that has to follow.
I just want to read Brown, Driver, and Briggs’ “righteousness.” It’s Strong’s 1343, dikaiosune. And for you Greek scholars, I’m sorry. But it says, “In a broad sense the state of him is as he ought to be, righteousness the condition acceptable to God. The doctrine concerning the way in which man may obtain a state approved by God. And finally, integrity, virtue, purity of life, rightness, correctness of thinking, feeling, and acting.” So it’s all aspects. Zodhiates’ in his Word Study defines righteousness as “The state commanded by God and standing the test of His judgments. It’s conformity to all that He commands or appoints.”
I want to read the next verse in Ephesians 6, but then we’re going to come back to it. It’ll just save us some flipping back and forth. Ephesians 6:15, it says,
Ephesians 6:15. And having
shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
Look over in Deuteronomy chapter 8.
I just want to reread as you’re turning.
Ephesians 6:14. Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15) And having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
After forty years of wandering in the wilderness and just a little bit before the Israelites were to cross into the Promised Land, Moses delivered his final—and I’m going to call it a—sermon, if you will, to the Israelites. And it was both for their encouragement, but also for their warning. And starting in Deuteronomy 8 verse 1, it says,
Deuteronomy 8:1. “Every
commandment which I command you today you must be careful to observe, that you may
live and multiply, and go in and possess the land of which the [Eternal] swore
to your fathers. 2) “And you shall
remember that the [Eternal] your God led you all the way these forty years in
the wilderness,
There was a purpose.
Deuteronomy 8:2b. to humble
you and test you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would
keep His commandments or not.
So the march, the journey, the wandering was to learn how to apply God’s commandments in the situations that we face.
Deuteronomy 8:3. “So He humbled
you, allowed you to hunger, and fed you with manna which you did not know nor
did your fathers know,
Why did God do this? What was His purpose?
Deuteronomy 8:3b. that He
might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone; but man lives by every
word that proceeds from the mouth of
the Lord.
I want to read the next verse from the Brenton English
Translation.
Deuteronomy 8:4. “Your
garments grew not old from off you, your shoes were not worn off of you, your
feet were not painfully hardened, lo, these forty years.
God said, “Look, when you left you had clothes on your back and you had shoes on your feet. And those took you for this entire forty years to the Promised Land. They didn’t get old. They didn’t rot off. Your shoes, what you started with served you the entire time.”
Don’t turn there—Deuteronomy 29:5, it says,
Deuteronomy 19:5. “And I
have led you forty years in the wilderness.
Your clothes have not worn out on you, and your sandals have not worn
out on your feet.
I mention before I turn there, we’re going to get to our
sandals in Ephesians 6, but I just want to think about it. The clothes and the shoes that the children
of
Brethren, don’t ever let someone talk you into changing your clothes or your shoes. We saw what happened in the early 90’s. We see what is still happening when somebody comes along and goes, “Wait a minute! I got this better thing for you. Take that off and put this on.” Don’t ever! Remember what God said in Revelation 3? “Hold fast to what you have.” Because let me tell you, when you take the armor off to trade it out, you’re vulnerable. And Satan is going to attack. And without the armor, you aren’t going to make it. It’s that serious.
It’s like a soldier who would get up out of his foxhole, take all of his armor off, take his helmet off, and start walking around. You see, Brethren, the clothes, which is the armor of light, the shoes which we are to walk the path of truth will last us our entire journey. And I believe God gave that analogy to the Israelites in their journey to show us today that what He gave us and what we started this journey with is what we need to finish it.
And don’t ever let someone talk you out of it. Don’t let anyone come along because we’ll see that defeat is the gospel with a different gospel. “Did you know that Christ was a created being? Did you know that? I know you believe this, but now let me tell you.” Brethren, our lives depend on it!
God has given us what we need. We need to learn how to enhance and how to deepen our understanding. But it’s not going to wear out. We don’t have to put patches on it. In fact, as we go along we’re going to appreciate it more and more. Don’t ever change it!
Just hold your place there in Deuteronomy. And let’s go over to Galatians chapter 1. Galatians 1 verse 6. And remember your feet were shod with the preparation of the gospel, the good news. Galatians 1:6.
Galatians 1:6. I marvel that
you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to
a different gospel, 7) Which is
not another; but there are some who [would] trouble you and want to pervert the
gospel of Christ.
