The BattlePrøve

The Shield of Faith By Amy Cook Each piece of the spiritual armor described in Ephesians 6 helps you stand strong against the strategies of the devil. Girding your loins with truth gives you courage to fight. The breastplate of righteousness protects you from condemnation so that you can receive God’s help in the midst of the fight. Wearing your shoes of peace enables you to cast your cares upon God and expect a good outcome to the fight. Only the shield of faith, however, can neutralize every enemy attack and give you the victory. The Apostle John wrote, “For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith” (1 John 5:4, NKJV). Faith is the shield that quenches all the fiery darts of the enemy. The fact that these darts are fiery gives us a clue about their nature. James 3 says that the tongue is ignited by hell and is used to kindle strife and every evil work. Satan ignites your own words and the words of others and then launches them against you to move you out of faith and love and into fear and strife. Darts are never used in hand-to-hand combat; they must be hurled at close range. Giving in to fear and strife moves you into Satan’s territory where you can easily be defeated. But when you operate in faith and love, you’re on God’s high ground. Faith is being so fully persuaded and convinced that every word of God is truth that you’re willing to act upon it without having a backup plan waiting in the wings. Faith is trusting that the invisible Truth—Jesus—has power to change the visible facts. When you discover a promise God has given you, align your decisions with it and act accordingly even before you see evidence of it in your life. Believe in God’s integrity and patiently wait for the fulfillment of His promise (Hebrews 6:12). Proverbs 30:5 (KJV) declares, “Every word of God is pure; He is a shield unto them that put their trust in Him.” When you believe in God’s Word, He honors it and becomes your shield. If you’re convinced that God loves you and always keeps His promises, then Satan’s attacks will bounce off your shield of faith and fall to the ground. The Father proved His love for you once and for all by sending His Son, Jesus, to die in your place (1 John 4:9–19). When you believe in God’s love, your faith becomes energized, because perfect love casts out all fear (Galatians 5:6; 1 John 4:18). Satan can’t physically do anything to separate you from God’s love, because God’s love is always with you (Romans 8:35–39). However, when you begin to doubt God’s perfect love, you lose the strength you need to hold up the shield of faith and become vulnerable to attack. Faith involves both fighting and resting. You fight the good fight of faith by fleeing the things which seduce you from faith, by pursuing things which build faith and by resting in God’s promises through faith (1 Timothy 6:10–12; Hebrews 4:9–11). Lift up your shield of faith, and obtain all that God has promised you. ### Memory Verse Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for He is faithful that promised;) Hebrews 10:23 (KJV)