Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high [places]. Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints; Ephesians 6:10-18
A while ago, I was reading through this portion of scripture and I realized that as Paul is defining the armour and how important each part is, there is no clear definition for the part the covers the back. Every part explained seems to be functioning from the top of the head to the sole of the feet and covering the front side of the Christian. Which got me thinking about a few things and with that inspiration, I appreciated the need for individuals to understand the revelation of putting on the whole armour because;
- Each of us needs to strengthen our understanding of every part of that armour because they all play a unique role in preserving us. Without one, we are still in danger and therefore we must carry an understanding of Truth, as much as we would that of Righteousness, The gospel of peace, Faith, Salvation, The word of God, and Effective prayer.
- As it is in a war or a battle, there is no provision for turning back, or giving up if your goal is victory. Every soldier must keep moving forward regardless. Likewise, the armour doesn’t provide for “looking back.” We must keep moving forward no matter what, lest we are overtaken by the enemy.
- On the battle field, the safety of an individual’s armour is what gives them courage to cover whoever is ahead of them, or whoever needs their help. The better you understand your armour, the more fruitful you are in all aspects and the easier it is to cover others.
- Paul ends the description by encouraging us to pray for all saints, which provides one of the solutions for covering each other as it would be on the battlefield. This is one of the things that can help us to pursue peace with all men, because we know we have a common enemy and also understand that we are one body in Christ.
This could simply mean that if we work on our individual armours, then we can be able to both withstand the enemy, and also cover each others’ backs.
No matter how strong your armor is, you need someone to cover your back on this battlefield we are on. Thankfully, spiritually Jesus has already covered us
I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have [perfect] peace and confidence. In the world you have tribulation and trials and distress and frustration; but be of good cheer [take courage; be confident, certain, undaunted]! For I have overcome the world. [I have deprived it of power to harm you and have conquered it for you.]
John 16:33
But as the times continue to change, we continue too see a lot of the things the bible talks about that would begin to happen including selfishness, the love of many growing cold, brother betraying brother, to mention but a few. The consciousness of our times will help us to walk in the wisdom that only God gives.
There is therefore, no better time to be more intentional about certain things than today and now. With that said, I went ahead to think about the relevance of this understanding in our current times; sometimes I wonder how the people who don’t have friends or family or any other form of covering do it, because there is always something in this chaotic world trying to bring down whatever we build, and by this I refer to all aspects of life. The bible also reminds us that the Just shall LIVE by faith, and faith, as part of the whole armour of God is supposed to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. Which could mean that every time your shield is laid down, you are prey to the wicked, and that’s where the covering of others comes in or rather why it is important to build our faith.
We need each other. Regardless of what life has thrown at us, we need each other. No matter what we have been through, or what has been through us, we need each other; because at the end of the day, if you are not covering someone, they are covering you.
Every day, we work on becoming better in every area of this whole armour; we are advancing in truth, getting more established in righteousness, preaching the gospel with our lives, growing in faith, running our race of salvation, growing in the word by the spirit of revelation and cultivating a life of effective prayer. But as we do this, it helps us to be stronger for each other, to cover each other, to stand with each other, to be there for one another and like the bible says, to profit withal (1Cor12:7).
When you reflect on the last three years we have been through, who can you gladly and confidently tell that “I’ve got your back” ? or rather, who do you confidently believe has “got” your back?
The results of your evaluation should help you to either keep on the right track or rather consider your ways. I am doing my part, do yours too! But when all is said and done, the fact still remains that we need each other. God designed us that way; to function together, every joint supplying. Otherwise, let us pray for one another, let us wish each other well, let us stand with and be there for those that God has brought our way, for Love Never Fails.
Hallalujah.
Stay Blessed
#WiGTyT
