Intro
We are dealing with spiritual warfare using Ephesians 6:10-18 as our text. Every Christian needs to know how to do spiritual warfare because every Christian is a soldier. Like it or not, you are in a fight with the devil. His intentions toward you are not good. He hates you because he hates the God who loves. You cannot pacify him because he is fully set against anything that belongs to God. Your only option is to defend yourself and fight back.
The reason we are in this study is to learn from Scripture how to do that.
Paul said in 1 Corinthians 9:26: “I do not fight like a man beating the air (NIV).i The NLT says, “I am not like a boxer who misses his punches.” A boxer can throw a lot of punches, but if none of them hit the opponent, he will lose the fight. This is one reason a boxer trains so that he punches with skill. He not only needs to know how to hit his target when he throws a punch, but he needs to know how to assert proper force behind each punch. A jab serves a different purpose than a hook. Technique matters. Heart matters. A champion boxer must know technique, but he must also have the heart of a fighter. He must be tenacious and persistent. He must know how to take a punch as well as give a punch. Paul told Timothy to “endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ” (2 Timothy 2:3 KJV).
That boxer also needs to know how to defend himself against the onslaughts of his adversary. For spiritual battles, Paul tells us to “Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil” (Eph. 6:11). God has given us what we need to win our battles, but we have to put on the armor he provides. A soldier may possess the armor, but if he does not put it on, then he is just as vulnerable as the man who has no armor.
Last week we began addressing the specific pieces of armor listed in Ephesians 6. We discovered these pieces of armor represent something very practical. They involve a biblical mindset and an obedient lifestyle. Obedience to God is the key to your success in spiritual warfare. You outmaneuver Satan by following your commander’s orders. Satan is smarter than us. He has been around for thousands of years. He has more experience than we have. If we try to match our wits against his, we will lose. That’s why Proverbs 3:5-8 gives this instruction:
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; 6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths. 7 Do not be wise in your own eyes; Fear the Lord and depart from evil. 8 It will be health to your flesh, And strength to your bones.” Our victory is always found in our obedience. We will see that more clearly as we address the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit.
In our previous message, we discussed the first four pieces of armor. We learned that the belt of truth is a belt of truthfulness. It is “speaking the truth in love” (Eph. 4:15). It is avoiding all forms of lies, hypocrisy, deception, and manipulation because that is the devil’s turf. Gang members in these big cities understand the value of staying on your own turf. They know it is dangerous to get on your adversary’s turf. If a gang member goes onto a rival gang’s turf, they will gang up on him and beat him up. Our turf is truthfulness. We stay off the turf of lies and dishonesty. When we operate in truthfulness and honesty, God has our back. When we are where we are supposed to be, doing what we are supposed to do, then we are safe.
I was sitting on my deck at home one day this week having a brief devotional with the Lord. I looked up into a tree and saw a very small bird, a tiny yellow finch. I looked at him, and he looked at me. He was perched there without a care in the world, feeling safe and sound on his God-given turf. There were predators on the ground that could have devoured him if he were on their turf. This finch was safe because he used the equipment God had given him (two-wings) to fly up into that tree, and he stayed in the scope God had assigned to him. God has given us armor that will keep us safe if we put it on. And there is safety in simply operating in the assignment God gives you (2 Cor. 10:13).
The second piece of armor is the breastplate of righteousness. This is not referring to imputed righteousness. Christians already have that. Based on the cross, God has already declared the believer righteous. He has already imputed Christ’s righteousness to them. Our text is talking about practical righteousness: living holy lives. Imputed righteousness positions us for that. But we must “put on” the breastplate of righteousness. We must live righteously in all our relationships and, to put it simply, do what is right.
The third piece of armor is the soldier’s sandals: “having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace” (Eph. 6:15). The gospel offers peace with God to all who will receive it. But Paul is talking to Christians who already have peace with God. He is telling Christians to live in the peace of God. Earlier in this epistle (Eph. 4:2-3), we are told to live “with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, 3 endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” Our adversary’s strategy is often to divide and conquer. We defeat that strategy by being quick to repent of offenses and quick to forgive those who offend us. The world often mistakes pride for strength. But in God’s kingdom, humility is strength. “Blessed are the poor in spirit, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. . . . Blessed are the meek, For they shall inherit the earth. . . . Blessed are the peacemakers, For they shall be called sons of God” (Matt. 5:3-9).ii
The fourth piece of armor is the shield of faith which is confidence in God. “The just shall live by faith” (Heb. 10:38). No matter what is going on in our lives, we keep trusting God for the outcome. “This is the victory that overcomes the world, our faith” (1 John 5:4, RSV).
