This Is War (10 of 10)
Series: Ephesians
Joe Alain
Ephesians 6:10-20
We've come to the final message in our series on the book of Ephesians. Paul always saw the Christian life in very practical terms and he does the same here comparing the Christian to a soldier and the Christian life to a warfare. Paul closes with an encouragement to believers to "be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power" (v.1). So Paul is saying "This Is War!" that you and I are involved in, it is serious business but we can be victorious in this spiritual struggle when we find our strength "in the Lord."
We are strong in the Lord, we are ready for spiritual warfare when we "put on the whole [full] armor of God" (vv.11, 13). As a soldier you must be prepared, you must be dressed for battle, and so the Christian is to be dressed, clothed in the armor of God Himself. But before we see how we are to be prepared for this spiritual battle we need to . . .
1. Recognize your enemy and the field of battle (6:10-12)
We need to know who were fighting (and who we are not) and we need to know where this battle is taking place. Paul says that Christians have an enemy and that enemy is the "devil" (v.11) and his demonic forces called the "rulers . . . authorities . . . the powers of this dark world . . . the spiritual forces of evil" (v.12, NIV).
(1) The devil is real. The Bible assumes his existence. Satan (meaning adversary) is the most frequently used name for the devil in the NT, appearing over 50 times. Devil (meaning slanderer) is used over 30 times. Satan, the personification of evil in this world, is the great enemy of God, His people, and all that is good. Satan hates God, he hates you, and he hates everything that is good and pure. His character is vile and evil, and he is portrayed as the great deceiver. So sly is Satan in his deception that he sometimes transforms himself into an angel of light (2 Cor. 11:14). The devil is very real and one of his "schemes" (v.11) is to con ...
Series: Ephesians
Joe Alain
Ephesians 6:10-20
We've come to the final message in our series on the book of Ephesians. Paul always saw the Christian life in very practical terms and he does the same here comparing the Christian to a soldier and the Christian life to a warfare. Paul closes with an encouragement to believers to "be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power" (v.1). So Paul is saying "This Is War!" that you and I are involved in, it is serious business but we can be victorious in this spiritual struggle when we find our strength "in the Lord."
We are strong in the Lord, we are ready for spiritual warfare when we "put on the whole [full] armor of God" (vv.11, 13). As a soldier you must be prepared, you must be dressed for battle, and so the Christian is to be dressed, clothed in the armor of God Himself. But before we see how we are to be prepared for this spiritual battle we need to . . .
1. Recognize your enemy and the field of battle (6:10-12)
We need to know who were fighting (and who we are not) and we need to know where this battle is taking place. Paul says that Christians have an enemy and that enemy is the "devil" (v.11) and his demonic forces called the "rulers . . . authorities . . . the powers of this dark world . . . the spiritual forces of evil" (v.12, NIV).
(1) The devil is real. The Bible assumes his existence. Satan (meaning adversary) is the most frequently used name for the devil in the NT, appearing over 50 times. Devil (meaning slanderer) is used over 30 times. Satan, the personification of evil in this world, is the great enemy of God, His people, and all that is good. Satan hates God, he hates you, and he hates everything that is good and pure. His character is vile and evil, and he is portrayed as the great deceiver. So sly is Satan in his deception that he sometimes transforms himself into an angel of light (2 Cor. 11:14). The devil is very real and one of his "schemes" (v.11) is to con ...
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