What Does It Mean to Pray in the Spirit?

THE ARMOR OF GOD (PART 15), by Pastor Atukwatse Onesmus

“You cannot stand before your enemies until you have removed the things under the ban from your midst.” Joshua 7:13

Now that you have the full armor of God in place, you’re ready to pray!

Since prayer is warfare, it should not surprise us that the admonition to put on all of God’s armor (Ephesians 6:10-17) precedes this exhortation to pray in verse 18:

“And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.”

Now I know that some dear brothers and sisters in the Lord will disagree with me on this one, and the following words are my opinions only (Rich Miller), but I don’t happen to think that the apostle Paul is talking primarily about praying in tongues here.

He is speaking about praying “all kinds of prayers and requests”, not just one kind of prayer (tongues). However, based on Paul’s extensive teaching on speaking and praying with the Spirit (tongues) in 1 Corinthians 14, I do not think he is excluding praying in tongues either.

Now I know some people will really disagree with me on that one! And that’s okay. Never let it be said that we are afraid to face tough issues head on in these devotionals!

So what does it mean to pray in the Spirit?

In essence, it is praying with the Holy Spirit guiding and empowering your prayer life. It is allowing Him to prompt you in whether to pray for a request at all. And if so, it is permitting Him to show you how to pray for a person or a situation, rather than assuming you know already.

How many times do we get a prayer request from another person via the phone or email or mail? Constantly! We are inundated with prayer requests these days (and unfortunately, those who are often so eager to request prayer are not always quite so quick to tell us how God answered our prayers!).

The Holy Spirit will first of all show you which requests to pray for and which to leave for another prayer warrior. One person simply cannot pray for every request that comes their way!

Secondly, the Spirit will show you whether you are to respond to this request with “asking”, “seeking” or “knocking” prayer.

“Asking” prayer is a one-shot lifting up of that request to God and thanking Him that it is in His hands. Then you move on to the next thing He calls you to do.

I often do this with people who call on the phone for prayer. I pray right there with them over the phone and they are encouraged. Usually I do not sense an assignment from the Lord to continue in prayer for that request, unless it happens to be from a close friend or relative.

“Seeking” prayer involves a lot of question-asking of God, seeking His face and searching the word of God in order to understand exactly how to pray for a situation.

For example, a request may come in to pray for a rebellious teen. As you seek God’s face, He might move your focus to pray for specific issues in the parents’ lives instead. This type of praying requires waiting on the Lord, rather than knee-jerk praying for what may only be surface symptoms.

“Knocking” prayer is the hardest. It is the bulldog determined prayer that involves the breaking down of strongholds so that the truth of the gospel can go forth.

When God gives an assignment to keep on knocking, it is with the understanding that you continue on until the answer comes, even if it takes years of prayer.

But all true prayer is initiated by the Spirit of God, led and guided by Him, and empowered by Him in accordance with His word. Whether your praying takes ten minutes or ten years, He will be there every minute to lead you.

Praying in the Spirit will never contradict the word of God, for the Spirit is the One who inspired the writers of Scripture in the first place.

So, brothers and sisters, let the Holy Spirit fill you as you put on the full armor of God.

And pray in the Spirit on all occasions… and watch what God does!

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Sharpen That Sword!!

THE ARMOR OF GOD (PART 14), by Pastor Atukwatse Onesmus

“You cannot stand before your enemies until you have removed the things under the ban from your midst.” Joshua 7:13

What good is a soldier without a weapon?

A soldier’s purpose is to engage the enemy and defeat him in battle, not just survive. So many Christians seem to be just hanging on against the enemy, with their noses barely above water. Have we forgotten the terrible power of “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God”?

Jesus, as a little boy and young man was thoroughly grounded in the Old Testament Scriptures. Even at age 12 he amazed the religious leaders with His profound insights into the word of God.  Jesus’ childhood training in the Scriptures, coupled with the mighty power of the Holy Spirit in His life, would serve invaluable later on.

Shortly after Jesus’ baptism by John, He was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to do battle with the devil. After fasting for 40 days and nights He became hungry and it was at the time that the tempter tried to hit Jesus with his best shots.

Three times the gospels record the devil’s temptations. Three times Jesus countered with the spoken word of God. “It is written…” “It is written…” “It is written…” The devil fled until a more opportune time. He had no choice.  He was soundly defeated and knew there was no way he could defeat the Lord Jesus one on one.