There are two more pieces of armor in Paul’s metaphor: the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit. Today we will deal with those and address the call to prayer in Ephesians 6:18. Prayer is not part of the metaphor, but it is the most important part of spiritual warfare. So, let’s consider the helmet of salvation.
HELMET OF SALVATION
The helmet of salvation covers a crucial part of the soldier’s body.iii A head wound can be a fatal wound. David declared in Psalm 140:7: “O GOD the Lord, the strength of my salvation, You have covered my head in the day of battle.” David understood the importance of protecting the head.
There is a battle going on for your mind. Satan will at times bombard your mind with suggestions contrary to the will of God. He will tempt you with thoughts of discouragement and unbelief. He will try to establish strongholds of deception in your mind. If he can get you thinking wrong, then he can get you to acting wrong. Our behavior is a product of our thoughts. Therefore, the mind is a prime target of the enemy.
First Thessalonians 5:8 adds insight on what this helmet is all about. There it Is called “the hope of salvation.” The word translated salvation (soteria) is a big word. It includes our eternal destiny in heaven.iv That is probably paramount in Paul’s mind. But the word is also applied to deliverance and provision in the here and now: the hope of a healing; the hope of a breakthrough for a loved one; the hope of God’s intervention in some matter you have been praying for.v
Hope is a defense. It fortifies us against depression, despair, and despondency. New Testament hope is not just wishful thinking. It is confident expectation in God.vi God will come through. God will prove himself strong in your behalf.
David found himself discouraged. Perhaps it was one of those evil days in his life when the enemy was coming in like a flood.vii But he began to talk to himself. Sometimes we have to preach a little sermon to ourselves. Do you know what I mean? So, in Psalm 42:5 David did some very effective self-talk. He said, “Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God, for I shall yet praise Him For the help of His countenance.” Sometimes we just have to remind ourselves that victory is on the way. Sometimes we have to nurture that hope in our hearts and minds.
A disciplined thought life is a powerful defense against the enemy. Philippians 4:8 gives us good counsel about what to dwell on. “Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy — meditate on these things.” Second Corinthians 10:5 teaches us to cast down thoughts that are contrary to the knowledge of God, “bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.” There is a battle going on against your mind, but you can win it by the grace of God. You put on the helmet of salvation by maintaining a disciplined thought life.
The carnal mind is vulnerable to Satan’s suggestions. That’s why Romans 12:2 says, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” How is our mind renewed? Enabled by the grace of God, we discipline our thinking. We saturate our mind with the word of God. The more God’s truth dominates our thinking, the less vulnerable we are to Satan’s suggestions. “And take the helmet of salvation” (Ephesians 6:10).
SWORD OF THE SPIRIT
Ephesians 6:17 continues: “and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” The sword here “is the machaira, which varied in length from six to eighteen inches.” It was a highly maneuverable dagger, sharp on both sides. It is the only offensive weapon mentioned in this analogy. It is the sword of the Spirit because its origin is the Holy Spirit.viii
There are three Greek words for the “word” of God. Graphe refers to the written Bible or its contents. Graphe is usually translated “scripture” in the New Testament. Logos denotes “the expression of thought,” but it is used in a variety of ways.ix It “is attested to 331 times in the New Testament.”x Rhema indicates a spoken or uttered word. The word used in our text is rhema.
Logos and rhema are synonyms and are often used in the same way.xi For example, the meaning of logos in Hebrews 4:12 is similar to the meaning of rhema in Ephesians 6:17. “For the word (logos) of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword (machaira --same as in Eph. 6:17), piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” But keep in mind, logos has a wide range of meaning depending on its context. For example, in John 1:1 the term is used in reference to God the Son who became flesh (John 1:14). In that context, logos is used in a very different way than it is used in Hebrews 4:12.xii
With a general understanding of logos as the message given to us in Scripture (graphe), we store that in our hearts/minds so that it is available for the Holy Spirit to quicken when needed. When the Holy Spirit quickens that brief saying, then we utter it as a rhema. The Greek scholar W. E. Vine made this observation concerning the sword of the Spirit in our text: “The significance of rhema (as distinct from logos) is exemplified in the injunction to take ‘the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God,’ Eph 6:17; here the reference is not to the whole Bible as such, but to the individual scripture which the Spirit brings to our remembrance for use in time of need, a prerequisite being the regular storing of the mind with Scripture.”xiii We need our minds and hearts filled with the logos of God so that it is available for the Spirit to quickenxiv a portion of it as a rhema for a given occasion.
