How to Fight the Spiritual Battle: Spiritual Armor

You are listening to a new beginning with Greg Laurie, a podcast made possible by harvest partners, helping people everywhere. No guide this at our website and learn more about harvest partners@harvest.org many believers of other ways they never use their sore pastor Greg Laurie Quinto are sure to defend against the lies and attacks from our enemy God will not forgive you sort for someone like forgive me my sin was a Vermont soap works actually clothing saves lives.

Firefighters pants and jacket police officers were More soldiers of this helmet. As we learned today Christian soldiers specialty clothing as well. Too many of us don't know much about today on a new beginning pastor Greg Laurie helps us get to know our six pieces how we can use rubber Bibles and turn to chapters Ephesians chapter 6 the title of my messages how to fight the spiritual battle verse 14 stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace and above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one and take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit which is the word of God.

So six pieces of armor are mentioned six pieces. The first three. The belt, the breastplate the shoes were attached to the body, never to be remove the second three.

This shield, the helmet and the sword were for specific purposes and methods of attack so it starts by saying girded your waist with truth when he just use a more modern translation to put on the utility belt. The Roman soldier had a belt and on his belt. He had a sheath which was for the sword obviously and also the breastplate was attached to the belt and daughter and the belt also pulled his mother pulled his little skirt okay because he wrote we were told that a tug is basically just like a skirt and so would be down over his knees. So what is going in the battle he pulls it up above his knees and he singes in the belt so it stays above the knees, giving him freedom of movement. Now he pulls a sword out.

You gotta have the belt on because of someone pulls her belt off off comes your breastplate. There goes your sword and your dressers out of the ground you're looking stupid right so what is this evening. Put on the belt of truth.

Basically it's the same bottom line.

If you're not walking truthfully before God.

None of the rest of this really matters. You know if you're living a hypocritical life. If you're saying one thing and doing another than this is ducking to work for you so you start with a truthful right relationship with God, then you of the breastplate of righteousness. What is that mean the breastplate of righteousness what it is is a representation of your stand before God. We talked about how we are justified, which means when you become a Christian, God forgive you of all of your sin and then he puts the righteousness of Christ into your spiritual bank account, so to speak. You stand positionally right before God I am a righteous man.

You're a righteous man.

You're a righteous woman. So I stand in this special relationship with the Lord and I bring this up because one of the doubles primary tactics is accusation. You know he comes up to you key terms you to think and impure thought and you sort of ticket for a test drive in the attached you.

What a hypocrite you are. You're not even a Christian you don't believe in Jesus but Romeo blows against the breastplate, but this is righteousness where I'm not standing in my good works for what I've done for God I'm standing in what God is done for me. Very important number three we are to have our feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace. This is the footwear of the soldier it gave him, firm footed this and mobility on the field of battle. It speaks of standing firm and gaining ground and how do I gain ground.

Very simple answer by proclaiming the gospel. That's all we advance in the spiritual battle. Romans 1014 says, how can they call in Unless they believe in him, how can they believe in him unless they've heard about him and how can they hear about it unless someone tells them and how will anyone go until the molester said.

That is why the Scripture said how beautiful are the feet of messengers or bring good news so the way we gain ground in the spiritual battle is by sharing our faith.

Delegate this for 16 above all, underline the steward above. Also, Paul's no distinguishing this piece of armor from the rest. Above all, he says, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one so the Roman pseudo-the Roman army was amazing and that's why they defeated so many of their enemies because they work together and they would march in the battle with the shield for the first part of combat and when the initial barrage of flaming arrows came they would all get them up and lock their shield from the front from the side and on top to and all the zeros would land on top of the shield so they knew the arrows were coming and they were ready for them when they came so where works in real life is double will fire his arrows at us. You never know what is going to help Satan's flaming arrows are swift and silent there's no advance warning of their arrival. You can wake up in the morning and the enemy can hit you with the flaming arrow or a fiery dart for your feet even hit the floor can happen in the middle of the night. Maybe you thought of complete despair. You might be good with the thought of intense fear and terror. What if this happens to me. What if that happens to my family. One of this other thing happened. It can be thought of hatred toward somebody.

