The Shield of Faith

want to share some thoughts with you
before we celebrate communion in our
ongoing study in Ephesians chapter 6
looking this morning at the shield of
faith Ephesians chapter 6 verse 16 in
addition to all of this take up the
shield of faith with which you can
extinguish all the flaming arrows of the
evil one in addition to all this take up
the shield of faith with which you can
distinguish extinguish all the flaming
arrows of the evil one that's our text
it's very easy to miss the fact that the
opening phrase in this text introduces a
transition in Paul's writing here
between the first three pieces of armor
that he describes in verses 14 and 15
and the last three pieces that he
describes in the verses 6 and 17 let me
put the whole passage on the screen for
you and maybe let's just read this
together if you don't mind say it with
me stand firm therefore having girded
your loins with truth and having put on
the breastplate of righteousness and
having shod your feet with the
preparation of the gospel of peace in
addition to all taking up the shield of
faith with which you will be able to
extinguish all the flaming arrows of the
evil one and take the helmet of
salvation and the sword of the Spirit
which is the word of God now notice the
transition is this phrase in verse 16 in
addition to all and then he goes into
next three pieces of armor take a look
at the passage for a moment and I'll
help you in a sec but take a look at the
passage for a moment and see if you can
spot what changes by that phrase what is
the transition that he makes it has to
do with the verbs i'll give you that
clue so you're thinking i will help you
further it has to do with the tents of
the verbs he goes from a past tense
having girded your loins having put on
the breastplate of righteousness having
shod your feet with the preparation of
the gospel of peace and now he goes into
from the passive he goes into the active
taking up the shield of faith taking the
helmet of salvation and then of course
it's implied taking the sword of the
Spirit and what Paul is saying there to
us i think is lius or let me backtrack
and put it this way the picture here is
this of a Roman soldier he is suited up
for battle he's put on his belt he's put
on his breastplate he's put on his shoes
but he's lounging around he's lounging
around then comes the call to action get
ready for battle what does he do well he
grabs his shield he puts on his helmet
and he grabs his sword and now he is out
there ready for the battle and I think
the point that Paul is trying to make
here is that it's not enough for us to
have done the preparatory work for the
Battle of spiritual warfare by suiting
up belt of truth breastplate of
righteousness feet shod with
preparation or the equipment of the
gospel of peace but in addition to that
we need to be ready actively to spring
to action by taking up the shield of
faith the helmet of salvation and the
sword of the Spirit which is the word of
god in the time that we have this
morning we're going to focus on just the
first of these and that is the shield of
faith listen again to verse 16 in
addition to all this take up the shield
of faith with which you can extinguish
all the flaming arrows of the evil one
now the Roman shield is the largest
single piece of armor that the Roman
soldier would wear it changed in size
and look throughout the course of
history sometimes it was around sometime
it was oblong but most of the time
particularly during the time that Paul
was writing it looked like this it was
about four feet by two feet was made of
three layers of wood glued together much
like plywood today it would be covered
by hides and buy fabric it would be
marked with the insignia of the Legion
and it also has this metal thing on
front which they would use for storming
the enemy and trying to knock them down
its primary function in this context was
to protect the soldier particularly for
what Paul describes as flaming arrows
this thing weighed 22 pounds give or
take so you had to be a pretty muscular
soldier to be able to wield that but in
some ways it's like an extension of
their shoes remember if the function of
the shoes was to be able to be nimble on
your feet so that you could adjust for
the battle well the shield was even more
hold it like this and of course you
could turn the shield would ever way the
danger was coming at you and one of
those dangers was that of flaming arrows
three things I want to say about this
passage spiritually speaking number one
the one of Satan's favorite tactics to
wipe out you and me in the Christian
life and in the battle of the Christian
life is to use flaming arrows in
addition to all this take up the shield
of faith with which you can extinguish
all the flaming arrows of the evil one
and as I picture shows you a flaming
arrow is an arrow that has been wrapped
with combustible material probably
something like the Tumen or pitch so
that it wouldn't blow out when you shoot
it and the aim of shooting the birding
arrow was to launch it somewhere in the
enemy is clothing or his buildings or
his you know houses and the intent list
is set it on fire and if you could
launch enough of these then you could
win the battle and Paul here tells us
that is one of Satan's strategies he
uses birding flaming arrows you say what
does that look like well it comes in a
lot of different ways but I believe what
are the most common ways in which Satan
