Using the Armor of God (Part Three)

 “And (take up) the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God,” (Ephesians 6:18).

In spiritual warfare the Word of God has a few purposes and all of them relate to a relationship with the Lord.

1.      When Jesus was tempted as recorded in Matthew 4:3-10 He referred to the Word of God with every temptation – “it is written”. The lie can only be defeated by truth, so to expose and neutralize any lie, the truth of God’s Word must be applied to prove lies invalid. In order to do that, one should know the Bible well so that the Holy Spirit can bring that knowledge to the surface when it is necessary to counter a spiritual attack. The devil can deceive either through whispering lies into our ears or by using people and ideologies. Both can only be exposed by using the sword of the Spirit, the Word.

2.      “For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division

of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart,” (Hebrews 4:12). In Christ we are more than conquerors (Romans 8:37), but we need to work out our own salvation with fear and trembling (Philippians 2:12). The more we get into Christ, the more we are conquerors, in other words, the closer we are to the Lord the easier we will be able to hide under His protection and scare off the devil. Therefore we need the double-edged sword to cut right into the depths of our beings to discern which thoughts and intentions of our hearts do not advance the Kingdom of God, so that we can deal with them. Jesus said to the disciples in John 15:3: “You are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you.” The Sword of the Spirit cleans us so we can be in right standing and submitted to God and therefore maintain our authority over evil.

3.      “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work,” (2 Timothy 3:16, 17). “Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching,” (2 Timothy 4:2). How often has this kind of Word been preached to you? In order for us to be clean and holy before the Lord we need to face being reproved and rebuked and we need to be exhorted to obedience, all of which could be summarized as training in righteousness. It is the Word of God that is our sword and we need to know it and know how to wield it. “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth,” (2 Timothy 2:15).

If a soldier is not trained in the skills of warfare and in handling his weapon, he is bound to come second in battle. In the same way, we need to know our weapon and our commanding officer. Read the Bible, think about it and memorize passages the Holy Spirit highlights in your heart. This way the Word becomes part of you and when the Holy Spirit needs it for defense, offence or equipping, it is available in your heart.

     Lord, help me to handle the Word of God correctly.