Month 9 - Warfare & Holiness | Week 2: Armor of God
Anchor Scripture
“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.” -Ephesians 6:10–11
We will be covering:
Be Strong in the Lord
The Armor Belongs to God
The Belt of Truth and Righteousness
The Gospel of Peace and the Shield of Faith
Salvation and the Word of God
Praying at All Times
Standing in Christ
Last week, we discussed the unseen battle that surrounds the Christian life, one that our generation may have neglected. Paul reminded us that our struggle isn’t ultimately against flesh and blood, but against spiritual forces of evil. That truth helps us understand why temptation, accusation, division, discouragement, and deception can carry such spiritual weight, and how we can approach these challenges with the position of Christ.
We reminded ourselves that Paul doesn’t reveal the reality of this daily battle so that believers will become fearful or preoccupied with the enemy. He reveals it so that we can understand our need for the strength and protection God provides. To fight from that position, not for it.
The central command in Ephesians 6 is not to attack, investigate, or attempt to overpower the darkness. It is to stand.
Paul repeats this command throughout the passage. Believers are to put on the armor we will be discussing today, so that they may stand against the schemes of the devil, withstand in the evil day, and, having done everything, remain standing.
The Christian stands not because the battle is insignificant, but because Christ is sufficient to do so. So we will stand.
Be Strong in the Lord
Before Paul describes any part of the armor, he tells the church where its strength must come from:
“Be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.” - Ephesians 6:10–11
Paul doesn’t tell the Ephesians to become stronger versions of themselves. He doesn’t direct them toward greater self-confidence, determination, or spiritual intensity. Their strength is actually to be found outside themselves, in the Lord and in His mighty power.
This is a key point for this month overall. You won’t be able to stand through your own strength, let’s put that pride to death today. Spiritual warfare exposes the limits of your human strength.
Willpower may restrain temptation for a time, but it can’t transform the heart.
Intelligence may recognize certain lies, but it can’t provide spiritual life.
Discipline is valuable, but even seasoned disciplined believers remain completely dependent upon the grace of God.
Jesus directly expressed this dependence clearly when He told His disciples:
“Apart from me you can do nothing.” - John 15:5
This isn’t bad news, don’t read that as a put down, it’s a reality check on the immense scale of what needs to be done, and the good news is that Jesus has, can and will do it through you.
You are not alone on this fight.
That doesn’t mean that believers are to be passive, that we get excused from the battle because Christ is working in it. Paul is commanding the church to put on the armor, resist evil, remain alert, pray, and persevere. But all of this activity flows from dependence upon Christ.
The enemy gladly persuades us to fight in our own strength. Self-reliance eventually produces either pride or despair. When we appear to succeed, we begin to trust ourselves. When we fail, we assume there’s no hope.
The gospel offers a different foundation. One of rock rather than sand. Our confidence is not that we are strong enough to overcome every temptation, but that Christ is strong enough to sustain those who remain in Him.
The Armor Belongs to God
Paul calls this “remaining” the armor of God.
The imagery comes from the Old Testament, where God Himself is described as a warrior who puts on righteousness and salvation in order to judge evil and rescue His people.
Isaiah writes:
“He put on righteousness as a breastplate, and a helmet of salvation on his head.”- Isaiah 59:17
The armor first belongs to God. He then clothes His people with what is His.
This prevents us from treating the armor as a collection of spiritual achievements. We should thank God for the armor rather than fall into sin of pride of our obtaining it. The armor is not truth that we invented, righteousness that we earned, peace that we created, faith in our own ability, salvation that we secured, or a word that originated with us.
Every part of the armor is received from God and ultimately fulfilled in Christ.
Jesus is the truth.
He is our righteousness and our peace.
Salvation is found in Him.
Faith rests upon His character and work.
The Word of God reveals Him, and the Spirit equips us to live in what He has accomplished.
To put on the armor of God is therefore to live each day from the reality of our union with Christ. We stand, by remembering who He is, trusting what He has done, and submitting ourselves to what He has spoken.
We are discussing this here upfront to correctly position ourselves away from pride, so that we can see the armor of God for what it is and who’s it is as we progress.
The Belt of Truth and Righteousness
Paul begins:
“Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness.” - Ephesians 6:14
The spiritual battle has always involved truth.
In Genesis 3, the serpent begins by questioning God’s Word and distorting God’s character. The temptation is built upon the suggestion that God is withholding something good and that His command cannot be trusted. A lie.
The same strategy continues throughout Scripture. The enemy lies about God, about sin, and about the consequences of disobedience. He presents rebellion as freedom and obedience as restriction. He accuses believers of being beyond grace while simultaneously minimizing the seriousness of the sin that enslaves them.
Truth holds discipleship together because it keeps us anchored to reality as God has revealed it. This truth is not determined by our emotions, circumstances, cultural pressure, or personal preference. It is revealed in Scripture and embodied in Jesus Christ.
When Jesus said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life,” He made it explicitly clear that Christian truth isn’t merely a system of correct ideas. Truth is found in knowing, trusting, and following Him.
The breastplate of righteousness is closely connected to this truth.