Three times Jesus quoted from the book of Deuteronomy in resisting the devil.  His answers were immediate.  He employed no stall tactics in order to buy time.  He did not request permission to go back into town and find some scrolls to look up a Bible verse or two. He did not “umm and ahh”, saying something like, “I know that there’s a Scripture that talks about that, but I just can’t seem to put my finger on it…”

Unfortunately, in my observation, far too many believers in Christ are biblical illiterates or at best swinging a rather dull sword. Is it any wonder that the devil runs rampant over our lives?

My encouragement to you, brother or sister in the Lord, is to get serious about knowing the word of God so that you can take up the sword of the Spirit! What power is there! Look at Hebrews 4:12:

“For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.”

In places like Psalm 1 and Psalm 119 we are exhorted over and over again to hunger for, meditate on and grow in wisdom from the word of God.  2 Timothy 2:15 says:

“Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, handling accurately the word of truth.”

Touching stories are nice. Clever arguments have their place. Jokes can be effective tools. But there is only one sword. And when it comes to spiritual warfare, all the human reasoning, eloquence and arguing will prove vain. But if you submit to God and resist the devil with the word of God, he will flee from you.

Do you remember the first piece of armor? The belt of truth – knowing the truth.  God’s word is truth. And you can know this for sure – without the belt, the sword will fall down. You have to know the truth in order to be able to speak the truth.

Don’t be deceived into thinking that God will somehow miraculously zap your mind with Scripture you do not know when you are fighting against the devil. But He will bring to your mind Scripture that you have learned in your hour of need.

Do you want to defeat the enemy in spiritual battle?  The learn the word of God and use it as the sword it is!  John’s first letter says just that:

“I have written to you young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one.” (1 John 2:14b)

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That Head-Gear Looks Good on You!

THE ARMOR OF GOD (PART 13), by Pastor Atukwatse Onesmus

“You cannot stand before your enemies until you have removed the things under the ban from your midst.” Joshua 7:13

“Have I committed the unpardonable sin?”

That was the question foremost on the mind of the frightened man as he walked into my office. And today, that may be the question foremost on your mind, or on the mind of someone you know and love.

Last week we discussed what it meant to put on “the helmet of salvation.”

For those who are battling with the fear that they have somehow blasphemed the Holy Spirit, there is no way they can keep that critical piece of armor in place until they have resolved this issue. Perhaps this short devotional will help you reach that resolution.

Let’s begin by looking at Mark 3:22-30, a key passage on this topic:

And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem were saying, “He is possessed by Beelzebul,” and “He casts out demons by the ruler of the demons.”

And He called them to Himself and began speaking to them in parables, “How can Satan cast out Satan? And if a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand.  And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but he is finished!

But no one can enter the strong man’s house and plunder his property unless he first binds the strong man, and then he will plunder his house. Truly I say to you, all sins shall be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they utter; but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin” – because they were saying, “He has an unclean spirit.”

Most certainly Jesus was speaking to people whose hearts were hardened to the nth degree. There standing in front of them was the Messiah, Jesus, the Son of God and God the Son, and they attributed his ministry of delivering people from demonic bondage to the devil himself!

These were the same scribes who so hated Jesus that they orchestrated His betrayal, arrest, mock trial, scourging, beating and hateful crucifixion. They detested Jesus and cursed him, spat upon him and sneered at him on the cross. They had never been open to the work of the Spirit of God and never would be.

Now, as you look at your life – is that really you?

I doubt it very much. Somehow I can’t imagine those who hate Jesus taking the time to visit a Freedom in Christ web site, let alone even give a hoot about whether they committed the unpardonable sin or not!

THE DEVIL IS AN ACCUSER.

He is like a prosecuting attorney, viciously and brutally seeking to discredit and discourage a witness on the stand.

Perhaps at one time in your life you were skeptical about whether such and such a miracle or manifestation of the Spirit was really from God. But it turned out it was from God. And so, the devil, cruel opportunist that he is, roared in and pointed his gnarled finger at your heart saying, “Aha! You see! You’ve done it now! There’s no hope for you. You’ve blasphemed the Holy Spirit!”

Been there, felt that? Are there, feeling that? I have, and it can be sheer torment, thinking that you have lost all hope.

Dear brother or sister in Christ, “there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1). That accusing, condemning voice is not the Lord.  It is one of the devil’s emissaries masquerading as the voice of God.

Here’s what you do:

• For every wrong attitude, word or deed that you have committed, go to God in confession, claiming 1 John 1:9 that you are forgiven.
• Then renounce each lying accusation, declaring that you are a child of God and not guilty of the unpardonable sin.
• Then command the enemy to leave your presence in no uncertain terms.