It could even be a blasphemous thought. It's so crazy and from love Field to begin.

How could that thought even come to me. Remember, it's not a sin to be tempted. Just because the devil fires of flaming arrow at you. That doesn't mean you've done anything wrong. You're not the twisted one. He is a twisted one, you put up here shield and identify the source of it from Satan. I rejected.

I'm not even entertain them for a moment. I didn't think of it, and I'm not going to play around with it.

That's how you resisted know what these things are coming from because the doubles plover is Artie said the attempt to, and he'll talk you for being tempted. How could you be so twisted to think that I didn't think it was like worshiping this thinking thoughts would come from. It came from hell it came from Satan to flaming arrows as I reject that something got to photo resist the devil and what will happen he will flee from you. So understand the source of these things so the helmet of salvation.

This is so very important because obviously the helmet protects your head and you know that most temptations come in the form of your thoughts right they always start with a thought. I think any temptation you never given into, and I bet you in every instance it started right here and you know you entertained and so you have to wear a helmet. I rent a motorcycle and and I have to wear a helmet and I hate helmets. By the way, but I know that there good and they protect your brain, which is a nice thing to keep intact if possible, so I and the same when this bird's ability to to get a kid in the realm of your thinking so you want to protect your mind and key so there's one last weapon in our spiritual arsenal and that is a sort of the spirit. This is the only weapon that is offensive. In other words by going against my enemy. I'm not can I throw my helmet out okay here I come through helmet. That's like in the work very effectively and I could beat them to death with my breastplate.

That's not practical and not going to attack them with my shield or you know throw my gospel sue out of or something like these are not effective weapons. These are not weapons.

These are defensive tools that the soldier uses, but this sword. This is how I attack.

And of course it says the sword of the Spirit which is the word of God see many believers have all their armor in place but they never use their sore they leave it in the sheath they talk about it. They study it, but they never actually utilizes sword and spiritual battle under this, the devil knows the authority of the word of God. As I mentioned earlier, he will try to keep you from it at all costs. He will do everything you can to see that we either keep our swords sheath or that we don't even put them on in the first place. That's why he attacks God's word in your life, because he knows the power of Scripture master Greg Laurie will have the second half of this message just a moment, everybody Greg Laurie here encouraging you to join us as we give her what we call harvesting that home.

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Join us or harvested home harvest master Greg is presenting the final message, series of most requested studies year.

Today's message is good insight on emerging victorious and spiritual battle. Let's continue one of the greatest things you can apply your mind to is the memorization of the Bible. The memorization of the by what you doing. I can remember Bible verses that you can like it. Okay, let's start with one Jesus wept. Say that Jesus wept.

Now you know Bible verse.

That's one never get a move on. I still remember Bible verses that I learned when I was 17 years old and verses that I just committed to memory and you know you can do it because you've all kinds of stupid song lyrics in your head. You have lines from movies that you can quote it will in your head. You have stats and scores of games that have been you know played over the years in your head. You have the other information that you put in there you can make time for the Bible.

It's a commitment. It's a discipline, but memorize Scripture you say why do I need to do that because memorize Scripture as a weapon against sin. Someone 1911 says I word have I hid in my heart that I might not sin against you. Then Psalm 37, 31, says the word of God is in his heart, his steps do not slip. See, here's how works so Satan comes to you and he says you just send let's say you have sent any says God will not forgive you.

You have no relationship with God not find the pullout the sort and use it. That's not true because it is written for someone night if I confess my sin.

These people and just to forgive me my sin and cleansing from all unrighteousness.

