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As mentioned previously, you were born into a spiritual war whether you realize it or not. You must have a spiritual armor to work effectively here and you must master your thoughts, actions, word, etc. … to effectively work for God’s Kingdom. You must be born again and put on your armor.

At the end of this article, I propose a prayer to help visualize the various pieces of this armor as you put it on every day before you leave your house. Feel free to modify it as you see fit and in line with your particular circumstances.

Psalm 144:1-2
“Praise be to the Lord my Rock, who trains my hands for war, my fingers for battle. 2 He is my loving God and my fortress, my stronghold and my deliverer, my shield, in whom I take refuge, who subdues peoples under me.”

We know we have to put on an armor to protect our soul in this world but what is it, how do we put it on and how does it work?

Ephesians 6: 10-18 – The Armor of God
“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 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. 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. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.”

Starting from the feet up, we must put on the boots of peace, the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the helmet of salvation, the sword of the spirit and the shield of faith. We are also exhorted to pray in the Spirit at all times.

Boots of Peace
What are the boots of peace? We know that Jesus asks us to walk in peace and not to create undue conflict but He also asks us to speak the truth, shed light on evil and to separate from the wicked. Here are some scriptures that we can think about to help us reconcile all of this:

Romans 12:17-19: “Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.”

Matthew 10:14: “If anyone does not welcome you or listen to your words, shake the dust off your feet when you leave that house or town.”

Matthew 10:34-36: “Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to turn a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law— a man’s enemies will be the members of his own household.”
Note: This Scripture is meant to warn you that difficult choices will be required in order that you may be made ready to follow Him when the wheat is separated from the chaff. If you are truly walking on the path leading out of the world, you will be called to choose God and His Son above anything and anyone else, anyone who is not walking on the same path. Failing this makes you vulnerable to fall as the Kingdom of darkness can use those attachments against you to manipulate you, leading ultimately to your fall.

2 Corinthians 6:14: “Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?”

Ephesians 5:8-1:2 “For at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret.”

John 16:33 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

God is not a God of confusion; therefore, all Scriptures work together for good. We must reconcile all of these to properly understand what God asks us to do. With the above scriptures in mind, we can see what is meant.

Basically, we are called to be peaceful as much as possible, so far as it depends on us to do so which means you cannot have peace with someone who is pursuing you and is intent on seeing you fall. For example, seeking to find a peaceful relationship with Satan the Adversary and any of his workers of iniquity would be a fruitless venture as they do not choose to have such a relationship with you, they are intent on seeing you fall. You must walk in peace but you must also learn to wipe the dust off your feet and walk away in love, praying for the soul of whoever is seeking conflict with you whether overtly, deceitfully or even unconsciously after having attempted to help those in the latter category. You cannot build any relationship with those in the Kingdom of darkness who do not want to leave it because there is nothing in common between the goals of light and those of darkness.

Most importantly, Jesus wanted His disciples, those who would ultimately be putting on the spiritual armor, to walk in the peace He left for them, stating that while they should expect to be persecuted in the world for His name’s sake, to “…take heart! I have overcome the world.” This is the peace He leaves us, the encouragement to keep walking without fear and worry with the assurance and readiness to serve God because He overcame the world and assures us that in Him, we can do the same.

John 14:12-14
“Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.”

Belt of truth
While we are exhorted not to share pearls of spiritual wisdom with our enemies, as lambs of God we naturally want to help and often have difficulty discerning when to share with others and who to share with. We must, as branches on the Vine that is Jesus Christ, abide in Him who is the Truth and the Word of God, strive to remain truthful and live according to Truth itself and we must above all remain true to who we are in Christ, servants and soldiers in training for the Kingdom of God but we must also develop discernment with the Sword of the Spirit, the Word of God. Let’s look at a few scriptures to assist:

Ephesians 4:25 “Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another.”

Matthew 7:6 “Don’t waste what is holy on people who are unholy. Don’t throw your pearls to pigs! They will trample the pearls, then turn and attack you.”
Note: That’s correct. Workers of iniquity will take it all in then swiftly turn around, turn everything upside down, twist the meaning to say the opposite with a view to mock God’s Word. Don’t waste your time.

John 8:32 “And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
Note: When you are born again you see the world system for what it is and you begin to see the tethers it has on your soul. This in turn allows you to begin to be set free from these tethers by the Holy Spirit.

John 16:13 “But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.”
Note: The Holy Spirit is your consoler and your teacher in this world. Jesus sent Him to us when He left and since the Holy Spirit and Christ abide in God as one, Jesus is indeed with us “always, even unto the end of the world”.

John 1:14 “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.”

John 14:6 “Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”

John 15:4-8 “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned. If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.”

Breastplate of righteousness
The breastplate of righteousness is the core piece of your armor. It represents your transformation into a new being in Christ once you have acknowledged your, sin, have repented and have accepted Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross to cover and pay for your sins. From the moment you ask God in Jesus’ name to be transformed, you are plucked out of the world system and from under the Law of Death for Sin and are taken into the care of God where you are under the Law of Life through the Holy Spirit. You continue to walk in the world for God to do His work as a faithful and loyal servant and soldier, but you are no longer of the world.

This is also a sign of your allegiance to the Kingdom of God and a symbol that you have become an heir of that Kingdom. Being a branch now grafted onto the Vine that is the Christ, the Tree of Life and having the Holy Spirit flowing through you, you are able to produce truly good fruits in God’s eyes.

John 15:1-5
“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.”

