Paul closes this letter with some encouragement for his readers and careful instruction on how to combat the attacks of Satan. Paul knew that Satan would be ready to destroy this unity about which he had written. Throughout the ages, Satan has used racism and judgmentalism to divide the body of Christ and now that Jew and Gentile were one through Jesus Christ, the church would be under attack. It is with this in mind that Paul writes to warn his readers to “be strong in the Lord and the power of His might.” Defending against these attacks would take Christians putting “on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.” The “wiles of the devil” are the strategies and schemes which he uses in order to cause the believer to stumble. So, what does Paul mean by the armor of God? He mentions six pieces of spiritual armor a Christian needs to have as a part of his or her life. The first piece of armor is the girdle (belt) of truth (6:14a). In combat a soldier wore loose-fitting clothes, which could be dangerous since fighting was mostly hand to hand, so the man needed to use a belt to draw in the extra clothing. This belt of truth symbolizes a soldier being committed to truth or truthfulness which ultimately brings freedom. When a person is truthful there is no reason to be ashamed. The second piece of armor is the breastplate of righteousness which protects the heart (6:14b). When we are holy and obedient to God it protects us from the attacks of Satan. Next, Paul commands the Christian to have his feet shod with the gospel of peace (6:15). Feet often symbolize stability and it is the gospel which gives us confidence and peace with God. The fourth piece of armor is the “shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one.” Trust in God and His promises will cause us to not become discouraged. Satan tries to bring temptations into our life which cause us to doubt God’s promises. The helmet of salvation refers to protecting our mind against Satan’s attacks on our salvation. At times we all have doubts about our salvation, but remember that it is not based in feeling but fact. The last piece of armor is the “sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” The truth of scripture enables us to defend against Satan’s attacks so it is necessary for us to fill our mind with it. Prayer plays a major role in strength for the Christian and Paul asks that believers pray for each other and also him as he spreads the gospel (6:18-20). These last few verses of Ephesians are a great challenge to both Jew and Gentile who are one in Jesus Christ to be alert to the attacks of Satan, but realize God provides the strength for us to withstand him. Put on your spiritual armor and combat the evil world around you by living life by God’s principles and truth.
Dear God, help me to stand against the attacks of Satan and be light in a dark world.
