In
addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows
of the devil. (Ephesians 6:16, NLT)
In the verses before Ephesians 6:16, Paul wrote about other
pieces of the armor of God. He taught the Ephesians to don the breastplate of
righteousness, the belt of truth, and the shoes of peace. These are all pieces
of defensive armor. To protect the soldier of God from attack. In verse
sixteen, Paul taught these believers to hold up the shield of faith so they can
block the arrows of the devil. He continued with other verses that included the
helmet of salvation, the sword of the Spirit, and prayer.
Before these five verses, Paul began by saying where the
armor came from, whose might empower the armor, and who would cause Christians
to need armor. God knew in advance armor was a necessity. He knew human-made
armor would be powerless to engage with spiritual forces. Because of that, God
gives to every Christian the armor that carries the strength He gives. For this
reason, Paul wrote in verses ten and eleven, “Be strong in the Lord and in His
mighty power. Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm
against all strategies of the devil” (NLT).
God knew people's limitations in fighting the spiritual
realm of evil. Everyone falls to Satan's temptations at least once in life.
Because Christians are to be messengers of the gospel, Satan wants to stop them
more than he wants to stop non-Christians. This means that Satan attacks
Christians more than he attacks non-Christians. God knows the schemes of Satan.
He knows the methods of attack Satan will hurl at His children, and because of
that, God gives the armor His children need to combat Satan and his demons. He
gives armor that will make His children victorious over Satan’s plans. Paul,
convinced of this truth of God, testified of it in Romans 8:38-39. He knew
firsthand of God’s love and declared nothing can separate us from God’s love,
then gave a list of the things, events, and beings over which God is
almighty—death, life, angels, demons, fears, worries, powers of hell, false
gods, and anything in all creation.
Since God’s love is so great and powerful, nothing can stand
against and defeat us. God made that possible by giving us armor by which to
combat Satan’s evil forces. This armor is God’s; He made it, and He gives it. All
that comes from God is powerful and good. Yet, we must actively receive it—actively
take it and wear it.
A question arises, though, when we consider Christians’ lives.
Why do we keep hearing of their sins and downfall? The answer is that no
Christian is perfect. They cannot be because they are not God. Only God—Father,
Son, and Holy Spirit—is perfect. But Christians are being perfected daily by Christ
as they stay in daily communion (relationship) with God. Still, they fall to
temptation. For this reason, God gives believers armor. Remember, the armor
comes from Him, and, with it, believers can defeat the schemes of Satan. Since God
gives Christians this undefeatable armor, why do they still sin? The answer is
straightforward: Since God is invincible, the Christians who sinned did not
take the armor God offers to each believer, put it on, and use it. These
Christians fought Satan with their own strength. For example, people can receive
a car but not get in and drive it. God gives believers armor, but until they
put it on intentionally by praying over it and onto themselves each day, they
stand as prey to Satan’s schemes. King Saul’s life is an example of this.
When Samuel the prophet and priest of God grew old, the
Israelites feared they would have no leader upon his death. They asked Samuel
to give them a king to judge them so they can be like the other nations (1
Samuel 8:1-5). In 1 Samuel 10:1, Samuel, by God’s instruction, anointed Saul as
king of Israel, then gave him instructions on what would happen and what he was
to do. He told Saul that he would meet two men as he passed Rachel’s tomb, meet
three men at the oak of Tabor who would give him two loaves of bread, then go
to Gibeah of God, meet prophets, and receive the Spirit of the LORD, by whom he
would prophesy. From the time the Spirit of the LORD came upon Saul, Samuel said
he would be a different person (1 Samuel 10:2-6, 10-13). After receiving the
Spirit and prophesying, Samuel told Saul he would know God is with him (vs. 7).
From Gibeah, Saul would go to Gilgal and wait for seven days for Samuel to
arrive (vs. 8). God chose Saul, anointed him with oil by Samuel, His prophet,
and anointed him by the Holy Spirit to lead the people of Israel. The signs
proved God's choice of Saul as leader to himself and the Israelites.