If he tries to gain entry again by popping a thought in your mind, speak a Scripture out loud that refutes his lie and start worshipping the Lord or praying for others. After a while, the enemy will get the idea that you’re on to his game and he’s been check-mated.

Above all, don’t be discouraged with the battle, especially if you have allowed the accusing, obsessive thoughts to find a home in your mind for a while. As long as you persevere and don’t give up and don’t give in, you will prevail!

So, my friend, put on the helmet of salvation! It looks great on you!!

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Can You Be Sure You Will Go to Heaven?

THE ARMOR OF GOD (PART 12), by Pastor Atukwatse Onesmus

“You cannot stand before your enemies until you have removed the things under the ban from your midst.” Joshua 7:13

Do you know for sure today that you are a forgiven, child of God?  Can you say with 100% certainty that if you were to die today, you would go to be with Jesus in heaven?

If you can’t, then the fifth piece of the armor of God is for you!

The apostle Paul urged us to “take the helmet of salvation” in Ephesians 6:17.  What did he mean by that?

In 1 Thessalonians 5:8,9 he wrote:

“But since we are of the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet, the hope of salvation. For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

The “hope of salvation” doesn’t translate into this: “Well, I sure hope I’m saved, but I guess I won’t know until I get there.”

That is so anti-biblical, it’s not funny. God doesn’t want us to piddle around here on earth, hoping that when we die we’ll make it. The biblical concept of hope is not wishful thinking!

It is assurance of something that we cannot see, but which we know will happen!

That word “know” is key when it comes to our salvation!

Read carefully the inspired word of the apostle John:

“And the witness is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life. These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, in order that you may know that you have eternal life.” (1 John 5:11-13)

Did you catch it?

God has given us eternal life.  Past tense!  A done deal! Something already accomplished.  He has given eternal life to us because He has given us Jesus, His Son.

The question is not, “Has God given?”

The question is, “Have you received what God has given?”

Have you received Jesus Christ? Do you “have” Him?

If you do, you have eternal life already.  If you don’t have Jesus, then you don’t have eternal life… yet.  But as long as you have physical life, you still have the opportunity for eternal life!

The Bible exhorts us that if you hear God’s voice today, don’t harden your heart!  If God is calling you to be saved today, don’t put it off!

There are no guarantees that He will call tomorrow and even if He does, your heart tomorrow will be harder than it is today – if you reject His invitation!

Indeed, as Paul wrote elsewhere:

“Behold, now is ‘the acceptable time,’ behold now is ‘the day of salvation.'” (2 Corinthians 6:2)

Why not open your heart to the Lord Jesus today and receive the free gift of eternal life? If that is the desire of your heart, we encourage you to pray with us:

Dear Lord Jesus, I need You. I have sinned against You and deserve spiritual death.

Instead, Lord, today I choose eternal life. I turn away from my life of sinful self-centeredness and dependence on myself, and I choose to receive You as my Savior to forgive me and my Lord to direct my life.

I thank You, Lord Jesus, for paying for all my sins through Your death and shed blood on the cross. I believe that You rose from the dead and conquered death.

Now I enter into a new relationship with You and receive the free gift of eternal life in Jesus. Thank You, Lord, for saving me today. Amen.

My friend, if you sincerely prayed that prayer today (or if you have done it in the past), the Holy Spirit will bear witness with your spirit that you are God’s child.

And if you are truly a child of God, then put on the helmet of the hope of salvation and praise God today! You have eternal life!

“There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1).

Now that’s good news!

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When Fiery Arrows Come!

THE ARMOR OF GOD (PART 11), by Pastor Atukwatse Onesmus

“You cannot stand before your enemies until you have removed the things under the ban from your midst.” Joshua 7:13

Do you ever feel like you are target practice for the devil? Be encouraged today, my friend, because God has given you an invincible defense!

The apostle Paul describes the fourth piece of armor this way:

“…in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming missiles of the evil one.”  (Ephesians 6:16)

All of us go through trials. They come in all shapes and sizes. Some are mild, others are intense. Some are short-lived, others are chronic. But all of them add stress to our lives.

All of them have the capacity to make us better or bitter. We can either grow through them or growl at them. The choice is ours.

