We concluded our series on spiritual warfare at Gateway in Austin.
God’s Word is your weapon…prayer is your power.
Don’t go silent in the fight. You’ve been given the sword of the Spirit and access to the Father through prayer.
Choose bold engagement with Scripture and passionate intercession for others.
The enemy throws flaming lies and doubts…faith blocks them, and your mind must be guarded by salvation’s truth.
Digging Deeper:
Work through this bonus Bible study with your roommates, family, or community group:
Message Video:
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Message Notes by Ricky Echeona:
10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood,but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. – Ephesians 6:10 – 18
What we will see today is this: the Weapon is the Word. Prayer is the Power
Paul we learn in Acts 19 had spent over 2 years in Ephesus, experiencing firsthand the Spiritual warfare.
- And he writes now to encourage them while he himself is under arrest in Rome. More than likely during his time of house arrest.
- So everyday he is looking at a Roman soldier or two and he pens to Christians in Ephesus then, and by the Spirit of God Christians today, “hey don’t forget you are in a SPIRITUAL battle.”
- And because the battle is Spiritual.
- Because it is against the rulers, authorities, cosmic powers of darkness, against evil spiritual forces in the unseen realm.
- Because it is waged by the enemy of your soul that wants nothing more than your destruction and your distraction.
This warfare does not end in negotiations. It does not end in a ceasefire. It will not take a day off.
The victory was ultimately won on the Cross and resurrection of Christ. But the finality of this battle will happen only upon the Return of the King. Who will come with justice one day soon and make EVERYTHING right.
But until then the battle wages on in the spiritual realm. That’s why Paul says stand firm. It’s supposed to be hard. We’ve learned over the last several weeks:
- To put on the belt of truth, found in what God has revealed through Christ and His Word that holds it all together
- To put on the breastplate of righteousness- that for those in Christ, His righteousness becomes ours and through his Spirit we can live in such a way that guards our hearts
- To put on the Gospel shoes of peace- that everywhere we go we are peacemakers through the message of the Gospel of Jesus. Reconciling a broken world to the Father, one life at a time
- To lift our shield of faith- faith the chokes out the fire of the lies and attacks of the enemy.
- To put on the helmet of Salvation- to consistently allow God to transform our mind
And today we talk about wielding the Sword of the Spirit. And the power of Prayer
And each week in some fashion we have said it and consistently try to say it but the battle is NOT against flesh and blood. And just as always another CULTURE WAR is at hand. And too many Christians are choosing sides, fighting the wrong battle.
“You’re being naive, that’s what THEY want you to think. It’s time to FIGHT”
Who is “they”? Because last I check we all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. So in reality, it’s US (all of humanity) and Him (a Holy God).
And the only real enemy if the forces of hell that puppeteer individuals, groups, nations, and institutions of this world to perpetuate evil, division, and destruction
And as a follower of Jesus I realize, I don’t have to fight in this Culture War.
As a disciple of the Resurrected King, I view my vocation as a soldier in this Spiritual War from the posture and position of the Cross of Jesus.
Meaning this- you and I don’t have to “win” anything. Because Christ already WON.
What you do have is the responsibility to proclaim the Good News of the FINISHED work of the Cross to those around me and live the cruciformed life – which means being shaped by the cross, embodying the self-sacrificial love, humility, and suffering of Jesus Christ in one’s life.
Trusting that the Spirit of God is leading people to repentance and the Spirit of God is better at transforming hearts, minds, and lives, than I am at convincing and debating.
A culture war leaves casualties.
But as followers of Jesus we have been given a rescue mission behind spiritual enemy lines.
The Sword of the Spirit
And the offensive weapon we are given is the SWORD.
the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
Today, more often than not we say the word “Scripture” or the “Bible” we are talking about the Word of God.
Before they had the collected New Testament, they relied on the OT, the oral message of the Gospel, and some of the writings that were in circulation. But you and I get the benefit of all it.
In preparation for this message, I realized the sword that Paul is talking about as he describes this Roman soldier, is not a long broad sword (spatha). But rather Paul uses the Greek word of machaira (mah-hyra)
Machaira was a short double-edged sword 18-24 inches long. It was more of a dagger if you will, used for close combat. It was used for precision strikes after the shield was used to block.
You may ask: “so why is that important?”
Well, because Paul says the offensive weapon God gave you is the Word of God.
And when he says “word” he uses the word rhema (ῥῆμα)- a spoken word, an utterance, or a specific revelation He doesn’t use Logos.
Logos is the fullness of God’s Word.