launches his birding arrows is by
planting thoughts and suggestions in our
minds that are intended to destroy our
faith in God so that we lose our courage
and our conviction to continue walking
with the Lord let me give you just a
couple of quick examples maybe you've
had an experience like this you're
sitting in church or you're reading your
Bible
or you're listening to some debate on
the radio or on television or whatever
in all of a sudden this thought hits you
I wonder if any of this stuff is true is
God really there is the Bible really
inspired and trustworthy what about all
the people and all the arguments that
come forward saying that God is not to
be trusted and there you see it anybody
ever have that experience or am I the
only one that's been there you can be in
the most holy of moments and if that
thought come at you and lock that's a
birding arrow and if you don't get rid
of that burning arrow real fast your
house is going to burn down in my book
blessings and curses I tell the story of
Charles Templeton many of you know this
story he was a contemporary Billy Graham
in fact Billy Graham has said he's one
of the few men that he's ever known that
he's truly loved that's how close those
two were Charles Templeton had him had a
major significant spiritual encounter
with God a Christian conversion became
an evangelist became a pastor founded
one of the biggest churches in Toronto
was a an evangelical light and
proclaiming the gospel and then he went
to Princeton seminary to further his
education and because he was a keen mind
he was trying to figure out the truths
of the gospel and he was trying to
figure out the reality of the Christian
faith and Satan planted a birding arrow
in his heart and in his mind couldn't
square the realities of the gospel with
his own intellectual understanding lost
faith became an agnostic gave up the
ministry lived a life of secular career
in pursuit and Lee Strobel makes
observation
in one of his books he interviewed him
just before he died when he was already
suffering from early onset alzheimers
they were talking about Jesus and
Charles Templeton said through tears at
his eyes I miss him I miss him but he
died outside of Christ that's what
happens when the arrows lodge and you
don't get rid of them doesn't mean you
cannot engage doubts doesn't mean that
Christians can't look at the complexity
of life and faith what it means is that
the end of the day you're your human
intellect unaided by the Holy Spirit is
never going to figure it out and if
you're trying to figure life out and if
you're trying to figure God out simply
through your natural understanding you
will always end up not knowing God
because you only know God by faith and
that means humility that means saying I
can figure this out but I trust God and
I believe him give you another example
you're going through a series of trials
life's just tough car won't start no
money in the bank creditors are knocking
on your door you've lost your job you
have struggles in your marriage your
kids are wandering far away from the
faith your body is ill and you have
prayed like crazy asking go on to step
in and do something about it and the
heavens have remained like brass nothing
what happens the songs of Zion have died
on your lips church has become tedious
and boring and dead and the thought
occurs to you maybe there is no God
or if he does maybe he's just mad at me
maybe he likes everybody else better
than me why should I serve him when
serving him causes me this much pain
anybody ever been that if you're a true
follower of Jesus and you know the
reality of life in a fallen world you'll
have experienced the least touches of
that well that's a flaming arrow that's
finding offense with God if you don't
get rid of that flaming arrow it'll burn
down your house and you will lose your
faith and it will happen before you know
it one more quick example you're part of
christian community now when you first
become part of christian community
everybody's got these lovely shiny faces
and you think you have arrived in heaven
once you've been there a little while
you discover that heaven and hell are
not that far apart and let the Lord you
know that a lot of Christians are like
porcupines they have a lot of fine
points just don't get too close to them
and so you get disillusioned and then
you discover flaws and somebody that you
really admired or looked up to or you
hear gossip or your stories about
something or somebody or another and you
can't square it and now you're looking
at their lives through that colored lens
of your offense and lo and behold
everything begins to line up in ways
that that just begin to fit a pattern of
these people cannot be trusted and all
Christians are hypocrites dare I ask if
any of you have ever been there a
flaming arrow let it lodge in your
system and it will poison here and you
will think you are right and everybody
else is wrong and you will have fallen
victim to the devil's wiles because that
is his technique if you don't get rid of
the burning arrow it'll burn down your
house and it will destroy
your faith I cannot tell you and you
know this how many people have been
through this place if we could hold on
to everybody that's ever come to this
church this place would be filled to the
gills some people have come some people
have left the greatest pain of my heart
is that when people have taken offense
an arrow has launched they didn't do