“Word” in our text is not talking about the Bible as a book. It is not talking about graphe. It is not talking about the message of the Bible as logos. It is talking about short sayings from Scripture quickened by the Spirit for the moment.xv
We see this at work during Jesus’s evil day (Eph. 6:13) of temptation in Luke 4. Each time Satan launched an attack on him, Jesus countered it with a rhema inspired by the Holy Spirit. He used “the sword of the Spirit” to defeat the devil. When Satan tempted him to turn the stone into bread, Jesus replied, “It is written, 'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God'” (Luke 4:4).xvi He answered the other two attacks in a similar way (with a rhema quickened by the Holy Spirit).
How do we follow that example? We get the word of God dwelling richly in our hearts (Col. 3:16). That requires a lot of time in Scripture. And we listen to the voice of the Holy Spirit quickening a portion of that word for the occasion that we are in. When we teach or preach the message (logos) of the Bible (graphe), the Holy Spirit often inspires an unplanned rhema in the message. This is often the most effective part of the sermon.
One way we develop skill in using “the sword of the Spirit” is to be sensitive to Holy Spirit inspiration when in prayer. In a time of prayer, we usually need to “prime the pump” with expression of praise, thanksgiving, and petition. But as we yield ourselves to the Spirit, a word is often quickened in our spirit, and we utter that in our prayers as a rhema. This is especially common in times of intercession.xvii The more we operate in this during prayer, the easier it is to function in it when preaching or conducting other ministry.
As you can see, the armor taught in Ephesians 6 is very practical. It is not magic. It is walking with the Lord in faith and obedience. It is cooperating with the Holy Spirit. It is filling our hearts with the word of God and using that word to declare God’s truth as we do life.
PRAYER
In Ephesians 6:18 Paul adds to all of this: “praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints.” This is crucial to our spiritual success. We do not have time to deal with it today. But don’t leave it out in your understanding of how to stand firm in God. In 2016 I preached a whole sermon on this verse entitled “All Kinds of Prayer.” It is available at SermonCentral.com and I will make it available to you next week.
Notice in this verse, Paul uses the Greek adjective pas (all) three times: all prayer and supplication in the Spirit; with all perseverance; for all the saints. He is being as all-inclusive as possible. He is talking about a whole lot of prayer!
Paul has completed the metaphor of Roman armor. But he is not finished teaching about spiritual warfare. In fact, he has come to the most important weapon in our spiritual arsenal. Prayer is the heavy artillery. Through prayer we call down the bombardment of God against our adversary. In movies of World War II and the Viet Nam War, you have observed scenes when the adversary was about to break through the defenses and annihilate the good guys. The field commander would get on the radio and call in a bombardment of artillery or air defense. The bombardment would decimate the adversary and save the soldiers. Prayer is calling in the big guns of God for our defense. This is part of the arsenal we use for spiritual warfare.
With the first five pieces of armor, Paul has taught us a good defense against our adversary. But he concludes this teaching by calling us to a strong offense against the kingdom of darkness. No army ever won a war with pure defense. Defense is necessary, but to win we have to launch a strong offense.xviii And Jesus promised us that our invasion of enemy territory could be successful because of what he has already done on the cross. We are not fighting to gain an elusive victory. We are executing the victory Jesus has already won on the cross.
Colossians 2:15 says, “Having disarmed (KJV: spoiled) principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it.” The “principalities and powers” are the same “principalities and powers” referred to in Ephesians 6:12. At the cross Jesus “disarmed” them. He stripped them of their authority so that afterwards he could tell his disciples “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth” (Matt. 28:18).
The victory of the cross is our authority to go into all the world—to invade the kingdom of darkness and deliver lost souls from the clutches of Satan. “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.’ Amen” (Matt. 28:19-20). Go on the offensive. Go into enemy territory and take spiritual ground.xix We are not hunkering down, hoping the devil will not defeat us. Because of the cross and resurrection of Jesus, the devil is hoping we do not realize our authority in Christ and bring him down.
The best defense is a strong offense. Get busy fulfilling your assignment in the Great Commission. That will most certainly include prayer. But it will also include a declaration of the gospel. “Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever” (Heb. 13:8). He is still saving lost souls. We are called to be a part of that harvest.
In Matthew 16:18 Jesus promised to build his church, and he told us “the gates of Hades shall not prevail against” us. The gates of a city were there to keep the enemy out. In ancient times armies would often assault the gates of a city to gain entrance to that city. Once inside they could conquer it. But sometimes the gates were so strong that the invading army could not break through into the city.