Logos is “a concept word in the Bible symbolic of the nature and function of Jesus Christ. It is also used to refer to the revelation of God in the world.”
In other words, Logos is the reservoir or lake, and rhema is the stream and tributaries which come out of it.
There is a fresh, deep, life giving, body of water (Logos), but it is not meant to be stagnant.
There are rivers, streams, creeks, and springs (rhema) that flow from it.
You already understand this by the way.
Every day across the world people are reading and connecting to the LOGOS, in order to get a rhema for the day.
As teachers and preachers we rely on the Logos, the fullness of God’s word.
To give you a rhema word you can apply to your life.
That is why we filter every personal word from God (rhema) through the filter of the Logos.
Why?
Because God never contradicts His word.
Be very careful when you are claiming to speak on behalf of God.
Look I went to a Bible college, and I remember one dude going- “Yea God told me that’s my wife.” And look I was newly saved so I didn’t have much of a filter. I said homie you about a 4 on a good day (in Jesus name) she’s at least twice that. I don’t think God allows that kind of math. Plus you have never even said hello.
We get uhhh…peculiar…people all the time saying stuff that God told them.
We have a lot of Christians living off of prophetic words that have not passed the filter of Scripture. Because the sword hung on the belt of TRUTH
So Paul says the Word is your dagger (machaira).
Why?
Because you need to know what God is saying to you specifically and how He wants you to apply his Word to transform your life.
Because there is an enemy that is constantly shifting; constantly scheming; constantly looking for ways to attack.
And you need the word of God like a dagger to attack this spiritual foe, quick and light on your feet. Able to fight back and make adjustments to myself and my circumstances.
The mistake we make and I think the enemy convinces us of is that this thing [holding up the Bible] is heavy like Excalibur. Remember the Sword in the stone? No one could get this giant sword stuck in the boulder. Except for young King Arthur.
And you and I get so intimidated by the Bible that we never try to pick it up. And we think “Oh that’s only for special people, the King Arthurs of the world, pastors, theologians, and university professors. We believe the lie- it’s heavy, it’s ancient, you can’t lift it by yourself.
And Paul says no it’s a dagger at your waist that you have access to all times. In fact, you need to immerse yourself in it so you are versed in hand-to-hand combat.
I need a dagger of the Word of God when:
- When the depression hits me like a gut punch, I need the Word of God to remind my Spirit “He will never leave me or forsake me.” and “The joy of the Lord is my strength”
- When anxiety tries to choke the promises of God over my mind. I encourage my soul “God has not given you a spirit of fear but of love power and sound mind.
- When those other teams parents are talking crazy on the sideline, I need a dagger…of the Word of God.
2 Timothy 3:16-17 says this, All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
So here’s the question-
- Notice I didn’t ask you: “do you read your Bible?”
- Not asking you about your daily verse streaks on the YouVersion app
- Not do you have a little quiet time, and light a candle as you sip your matcha
These aren’t bad things to do by the way, and you might need to add those to a daily routine, but they are practices that are just the beginning and do not fully train us for the spiritual battle ahead.
I’m asking you, in this spiritual war where your enemy does not take breaks….
How are you training in Scripture?
Not so I can add a cute verse to my bio but my lifestyle has no fruit of the Word of God.
Do you treat it as utterly essential to your life, like the air you breathe and the water you drink?
Jesus himself in His manifest moment of Spiritual warfare with Satan in the wilderness is so full of God’s Word, that it is the dagger that consistently leaves His lips.
When tempted to eat during his fast, he boldly states, “Man does not live on bread alone by every word that comes from the mouth of God.”
A dagger 18-24 inches. Look what Hebrews 4:12-13 says:
12 For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. 13 Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.
That is a verse I committed to memory years back because I needed reminding:
The Bible is the only book you read, that will read you.
And guess what, nerdy nugget, that word used there for sword in Hebrews it’s (machaira), the same word used in Ephesians 6.
Showing me that the Sword of the Spirit is not just for fighting against attacks.
But it is precise enough and agile enough to be a scalpel to my heart.
- When I didn’t feel like wearing my breastplate of righteousness and sin has now infected my heart I need the dagger of the word of God to cut out the addiction, the jealousy, the anger.
- When I put on a teflon vest of SELF-RIGHTEOUSNESS. I need the Word of God to humble me and perform a heart transplant. Giving Him my religion and cultural Christianity, and getting a heart of humility and sacrifice.
- When my heart is hardened from life’s blows, I need this dagger to break up the brick.
