Armor Of God-Shield Of Faith Series

Armor of God-Shield of Faith

Ephesians 6:10-18

Introduction

George Burns:

The secret of a good sermon is to have a good beginning and a strong ending, and to have the two as close together as possible.

Last couple weeks we looked at the armor of God.

We have looked at the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, and this morning we will be looking at the shield of faith.

Belt of truth- know what you believe, why you believe it.

Breastplate of Righteousness- Spiritual body armor that protects our vital parts. we know that we cannot be righteous in our selves, then it would be self-righteousness, but we are righteous because of Christ.

What He has done for us already (cross)

What he continues to do in us (Holy Spirit)

This morning the shield of faith:

The main text again this morning is Ephesians 6:10-18

you put the belt of truth around you

you place the breastplate of righteousness on

your feet are fitted with the gospel of peace.

Above all else, in addition to these, we are now to take up the shield of faith

T When you are in a battle is not the time to put on your armor.

To take inventory of what you have or have not got on.

To do damage control. As a believer, the armor must be on at all times, and when you are not in battle is when you repair any damage done to your armor. Breastplate damaged- fix it. Shield is dented- bang out the dents.

The shield of faith defends our whole body, plus the other parts of our armor. It protects our head, chest, arms and legs. No wonder the bible says “above all”.

The shield has a function. It is to stop the fiery darts that Satan and life throws at us.

Hebrews 11:1-2

“Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not yet seen.”

Faith is of God.

God gives us faith, and if we are seeking Him, He can increase our faith.

If you lose faith, God can get it back for you.

Jesus said- Mustard seed faith can move mountains.(power)

Faith is the confidence we have in the crucified and risen Jesus. (Redemption) Faith is relying of God, looking past all of our circumstances. (Trust).

***Faith is what the Holy Spirit dropped into our heart when we received Christ as our savior. Rom 8:15When we Stepped away of what we could do and trusted what God has done.

Faith allows us to call God our heavenly Father. (Gal 4:6) and know according to His word we have been redeemed.

We have gone from being a enemy of God to a child of God. Part of the royal family. Complete with all the benefits. So today your earthly family may not have a lot of things(materially), but one day as a believer in Jesus Christ, we will stake our roots for eternity with our heavenly Father.

Faith is responding to truth:

Jesus says:

I am the way, the truth, and the life, no man comes to the Father except through me.

Jesus tells us:

I am the bread of life- sustainer of life

I am the great shepherd- protector of the flock

I am the light of the world- show us the way

I am the gate- I am the protection

I am God’s Son- I am part of the royal family, and you can also be.

I am the resurrection and the life- I have conquered death and the grave and so can you.

John 5:24-

“ I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes Him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned, he has crossed over from death to life.”

Jesus goes on to say:

“Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come out. Those who have done good will rise to live, those who have done evil will rise to be condemned. Remember, the righteousness is in Jesus Christ, not us.

Jesus said:

“I am the resurrection and the life, he who believes in me will live, even though he dies, and whoever lives and believes in me will never die.”

That is the shield of faith that you need to put out in front of you.

Faith involves trust and reliance in Jesus. You believe that pew will hold you, but when you sat down you exercised your faith.

3 legs of faith:

prayer:

communication with God. Personal relationship with the one you say you put your faith in.

His word:

His word is truth, you can stand on the promises of God. This book is our life source. This is where we get our direction. We draw strength from His word.