Overview

1. Do not fall for the enemy’s lie
2. Jesus has disarmed the enemy
3. You already have the victory. Stand your ground!
4. Defend against the enemy’s fiery darts
5. Guard your mind with His hope
6. Praying in the Spirit is our best offense and defense
7. OWN THE WORD (Life Application)

Do not fall for the enemy’s lie

In his earlier sermons, Put On God’s Armor In The Evil Day and Put On God’s Armor In The Evil Day—Part 2, Pastor Prince has shown us that we are in a spiritual warfare and that “we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places” (Eph. 6:12).

Now, the enemy does not appear in an obvious manner, with horns and a pitchfork. If he did, we would know how to identify him and his plots, and to avoid them. In fact, Scripture records that the devil often appears as an angel of light, a minister of righteousness, but according to works (2 Cor. 11:14–15).

He hates us because we are made in God’s image, and he comes to steal (our revelation of righteousness by faith), kill us, and to destroy our testimony or reputation as God’s people.

And how he does this, his devices and attacks, are very subtle. He may slip you a thought to make you believe that you have fallen from God’s grace, that you have to work in order to be righteous in God’s eyes. Or give you a lying symptom to make you feel like you have yet to receive your healing, or that the Lord is withholding healing from you to teach you a lesson.

The enemy will often also use the law against us. This is because when believers put themselves under the old covenant law, they will feel condemned, and expect judgment and punishment for their failings and wrongdoings. This opens the door for the enemy’s attacks to enter and succeed.

In Luke 10:19, our Lord Jesus said, “I give you the authority . . . over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.”

Then the apostle Paul tells us:

“Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.”
—Ephesians 6:10–11 NKJV

In the original Greek, this verse encourages us to be strong in the outward manifestation of the Lord’s power that He has given us and that comes from the inward strengthening of the Holy Spirit. We can do so when we have on the whole armor of God for the purpose of standing strong against the attacks of the enemy.

Today, we need to stand firm on the truth that we live under a new covenant, where the Lord has already died and paid for all our sins. Sin is no longer an issue between God and us, and He has given us the power over the enemy. When the evil one attacks us, we can boldly say “Go, in Jesus’ name,” and he and his evil minions have to obey!

Jesus has disarmed the enemy

“And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses, having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it.”
—Colossians 2:13–15 NKJV

As believers under the new covenant, we can be at rest knowing that Jesus’ finished work has completely removed the devil’s right to torment or oppress us. Whether they are “principalities” or “powers,” the Lord has disarmed and triumphed over them!

The law was given to bring out man’s sinful nature and to show us that we cannot earn God’s righteousness by our own efforts. The law is contrary to us—the more we try not to do what the law tells us not to do, the more we want to do it. The law stirs up our flesh, and the only solution is found in Christ (1 Cor. 15:56–57).

God sent Jesus to save us from our sins and the curse of the law. Now, as believers, it is no longer a matter of our own outward performance but all about resting in Christ’s finished work! No one can wipe out God’s “handwriting of requirements that was against us.” Only God can.

God did not just remove the outward form of the law that the enemy uses to accuse us and leave us lawless, but He has also put His laws in our hearts. So today, we are to live by the Spirit and to walk in the Spirit. And when we keep doing that, we will end up living right and being transformed to be more and more like Christ inside-out.

In all this, none of it is our effort, therefore, none of it is to our credit. It is important that we give thanks to our heavenly Father and to our Lord for the power to overcome our sinful nature and the wiles of the enemy.

You already have the victory. Stand your ground!

While there are times when the physical, material world feels very real, we must keep in mind that the things that are seen are temporal. It is the things that are unseen to the naked eye that are eternal.

Hence, Pastor Prince encourages us to be more conscious of what we have in the Spirit. It is by the Spirit that God brought forth the physical and material world. In the same way, our spirits can affect our physical surroundings and wellbeing as well. It can affect our bodies, our minds, our health, and the things that we experience.

Our Lord has paid the price for us so that we can stand on victory ground, over all principalities and powers. The devil is trying to steal this revelation from us and to deceive us into thinking that he is winning against us and God in this spiritual warfare. We have to stand our ground!

