The Certainty of Victory

It is so easy for us as Christians in the Western world to rest
in a false sense of security because we have not experienced war on our shores for several generations. We are not conditioned to worry about guerillas or terrorists. We have become dangerously complacent and have imagined that peace is the absence of conflict. Most professing Christians in America are not all that interested in “armor.” Unlike the citizens of Israel, we have not yet been issued a gas mask. September 11, 2001 was a “wake-up call” for Americans, but many remain blissfully naïve.

A false sense of security is even more dangerous in the spiritual realm. Whether or not we sense imminent danger, we are commanded to put on “the whole armor of God.” There are no exemptions and no deferments in this warfare. There is no excuse for being “AWOL.”

There could be not greater incentive – both positive and
negative – to put on all of God's mighty armor than that which Paul gives us here. By now God should have our attention. Every piece of the armor we are about to examine is vitally important. If we thought we were wearing this complete armor but have been vulnerable to Satan, we need to go back and repair it.