How To Use 10 Weapons That Can Disarm The Devil In Your Life
"It’s the clothes that make the man" 3 of 4
Ephesians 6:15-16 * October 19, 2003
Chester’s First Baptist Church, Chester, Illinois Mike Fogerson, Speaker
Introduction:
The time: December 1944. Allied forces, after advancing quickly in the summer months, have slowed. Low cloud cover and fog hamper the use of Allied air superiority. Hitler, perceiving an opportunity to divide British from U.S. troops and spotting aeakly defended area near the heavily-wooded Ardennes, masses his troops and, on December 16, attacks. The U.S. high command, after taking some time to realize that this is a major offensive and not simply a skirmish, determines that the area around Bastogne is key to stopiing the German advance; the commanding general orders the 101st Airborne division under General Anthony McAuliffe to move into Bastogne and hold it. They succeed in occupying the town, but shortly thereafter are surrounded by enemy troops. As an airborne division they have little artillery and after fierce fighting, ammunition is running out. Continued bad weather hinders all resupply efforts by airdrop. Medical supplies are running out; wounded cannot be treated.
Imagine yourself as a soldier in that situation. The coldest winter in 50 years in Europe. Fog so thick German and Merican troops get confused and don’t even know where battle lines are. Many of your buddies killed or wounded or lost in the last few days.
A delegation of Germans approaches carrying a white flag: This is their messgae: "You are surrounded. We know you have little ammunition and little artillery. We have massed our forces around this city; unless you surrender, we will annihilate you."
What would you have done in that situation?
What would you do today when faced with similar situations? Because we are in a war, we are all in a great war, as part of the army of God. And in this war, we can feel surrounded, we can feel as if the enemy is about to annihilate us; we can feel as if our fight, and the cause for which we fight, is hopeless.
We have looked at How to use 10 weapons that can disarm the devil in your life.
Be strong, Stand Firm, Put On, Belt of truth, breastplate of righteousness
A EPH 6:10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. [11] Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. [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. [13] 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. [14] Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, [15] and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. [16] In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.
a Paul described two pieces of spiritual armament that must be in place to ensure victory for the believer. (ETS)
b We must faithfully stand on the gospel if we are going to successfully engage in spiritual warfare. (ESS)
B I hope you’ll use your gospel shoes by inviting four people to next weeks morning service. (Objective)
a How are you using the armor of God to make a difference? (P.Q.)
b Let’s look at two pieces of spiritual armament that make or break the battle. (Transitional Sentence)
I The first piece of spiritual armament that make or break the battle is. . .the shoes. (v:15) "[15] and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace."
(I can almost see Paul, scraggly beard, tattered clothes, rat eating a crumb of bread in the corner. . .Paul with pencil in hand gazes out his prison cell and sees his jail keeper. Roman Department of Corrections wearing his standard issue armor)
A The soldier’s boot provided a strong base/foundation on which to stand on. (Alexander the great/Julies Caesar’s military success was due in large part on their soldiers ability to march long distances over rough terrain.)
a Boot (Gk. Caligae) Tough, but light sandals that went partly up the leg, w/ soles that were cleated with nails.
*Allowed soldiers to stand firm on shifting sand, slippery slopes.
*If a soldier lost footing, you lost!
b Paul tells the Ephesis believer that their lives will be stable, battles will be won with their lived and fought on the Good News of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
*No substitutes on which to stand!
B There was no substitute for the gospel then. . .or now!
a We don’t stand on iron, steel, red brick, blue carpet or concrete parking lots. . . bu on the Gospel of Peace!
b We take this gospel of peace, on our daily journey.
*God’s way is a war path not a hiking trail.
*People have been ravaged by the destructive power of sin.