Knowing that, why did Saul sin and fall away from God? It
happened fast. Saul had the Spirit of God within him. That means he had the
armor of God extended to him because God’s Spirit was within him. Yet Saul
chose to fight his first temptation, that of receiving the glory and goodwill
of his people, by disobeying God’s will as He stated through Samuel. He stole
the glory that was due to God by not waiting for Samuel to sacrifice animals on
the altar. In 1 Samuel 13, Saul, with his warriors, marched to fight the
Philistines. His men feared the Philistines because they had a “mighty army of
3000 chariots and 6000 charioteers and as many warriors as the grains of sand
on the seashore” (1 Samuel 13:5). The Israelite soldiers tried to hide anywhere
they could find, including large cisterns. Some soldiers crossed the Jordan
River to get away from the Philistines. Overwhelmed by fear, the Israelite
warriors were unwilling to let Saul wait for the full seven days as instructed
by Samuel, so they could burn sacrifices to God and seek His guidance and
blessings for the impending battle. Saul decided he would offer the sacrifices
to God since Samuel did not arrive before the end of the seventh day, the
amount of time Samuel instructed Saul to wait in chapter ten. Samuel arrived in
Gilgal just as Saul was finishing offering the sacrifices (1 Samuel 13:10). His
reaction to seeing that Saul had acted beyond his authority from God—by acting
as a priest—was to say with righteous indignation, “What is this you have
done?” (vs. 11) Samuel continued in verses thirteen and fourteen, “How foolish!
You have not kept the command the Lord your God gave you. Had you kept it, the
Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel forever. But now your
kingdom must end.”
What happened? Why did Saul disobey God’s instructions
through Samuel, God’s prophet? Saul succumbed to his soldiers’ pressure,
wanting to be like other kings. He trembled at the idea of losing their trust
and loyalty. Saul's focus was on people, not God. He took his eyes off God and
focused on his situation. God punished Saul by removing the kingdom from him.
He also removed His Spirit from Saul and left a distressing spirit in him (1
Samuel 16:14-15). The first sin of Saul’s, that of disobeying God and taking
His glory, led quickly to other sins. He decided not to kill all the Amalekites
and their livestock (1 Samuel 15:1-19). Saul walked to Carmel after defeating
the Amalekites to set up a monument to himself (1 Samuel 15:12). The Lord outright
rejected Saul and had Samuel declare it in 1 Samuel 15:23. When the Lord
rejected Saul, He sent Samuel to anoint a man after His own heart, David, in 1
Samuel 16. In this same chapter, the writer of 1 Samuel tells us when the
Spirit of the Lord left Saul, a tormenting spirit filled him with depression
and fear. A void of God’s Spirit in a person leaves a vacancy for an evil
spirit to enter that person. In summary, Saul disobeyed God by taking on the
role of priest. God anoints and prepares men to be His priests. He anointed
Saul as king, not as a priest. Saul stole God’s glory. He set up a monument to
himself because of his pride and allowed the Israelites to give him praise
instead of directing the praise to God. For this, God rejected Saul and took
His Spirit from Saul. The latter led to a tormenting spirit living in Saul.
Saul was impatient. He received the Spirit of God because of
God’s choosing him. He did not use the power and guidance God offered through
the Spirit by waiting for guidance and obeying God. Consider Ephesians 6 and
the armor of God. For Christians, God’s power and guidance are available to
each person. God offers it to each of His children. Christians can choose to
receive and use it or not. When believers accept each piece of armor with
prayer and then walk with the knowledge, power, and wisdom of God imparted by
His truth, righteousness, and salvation, then they can battle Satan and evil
spirits. God does not just save people and abandon them to fight alone in life.
He wants to journey with each believer and to guide, teach, protect, encourage,
and empower them to live life victoriously. Jesus died to give people who believe
in Him victory over more than death. Christians can have victory over sin, too.
Consider now, what is your sin today? What was your sin
yesterday, this week, this month, this year? Did you live with the power God gives
and with His armor received and on you?
To be transparent, one of my recent sins was about to be
impatience. Despite not hearing from God, I wanted to make a decision after
praying for three days. I desired to accept an opportunity without God’s
confirmation. Fortunately, I pray and read my Bible daily. One day, God aimed
at my heart with this reminder from Saul’s life. God asked me, “Are you going
to be patient or be like Saul?” Ouch! Now, I wait and keep praying. I still ask
God want He wants me to do about this opportunity. He reminds me that He does
not have to make a quick decision, even though I experience internal pressure
to make it. Saul sensed a similar pressure from his soldiers about the choice
between fighting the Philistines or running away. God knows what is best for me
and for His ultimate plan. He knows what is best for you, too.
Praying for days and not getting an immediate answer is hard.
God’s non-answer could mean He is saying, “No,” or “Not yet.” The hard part for
me is the "Not yet". I am impatient at times. Will I be like Saul or
wait? I am choosing to wait.
Will you wait on
God or be like Saul? God is asking you.