You see, the Gospel shows me that sometimes the enemy is the person in the mirror that is sin-sick and hopelessly lost without a Savior by the name of Jesus. And I allow His finished work on the Cross and the power of His resurrection to heal me.
The greatest act of spiritual warfare is a human heart submitted to the lordship of Jesus.
It is not simply memorizing a bunch of verses although that aids in training.
It’s not simply hearing your favorite preacher 3x a week on YouTube, although that can certainly build you up. It is not a bunch of head knowledge.
Because I can know a lot about God. I can give you a lot of facts. But that doesn’t mean my heart is being transformed. It’s the dagger (machaira) of the word of God 18 inches that can do surgery when I need it.
And isn’t it interesting that the distance from the human brain to the human heart is about 18 inches. It is when this book stops becoming a chore list and starts becoming the living water that you and I drink. The food that we consume. The manual for training our lives.
It’s Peter hearing a stinging word from Jesus and saying “where else are we going to go? You alone have the WORDS of eternal life.”
Why?
Because a theology, or a belief system, that is unlivable is unhelpful. It’s useless.
I’ll never forget when the Holy Spirit rocked me with this.
When Emma and I were having the hardest time in our marriage years ago. And I am not a quitter, but quite frankly I wanted to give up. I was tired. I was exhausted. My helmet was off. My shield was down. Flaming arrows had shot through me. Tired of fighting. And I wanted to turn my armor in. Like, don’t yall got some sweat suits back there? I’m tired boss. I have to imagine some of you are there now. It was such a hard season. A refining season for the both of us.
I’ll never forget the Holy Spirit said, “Ricky, what is the use of the Gospel you preach on STAGE, if you don’t believe in my healing power in your HOME?”
I was in my kitchen and I just wept. In conviction. In frustration. But ultimately in surrender. We had to lay our physical weapons down towards each other and pick up the sword that made way for a heart change.
How is the Word of God not just informing you, but transforming you? Training you?
The Power of Prayer
Lastly, we end with prayer. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people
We’ve said that the only offensive weapon is the sword (the Word) of God. But that’s not all the way accurate. Paul here mentions prayer to bookend this armor. And he doesn’t give a metaphorical object and I think that’s on purpose.
- Prayer is the power behind the armor.
- Prayer gives me the ability to buckle the belt of truth.
- Prayer gives me the humility to put on the breastplate of righteousness.
It is through prayer and in prayer that God shows me where, who, and how to take the gospel of peace.
To lift my shield of faith. It is in prayer that my mind is renewed with the helmet of salvation.
It is in prayer, constant dialogue with God, that His word convicts, trains, rebukes, and helps me do battle against the evil one
You can’t have victory if you don’t pray.
PRAYER IS DEVOTION
Prayer is the key that unlocks the resources of Heaven on Earth- here and now. That’s why Jesus taught his disciples to pray, “Your kingdom come, your will be done, on Earth as it is in heaven.”
Prayer puts courage in your back-bone when all of hell comes after you.
Because you can put on your armor everyday. But if you NEVER pray, you are just another scared soldier. You’re wearing the uniform but with no POWER. Without prayer you are a Christian soldier just reporting for duty. You got the label of Chrisitian, but no power. No juice
Prayer changes you from a major worrier, to a mighty warrior. It does something to my Spirit-man, to your Spirit-woman.
Listen to me, prayer is not PASSIVE. It echoes in heaven and shakes things in the unseen realm. Prayer rattles the forces, powers, rulers, and cosmic forces of darkness.
In the legendary book “Power through Prayer” the great E.M Bounds said,
“Prayer breaks all bars, dissolves all chains, opens all prisons, and widens all straits by which God’s saints have been held.”
-E.M. Bounds in Power Through Prayer
We are urged to pray in the Spirit, showing me I pray according to God’s agenda, not simply the bulleted list i bring Him.
He says in Ephesians 6:18, Pray:
- All times – continual conversation with God
- All kinds of prayers – lament, praise, intercession, confession, and consecration. Why because all prayer, put’s God on the throne. And not myself
- All perseverance – don’t give up
- All the saints (God’s people)- showing us prayer isn’t just self-defense, it’s intercession for the body of Christ. And ding, ding, ding, it is a reminder that our battle is not against flesh and blood. And other people, especially believers are not your enemy
All of hell fears a disciple of Jesus with a powerful prayer life.
James 5:16- …The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.
“Prayer is asking God to incarnate, to get dirty in your life. Yes, the eternal God scrubs floors. For sure we know he washes feet. So take Jesus at his word. Ask him. Tell him what you want. Get dirty. Write out your prayer requests; don’t mindlessly drift through life on the American narcotic of busyness. If you try to seize the day, the day will eventually break you. Seize the corner of his garment and don’t let go until he blesses you. He will reshape the day.”