what they needed to do to get rid of it
their faith died their love for God died
and they're out there somewhere
wandering in the world still may be
calling themselves Christians but
useless in the coming of the kingdom not
true for everybody there's multitudes of
reasons but the tragedy of the Christian
life is that many begin the race but
they don't all finish we have an enemy
he shoots birding arrows that's the
first lesson that I want us to note in
this particular passage the second
lesson that I want us to note is that
these attacks of Satan these flaming
arrows they come typically as waves that
is one upon the other second Samuel 20
25 David the waves of deaths world about
me the torrents of destruction
overwhelmed me if you've ever seen a
movie in which flaming arrows were used
and the movie troy if you've ever seen
it uses it extensively created by
computer-generated graphics
interestingly enough it's amazing what
they can do in movies these days then
then you will see a single burning arrow
is not much of a threat I mean it can be
if you let it go but a single burning
arrow is pretty easy to catch in to
extinguish the object is to overwhelm
the enemy with so many burning arrows
they don't have time to put them all out
and the fire started once the fire
starts it really goes and that's Satan's
strategy any of us can be hit by a
flaming arrow at any time of the day or
night but if you're spiritually in tune
and spiritually aware you will discover
that more often than not there are
seasons when all hell seems to have
opened and it is free hunting for
against God's people and you experience
this onslaught of waves that Paul in
this passage calls the evil day he talks
about stand firm in the evil day the
evil day is when the abyss opens when
Satan for whatever reason receives
permission from gone to do what he did
with job where he is just allowed to
come at an individual or a Christian
community one after the other and he
threatens to blow you out of the water
they come in waves there are seasons of
temptation which is why Jesus says pray
that you will not be led into temptation
now these seasons can happen any time
they can be short they can be long but
in my experience those seasons are
particularly focused on three areas of
vulnerability in your life at in my life
let me quickly walk you through those
number one when you are weak or
vulnerable think back to the temptation
of Jesus and the wilderness baptized by
the Holy Spirit well he was baptized by
John the father says this is my beloved
son with whom I am well pleased he gets
driven by the spirit into the wilderness
to be tempted by Satan what happens he
fasts for forty days
and 40 nights and guess what Satan sees
is opportunity because you see when we
are weak when we are vulnerable our
defenses are down and the enemy who is
ruthless believe you me he is ruthless
he will take advantage of that weakness
and so when we're tired we've got to be
especially on guard because that's when
we're likely to look for comfort in all
of the wrong places when we're tired or
stressed we have to be especially
careful because those are the times when
words that people speak that otherwise
just run off our backs like the
proverbial duck's back they find a
lodging and they take root and they
start their work of destruction but or
week when we're vulnerable we are
extremely sensitive which is why Jesus
constantly says to the church watch
Peter says be sober and alert be careful
when you're tired or hungry second place
is one of them come alive to the Lord in
new ways it was the church father said
Irenaeus has said many years ago the
glory of God is man fully alive and
God's desire and God's purpose in
creation was that you and I with every
part of our being body soul and spirit
would be able to love God above all and
love our neighbor as ourselves now we
all know that Satan hates that and if
Satan can get at Our Lives early to
twist the foundation then he knows that
our chances of succeeding in loving God
and loving our neighbor are incredibly
small and that is why and I won't dwell
on this but in the past we've talked
about this extensively if he can give us
a bad background break relationships
between
mother and child he sends us down this
particular path then along comes the
gospel we come to Jesus and we start
trying to break free from that we start
trying to trust people again we start
trying to leave in places where we
haven't lived before I have an
incredible admiration for people who are
willing to pay the price to push through
the pressures that they have to push
through in order to start living Satan
hates life that's why he pushes abortion
that's why he pushes the destruction of
the nuclear family that is why the
issues are so much bigger than just well
it's all love everybody and let's just
all get along now the issues are if he
can break our hearts early on in life
than the chances of us breaking free
from his control and living freely
before the face of God are that much
harder so if you're at a place and
you're dealing with stuff and you're
starting to live don't be surprised the
devil parks on your doorstep and he
sends volleys of arrows in your
direction to tell you who do you think
you are you're never going to be anybody
you're never going to be able to trust
anybody and never going to be able to
walk in relationship with anybody you're
just a loser just let me have my way
with you and find your comfort and drugs