“And after him was Shammah the son of Agee the Hararite. The Philistines had gathered together into a troop where there was a piece of ground full of lentils. So the people fled from the Philistines. But he stationed himself in the middle of the field, defended it, and killed the Philistines. So the Lord brought about a great victory.”
—2 Samuel 23:11–12 NKJV

In this Bible account, Shammah, one of David’s mighty men, stood his ground against the enemy even when everyone around him had fled. He defended the land because he knew that this was land that God had given him. And as Shammah stood his ground, the Lord gave him a great victory over his enemies.

Today, no matter what the enemy throws at you, you can stand your ground as Shammah did! If you are experiencing health symptoms, pain, or aches, or have received a bad medical report, stand firm on the truth that you are healed. Declare by faith, “By the stripes that Jesus bore, I am healed,” even in the midst of your situation.

Do not let the devil rob you of the assurance and revelation that Jesus has paid the full price for your healing and that you are already healed!

Defend against the enemy’s fiery darts

“Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 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; praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints.”
—Ephesians 6:14–18 NKJV

It is interesting to note that the main tense used in the verses above are the Greek aorist tense, meaning actions that are done, or have been started, are ongoing, or are completed with an ongoing effect. So it could mean that the armor has been put on us and we have to be conscious to keep holding up the shield of faith or to wield the sword of the Spirit.

Let’s first look at the shield of faith.

“above all, taking the shield of faith”—In Roman times, the shield would have been large enough to cover the whole body. The shield of faith is an important defensive piece in spiritual warfare because it protects us from the enemy’s fiery darts, that is his lies and accusations, half-truths and condemnations.

For example, it could be a lying symptom in your body, or it could be a thought about how your wife spoke to you earlier in a manner that seemed to show she was taking you for granted or not treating you with respect. Now, you’re upset with her and instead of clarifying things with her (she could have been upset about something else and just happened to use a tone that wasn’t quite right), you believe the enemy’s lies and start treating her harshly in response.

So how does the shield of faith work against such fiery darts? In the Greek, the phrase here actually says “shield of the faith.” What faith is this referring to?

We find the answer in Galatians 3:24–25: “Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after (the) faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor.”

The verse above refers to our Lord Jesus as “the faith.” This means that when we accept Jesus’ finished work for us, in our lives, we are justified by faith. And when you keep believing that you are justified by faith in Jesus’ finished work, you are taking up the “shield of faith.”

So in the above example about your spouse not treating you right, when you take up the shield of faith and remember how through our Lord’s sacrifice, you were totally forgiven of your sins and justified or made righteous, you would be more open to forgiving your spouse and speaking to him or her about what had happened earlier.

“quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one”—In Greek, the word “dart” here is the same thing that God used to punish anyone, even a beast or an animal, that touched Mount Sinai (a picture of the law).

In other words, the warning here is also for believers not to touch Mount Sinai or the law. We are no longer under the law because Jesus, our shield of faith, has already removed the curse of the law from us and disarmed the devil by paying the price for our sins once and for all. When we put ourselves back under the law, we are handing the means to torment us back to the devil and he will use it as a fiery dart against us.

Guard your mind with His hope

These days, most of the spiritual warfare happens in our minds. If you find it hard to focus or are constantly distracted, you are under attack.

And that’s why God has prepared for us the helmet of salvation!

“(For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.”
—2 Corinthians 10:4–5 KJV

In 1 Thessalonians 5:8, Paul refers to this helmet as the helmet of the hope of salvation. The key to putting on God’s helmet for you is hope. According to respected Greek scholar Thayer, hope is the confident expectation of good in your future.

We believers, who have been made the righteousness of God in Christ, more than anyone else, can have hope for our future because of our Lord’s finished work at the cross. And with this helmet of the hope of salvation, we can guard our minds against the attacks of the enemy.

Praying in the Spirit is our best offense and defense

“Through (dia—by means of) all prayer and supplication praying at all times (kairos) in the Spirit, and in regard to this same, watching in all perseverance and supplication for all the saints.”
—Ephesians 6:18 YLT

How do we receive the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit which is the rhema Word of God? By praying in the Spirit.

