Therefore take the whole armour of God that you may be able to stand, withstand and stand

The "therefore" in this extract from Ephesians 6:11, 13 points to the reason for the need for the armour of God. It is, that our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against a spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places (verse 12). I am not one to find the devil under every rock, but I am keenly aware that we are in a war to the death with the enemy of our souls. And we must not be unaware of the way that he operates (2 Corinthians 2:11).

The Scripture describes him as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour (1 Peter 5:8). I read somewhere that the lion roars to frighten its prey into running away. But if it stands its ground, the lion is unable to find it. And the Scripture tells us that our life is hidden in God (Colossians 3:3). Actually that verse starts off by saying “you died,” and this spiritual truth, that we are to reckon ourselves dead to sin (Romans 6:11), needs to be a becoming reality.

It is important to note, that in the description of the armour that follows verse 13, there is no armour for the back. That is because God has our back! And when we put on the whole armour of God, the enemy cannot harm us. We do need to stand however, and that is why in these two verses we are told to stand, withstand and having done all to stand. Repeated commands indicate their importance!

Father, it’s no coincidence this morning as I write, that I am tempted to allow obsessive thinking to take over my life. It’s an old weakness, it was a chink in my armour and I must not go there again. There is a problem that needs to be solved, but it may take a while to figure out what to do. As with other things, I am sure that it will be clear as I wait for You, and for the world to unfold. But in the meantime, I need to operate out of rest. So I receive Your peace this morning Father, and I choose to stand and wait and stand. I am only strong in You Lord, but I thank You this morning for my growing confidence that in You can indeed stand. I bless You this morning Lord in Jesus Name Amen