food and sex and God knows whatever else
that's a wave and very closely they're
related to that is whenever we step out
in a new area in faith because you see
God's not only interested even if we're
not part of his downward slide and we're
born of healthy families and we have a
pretty decent upbringing and we're
learning how to live here you could be a
perfectly natural normal people let me
put it this way you can have a pretty
stable life have a good family
background and avoid a long
of the brokenness that is a part of a
broken world and still have places where
you have been shamed or where you have
been held back or where the devil has
come along and he has convinced you you
can't live here and so any time you step
out and you try to do something new that
is different from what you have
experienced before the enemy will launch
his arrows at you to try to convince you
you cannot do this and how many of us in
the course of growing up having been
shamed in someplace and have made peace
with the fact that we can settle far
short of God's workmanship in our lives
because well we've just bought the lie
that I'm not smart enough I'm not good
enough I'm not capable enough i'm i just
can't is not true how many of us when we
are confronted by opportunities to surf
go on don't turn around and say well
here I am but send George I can do this
that's part of the lie and you'll find
that when you start challenging that
line and you start trying to step out of
that into new places that go Ahead's for
you you get this barrage coming at you
the lie who do you think you are you're
a failure you're a loser you're a nobody
who do you just settle for am I making
any sense here this is the reality that
all of us find ourselves in at one point
or another because it doesn't matter how
smart or gifted or good you are in the
natural when it comes to the spiritual
all of us need Jesus and without Jesus
we cannot do it so Satan sends birding
arrows to try to burn us down they need
to be plucked out those arrows will
intensify at particular season
in our lawyers those seasons being times
when were weak or vulnerable times and
we'll try to break out of old places of
wounding times when we're trying to push
into new areas of living they'll come at
us like a mirage and they will try to
overtake us the third lesson that we
learned here and the one that I think is
simply most important is that the
antidotes all of that is what the shield
of faith in addition to all this take up
the shield of faith which which with
which you can extinguish all the flaming
arrows of the evil one it was never
God's intention that the devil should
burn down our houses with his flaming
arrows it was never God's intention that
Satan should hold the upper hand in the
barrage that comes against us the Bible
says this is the victory that overcomes
the world even our faith and the shield
of faith is the armor that God has
provided for you and me in the person of
Jesus Christ so that we can not only
remain standing in the midst of the
battle but we can in fact extinguish all
his arrows listen to how Peter describes
it here in 1 Peter chapter 3 1 Peter
chapter 1 the verses 3 4 and 5 he says
must be the God and father of our Lord
Jesus Christ by his great mercy we have
been born anew to a Living Hope through
the resurrection of Jesus Christ from
the dead and to an inheritance which is
imperishable undefiled an unfading kept
in heaven for you who by God's power our
guard
through faith for a Salvation ready to
be revealed in the last time the shield
of faith what is faith it's the
assurance of things hoped for the
conviction of things not saying it is
laying hold of our inheritance in Christ
you say what's our inheritance in Christ
well we've talked about it before it
Ephesians remember in Christ were chosen
to be the children of God before the
foundation of the world God's written us
down in his book in Christ we are
destined to reign with him in life and
in the age that is to come we are
crowned princes and princesses being
prepared for a glory that we can even
begin to comprehend in Christ we have
been redeemed from Satan's power he no
longer owns us he has no control over us
because he has no control over Jesus in
Christ we are seated in heavenly places
in Christ we have all the resources that
we need to fulfill the destiny that God
has for each one of us whatever that is
in life faith says this is who I am in
Christ in Adam I may be a loser in Adam
I may have bad genes i may have and i'm
not talking about pants in adam i have a
bad background in adam my life has been
miserable i have struggled and there's
been nothing but I can't do
relationships I can in Adam I may be
nothing paul says i don't care what i
was in anna he says in adam i was a
whole lot i was the best of the best for
those of us who think were pretty good
but he says I count it all as garbage
to be found in Christ because to be in
Christ I'm a child of God to be in
Christ I am a recipient of his love I am
a recipient of his mercy I experience
the presence in the power of the holy
spirit and God has promised me that
nothing but nothing in this life or in
the life to come in the future the devil
the world the flesh nothing can separate
me from the love of God in Christ Jesus
Lamar that's my god and that's who I am
in here and you know what faith does
faith says I choose to believe that what
God says about me is true and that what
the devil tries to tell me is not true
