The Real Enemy

THE REAL ENEMY

Rev John W. Gerald

I. A WORD FOR CHILDREN

Eph. 6:1 Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right.

2 Honour thy father and mother; (which is the first commandment with promise;)

3 That it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.

II. A WORD FOR FATHERS

4 And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.

III. A WORD TO SERVANTS

5 Servants, be obedient to them that are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in singleness of your heart, as unto Christ;

6 Not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart;

7 With good will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men:

8 Knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord, whether he be bond or free.

IV. A WORD TO MASTERS

9 And, ye masters, do the same things unto them, forbearing threatening: knowing that your Master also is in heaven; neither is there respect of persons with him.

V. A WORD TO THE BRETHREN

10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.

Boast not of physical strength, but of The LORD. Our focus must be in Him. Our strength must be of His strength.

11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.

12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

1.) Flesh and blood not the enemy

The conflict may seem to come from people of flesh and blood, but they are merely instruments of spiritual powers. We should focus on those powers.

2.) Principalities.

The forces of spiritual conflict are huge. The heirachy of demonic powers includes demons over large areas. They influence governments, races and all other ethnic groups.

3.) Rulers of Darkness

These spiritual powers are rulers, and forces of spiritual darkness (blindness). Jesus, the light of the world, is excluded. The world is under their power. This is evident in our daily news, where reports of their activities are made every day.

4.) Wickedness in High Places

Moral principles are lacking. Evil is put into effect through arbitrary decisions. There seems to be no remedy, they are anserable to no one. They are untouchable! These powers are exercised in political, governmental, religious and secular areas. We tend to focus on the persons we see in these categories. We should recognize the spiritual powers behind them.

VI. THE SOLUTION

13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

He who stands for nothing, will fall for anything. We must be like our fathers of old, whose stand was known by all! We must be able to withstand the onslaughts of the devil. He is like a persistent storm, attacking every weakness of ours. Our determination should be strong, and our commitment great to prevail.

VII. THE EQUIPMENT

14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;

1.) The Girdle of Truth.

When we are wrapped in truth, we have a strong defense! Jesus said "Ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free!"John 8:32

2.) The Breastplate of Righteousness

The breastplate protects the heart and other vital organs. It takes a great breastplate of righteousness to protect our emotions and affections. The devil attacks us in these areas continually. We certainly need a great defense against these attacks.

3.) The Preparation of the Gospel

15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;

The preparatin of the Gospel puts the "go" in your feet. You will yearn for the lost. You will seek to save them at any cost. Many witnesses for Jesus, whether missionaries, or students of the Gospel, have risked their lives just to take the gospel to the unreached. More have suffered martyrdom in our day than in any other time in history.

4.) The shield of Faith

16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.

If we do not believe in the work we do for Christ, and if we are not driven by confidence in the message, we will be fatally attacked by our spiritual enemy. He is ready to take us down through the least doubt we have in our hearts. Faith helps us ward off these attacks.