The gates in Matthew 16:18 are not the gates of our city. They are “the gates of Hades.” They are the devil’s defenses.xx It is easy for Christians to develop a defensive stance. Sometimes the attacks of Satan are so fierce, all we can do is stand. But that is not our general position in this war. We are by and large on the offense. We used to sing the old song, “Hold the Fort.”xxi People could relate to it because they felt like they were under attack. But we must rise up and take the enemy’s fort, defeat the strongholds of our adversary and liberate his captives.
The gates of our adversary are not too strong for us to break through and conquer the land for the glory of God. In this passage, Jesus is giving us assurance that we can win the battle against our adversary. “For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds” (2 Cor. 10:4). Put your armor on and take the land!
ENDNOTES:
i All Scripture quotes are from the New King James Version unless indicated otherwise.
ii For a thorough exposition of Jesus’s Beatitudes see Richard W. Tow, Beatitudes of Christ: Pathway of Blessing (Bloomington, IN: WestBow Press, 2024.
iii With his extensive knowledge of the Old Testament, Paul most likely recalled references there like the one in Isaiah 59:17.
iv Cf. Rom. 8:23-24.
v For example, in Acts 27:34, soteria is translated survival or health (KJV). The verb form (sozo) is used in Matthew 14:30 in the sense of being saved from drowning. For more analysis of this see v Gerhard Kittel, G. W. Bromiley, and Gerhard Friedrich, Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, vol. 7 (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1971), s.v. “sozo and soteria in the New Testament“ by Werner Foerster, 989-999.
vi The meaning of elpis (hope) according to the Louw-Nida Lexicon is “to look forward with confidence to that which is good and beneficial.” J. P. Louw and E. A. Nida, eds., Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament Based on Semantic Domains (United Bible Societies,1989. Bibleworks 6.0).
vii Cf. Isa. 59:19.
viii This is a genitive of origin. W. Robertson Nicoll, ed., The Expositor’s Greek New Testament, vol. 3, 388.
ix Gerhard Kittel, G. W. Bromiley, and Gerhard Friedrich, Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, vol. 4 (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1967), s.v. “Lego, logos, rhema, laleo” by Debrunner, 76-78.
x Colin Brown, ed, The New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology, vol. 3, 1978 (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1986) s.vv. “Word” by B. Klappert, 1106.
xi Betz writes, “rhema, word, utterance, is often synonymous with – logos. . . .” Colin Brown, ed, The New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology, vol. 3, 1978 (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1986) s.vv. “Rhema” by Otto Betz.
xii For an excellent explanation of this passage see Leon Morris, Reflections on the Gospel of John (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1986), 1-9.
xiii Vine's Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words, “Word.” Copyright © 1985, Thomas Nelson Publishers.
xiv It is popular in some circles to think of a particular truth in the mind and then declare it. This is an acceptable thing to do. However, it is not “the sword of the Spirit” (Eph. 6:17) unless the Holy Spirit initiates the utterance. It is the sword “of” the Spirit. The Holy Spirit must originate the actions, and the person follows his leading. John 6:63: “It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life.”
xv The distinction between logos and rhema is not as clear as some present it, but in practice we must speak a word quickened by the Holy Spirit for it to be effective as the sword of the Spirit the way Jesus operated in Luke 4.
xvi Jesus uttered these words; he did not just think them. Luke 4:4: “But Jesus answered him, saying (lego), ‘It is written, 'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.’”
NKJV
xvii It is the Holy Spirit who enables us to pray effectively (Rom. 8:26-27).
xviii This is also true in football and other sports.
xix Under God’s command, Joshua took physical ground. His experience provides instruction for us about taking spiritual ground. For example, their obedience when marching around Jerico emphasizes the important of simply doing what God tells us to do. The defeat at Ai teaches the importance of maintaining holiness in the camp.
xx Jeremias agues otherwise writing, “Within this concept pulai hadou is a pars-pro-toto term (-- 925, 16) for the ungodly powers of the underworld which assail the rock. This interpretation is supported by the linguistic consideration that katischuein when followed by a genitive is always active “’to vanquish’) in Jewish Greek. Hence the pulai hadou are the aggressors.” Gerhard Kittel, G. W. Bromiley, and Gerhard Friedrich, Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, vol.6 (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1968), s.v. “The Gates of Hades in Mt. 16:18” by Joachim Jeremias, 927. Ladd allows for the possibility of either interpretation but prefers that of Jeremias. George Eldon Ladd, A Theology of the New Testament, rev. ed., 1974 (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1993), 114. Regardless of which interpretation is accepted for Matthew 16:18, Matthew 28:18-20 tells the church to go on the offensive, and the New Testament assures us of victory.
xxi Philip P. Bliss, “Hold the Fort,” in Hymns of Glorious Praise (Springfield, MO: Gospel Publishing House, 1969425.