Just like that that's I use the sword. Remember Jesus when he was tested in the wilderness with it with three primary attacks from the devil. One of them was when after you nodding for 40 days and 40 nights. Can you imagine a hunger he would've been so is a double-dip comes up to say want to turn a rock into a piece of bread and what is Jesus say it is written, you shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.Jesus fitted to said look, I'm Jesus, you're not get out of here. Jesus could have banished the devil driven away with just a word, but Christ gave us an example of how to deal with temptation by quoting Scripture. So we do the same thing the devil whispers in your ear. God will not cure your prayers. God will not hear what you're saying God is not listening to you I come back with the word of God. First John 514. This is the confidence we have in him, we ask anything according to his will he hears us. So I called the Scripture. Sometimes I quoted out loud. I quoted out loud.

The devil can hear it and I can hear so I'm reminded of what the word of God says. Maybe the devil says you should be afraid and augmented destroy you. We quote Scripture Psalm 27, one the Lord is my light and my salvation whom shall I fear the Lord is the strength of my life, of whom then shall I be afraid, and then second Timothy 17 God is not given us a spirit of fear but of power love and a sound mind.

The devil says will you need to worry, worry right now. No, actually I don't because in total room. Philippians 46.

Don't worry about anything but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known on the got that's out works know the word of God. Memorize the word of God. You quote the word of God and I will help you when you're being tempted.

But if you don't know God's word clever little things you read on Instagram are not going to help. Okay there's all kinds of clever little things you can read a nice little saying, but you need the word of God that's with the devil is afraid of and that's what he responds to and that's why it is called the sword of the Spirit Q1 lasting a minimum the close. The final ingredient to winning the spiritual battle. In addition to putting on the armor of God, and you know the breastplate of righteousness, the helmet of salvation, the shield of faith, the sword of the Spirit and having your fee chart of the preparation of the gospel of peace. This is really important.

Prayer. Prayer would give her 17 the sword of the Spirit which is the word of God, praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful of this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints. Supplication is when you're praying for someone else. Worship is when you're bringing glory to God intercession you're standing in the gap supplication you're praying for someone petition. You're asking the Lord to help you but the word of God and prayer are inseparable.

Listen to this, the word of God enlightens us in prayer enables us to see that again the word of God enlightens us but prayer enables us the word of God reveals the will of God. Prayer enables me to do that will is an excellent illustration of this in Exodus chapter 17 showing how God's word and prayer work together so the nation Israel is facing off with the Amalekites on the battlefield and Moses told Joshua to send men to fight the Amalekites. We would stand on the top of the hill with the stop of God in his head, interceding for them. So when he held that staff up. They knew Moses his prey.

So is framing and when the staff is up there waiting. Then he deal Moses is all his arms are getting tighter so your proposals are gone, they start losing.

They put the milk companies are winning again so two guys they were going to help oral mode right ones name Aaron. The other name her. They grab each end of the staff. They hold up Moses coming in on with his arms, and so the soldiers saw Moses for this step up praying and they prevailed in the battle so it shows how prayer in the word of God go together and that is why we need to proclaim the word of God and then we need to be praying the power in the spiritual battle does not come from what we know it comes from who we know it's all about Jesus and it's all about a relationship with Jesus and so let me just close by asking do you know Jesus, let me say something that you need to understand if you're not a Christian.

Journal match for St. he can pretty much wreck a lot of havoc in your life but if you're a follower of Christ.

Your under his protection is ID tag is attached to you and so you have that guarantee of protection for the non-Christian. They have nothing and you think you're going to keep the devil away with the a crucifix have a crucifix. He hates Chris if he could corrupt my crucifixes what I have holy water. There is no holy water.

Oh well, yeah, you need Jesus. That's the only thing Satan fears when we restate that that's the only one Satan fears because of the power of Christ and when Jesus comes on listen live. Your under his protection. You know sometimes people say that Christians can be demon possessed. How absurd you think God's and do a timeshare program I'm Jesus here and sometimes things live over here. None of this is like if Christ is in this house is the sole occupant of the house and drives everything out. So when he comes in all that demon power that was maybe in me in some way shape or form is gone and I'm protected someone new is in the house and when the devil comes not united to say Lord, would you mind getting that.