-Paul E. Miller, “A Praying Life”
Prayer is the power you need to pull down the strongholds of the enemy. The places where the enemy attacks you and your family- addiction, generational poverty, suicide. Strongholds are those areas where it feels like there’s a specific plan of attack for that region.
I got Bible to stand on watch this:
Daniel in the book of Daniel, chapter 10. Daniel is exiled in a foreign land along with the rest of Israel. He’s praying and interceding for God’s people. He’s fasting, confessing, and asking God to answer and bring hope. He’s shaken by a dream he has had of the future that he can’t shake and after 21 days of fasting an angel appears to him. Look at what it says,
Daniel 10:12-13
“Do not be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to them. But the prince of the Persian kingdom resisted me twenty-one days. Then Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, because I was detained there with the king of Persia.
Two things really quickly that we have mentioned:
1) This resistance that happens is the very thing Paul is talking about in Ephesians when he says the rulers, powers, and forces of this present darkness in the heavens.
Your Bible is littered with this understanding of cosmic geography, the rogue spiritual beings that defied God. And became the false gods of the nations and peoples of the world, animating evil, accepting human worship, leading mankind astray. Puppeteering governments, peoples, institutions, and individuals to delay God’s rule and reign
Not a make-believe enemy, a very real force that you can’t see but is there
2) The moment you pray according to the will of God, heaven is dispatched on your behalf.
That should fire you up! That I may not be much. I may just be a foot soldier, I may be a sergeant, but when I pick the radio I have direct access to the commander in chief! And he sends warring angels on my behalf. He’s working even when I don’t see Him. even when I don’t feel him.
Because greater is He that is in me than he that is in the world! – 1 John 4:4
That is the God we serve friends! The God who delights when his children turn to Him in prayer. Because there’s a side of Him that we can only understand through persistent prayer.
For those of us who are exploring faith, just know, we believe in a knowable God, one who expects us to be in relationship with him. He’s not distant, he’s not some ethereal being in another place, He is God with us, and he’s with you!
But I want to remind you we don’t use any of this armor to try and manufacture a win. We don’t have to fight FOR the victory, we fight FROM the victory.
The Gospel:
And the victory was won 2000 years ago on the Cross on the hill of Golgotha. When God bankrupted heaven, put all his chips on the table for a chance at relationship with you and I, to save us from the consequences of sin.
See we were made for Eden, a perfect harmony with God but sin entered the world through a man, and infected us all. It’s not just something that has been passed down, but it is something we choose. Deliberately choosing to go our own way and be the king of our own lives. Our sins separate us from a holy God. Romans 6:23 says, For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Thanks be to God, that he did not leave us in that state but sent Jesus. To live a perfect life, the life we could not. To die the death we deserved. But it did not end there. He was raised to life in power 3 days later. Hell thought it won, but Colossians 2:15 says [don’t put on screen] disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross. The enemy thought he won but Jesus’ death and resurrection rescued us back from the grips of death and hell.
And it gets better. He ascended to the right hand of the father giving us His Spirit to transform us and give us the power we need to liberate others. We become messengers of hope, bringers of beauty, distributors of justice!
And it gets better, he is coming back again to right every wrong. Heal every hurt. And but the exclamation point on the sentence that was already written long ago!
And that resurrection life is available to you. Are you in this place and you’ve never said yes to Jesus. The Bible says today is the day of salvation. Don’t wait. Right now there are those who the Spirit and the dagger of the Word is piercing your heart. Run to the father. Maybe you’ve been far from him. Al it takes is believing loyalty in the Son of God. If that’s you would you raise your hand?
For the rest of you, if you are a follower of Jesus in this place, or at Buda, or at South, or listening later. Maybe it feels like you have been pummeled spiritually lately. You’re not how much more you can stand. Hear the word of the Lord- STAND!
- Wield His Word as a sword to combat the enemy.
- Begin to tap into the power of prayer.
And right now we are going to do that together. Because something happens when we pray and as we worship as soldiers linked arm in arm. All of heaven is loosed and all of hell quakes when we align our collective hearts and wills to the heart of God.
I believe right now lives are being transformed, marriages being restored, addictions being thrown off, chains breaking. So friend put on the armor of God. Trust in His promises knowing He already won. So when we sing these words, it’s not wishful thinking it is powerful declaration of what He’s going to do according to His promises.