Our first protection against accusation is the righteousness of Christ. The gospel doesn’t teach that Christians have never sinned or that their failures are unimportant. It teaches that Jesus has borne their sin and that His righteousness is credited to those who trust Him.
Paul explains:
“For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” - 2 Corinthians 5:21
When the enemy accuses us, our defense isn’t our own moral record. We stand upon the finished work of Christ. The Disciple’s acceptance before God rests upon Jesus, not upon fluctuating spiritual performance.
Yet the righteousness of Christ also produces a new way of living. Those who have been justified are called to walk in obedience. Hidden sin, habitual compromise, and resistance to repentance weaken us, because they contradict the new life Christ has given us.
Putting on the breastplate of righteousness therefore means both resting in the righteousness of Christ and refusing to make peace with sin.
We confess because we are secure in Him.
We repent because grace is transforming us.
We pursue holiness not to earn God’s love, but because we have received it.
The Gospel of Peace and the Shield of Faith
Paul continues:
“And, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one.”- Ephesians 6:15–16
A soldier requires stable footing. A fighter, boxer, archer, police officer, fire fighter, all need solid footing, right. That seems logical, but through Paul’s acknowledgement to us of the battle raging around and against us, and with his primary call being to “Stand”, we also require stable footing.
Paul says that the believer’s footing is provided by the gospel of peace.
Through Christ, we have peace with God. The hostility caused by sin has been dealt with at the cross. Those who were once separated from God have been reconciled to Him.
“Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” - Romans 5:1
This peace, if you will let it, gives stability even when your circumstances remain difficult. You may well experience opposition, grief, uncertainty, or spiritual pressure, but these things can’t overturn the ultimate and most important reconciliation Christ has secured.
The cross has already answered the question of whether God is for His people. We don’t interpret His love through the ease of our circumstances. We interpret our circumstances through the love He displayed in Christ. It surpasses our circumstances, so that the footing we hold as we stand against the enemy is stable, solid, unshakable. Because that’s Satan’s actual goal: to separate you from your Father. To have your footing slip due to your circumstances.
This footing of peace can also shape how we respond to other people. Because our battle is not against flesh and blood, we must resist the temptation to treat people as the enemy. Christians may need to confront sin, oppose injustice, correct error, or establish boundaries, but they are called to do so without surrendering to hatred, vengeance, or bitterness.
I’ll say that again -
Hatred, vengeance, and bitterness are not things that demonstrate strength; they are things that demonstrate surrender, surrendering your footing and giving way to the Devil.
The shield of faith protects us when the enemy attempts to make us question what God has revealed.
Faith is not confidence that our preferred outcome will occur. It is confidence in the character, promises, and purposes of God. It trusts Him when His work is not yet visible and when obedience is costly.
The flaming darts Paul describes may take the form of doubt, fear, temptation, accusation, or discouragement. Faith extinguishes them by refusing to grant them greater authority than the Word of God.
This doesn’t mean Disciples never struggle.
Faith can coexist with weakness, questions, and tears.
The strength of faith isn’t found in the emotional certainty of the believer, but in the faithfulness of the One being trusted.
The Roman shield was also designed to be used alongside the shields of other soldiers. Paul is writing to a church, not merely to isolated individuals. The armor of God is personal, but it isn’t private. We need the prayers, encouragement, correction, and presence of other believers, like the shield walls of old. God often strengthens our faith through the faithfulness of His people.
Salvation and the Word of God
Paul concludes the description of the armor:
“And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”- Ephesians 6:17
The helmet of salvation guards the believer’s mind with the certainty of God’s saving work.
Salvation includes what Christ has already accomplished, what He is presently doing, and what He will finally complete.
We have been forgiven and justified.
We are being sanctified by the Spirit.
One day, we will be raised, restored, and freed completely from the presence of sin.
This future hope matters in spiritual warfare.
The enemy wants the present struggle to appear final. He wants suffering to produce hopelessness, failure to produce condemnation, and delay to produce unbelief.
The helmet of salvation reminds us that the outcome of the battle doesn’t depend upon the appearance of the present moment. Christ has died, Christ has risen, and Christ will return. The powers of darkness have been defeated decisively, even though their final removal still lies ahead.
The sword of the Spirit is the Word of God.
When Jesus was tempted in the wilderness, He responded with Scripture. He didn’t use the Word as a magical formula, nor did He quote isolated phrases without regard for their meaning. He understood the truth of God and applied it faithfully to the particular temptation before Him.
This is how believers learn to use the sword of the Spirit. We don’t merely collect verses. We allow the whole counsel of Scripture to reshape our understanding of God, sin, obedience, suffering, identity, and hope.
The Word exposes the enemy’s distortions because it reveals reality from God’s perspective. It teaches us what’s true before temptation arrives and gives us language to resist when deception comes.
For this reason, Scripture must become more than an occasional source of encouragement. It must form our minds, correct our assumptions, confront our sin, and direct our decisions.
Praying at All Times
Paul doesn’t end the passage with the sword. He continues:
“Praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication.”- Ephesians 6:18
Prayer isn’t another piece of armor; it’s the means through which the whole armor is received and used in dependence upon God. It is our fibrous connection to the vine; it is our abiding in Him.
