Ephesians 6:11

“Put on the whole armour of God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.”

It is easy for christians to forget that we are involved in spiritual warfare. The devil continues to war against the Lord, and the field of battle is in the hearts of human beings.

When christians join with the wider society in viewing things from a humanistic point of view, then we miss what is really happening in the spirit realm. Christianity can easily become a religion, a subculture, or a code of behaviour with no spiritual power.

When Paul tells us to be strong in the Lord (v. 10), it is not merely an encouragement to keep the faith and read our Bible. Paul's intent is that we stay strong in the Lord in order to withstand the wiles of satan as he seeks to pull us down.

The phrase “ put on the whole armour of God” is so important that's Paul repeats it two verses later, as he does with the word ”stand.”

There is an urgency in this and the subsequent verses.”There is a war going on,” Paul is saying. “You must ensure that you are properly equipped so that you can stand firm.”

Paul will describe shortly what the armour and also who the enemy is that we are fighting. What is important is that we recognise the reality of the existential warfare that we are engaged in. The war for the souls of men and women has been unrelenting since the time of Adam and Eve. The death and resurrection of Jesus bought the final victory over sin and death, but the fighting continues to this day.

Paul tells us to put on the whole armour of God. Our spiritual victory depends on our being protected at every point. A soldier who put on his helmet but left off his breastplate was vulnerable.

We all have points of weakness in our souls. Temptations can assail us at every turn, but some are more easily with stood than others. For one person greed is a weakness, for another it is lust, for another it may be pride. Many of us have false gods which demand to be served - family, work, sport, and so on.

These vulnerabilities are so easily turned against us, causing us to trip at vital moments. We decide to spend more time praying, and then find a barrage of almost Irresistible temptations hammers us so that we feel defeated, unworthy, or unable.

Putting on the whole armour of God means determining in our hearts that at all times, in all places, and in every situation, Christ comes first. Even in making that decision we may find a hundred temptations and distractions will come in. The one thing that Satan fears above all else is a Christian determined to put Christ first. He will rage and rail against such a person.

Paul describes Satan as having “ wiles.” The Greek word literally means cunning plans. One variation of the word suggests thorough planning.

Be under no illusions. The devil knows you better than you know yourself. Since you were born, he has been probing your soul, finding what temptations you are most taken in by. There is no potential weakness that he will fail to employ against you.

Paul says that satan dresses himself up as an angel of light to deceive the elect. (2 Corinthians 11:4).He will use seemingly good things to turn us away from God’s path. He will even use well-meaning christians to undermine our walk with the Lord.

Does this mean that we are doomed to fail? Of course not!

The key to standing firm against the wiles of the devil is to constantly keep our eyes focused on the Lord. When we look at him, and not at ourselves, or the devil, or our friends, then we can know continual victory in the Lord.

When we do fall, we confess our sins to the Lord, and He cleanses us. He picks us up, brushes the dirt off us, and equips us to continue the journey. As long as we keep on getting up and maintaining our walk with Christ, we will overcome to the end.

Key points in this verse:

• We need to see with the eyes of the spirit, and not just the eyes of the flesh

• We need to stand in the strength of the Lord in order to withstand the enemy

• We are in a war for our souls and we must continue to fight

• We need all of God’s armour to be fully protected

• The devil will use all tactics and every weakness to pull us down

• Victory comes when we refuse to let our failures hold us down