(We were there, but we found PEACE. It is now our job to carry that gospel of peace that we have found and God offers)
C A soap manufacturer and a pastor were walking together down a street in a large city. The soap manufacturer casually said, "The gospel you preach hasn’t done much good, has it? Just observe. There is still a lot of wickedness in the world, and a lot of wicked people, too!" The pastor made no reply until they passed a dirty little child making mud pies in the gutter. Seizing the opportunity, the pastor said, "I see that soap hasn’t done much good in the world; for there is much dirt, and many dirty people around." The soap manufacturer replied, "Oh, well, soap is only useful when it is applied." And the pastor said, "Exactly, so it is with the gospel."
a Is.52:7 " How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion,"Your God reigns!"
b You may have the boniest, corniest bunion infested, corn chip smellin’ feet imaginable, if your wearing the gospel on them, sharing the gospel with them. . .the bible calls your feet beautiful.
T.S.: The first three articles of armament were to be on a daily routine (belt/breastplate/sandals), the next group of armor is for battle. ("Put ON", "Take Up")
II The second piece of spiritual armament that makes a or breaks the battle is. . .the shield.
A A Roman soldier couldn’t practically protect his entire body with armament (eyes, legs, forearms, etc.) Shield did protect...in any direction it was pointed.
a For years the standard in armor was a metal shield (Arrows bounced off)
*Came up with better arrows. (Cane hollow shaft, filled with combustible liquid, lit on the end. Shatter on impact, sending the "ancient napalm" everywhere. The liquid would get down in the cracks of the man’s armor and cook him alive!)
*Shields that stood against fiery darts were 4x2 ½, made of leather, wood, steel, water soaked. . .quench the arrows, suck them up.
*After the siege of Dyrachium, Sceva counted over 220 darts that stuck into his shield.
b Paul told the Ephesis believer that their faith deflected the devils destructive darts.
Truth about the darts. . .
The devil would attack. (1 Peter 4:12 Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you.)
Faith would be the protection against the devils attack. (1 John 5:4 . . .This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. )
B Our faith in God is what protects us when the evil one attacks. (The devil is evil and that is exactly what he wants to make us!!!)
a He’ll attack. . .
*Homes (broken relationships between husbands/wives, parents/children)
He’ll look for a crack so he can attack!
*Work (Employer fails to appreciate you, works like a dog)
He’ll look for a crack so he can attack!
*Church (disunity, broken fellowship, dissension)
He’ll look for a crack so he can attack!
*Faith (Am I really saved? Can I trust the bible?)
He’ll look for a crack so he can attack!
b Faith is our shield against attack.
*Not faith in faith, optimism, human potential. (Our faith is in God)
*What God promises, God performs!
ISA 54:17 no weapon forged against you will prevail,. . .
JN 16:33 "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." GREATER IS>>>>
2 Cor. 10:3-4,[3] For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. [4] The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.
Conclusion:
A Paul described two pieces of spiritual armament that must be in place to ensure victory for the believer. (ETS) We must faithfully stand on the gospel if we are going to successfully engage in spiritual warfare. (ESS)
We’ve looked at two pieces of spiritual armament that make or break the battle.
a Shoes of the gospel of peace
b Shield of faith
B I hope you’ll use your gospel shoes by inviting four people to next weeks morning service. (Objective)
a You can either stand on the gospel or ignore it.
b Faithful or faithless
C How are you using the armor of God to make a difference? (P.Q.)
a Let’s return to Bastogne 53 years ago. The Germans have demanded surrender, threatening annihilation. How does General Mcauliffe respond?
With a one word reply -- now the shortest entry in Bartlett’s Familiar Quotations: "Nuts." (The Germans were confused upon receiving this reply, and had to ask what it meant.) General Mcauliffe saw the big picture; he did not know that he would be rescued, but he saw the proper role for his division in the overall scheme of things. He would hold Bastogne at all costs.
The Battle of the Bulge was the last gasp for Hitler’s forces. After the losses sustained there, the Wehrmacht was finished, and the end was assured.
b The battle for the hearts, faith, and souls of Chester is on!
So put on the full armor of God. Stand in the day of evil. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. "The body they may kill, God’s truth abideth still; his kingdom is forever."