And when Jesus answers the door trusting the devil's not coming, but if price is not living in your house in your life, you're vulnerable. You need Jesus Jesus Christ the son of God who came to this earth and live the perfect life of anyone and died on the cross for your sin and paid the price for every wrong you've ever done. And then he rose again from the dead. Now he stands at the door of your life, and he knocks and says if you'll hear his voice and open the door. He will come in, have you asked Jesus to come in your life. Yet there might be some of you here that many are just worried you're full of anguish and have a lot of problems you're facing and you just think of this is so hard.

Well there. Someone who said that we should cost of our care upon him because he cares for us because he let me take your troubles. Let me take your cares let me take your anxieties, let me carry it for you. Come here. Let me put my arms around you. You're safe with me.

You need to come to Jesus you know want to be out there for one day without you don't want to be out there for one hour without he'll forgive you and you will enter into a relationship with him. And if you don't have that relationship with Jesus. Let me extend an invitation to you now to believe in him because he's ready to come into your life but you have to say Lord save me Lord forgive me let her know what mess you're in right now or what troubles you're facing or whatever they are.

God is greater whatever you're facing. The outcome of your life. Do not say yes to see noted to Jesus in your for me or against me.

So this is an either or proposition. You don't say yes I want Jesus you're objectively think I don't want Jesus in my life and you have that ability to make that choice, though it is a wrong window make it say yes to him, you will not regret it. But spray father I pray now that your Holy Spirit will convict and convince every person that's listening or watching wherever they may be.

Show them their need for you and help them to come to you and believe in you right here right now so we ask for your Holy Spirit to work in the heart of those that need to take this next step in Jesus name I pray for Pastor Greg Laurie, if you know you need to make that kind of change today in your relationship with the Lord. Pastor Greg will help you with that before today's addition of a new beginning wraps up with Pastor Greg and I have a couple of special guests in the studio today. Pastor Levi Lesko, author of the new children's devotional book called roar like a lion, which were making available to our listeners right now and pastor Greg son Pastor Jonathan Lori is here Jonathan you're reading this new book with your own kids these days house I going and going great. My kids really love it there. The perfect ages. This book is 88 to 10.

I believe it is right. Levi will 6 to 10 is the reader level but is it yes and yes. Perfect. Why got a nine-year-old and 11-year-old and Allie even though she is just outside of that age man she's absolutely loving it and I gotta be honest, I'm loving it till it's ministering to my heart going to different devotions hearing just wonderful reminders of who God is, his character, how it plays out in our everyday lives. And one thing I like to do is I have my kids read it to me. It's a good way for them to just kind of practice their reading and read out loud in here and there little voices are so sweet. Sometimes I speak a little video of it and save it for later you something to look at on a rainy day but it's so sweet, hearing them read these devotions read the Scriptures and then have them pray to.

There's a wonderful little prayer the end of each devotion, a kind of sums it up and it's it's such a blessing to get to go through with my kids are 9/11 and I know that any age is really good.

Be blessed by this, I started reading devotions to my kids man really from the time they were born.

You know they say it's so important for children to hear the sound of their parents voice and reading to them. So whether you have a newborn child and you just need some content to read to them, man, this is a great book or whether you got kids are older, I'm telling you, no matter what age you're to be blessed by this.

I've been blessed by Ivan encourage I've been challenged and sell really love this book. Roar like a lion. Yeah, we did the same thing. Dave is a raised Jonathan and his brother Christopher. You know a little devotions with them reading from the Scripture encouraging them and it's so gratifying to see that passed on to another generation. That's what God wants us to do. He wants us to pass these Jews onto the next generation. You know the Christian life is like a race. And if it's a raise.

It's a lot like a relay race. We hold the baton for a time. Then we handed on to the next generation. They carry and then they handed on to that's our job as parents to teach these things to our children but I know that's not always the easiest thing to do. You don't know where to start. You don't feel like your Bible knowledge is deep enough you're not a theologian, listen, we have a tool to put in your hands to help you do a better job of sharing the truth of God's word with your kids are your grandkids and it's a book written by Levi Lesko titled roar like a lion 90 devotions to a courageous fate. I will send you this brand-new book to help you lead your family spiritually for your gift of any size and whatever you send will be used to continue this ministry called a new beginning.

