Full Armor...

Someone who posted a comment mentioned a passage in Ephesians. Thank you for sharing!! We've been examining the book of Ephesians recently- great study! This week we looked at the full armor of God. Jesus IS the full armor! We are to be covered by Him! (He is also our Robe of Righteousness, but that's another illustration.) Sound absurd? Romans 13:14 says, "Put on the Lord Jesus Christ". Ephesians 6:10 "Be strong in The Lord and in the strength of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh & blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Stand therefore, having fastened on the Belt of Truth (Jesus IS the Truth), put on the Breastplate of Righteousness (Jesus IS our Righteousness), and as shoes for your feet, put on the readiness given by the Gospel of Peace. (He is our peace, Who has broken down every wall) In all circumstances, take up the Shield of Faith (Our belief in Christ) with which you can extinguish all the fiery darts of the evil one. Take the Helmet of Salvation, (Christ is our Salvation) and the Sword of the Spirit- which is The Word of God, (Jesus IS the LIVING WORD of God) Jesus IS the armor. David often referred to his Lord as a Shield and Defender. Jesus is the Good News, The Lamb which takes away the sins of the world, He is the ark into which all must enter in order to live, He's the Promise Fulfilled, He is the Vine, a Lover of Prodigals. He is All in All.
We are in a battle for the mind & spirit- I'd much rather have the full armor of Christ, than be wrapped in the rags of my own righteousness for defense. How about you? We are fighting the good fight of faith, but Jesus ALREADY WON the victory for us. The battle we face today is in choosing to place our lives in His hands believing He is big enough to save & strong enough to change us. Each day I must place my doubts aside & trust in the merits of Jesus. It's tough, because I'd much rather feel that I'm strong, that because of my good behavior I'm worthy to be saved. But (paraphrasing) ALL have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Because of Jesus ALL can be saved by Grace, which is received by faith and that is the gift of God- not something we produce ourselves, lest any of us start getting a big head or feel superior to someone else. Good to know!! :o)