PUT ON THE FULL ARMOR OF GOD

Eph 6:11a
12 Oct 94

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We have already dealt with the first two exhortations:

a) Be strong in the Lord;
b) Be strong in His mighty power.

We now come to the third exhortation:

Put on the full armor of God.

Take note that Paul first of all puts this exhortation in general and then in verse
14-17 he gives us the details. This is very characteristic of him; He puts the
whole first and then takes the individual parts. (Lloyd Jones, CS 170). And so
similarly let us not yet deal with the pieces of armor in detail but let us look at
some general principles first.

1. Take note that there is a balance of preparation. The first part in v.10
can be taken as the offensive part while the second part in v.11 is the defensive
part of the preparation. All scholars take note that the list of the pieces of
armor found in vv. 14-17 (except the Word) are all for protection or defense.

This tells us that when we are in the battle it is not enough to have good
offense, we must also have good defense. We must have good protection.
For example: In the Asian games (Philippines Vs. South Korea), Allan
Caidec good offense.

We mentioned last week that Being strong in His mighty power refers to
the supernatural power available from God. He sends it by miracles, signs and
wonders anointing of the Holy Spirit, Baptism of the Holy Spirit, vision and
dreams, etc., We have said that in times of need we can come to the Lord and
in His sovereignty, He can provide this power when He sees that we need it.
Now there are some Christians who have experienced that manifestation
from God in their past lives and encounters with Satan or in their general walk
with God.

Illustration:
Some Christians take pride in having received the empowering or the baptism of the Holy Spirit
as the Pentecostals term it. And for them that is enough. I heard one time that a certain
Pentecostal pastor who was asked if he had attended a certain seminar conducted by Baptists
who were also third wavers on how to handle cells, he said Well you know, wala nang tatalo sa
Pentecostal teaching on the Baptism of the Holy Spirit.

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Put On the Full Armor of God
 For them speaking in tongues, experiencing prophetic gifts and gifts of
healing from 1Cor 12 is enough and that there is nothing else you need if you
are to fight against the enemy, they are greatly mistaken They may have the
offensive weapons but there is a need to have defensive weapons and
protection also. ( Similar to US sending ANTI-SCUD MISSILES to Kuwait.
Fighter Jets are not enough. B-52 bombers not enough )
Another extreme of course takes knowledge without power.

Ex. Gal 3:5 Holy Spirit and power not enough. He sends them a
letter of rebuke to inform.
Gal 2:11-14 Peter was rebuked by Paul.
Titus 1:5,6,9; 2:1-3,9,12,15; 3:14
This is the reason why we need Wed midweek, Sunday, Friday, Radio ministry,
Library. ( Some people do not believe in the enemy and so more and more
rely on human resources. Do not forget that only Gods weapons can match
Satan shemes. Less faith in the power of Gods Word Rom.1:16-17 ).

2. Notice that the armor is of God. It is that armor that comes from
Him and provides his children.

Nothing but armor of God will suffice this terrible conflict. There is no
protection, nothing we can do that will ultimately protect us against this subtle,
powerful enemy but the armor provided by God Himself.

This armor is not something we invent. Thought of, this is not human
reasoning, psychology, human wisdom.
God has not left us to our own resources and devices. We do not have
to think of something new; everything that we need is provided by God (Lloyd
Jones). There are some problems that can be helped by psychotherapy using
different human theories,
Human advice
Will power
Positive mental attitude
Meditation techniques
Vacation, entertainment
Anting anting
Fung sui

But schemes of Satan, and these enemies of God which are second only to the
blessed trinity will not be defeated by mens theories or techniques. We can
only defend ourselves using spiritual weapons, that are mighty before God.

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 See their spiritual nature: belt of truth, righteousness, gospel of
peace, faith, salvation, word of God.

3. The Lord provides us with the FULL ARMOR OF GOD.

You do not need any additional. The ones listed in vv.14-17 is not the
exhaustive list but it contains the essential ones we need and they will be
enough for good defense and protection. We do not need anything else. God
has provided everything we need. ( 2 Peter 1:3; 2Tim 3:16 ).

4. Put On You put on.

Armor of God is something we put on and not placed upon us by God
that works automatically. This is not something done by God for us. ( 2Peter
1:5; Josh 1:8; Ps 1; 2Tim 2:15 ). Phil 2:12,13

-you work out your salvation

-you appropriate. (Ro 6:11)
-Righteousness is yours in Christ. Believe it appropriate it.
-Victory is ours. Stand! ( 1John 5:18 ).

5. The armor of God is something to be put on permanently.

John MacArthur says:
Put on carries the idea of once and for all of permanence.
The full armor of God is not
Something to be put on and taken off occasionally but is something
to be put on permanently. It
is not a uniform to wear only while playing a game and then to
remove when the game is over.
The armor of God is to be the Christians lifelong companion.
1Cor 15:2; 2 Peter 2:8,
David, 1Cor 10:12
Peter in Galatians

6. The whole armor must be put on.

You cannot select which parts of the armor to put on. Every part must
be protected. The mind, the heart, the will.
If you were specifically referring to doctrine this can mean, there
needs to be the whole counsel of God that is dealt with. Not just our favorite
passages. Sometimes there are movements that happen in Christian
communities that emphasize only on some doctrine. Emphasis only on
evangelism, only on sanctification, only on spiritual warfare, but they do not
talk about the Last days, the second coming, the bible, the family, etc.

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 At the same time, the areas of our lives that must be protected must
include the mind. So yes we need teaching, but that is not all, our emotions
must also be protected. But it is not all emotions. There must a balance with
intellectual aspect. And also the will must be protected.

7. There is only one kind of person who can put on this armor THE
TRUE CHRISTIAN.

-Because only he can be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His
might.

-Because the very nature of the armor makes this quite inevitable.
Ex. A Sister came to me for counseling, asking how her mother can
cope with a particular problem.
How can she cope when the principles that will be given to
her will consists of understanding and applying the truth of
the gospel.
The armor can only be used by the spiritual person.
If you have relatives, loved ones who are not Christians, they
have to be Christians first if they
Are to apply these truths.

Application:

1. The devil is waiting, watching with all his subtlety & power & forces. There is
only one way to stand.
Be strong in the LORD,
Be strong in His mighty power.
Put on the full armor of God.

2. What great privilege Christian has in Christ. Use it. Know your weapon. Use
everything provided by God. Believe God for the victory.

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