Notice this!
Galatians 1:7. But even if we,
Paul didn’t even exclude himself!
Galatians 1:7b. or an angel
from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you
[previously],
In other words, “We told you then even if we come back later and say, ‘Whoop! Let me tell you what you got to change.’” He said,
Galatians 1:7 cont. let him
be accursed.
Paul’s saying, “Look, I delivered to you what Christ delivered to me. I gave you that. If I come back and tell you, ‘Well, there’s been a little modification to this,’ don’t believe it!”
Galatians 1:9. As we have
said before, so now I say again,
So here’s a double witness.
Galatians 1:9b. if anyone
preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be
accursed.
Brethren, what we change, as we walk this path, is what’s inside here. Those parts that are incompatible with God’s way of life, that’s what we change. And we continually look to refine that and to understand God better. And, as God lives His life in us, we will continue to have a better understanding. But we don’t take off our shoes. We don’t take off our clothes and put on a different one. With God’s mercy and His Spirit, we change. But again, don’t change what we believe.
Okay, back to verse 5 of Deuteronomy 8. Now remember our point here is not just to know but to live by them. Remember righteousness is to live by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God and it’s for our edification and training. Deuteronomy 8 verse 5, it says,
Deuteronomy 8:5. “You should
know in your heart that as a man chastens his son, so the [Eternal] your God
chastens you.
Brethren, do we understand that His chastening is not for our destruction? But it’s for our training and our edification. It’s given for our betterment by a Father who loves us more than we can humanly understand.
Here’s another very concise Scripture, I think, that defines righteousness, verse 6.
Deuteronomy 8:6. “Therefore
you shall keep the commandments of the Lord
your God, [Notice!] to walk in His ways and to fear Him.
And “Walking in His ways” is, I think, a perfect segue. Let’s go back now to Ephesians 6 and let’s reread this. Ephesians 6 and verse 15, it says,
Ephesians 6:15. And having
shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
Or The New Revised Standard,
Ephesians 6:15. As shoes for your feet, put on whatever will make you ready to proclaim the gospel of peace.
And The New Jerusalem Bible says,
Ephesians 6:15. Wearing for
shoes on your feet the eagerness to spread the gospel of peace;
Of course, we know the gospel means good news. And it’s something that we understand that we are to proclaim. Now here’s the problem: When we think about proclaiming the gospel, we think about large scale proclamations, TV stations, cameras, studios, big desks and books and globes sitting to the side. And I don’t want to discount that. I don’t want to pooh-pooh that, but if we focus on that alone, we miss the very deep, very personal aspect of this.
You see it’s the feet that are to be shod with the gospel, not the mouth. It doesn’t say, “Shod your mouth with the gospel.” It’s your feet. Brethren, it’s clear we are to proclaim the gospel by our walk. Not our words. If God said, “Use your mouth to do it,” but He says, “It’s your feet.” And you know your feet are what conveys you along that path. I believe that’s what God intended from the beginning—our lives to proclaim the gospel. Each and every one of us can do that by the way we live.
For lack of time I’m not going to go too deeply, but a long time ago in the late 70’s there was a survey conducted in the Church as to how a person was introduced to God’s truth. And they even found out then the vast majority were introduced by someone they knew, by a friend or a relative. There was something that they saw in them that was different and they were intrigued by it. And they were led in by that. Perhaps some of you remember the details better than I, but the bottom line that I believe we’ve always understood and that is words are meaningless if our actions don’t support them. Our feet, the way we walk, should proclaim God’s truth which leads to life which is the good news.
Verse 16,
Ephesians 6:16. Above all,
taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery
darts of the wicked one.
There’s two common threads that run through the Bible regarding those that God is calling and placing in the body as the firstfruits. They all had a vision of the city ahead. You can read about that in Hebrews 11. The other is, except for a few now, they’re all dead. None of them have reached it. And you wonder at those that gave up their lives that submitted to it, was it even important that they reach it?
Look over in 1 Thessalonians 4. The Bible clearly says the first resurrection is a better resurrection, but no where can I find that it tells those that are alive that have an advantage over those that are dead. Look over in 1 Thessalonians 4 and verse 15. It says,
1 Thessalonians 4:15. For
this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that [those which are] alive and remain until the coming of the Lord
will by no means precede those who are asleep.
16) For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the
voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17) Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together
with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.
