By Pastora Monique Lopez Ong
It has been more than a year since this pandemic began and the challenges that have come your way have not been easy. So it is very timely that the topics we have been speaking of pertain to the armor of God. Some people are growing weak and have to be reminded of the power God bestowed upon them. You have every weaponry that God has and you are standing because God is with you.
Ephesians 6:16 says “In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.” Why faith? Do you know that your faith is not based on your feelings? Hebrews 11:1 says, “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” When you say substance, it is tangible and you can hold it in your hands. It is not simply in your imagination. To believe that something is there because there is an evidence of it is faith. You have not seen God but you know He exists. That is faith. When you look at the heavens and even your entire body and you know there was a maker. And that requires faith.
That is why you need to bring the shield of faith. The reason why you do not understand faith sometimes is because it is based on God and the truth of His word. 2 Corinthians 5:7 says, “For we live by faith, not by sight.” Faith is about believing and trusting in God. It is not natural for man to exercise faith. Faith is found in God and in a relationship with Him. You have to have a relationship with Him to be able to trust Him. You have to be able to examine the evidence and see that God has proved Himself unchanging and consistent. Then you can firmly believe that He will fulfill all the promises He has spoken in His word.
How can you have faith? You have to get to know God. You cannot say you have faith and not open your Bible. You cannot say you have faith and not pray and talk to God every second of every day. Jesus is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. 1 Peter 1:8-9 says, “Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.” There is a spiritual battle going on right now. If you want to stand, you ned to go back to God.
It is not what you see. It is what you believe. And who you trust. Do you know how you got saved? Ephesians 2:8-9 says, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.” No work can ever get you to heaven. Your faith is a gift from God so that you can have eternal life in His Kingdom.
How can you have a relationship with Jesus Christ? Faith in Jesus plus nothing is equal to your salvation= EVERYTHING! When you have Jesus, you have everything. Very easy. What does everything mean? You are born again. When you have Jesus, you will have eternal life. You will get connected back to God through Jesus. You get to walk in victory with the Holy Spirit. You get to live heaven on earth. And that is everything. That is how powerful faith is.
When God asked you to pick up your shield of faith, that is your defense. It is to defend what you believe in. And what you believe in , you can fight for.
In life, the enemy will shoot fiery darts at you. Evil thoughts and lies that provoke your emotions, fear, worries, anxiety and anger. How many of you were not able to sleep soundly when this pandemic began? How many of you began to worry because you had no work? How many of you were scared because your neighbor was infected with the covid virus? How many of you fought in your houses because you were together for such a long time?
Why did you not put up and wear your armor? The enemy provokes you to think only of yourself. 2 Timothy 3:1-5 says, “But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people.” It is not about you. Everything is about God. Sometimes you are not aware of your actions anymore. The enemy is inflaming division, even in the church. The world needs Christians like you and me. But instead of looking for people to bring to the church, the people inside the church are those who are fighting amongst themselves. This is a waste of time. The Lord is calling you for a great harvest. You are supposed to participate but what you do is fight one another. Where is Jesus in all of this?
How can you wear the shield of faith? The shield is a big piece of armor. It is defensive, attached by a strap to the left arm of a soldier, made of bronze, and 3 feet in height. Its job i to protect the warrior from the enemy’s blows, deflects thrown spears and other missiles. And what does the shield do?
The shield of faith guards you. 1 Corinthians 16:13 says, “Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong.” When you have faith, it will guard you and protect you. You will have conviction. What you believe in, you own it and live it. And when troubles come, you will overcome. Daniel 3:17-18 says, “If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.” How strong is your faith?
The shield of faith also deflects. It allows you not to listen to the lies of the enemy. These lies can come in the form of fear, doubt and worry. But what do you believe in? Go is good all the time. He will never send anything that is not good. Anything that is not good comes from the enemy. God is in control and He is sovereign. He will put everything in order.
The shield of faith is your first line of defense to destroy the enemy. You can destroy the enemy by declaring the truth with your tongue. The problem is you are used to declaring the lie. Who told you to do that? The enemy cannot win over the word of God. Romans 10:17 says, “Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ.” Use your mouth to profess your faith. Every time there is a lie, use the word of God. Speak His word and make it come alive.
The shield of faith is an unstoppable force. When the church comes together as one, it becomes unstoppable. There is power in number. And when you are together as on,e you can overcome the world. If one member suffers, everyone suffers. But if one member is honored, everyone gets to rejoice. The enemy wants you on his own. Stick together so you can do great and many things.
Carry your shield of faith. This is your armor.
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