As we teach the word of God and proclaim the gospel all around the world. Yeah that's right your investment helps us reach literally all over the planet. If you been a partner with us. Thank you so much and if you can partner with us right now.

We hope you will ask for a copy of Pastor Levi's new children's devotional book roar like a lion and we won't be mentioning this much longer. So contact us soon. You can donate securely online@harvest.org or call us anytime around the clock at 1-800-821-3300 � 1-800-821-3300 Pastor Greg, you mentioned our need to come to Christ for forgiveness of sin and today study. Maybe there's somebody listening would like to do that that I could take that step maybe could help them with that right now, I'd be delighted to listen if you would like to accept Jesus Christ into your life right now. By that I mean if you would like your sins are forgiven and have the assurance that you will go to heaven when you die. Would you pray this prayer with me, Lord Jesus, I know that I'm a sinner but I think you for dying on the cross for my sin and rising again from the dead.

I'm sorry for my sin, Lord, and I turn from it now and I put my faith in you to be my Savior, my Lord, my God, my friend. Thank you for loving me and calling me and accepting me in Jesus name I pray, amen. Listen if you just pray that prayer in minutes. I want you to know on the authority of God's word that Jesus Christ has just come to take residence in your heart. The Bible says these things we write to the believe in the name of the son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life. Listen we want to send you some resources that will help you grow spiritually. So here's David some details and let me say God bless you and welcome to the family of God. Yeah those resources Pastor Greg mentioned are all included in something we call our new believers growth packet. It'll help you get started in living your life for the Lord. So can we send it to you just ask for the new believers growth packet. Call us at 1-800-821-3300. We can take your call anytime 24 seven that's 1-800-821-3300 or go online to harvest.org and click on know God when next I Pastor Greg launches a series on the Christian family, practical advice on keeping our families healthy and happy call home sweet home jointed here on a new beginning with pastor and Bible Greg Laurie just for podcast listeners. Pastor Levi commented about Pastor Greg's connection with children. I'll tell you what my kids perk up whenever you preaching you always do funny voices you tell funny stories and I think you know Jesus. The greatest comfort we can make about Jesus's ministry is that kids always wanted to be around when he was teaching and doing ministry and I think that as pastors as communicators.

If kids are tuned into what were saying were not doing it right out because they shall be like magnets to the way that we communicate yes that's right you're a member, you know, Jonathan, we would God and have the like dinner with Chuck Smith and Jonathan were just a little kid and chucked it all these like really entertaining things. Jonathan member what he did within that he could turn into, he would wrap it in a certain way look just like a rat and he would hold in the neck of his arm and he did it some way I could never replicate it and he would hold in the neck of his arm and he could get it to jump and tug run off his arm to where II swore the thing was alive and it was so real and so entertaining and he he would do it over and over and over for me is a great trick and I can't do it myself and I turned to figure it out and I'm an adult going to count Chuck how do you do that exactly but you know I think that the people respond to that kind of thing but I will say this, you taken that mantle and run with it. You know, because my kids just come alive around you and obviously you your very seasoned grandfather and I think that's and we should you know always recognize the grandparent because Timothy didn't just have a mother Lois. He also had his grandmother unit to the grandparents listening.

Maybe your kids aren't walking with Jesus, but you have a really important ministry when they come around your house. You know that they're getting a double dose of Scripture and Jesus in prayer and devotions and cement� Not to me is and even if you're not a parent or grandparent all here in in any way in kids lives. Paul wasn't Timothy's dad but he was father in the faith. So you know I think that we all have to do that. What we can do in our God the father to the fatherless. The preceding podcast was made possible by harvest partners, helping people everywhere know God learn how to do, harvest partner, sign up for daily devotions and find resources to help you grow in your faith harvest.org