Without prayer, the language of spiritual warfare can easily become another form of self-reliance. We may know the right doctrines and still attempt to stand in our own ability.
Prayer keeps us conscious of our need for God. It brings temptation into His presence before it grows in secrecy. It turns anxiety into dependence, accusation into confession and assurance, and uncertainty into trust.
Paul also commands believers to pray for one another. Spiritual alertness is not merely concern for our own condition. We are called to remain watchful for the church, carrying one another before God and asking that His people will remain faithful.
The armor of God therefore isn’t a ritual that guarantees an easy day. It’s a picture of a life rooted in Christ, shaped by truth, covered by righteousness, established in the gospel, sustained by faith, secured by salvation, governed by Scripture, and dependent upon prayer.
Standing in Christ
The central command of Ephesians 6 still remains simple: Stand.
We stand by refusing to surrender truth when deception is persuasive.
We stand by returning to the righteousness of Christ when accusation comes.
We stand upon the peace of the gospel when circumstances are unsettled.
We stand by faith when God’s work is not yet clear.
We stand in the hope of salvation when the battle feels endless.
We stand upon the Word of God when other voices compete for authority.
None of this means that is Disciples will never stumble. Standing firm includes returning to Christ when we have fallen. The gospel makes repentance possible because our hope was never based upon our own perfection or works for salvation.
God hasn’t called us to win the battle through our strength. He has called us to remain in the victory and protection of His Son.
The armor belongs to God.
The strength belongs to God.
The victory belongs to God.
Our calling is to put on what He has provided and to stand.
Read - Watch - Listen
Read
The Armor of God | Ligonier Ministries
A concise exposition of Ephesians 6:10–20 showing that the armor is not a collection of spiritual techniques, but God’s provision for His people. It connects Paul’s imagery to Scripture’s picture of God as the divine Warrior and helps explain why our strength must come from Him rather than ourselves.
The Christian in Complete Armor | D. A. Carson
A deeper exposition of Ephesians 6:10–20 that traces the armor back into the Old Testament and explains the belt of truth, righteousness, gospel readiness, faith, salvation, the Word, and prayer. Carson especially emphasizes that the source of the Christian’s strength is the Lord Himself.
Read the message and transcript
Watch
The Armor of God: Ephesians 6:14–17 | John Piper
This Look at the Book series slows down over the individual pieces of armor and examines the biblical text closely. Particularly helpful are the sessions on the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, the sword of the Spirit, and the connection between the armor God gives us and the armor God Himself wears in Isaiah.
The Church’s Warfare | Stephen Nichols
A clear, Christ-centered teaching on Ephesians 6:10–20. Nichols explains why believers are called to spiritual warfare, how God equips His people for that battle, and what it practically means to be strong in the Lord as we await Christ’s return.
Listen
An Equipped Man | D. A. Carson
A powerful exposition of the armor of God built around three ideas: know your enemy, know your equipment, and know your limitations. Carson works through each piece of armor before showing why Paul finishes the passage with persistent prayer for the whole church.
The Armor of God | Appleton Gospel Church
A very accessible 34-minute walkthrough of Ephesians 6:10–24 connecting truth, righteousness, the gospel, faith, salvation, Scripture, and prayer to the believer’s everyday spiritual battles. A great practical companion to this week’s Dispatch.
Next Week
Month 9 - Week 3: Walking in the Spirit
Anchor Scripture:
“But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.”- Galatians 5:16
Having explored the armor God provides so that we can stand firm against the schemes of the enemy, next week we will turn to how the Christian actually walks faithfully through the battle in that armor.
In Week 3: Walking in the Spirit, we will explore what Scripture means when it calls us to walk by the Spirit rather than according to the desires of the flesh.
We will examine the conflict between the flesh and the Spirit, what it means to be led by the Spirit, and how the fruit of the Spirit becomes increasingly visible in the life of a disciple. We will see that victory over sin is not achieved through greater willpower or self-reliance, but through daily dependence upon the Holy Spirit as He transforms our desires, directs our steps, and forms the character of Christ within us.
Closing Prayer
Father,
Thank You that You have not called us to stand in our own strength, but have provided everything we need in Christ.
Help us to put on the whole armor of God each day. Ground us in Your truth, clothe us in the righteousness of Christ, and establish our feet in the peace of the gospel. Strengthen our faith when doubt and accusation come, keep the hope of salvation before us, and teach us to wield Your Word faithfully and wisely.
Make us a people of prayer who depend upon You in every circumstance. When temptation comes, help us stand. When deception surrounds us, lead us back to truth. When we stumble, draw us quickly to repentance and remind us that our confidence rests in Christ and not in ourselves.
Teach us to be strong in You and in the strength of Your might. May our lives increasingly reflect Jesus as we stand firm in the victory He has already won.
In Jesus’ name we pray.
Amen.
I’m glad you’re here.
Let’s run the race - Eyes Up, Chin Up!
Grace and peace,
Sam Johnston
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