I usually wear a sports jacket and dress pants to work. But every now and then I wear a suit and tie; I “suit up.” Some people wear uniforms, scrubs, jeans, shorts, flip flops – you name it. We wear a variety of different clothes to work or school.
The Bible talks about how we should “dress.” The apostle Paul tells us in Ephesians 6:11-17 to put on the whole armor of God to equip us so we can stand against the devil. In verse 12 Paul says, “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.”
Satan is a real being who roams the earth like a roaring lion (1 Peter 5:8). He’s a fallen angel and he is here on earth to wreck havoc with our lives -Christians and non-Christians alike. If you are unsaved, he wants you to stay that way. He wants you to continue enjoying the pleasures of sin (for a season). If you are saved, then the devil wants you to stumble. He wants to entice you away from God to keep you from being on fire for God. In addition to that, he wants others to see you fall because that might keep them from crying out to God for salvation.
To stand firm against the devil, the apostle Paul tells us what to do:
1. Put on the belt of truth. Jesus is the Truth (John 14:6). We need the Gospel of Jesus Christ our Lord.
2. Put on the breastplate of righteousness. We need the righteousness of Jesus Christ that is imputed or credited to us (Romans 4:22-24).
3. Just like we put on shoes, we should always be ready to proclaim the Gospel to others (Isaiah 52:7). Without the Gospel, people have no peace with God. God is angry at them for their sins (Psalm 7:11).
4. We need the shield of faith to stop the firey darts of Satan. Faith in Jesus Christ and in Him alone (not trusting our own goodness – which can never measure up to God’s standard). Our faith is God-given and it protects us like a shield (Romans 12:3).
5. Put on the helmet of salvation. We have faith in our salvation through Jesus Christ (Acts 4:12) – the author and finisher of our faith (Hebrews 12:2).
6. Pick up the sword of the Spirit – the Word of God (Hebrews 4:12). Paul tells us that we have an offensive weapon to use against Satan – the Bible. That’s why we need to read the Bible every day. We need the word of God to be in our minds and in our hearts to fight against the devil. John Wesley points out that we can’t foolishly fight against Satan. We need our faith and the word of God to fully fight against the evil one effectively.
After the Christian is fully “dressed” he still needs one more thing and this is found in verse 18. Prayer, prayer, prayer and more prayer! The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much (James 5:16). We need to pray. After we’ve readied ourselves for battle with Satan, we still need the power that only comes from God and we have access to Him through prayer in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord.
Are you fully “dressed” for God? In which area are you lacking? Do you read the Bible like you should? Are you prepared to share the Gospel with others? Do you need to cry out to God to take away your unbelief? Do you pray like you should? Personally, my cry to God is that He will strengthen my prayer life? Are you wearing the full armor of God?