Scripture is clear how we are to handle trials and tribulations. Here is a sampling of what the word of God has to say on the matter:

“Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.” (James 1:2-4)

“These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.”  (John 16:33)

“For whatever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that has overcome the world – our faith. And who is the one who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?  (1 John 5:4,5)

God is sovereign. He will not allow anything in your life or mine beyond what we can handle in Him (see 1 Corinthians 10:13).  What He allows in our lives is meant to strengthen our faith and make us more like Jesus (Romans 8:28,29).

The devil, however, lurks in the shadows of every trial and hisses his lies, “You can’t trust God!” … “If God really loved you, He wouldn’t make you go through this”… “This suffering will never end. It’s hopeless”… “You’re feeling miserable, why don’t you numb the pain with alcohol, drugs, porn (or whatever)…” And so on.

How can you stand firm in the midst of the flaming fury of the devil’s incoming missiles?

Lift up the shield of faith!

Through your pain or tears or frustration, give thanks to God (see 1 Thessalonians 5:18), for thanksgiving demonstrates faith.

Say to God,

“Lord, I’m hurting here, but I thank You that You are in control,
that You love me and that You will never leave me nor forsake me.
Though I cannot see or feel You right now, I cling to You,
and I know Your right hand will uphold me (Psalm 63:8).
I trust that this trial will, in the end, make me more like Jesus.
And for that, I say, thank You.

Brother or sister in Christ, know today that no matter what evil may befall you, the shield of faith will snuff out every vicious, cruel attack of the enemy, and will enable you to stand firm through the painful trial.

The Bible promises that!

Count on it today!

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Secure Your Belt, Breastplate and Sandals!

THE ARMOR OF GOD (PART 10), by Pastor Atukwatse Onesmus

“You cannot stand before your enemies until you have removed the things under the ban from your midst.” Joshua 7:13

It is never safe to take off the belt of truth, breastplate of righteousness and sandals of peace! Even the weary Roman soldier grabbing a few moments of rest from the battle would keep these three pieces of armor firmly in place. And so must we, as children/soldiers of God.

• Philippians 4:8 exhorts us to let our minds dwell on what is true.
• Romans 13:14 urges us to put on the Lord Jesus Christ (who is our righteousness) and to make NO provision for the flesh in regard to its lusts.
• Philippians 4:6,7 commands us to be anxious for nothing but in everything with thankful prayer, let our requests be made known to God. When we do that we will be soothed by the ever-present peace of the Prince of Peace.

Before we learn to take up the other three pieces of the armor of God, we must make sure the first three are secure. There is no safe way to bypass these things.  Scripture is true and cannot be short-cutted and will not be short-circuited.

• My brother or sister in Christ, will you let the word of God examine your heart today?
• Are you strong in the Lord?
• Do you know who you are as a child of God, or are you performing to try and win the approval of God, others or self?
• Are you secure in the Father’s arms, or are you hoping to gain a sense of value through your job, your income, your house, your car, your family, your degrees or…?
• Do you know what it means to be strong in the strength of God’s might?
• Have you humbled yourself to acknowledge that apart from Christ you can do nothing, or are you smug and confident in your own experience, wisdom, intelligence or strength? Until you raise your empty hands to God and cry out to Him to fill you with the Spirit, you will be no match for the enemy of your soul!

Are you developing the habit of meditating on the word of God day and night?

Psalm 1 says then you will make your way prosperous and then you will have success. The truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth! That is what you must fix your mind upon. Away with the foolishness of TV shows, music, books, magazines, movies, videos, conversations, computer games, web sites, chat rooms, etc. that are filled with the lies and values of this world. Set a guard around your mind and be vigilant and diligent to allow no thought or attitude to take hold that would displease our Lord.

Are you filled with fear or anxiety?

Fear is the antithesis of faith and anxiety is the opposite of peace. Put on faith and love as a breastplate today, and affirm out loud if necessary that God has not given you a spirit of fear (timidity) but of power, love and a sound mind. Cast every anxiety upon the Lord, because He cares for you. Relax in His sheltering arms.  Let Him hold you.  Stop trying to control circumstances and people. You cannot and you must not. Pray instead, thanking God for His wisdom and His timing and His power. His peace will flood your soul today!

The one thing I am convinced of more and more is that a casual, lackadaisical, nonchalant approach to the Christian life will not cut it. This is warfare, my friend, and so I urge you, take up the full armor of God so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything to stand firm! God bless you as you do!

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Step Out!!

THE ARMOR OF GOD (PART 9), by Pastor Atukwatse Onesmus

“You cannot stand before your enemies until you have removed the things under the ban from your midst.” Joshua 7:13

Seeing souls saved and captives set free is the purpose of spiritual warfare!

