“Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes … Stand firm, then, with the belt of truth buckled about your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your foot fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.”
(From Ephesians 6:10-18)
The Old Testament is full of wars and battles, and warriors needed armor to defend against the slings and arrows of warfare. The New Testament is a gospel of peace, and both the battles and the armor are metaphorical. The only weapon Paul mentioned as part of the armor of God is “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”
The Messiah, thought to be a mighty warrior, turned out to be a Prince of Peace, and so the battles fought in His name are internal struggles.
The armory is comprised of truth, righteousness, the gospel of peace, faith, salvation, the word of God, and prayer. That’s pretty good armor. It feels like a guy could fend off a lot of flaming arrows wearing it.
As I delve into the word, I keep seeing words that calm. I keep seeing the word “love” and the word “peace” and the word “truth.” I know that once upon a time wars were fought in the name of Jesus, but the more I read, the more I think somebody misread the book big time, or they counted on the warriors’ not having read the book before embarking on their leaders’ crusades. There is one king, one leader, and He is a Prince of Peace, not a combatant.
