To God Be Glory in the Church and in Christ Jesus

The “Christian life” that so many people talk about is a life of spiritual warfare! While some consider times of trial and persecution as spiritual battles to be faced with the power of God that is at work within all who believe, the reality is that spiritual warfare is a daily battle in which the true believer must use “the whole armor of God” in order to be victorious. There is a real “axis of evil” in the spiritual realm that wars against God’s people every moment of every day. God tells us in our text today that we must be aware of the reality of these spiritual forces of evil and then use “the whole armor of God” to fight against them. Too many who claim Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord act as though we are living in a time of peace and luxury, going about their lives with little thought of serving Christ by being an active member of His Body, the Church. Paul describes himself as “an ambassador in chains” as he writes this letter from prison. While people in other places of the world are dying for testifying to Christ, we fail to realize that the very life of ease we desire is the temptation of the enemy. Paul writes to young Timothy, “Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits!” (II Timothy 2:3-4). Have YOU put on “the whole armor of God?” The question is not,“Are you READY to do battle?”, but rather, “Are you ENGAGED in the battle??”