and so when the arrow comes at me and
says God's not real doesn't really love
you science has explained the Bible
in Christ God is my father faith says
one of the best historically attested
facts of history is the resurrection of
Jesus Christ he not only lived but he
rose from the dead people base their
lives on it and I'm basing my life on it
because I know it is true and God will
not disappoint me the arrows will come
and you find yourself in a situation
where oh man life is hard God has
forgotten me prayers don't work why
bother serving God why bother going to
church let me just throw in the towel
faith says just because I'm going
through a tough time doesn't mean God
doesn't love me in fact the Bible says
it's evidence that he does love me
because he disciplines those whom he
loves he's preparing me for glory he is
getting rid of the junk in my life I
will submit myself to his authority and
I will refuse to buy the lie that God
doesn't love me and that he's out to do
me in because in Christ that's an
impossibility in Christ I'm a child of
God destined for glory and when you find
yourself in a situation where fellow
believers disappoint you and you want to
close off your heart and you say to
yourself who needs this is just way too
messy I'll just live in my own little
world then faith says that in Christ God
is going to unite all things in him in
heaven and on earth and just as he is
patient with me and allows me to find my
way so he is patient with others and so
we will forbear each other in love
knowing that the good work that God has
begun in us he will bring to completion
and that gets rid of the burning arrows
of the enemy to quick final comments
about this number one faith is a
function of your inheritance in Christ
whatever it is that God has for you in
life in union with Christ he will give
you the faith and when you find yourself
in trouble and in deep waters and you're
wondering what in the world is going on
God is settings
stage so that you can look beyond
yourself get a deeper revelation of who
Jesus is who it is that you are in Jesus
and what it is that God has prepared for
those who love him faith will rise up
it's not something that you have to try
to stir up all the time it will just be
there in the places where it needs to be
because it is part of your inheritance
in Christ to understand that faith is a
gift and if you abide in union with
Christ faith will bubble forth at the
craziest times and you'll have
confidence for things in certain places
where you cannot believe that you could
possibly have confidence you'll be in a
situation where everything looks
desperate and something inside you says
I know this looks impossible but nothing
is impossible for God not because you're
living in the Nile not because you're
super spiritual and you can't live in
the real world but because you know that
you know that you know that God's got
his hand on this and he's got a hold of
you that's faith second thing and with
exercised means that when it has run its
course the trial is over see the devil
is not a fool he is strategic in his
military objectives he shooting arrows
at you because he is hoping that he can
wipe you on if he discovers that he
cannot wipe you out because you're
standing firm in faith in Christ guess
what he's going to do he's going to go
look for an easier house to break into
an easier life to burn down and he will
leave you alone at least for a season I
love what the Bible says concerning
Jesus at the end of his temptation Luke
chapter 4 verse 13 when the devil had
finished all
this tempting he left him until an
opportune time doesn't mean he won't
come back doesn't mean he doesn't try
your door occasionally to see if you've
left it unlocked and if he can get in
but the more he discovers that he cannot
get in the more he will leave you alone
and the stronger you will be in standing
up for God and the cause of God in a
world that has gone crazy so these
questions where are you at in terms of
burning arrows it may be that your life
has been sailing along smooth is smooth
can be and that's a wonderful thing you
can bless the Lord for that but remember
doesn't mean you don't have an enemy and
it doesn't mean you can let down your
guard because in a moment you do not
expect it trouble can come I'm not
saying that to scare you that's the
reality the Bible warns us about that
all the time so keep on the belt of
truth where the breastplate of
righteousness go to bed with your shoes
on be ready in season and out of season
and then when the call to action comes
grab that shield of faith grab that
helmet of salvation will talk about that
lord willing at some future point grab
the sword of the Spirit and get out
there and be men and women of courage to
accomplish the purposes of God in the
generation not only that it may be that
you're in a season where you just feel
overwhelmed Christmas season is tough
for a lot of people on a lot of
different levels brings back a lot of
memories don't let the flaming arrow
burn down your house grab hold of the
shield of faith because in Christ you
have all the resources you need
in the context of Christian community
that's a whole other car a whole other
story but in the context of Russia to me
you've got the shield of faith hold it
up and after you have suffered little
while since Peter God Himself were a
store establish and strengthen you and
make you stronger because of the trial
you