In fact, any so-called “spiritual warfare” ministry that does not serve both of those purposes is missing the mark. The heartbeat of God is to seek and to save that which was lost and to purify His precious bride for the upcoming marriage supper of the Lamb!

And so, the good soldier of Christ Jesus must be ready to bring the good news of the gospel to a dying world and a needy church. The third piece of armor reminds us of this solemn responsibility in Ephesians 6:15:

“…and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace.”

This verse immediately brings to mind two other passages of Scripture that reinforce this clarion call to preach the gospel:

“How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who proclaims peace, who brings glad tidings of good things, who proclaims salvation, who says to Zion, ‘Your God reigns!’” Isaiah 52:7

“But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear.”  1 Peter 3:15

The gospel, Romans 1 says, is the power of God for salvation for everyone who believes! Therefore, we must always be ready – in season and out of season – to bring good news to all who will hear!

You ought to have with you at all times a personal testimony of what God has done in your life. And a few gospel tracts to give to people you are unable to talk with extensively is a must as well.

As you engage the enemy face to face, nose to nose in personal witness for Jesus, you must make sure you have the right “footwear” on! The Roman soldier’s sandal was well-cleated on the sole for maximum stability and mobility. And the straps of that sandal fit snugly around his lower leg, making it very difficult to turn an ankle or be knocked off balance.

Before you go out to preach the gospel to sinners and teach the gospel to saints, make sure you are protected by the peace of God!

Your heart and mind will be a target of the enemy’s attacks of fear and anxiety. He will try to knock you off balance and keep your focus inward rather than outward. Let Philippians 4:6-9 be your stability today, and remember, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.”

“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

”Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy – meditate on these things.

“The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you.”

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Protection for Your Heart!

THE ARMOR OF GOD (PART 8), by Pastor Atukwatse Onesmus

“You cannot stand before your enemies until you have removed the things under the ban from your midst.” Joshua 7:13

In our nation, the once clear waters of “right and wrong” have been muddied by moral relativism and the tolerance of evil. What shocked us twenty years ago is winked at today. For those of us with small children (or grandchildren), the prospects of what might be considered “normal” 10-15 years down the road is frightening.

Perhaps never before has there been in our nation’s history such a critical day for the church to stand for righteousness. Unfortunately many believers have laid down their armor to take a closer peek at what the world is up to. We have crept closer and closer and warmed ourselves at the fires of immorality and denied our Lord whose throne is established in righteousness and justice (Psalm 89:14, 97:2).

What is the cure for this deadly “heart disease” of the church? The apostle Paul, in Ephesians 6 provides the answer:

“…and having put on the breastplate of righteousness,…” Ephesians 6:14

Every Christian is called to be a soldier. And the good soldier, in active service, does not entangle himself in the affairs of everyday life (2 Timothy 2:4). He does not let down his guard, living with a peacetime mentality in the midst of war!
Ephesians 6:14 makes it clear that the soldier of God has already put on the breastplate of righteousness. Even when there seems to be a lull in the action and the warrior is catching his breath, this crucial piece of armor remains in place.

On a practical level, we make sure our “heart” is protected from attack by putting on the breastplate of righteousness in at least two ways:

1. We stand firm in our identity in Christ. 2 Corinthians 5:21 assures us that we are the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. This is a done deal, having been accomplished by Jesus at the cross and made true of us at our conversion. Our response is to receive this wonderful truth by faith and know today that “there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1). Truly you will never be more forgiven than you are now, if you belong to Jesus. Though your sins (and mine!) were as scarlet, they are as white as snow (Isaiah 1:18).  Praise the name of the Lord!
2. Because we are already righteous and holy, forgiven and cleansed saints, we need to make the choice TODAY to walk in holiness by the power of the Holy Spirit. 1 Thessalonians 5:8 puts it this way: “But since we are of the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love…” Walking by faith in God and living a life of love toward others is the guts of what righteous living is all about!

This day, God wants you to be able to counter all attacks of guilt, shame and temptation that the enemy of your soul throws at you. How do you do that?

Make the choice today to walk in the righteousness that is already yours in Christ!

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Buckle Up with Truth

THE ARMOR OF GOD (PART 7), by Pastor Atukwatse Onesmus

“You cannot stand before your enemies until you have removed the things under the ban from your midst.” Joshua 7:13

It is not by accident that the first piece of armor that the apostle Paul lists in Ephesians 6 is truth. The New American Standard Bible puts it this way:

“Stand firm, therefore, having girded your loins with truth…” (verse 14)

This Scripture is actually an Old Testament quote from Isaiah 11:5, a prophecy concerning the Messiah:

“Also righteousness will be the belt about His loins, and faithfulness the belt about His waist.”