Caught up! All of us! And that shouldn’t be disconcerting. It should be very comforting. Verse 18,
1 Thessalonians 4:18. Therefore
comfort one another with these words.
In other words, there’s going to be those that are dead and those that are alive, but it should be a comfort that God is going to bring them all together. Faith is knowing and living our lives that God is going to carry through on His promises. And, Brethren, we can and we should stake our lives on that. And that should give us comfort. And that comfort that we can get no other way.
Look back to Hebrews 13. Hebrews 13 and verse 5, Hebrews 13:5, it says,
Hebrews 13:5. Let your conduct be without covetousness; be
content with such things as you have.
For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”
That armor that we put on we can take it off, but it will never just disappear. It will never wear out. It will never change.
Hebrews 13:6. So we may
boldly say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?”
Finally go back to Ephesians chapter 6 and verse 17. It says
Ephesians 6:17. And take the
helmet of salvation,
A helmet sits over a soldier’s head. It has to be lightweight. It has to be impervious to swords and spears and javelins, and, of course, in modern times bullets. A helmet is designed to stop or deflect things that would kill a person.
We’ve just read that our hope is in the salvation that is promised to us. God gave us a choice and made promises based on those choices, life or death. We alone can determine the outcome of our actions.
Hold your finger. Let’s go over to Matthew chapter 10. Matthew 10 and verse 28, Matthew 10:28.
Matthew 10:28. “And do not
fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul.
In other words, they can physically kill you, but that’s all.
Matthew 10:28b. But rather
fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
You see man, Satan; all of them are very limited in what they can do. And that shouldn’t be something that concerns us because our greater concern is is to fear God.
Okay, back to Ephesians chapter 6.
Ephesians 6:17. And take the
helmet
In verse 17,
Ephesians 6:17. And take the
helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:
Of all the armor that’s mentioned, this is the only piece that can be construed as an offensive weapon. All the others clearly are defensive, but this one could serve both purposes to attack but also to defend. Brethren, this sword is one that we use on ourselves. It’s to use the mind of God, His Spirit, and that power that was mentioned in the last sermon last week. Not to attack, but to expose and to subdue the enemy that’s within us.
Look over in Hebrews—well, I’ll tell you, hold your place there. Go over to Hebrews chapter 4. Hebrews 4 and verse 12, Hebrews 4:12, it says,
Hebrews 4:12. For the word
of God
And remember the sword of the Spirit which is the word of God that we just read in Ephesians 6:17. It says,
Hebrews 4:12. For the word
of God is living and powerful, and
sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and
spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and
intents of the heart.
Brethren, we’re using God’s Spirit, that sword, to separate within us what’s acceptable to God and what’s not. And the reason it works inside is we need to separate that while it’s still in its infancy before it becomes external actions, before we start acting out. In other words, before it even becomes apparent to others, it’s already a sin to God. Coveting is one of those. There’s no actions when that starts to take hold, but that has to be excised. That has to be cut out of us. Notice it’s a discerner of the thoughts and intents!
Okay, go back to Ephesians 6. This is the final Scripture and we’ll tie the sermon back to my last sermon. And remember I said in my last one that as future kings or future priests we have to be learning how to pray and be concerned for one another. What started out as putting on the armor of God and going through the various parts of this armor, notice how Paul ends this discourse with a very important part of that armor and that is by watching and praying. Notice this! Ephesians 6:18.
Ephesians 6:18. Praying
always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this
end with all perseverance and supplication
Notice! What is all perseverance and supplication?
Ephesians 6:18b. for all the
saints—
That prayer, praying always, if I could tie this back to my last sermon, that must as a locus of that include all of the saints. We must be praying for one another. Not only are we to have the armor of God on, but, Brethren, we are to be linked closely together, to be caring for one another, to be concerned for one another.
Let’s all examine the armor we’ve put on and to make sure we’re utilizing it correctly. Brethren, never, never take it off or trade it for something else even if it looks better. Let’s be sober and vigilant knowing that God is our Protector. And finally, let’s be praying, not just for ourselves, but for one another. All of these elements make up the armor that God has given us, the armor that will last us throughout our forty years in the wilderness, the armor that will protect us from the evil, the armor that opens up and opens us up to God’s truth, the perfect armor. Brethren, let’s all put on and keep on the armor of light.
Transcribed by kb