Hebrews 1:2-3
“But in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high”

John 17:9-16
“I pray for them. I am not praying for the world, but for those you have given me, for they are yours. All I have is yours, and all you have is mine. And glory has come to me through them. I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name, the name you gave me, so that they may be one as we are one. While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe by that name you gave me.
[…]
I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it.”

Helmet of salvation
Putting on the helmet of salvation is required to ensure your thoughts are inspired by the Holy Spirit so that you stay on track and are able to make decisions aligned with God’s will for your life. As discussed previously in the blog What is the Soul? the world system offers you a stage where you are constantly being tugged between darkness and lesser darkness but where you are never presented with the light of truth and life. You must seek and ask for the latter to have access to it. For this reason, you need to protect your mind as this spiritual battle is being fought through your mind before you feel the attacks in your life.

As discussed in the blog What is Sin? you must develop discernment in order not to get swayed off the straight and narrow path and you must master your thoughts to become an effective soldier for the Kingdom of truth and life in order that you do not unknowingly help the Kingdom of Darkness through wrong thinking generating negative energy which feeds that kingdom.

2 Corinthians 10:5
“We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”

Sword of the Spirit
The sword of the Spirit is the Word of God which cuts through all deception. In order to develop discernment, you need to read the Word of God. It will feed your soul and you will start to hear God’s voice and know His mind through the text. In order to test the spirits to remove the masks and identify those who mean you harm, you must confirm if they recognize Christ’s authority. No matter what people say or think on this point, you must live this path and go through hardship putting God’s Word into practice to witness that 1 John 4:1-3 is absolutely true.

Your enemies, the workers of iniquity, will never acknowledge the authority of Jesus Christ. Further, when Satan attacks you, you will need the word of God to defend yourself as discussed in the blog Jesus Reversed the Fall? – of course you can and should also call on God in the name of Jesus for help.

1 John 4:1-3
“Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already.”

Hebrews 4:12
“For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.”

Shield of faith
The shield is your protection through faith in God and Jesus Christ and in your unwavering conviction that, as a servant and soldier for the Kingdom of God, you are never alone and are fully protected by the Kingdom. Since you have been plucked out of the world by God through Jesus’ sacrifice and are no longer under the Law of death for sin, you are covered by the blood of Christ, you are protected by the Holy Spirit and the whole Kingdom. As long as you follow the teachings of Jesus, the Word of God, you should never worry. If you do fail and sin, repent, ask God for forgiveness in the name of Jesus and get back up.

You will however be thrown into the fire not only for training purposes as you are a soldier in training but also to purify and refine your soul to remove its tethers to the world. Workers of iniquity will attack you in many ways and you should use this shield to render null and without effect all curses thrown against you and remove all obstacles put on your God-ordained path. Call upon God in Jesus’ name to open a door for you when walls are erected all around you. The more you walk the straight path, the more you will need to use this shield as attacks will become more frequent. Do not view this as something negative because it is not, quite the contrary.

2 Timothy 3:16-17
All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.

Proverbs 3: 11-12
“My son, do not reject the discipline of the LORD, and do not loathe His rebuke; for the LORD disciplines the one He loves, as does a father the son in whom he delights.”

Romans 13:12
“The night is far gone; the day is at hand. So then let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light.”

SAMPLE PRAYER TO PUT ON THE ARMOR

Every morning before you go anywhere or do anything, put on the armor and visualize each piece as you put it on:

“I put on the boots of peace, the peace Jesus Christ left me because He overcame the world and told me I could do it as well. With these boots I will sow peace wherever possible and walk in the footsteps Christ left for me to follow as He left me the peace I need to keep moving forward with courage and without fear and the knowledge that, as He overcame the world, so can I.

I put on the belt of truth to always stay in the truth that are Jesus Christ and His teachings as He is the Word of God. I am in Him and He is in Me through the Holy Spirit. Let me abide in the truth as He is the Truth, the Way and the Life.

I put on the breastplate of righteousness because by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross, by His blood shed for my sins, I have been justified, purified of all sins. I have been plucked out of the world and I am no longer under the Law of death for sin but rather, I am under the Law of Life through the Holy Spirit and the Blood of Christ. I am in the world but I am no longer of the world. I walk in the world as a servant and soldier for God, for Jesus Christ and for the Kingdom of light, truth and life.

I put on the helmet of salvation that all of my thoughts may be directed by the Holy Spirit. May the Holy Spirit through this helmet prevent me from looking to the right or to the left, that I may stay on the straight path leading to the narrow gate. May the Holy Spirit fill my soul, (that my lamp be filled with sacred oil, my cup filled with the living water), in order to build a strong temple for God with my body and become an effective servant of God, Jesus Christ and the Kingdom.

I take the sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God to defend myself. By the power of the Holy Spirit, let the Word of God be a living word in me, animating my soul and my mind. Let the Word of God be imprinted on my soul, my heart and my mind.

I take the shield of faith to fend off and extinguish all the fiery arrows of the enemy. By the power of the Holy Spirit and in the name of Jesus Christ, may all obstacles put on my path by the Enemy, his workers of iniquity practicing magic, and any other evil force lurking around me be removed. By my faith expressed in this shield, I ask that all obstacles, curses thrown against me, my life mission, my health, my family, etc. … be rendered null and without effect.

God, in the name of Jesus Christ and by the power of Your Holy Spirit I ask that you bind and rebuke all demons and individuals practicing the occult who are attacking me. Remove all obstacles from my path and open a door that I may do Your will and not my own. Show me the way to accomplish Your will and become an effective servant and soldier for Your kingdom.

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