It is very significant that we are commanded to gird ourselves with the same armor as the Lord Jesus, for when we put on the full armor of God, we are actually clothing ourselves with Christ Himself!  Consider a parallel passage, found at the end of Romans 13:

“Love does no wrong to a neighbor; love therefore is the fulfillment of the law. And this do, knowing the time, that it is already the hour for you to awaken from sleep; for now salvation is nearer to us than when we believed. The night is almost gone, and the day is at hand. Let us therefore lay aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us behave properly as in the day, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual promiscuity and sensuality, not in strife and jealousy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in regard to its lusts.”  (Romans 13:10-14)

When we “gird our loins with truth”, we are putting on the Lord Jesus, who is the truth. By choosing truth, we are choosing to repudiate the devil and all his works and ways, because the devil is a liar. When we choose to know, believe, speak and live out the truth, we take away the enemy’s greatest weapon, deception.

Truth is a part of our new identity in Christ, and therefore we should have nothing to do with falsehood in any of its forms. Earlier in the book of Ephesians, Paul wrote:

“But you did not learn Christ in this way [in sensuality, impurity and greed], if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught in Him, just as truth is in Jesus, that, in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit, and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth. Therefore, laying aside falsehood, speak truth, each one of you, with his neighbor, for we are members of one another.”
Ephesians 4:20-25

As one who has been inseparably joined to Jesus, the truth, will you choose to live in the truth today, laying aside all lying, deception, exaggeration, insincerity, flattery, gossip, slander, and truth-withholding?

It is only when we do so that we are ready to pray.

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United We Stand! Divided We Fall!!

THE ARMOR OF GOD (PART 6), by Pastor Atukwatse Onesmus

“You cannot stand before your enemies until you have removed the things under the ban from your midst.” Joshua 7:13

We live in a material world, but we are involved in a spiritual war.  We are up against dark forces that seek to manipulate people and circumstances for their own wicked purposes. Even though people may be the puppets through which the enemy operates, human beings are not the ones we are fighting against.  Jesus came to save people’s souls, not condemn them.  Ours is a ministry of reconciliation not condemnation.

If the devil can lure us into expending all our time, energy and money battling against people, we will have none of those resources left to fight him.  That is clearly one of the most effective tactics he uses against believers.

How many married couples, families, ministry teams, churches, parachurch organizations and mission agencies are dividing or divided?  Divorce, angry controlling parents or angry rebellious kids, church splits, quarreling, back-biting, doctrinal disputes, etc. are rampant in Christian homes and churches!

Is there any doubt as to why one of the most prevalent themes in Jesus’ high priestly prayer (John 17) is for unity in the body of Christ?  Unity in the body of Christ glorifies God, because God (in the Trinity) is unified. Unity in the body of Christ shows other people that Jesus is real, because people are not by nature unified! And unity in the body of Christ is necessary for maximum spiritual authority against the devil.

An important biblical principle to remember is that “spiritual authority broadens as unity in the body deepens.”

A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways and will receive nothing in response to his prayers (James 1:5-8), so the devil seeks to divide a human heart. A house divided against itself cannot stand (Matthew 12:25), so the devil seeks to break up marriages and families. The same goes for the “house” of a church, or Christian organization.

But if that Christian individual, couple, family, church or organization is living out their unity in Christ based on their common identity in Christ, then they can exercise strong spiritual authority in Christ! What might happen if all (or even most) of the true Christian churches in your town or city started living out their unity in Christ – praying together, loving each other, meeting each others’ needs, etc.?  We might just see a full scale revival break out!?

We have spent this time talking about unity in the body of Christ, because as we read Ephesians 6:10 ff. it is easy to think that Paul is writing to individuals.  He’s not! He’s writing to the church as a living, breathing body, designed for the individual parts to work together as a whole.

Now, obviously, if individuals do not put on the armor of God, neither can the whole.  But the flip side of that is true, too.  An individual cannot be fully clothed in the armor of God if he or she is not in dynamic, intimate relationship with a body of believers.

No Lone Rangers allowed here in the kingdom of God!

The question for this week is:

Are you connected to the body, learning to put on the full armor of God in relationship to other brothers and sisters in Christ?

If not, you’ve got chinks in your armor! Don’t wait another day!  Get connected to the body!

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