We see that this is what the apostle Paul said when we look at Ephesians 6:18 in the Young’s Literal Translation. And in Greek, “at all times” here is kairos, which means that we are to pray in the Spirit, in tongues, at every opportunity we get.

This last piece of the armor is the most important as it transcends time and space. When you pray in the Spirit you are praying for your future, past, and present. You are praying for people who may not be physically around you, or people you don’t even know need prayer at that moment.

Scripture tells us that the Word of God is sharper than any two-edged sword (Heb. 4:12), and it will have a positive effect on your mind. Keep praying in the Spirit and receive the sword of the Spirit, the rhema Word of God. He could speak directly to your heart, your mind, through the mouth of someone, or through His written Word that you’re reading, to lead and guide you in these last days.

In Isaiah 59:14–21, God talks about a time when “Justice is turned back, and righteousness stands afar off; for truth is fallen in the street, and equity cannot enter. So truth fails, and he who departs from evil makes himself a prey.” Sounds familiar?

Such a situation displeases the Lord, and He will “put on righteousness as a breastplate, and a helmet of salvation on His head; He put on the garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a cloak.” His enemies will fear Him, and “when the enemy comes in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord will lift up a standard against him.”

But for those of us under the new covenant, we will meet our Redeemer in Zion and to us, He says:

“‘As for Me,’ says the LORD, ‘this is My covenant with them: My Spirit who is upon you, and My words which I have put in your mouth, shall not depart from your mouth, nor from the mouth of your descendants, nor from the mouth of your descendants’ descendants,’ says the LORD, ‘from this time and forevermore.’”
—Isaiah 59:21 NKJV

In Romans 11, Paul quotes this segment but is led to say instead:

“‘The Deliverer will come out of Zion, and He will turn away ungodliness from Jacob; for this is My covenant with them, when I take away their sins.’”
—Romans 11:26–27 NKJV

So when you compare both sets of verses, you will see that taking away the sins of the people is tantamount to putting His Spirit in their mouths. When Paul wrote Romans, our Lord Jesus had already died for our sins and risen for our justification. So the fulfillment of this began on the day of Pentecost when the Spirit was first given (Acts 2:1–4).

Today, when we pray in the Spirit, we are laying hold of the righteousness and every blessing that our Lord has purchased for us on the cross. Don’t let anyone make you feel strange for speaking in tongues or stop you from praying in the Spirit. You have God’s Word, the living voice of God, in your mouth!

And according to Isaiah 59:21, when you pray in the Spirit, your sons and your daughters will follow, and their sons and daughters as well. So, my friend, this piece of the armor has the potential to continue to bless and protect your family down through the generations.

OWN THE WORD (Life Application)

Imagine this with me. If there were two houses, one furnished with lavish interiors and luxurious amenities, and another that’s completely empty and desolate . . . which one do you reckon a thief would try to break in to steal from? 🥷

Obviously, the house that’s filled with valuables, right? After all, what’s there to steal from a house that’s empty and deserted? 🤷

The Bible says that the enemy is out to steal from us (John 10:10). This should tell us that we are like the well-furnished house—with every spiritual blessing from the Lord in our possession (Eph. 1:3)!

Yet many of us don’t live day to day feeling like we are rich in blessings. Instead, we feel the enemy’s attacks on our health, on our marriages, on our sense of security in these difficult times . . . and we often don’t realize that the very fact the enemy is trying to steal these blessings from us means we already have them in Christ! ✝️ He cannot steal what we do not have.

Today, the way to stand firm against the enemy’s attacks is to keep believing the truth that you already have every provision you need in Christ 💪🏼 (2 Pet. 1:3, Phil. 4:19). The more you hold fast to this truth and reckon yourself complete in Christ, the more you will start to see the very blessings that the devil is trying to steal from you be added to you and abound to you instead (Matt. 13:12)!

We hope these sermon notes blessed you! If they did, we encourage you to get the sermon and allow the Lord to speak to you personally as you watch or listen to it.

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These sermon notes were taken by volunteers during the service. They are not a verbatim representation of the sermon.