I wrote this back in December as I was pondering what Paul meant in Ephesians 6 about ‘putting on the full armor of God.’ Digging deeper into it even beyond when I originally wrote this, I realized how much those fanatical about spiritual warfare pay attention to the verse where it says ‘we wrestle not against flesh and blood‘ but very little about the prescription that follows.

It will be worth delving further into spiritual warfare, but for now, given that many read ‘put on the full armor of God’ as a broad what-have-you, there’s a lot more to it than meets the eye. With that in mind, here is my original writing from December 2024:

The armor of God

“Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints” (Ephesians 6:11-18)

James says, “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” (James 4:7) But how do we resist the devil and break those strongholds?

Paul tells the Ephesians to put on the whole armor of God, and while that might sound like a lofty supplication, merely a concept, it’s one that goes far beyond metaphor. Every detail is one that we must pay attention to as Paul’s writing of such wasn’t just a measure were gloss over — it’s a detailed instruction for all things in terms of our daily walk in Christ.

The belt of truth

The belt holds everything together. Without a belt, we’re unclothed. It’s the binder, the outward fastener for which the entire armor stays on.

Notice that it’s mentioned first. And the belt is that of truth. 

In an age where “your truth” reigns supreme and there is dwindling objective truth, the subjectivity of personal experience has drawn us away from God. But Jesus Christ is the way, the truth, and the life. It is in God’s holy truth that we bind our armor. It is what we rest in to hold us together. To hold all things together. It is first and foremost because without truth, we are subject to the devil and his wiles. The lie in the garden was the catalyst for the fall. Without the belt of truth, Adam and Eve fell for the lie, and sin entered the world. Satan thrives on lies, and as the belt of truth is mentioned first, it is our first line of defense in all things.

The breastplate of righteousness

A breastplate covers our torso and our vital organs, but most importantly, it guards the heart. “Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.” (Proverbs 4:23) If we are faithful, God will replace our heart of stone with a heart of flesh (Ezekiel 36:26), and the Holy Spirit will indwell therein. We are cleansed from the inside out, and thus, in our faith, counted as righteous — glory to Jesus and His atoning sacrifice that we are granted such a blessed mercy!

But, as said, we must guard our hearts. And in order to do that we must turn away from sin and put on righteousness. We have followed the truth, we’ve put it into our heart, and thus we must follow righteousness — crave righteousness as our holy God is perfect, through the blood of the lamb we are made perfect, though we are only made worthy through the gift of His sacrifice.

The shoes of peace

Paul marks the readiness we must have. Shoes on our feet allow us to be mobile, to traverse the land. To move to and around our destination. 

“Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:5-7)

Every epistle calls for unity in the church, to reject the argumentative nature that was finding its way in. The flesh causes us to look inward and forward when we’re called to focus on the day. James 4:14 calls us not to look to tomorrow save for the will of God, not to boast that tomorrow will come. Anxiety is worry for that which is of the future. As we pray, we are granted the Lord’s peace, so as we go about our travails, on the ready — with eagerness and joy — we look to the Lord who gives us an unfathomable peace, no matter the circumstance or wiles of the accuser.

The shield of faith

Paul calls for us to use this defensive armor “in all circumstances.” We are called to be faithful in everything. Jesus admonishes those who are of little faith. Abraham’s faith was accounted to him as righteousness as James recalls (2:23), and in Hebrews 11:19, in the hall of faith, he knew God was faithful and would save Isaac.

Hebrews 11 shares the stories of those who were faithful in circumstances where many would have crumbled. But they believed in God and his providence. Rahab was a prostitute who survived Jericho because of her faith. Moses left his riches in the courts of Egypt and faithfully led his people out of bondage and toward the promised land. Faith can move mountains. It is our trust in God in which we have all things—the breath we breathe, the providence we receive. 

As enemy arrows work to pierce our understanding of the truth, to look to disrupt peace, to sully the righteousness imputed in us by the Lamb, we shield ourselves from the enemy attack by the faith we have in Jesus.

The helmet of salvation

The one mentioned the least in terms of description or flourish, the helmet protects the head — the mind. Depending on the helmet, it also protects the eyes and the ears, for which we see and hear, and the mouth, from which we speak.

The most important commandment is to love God with all our soul, heart, strength, and mind. (Mark 12:30) It’s through the eyes and ears that we learn, and if we have eyes to see and ears to hear, then we learn the eternal truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ. 

1 John exhorts believers of the assurance they have in their salvation in Jesus. But pertinent is 1 John 5:11-13:

“And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life. I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life.”

We are to take every negative thought captive and align it with Jesus. And in doing so, along with accepting the gift of grace through faith, we have the assurance of salvation. This is part of the battle of the mind. The helmet of salvation shields us from lies, and protects that which we have learned through the Word.

The sword of the Spirit 

The rest of the armor is defensive. The belt (truth), breastplate (righteousness), shoes (peace), shield (faith), and helmet (salvation). But a sword is that by which we slay the enemy. And as Paul says, that is by the Word of God (Jesus and the scriptures) as well as through prayer (intercession). 

We may battle principalities and strongholds, but the weapon we wield is swung by calling on Him. The battle belongs to Him (1 Samuel 17:47), and as we call upon Him through prayer and His Word, He will tear down the strongholds. He is already victorious (Proverbs 21:31), and He is sovereign. The spiritual sword we swing is further sharpened through the Holy Spirit, who illuminates scripture and writes it on our hearts. And more so as we gather with the army of the Lord (the church) — as iron sharpens iron, the more we rest in Him and exhort each other, the more deadly the sword to the enemy. Jesus notes where two or more are gathered in His name, there he will be also (Matthew 18:20). With “prayer and supplication,” armed with the Word of God, no ruler or authority in earthly places can or will stand a chance against our Almighty God, Jesus Christ, the founder and perfector of our faith!