1. The Warriors, vv. 11-12
"Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes."
a. Warriors must recognized that we are living between the "tension" of the time between the "already"(The First Coming of Jesus) and the "not yet" (Second Coming). According to Jesus, pestilence is one of the signs of his Second Coming (Matt. 24:7). Covid-19 is one of the plaques that is destructive to human lives.
b.The church is placed between this tension of the time, between the First and Second Coming, to wage war against Satan and His demons.
c. Warriors must be "strong in the Lord" and to have a close and intimate relationship with God. The utmost desire of the warrior is to know Christ: his desire, his plan, his purpose, and his ways. We must have the "mind of Christ" to fight this battle.
c. Warriors must be empowered by the "power of His might." The word "power" in the context of Pauline Epistles have a lot of applications and implications. Sometimes the word "power" refers to the work of the HS, or miracles as a result of gospel proclamations. Sometimes, it also relates to his power that sustain us in times of disease and afflictions (Rom. 1:16, 1 Cor 2:4; 2 Cor. 13).
e. We fight the Covid-19 by following the spiritual prescription of Zechariah 4:6 which says, "It is not by might nor by power but by might Spirit says the Lord of hosts.
2. The Warfare v. 12
"For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms."
a. The characteristics of our enemy is not physical, but rather spiritual, invisible, powerful, dark, and satanic evil. "Rulers" and "authorities" that create weapon of must destruction like biological weapon is satanic. Christians must condemn and expose these forces of evil.
b. Covid-19 is invisible, powerful, and it is here to "kill and destroy" lives. While not all sickness or disease is caused by the spirit world, but Covid-19 has a character to "kill and destroy" and Satan, according to Jesus, is here "to kill and destroy."
c. All human in the planet is at war with the Covid 19, therefore, we have to be armed with spiritual weapons.
3. The Weapons vv 13-20
"Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand"
a. Paul has reminded us that to fight our battles in life, we have to be armed with spiritual weapons which is the full armour of God.
b. 2 Corinthians 10:4 says,
"The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds."
c. Lists of the "full armour" of God
1. Belt of truth. We have to be theologically and medically informed about Covid-19. We have to be knowledgeable today, not to be ignorant about Covid-19.
2. Breastplate of righteousness. A pure and righteous religious practice according to James is a person that tame his tongue but cares for the poor. James 1:29
3. Shoes that are ready to proclaim the gospel of peace. Death is all around, so when we see patients dying, we should be ready to call people to repent and believe Jesus, or else, they will be lost forever.
4. Shield ourselves with faith not fear. Faith is the best weapon to conquer fear.
5. Helmet of salvation. While we have to wear mask and all the necessary equipment to protect ourselves, we have to equally wear that hope and assurance that comes from the Holy Spirit, that whether we die or not, our lives have been secured to eternity. So we can say with Paul, "For to me to live is Christ and to die is gain." Philippians 1:21
6. Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God that brings life, joy, peace, and the power to live in an age of global health crisis.
7. Praying in the Spirit in all occasions that equip, build up, and encourage our soul in time of distress.
My family are praying every evening that together, we will overcome this war by His mighty power.
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God bless you!
