Form a Shield of Faith

As a Roman citizen, Paul saw Roman soldiers daily, and as a Christian, he was imprisoned several times by them. It’s easy to see why Paul chose military terms as a metaphor for the armor of God.

In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one.
─ Ephesians 6:16 ESV

In the verse above, Paul talks about the protection faith can provide you when you exercise your faith as a shield from the flaming arrows Satan throws at you.

Faith stops thoughts that oppose God from moving from your thoughts to your heart and spirit.

The Roman army, during Paul’s day, used three types of arrows: one with a sharp, pointed metal head; another with a metal tip covered in tar, and the head of the third was combustible. “Fire darts” were also a part of their arsenal – long spear shafts with three-foot iron heads, so powerful they penetrated a soldier’s armor.

The “fiery darts (or arrows) the enemy of your soul throws are meant to penetrate your mind, bringing his thoughts instead of God’s into our mind. By thinking on the Word of God and speaking His truth, our faith forms a shield, keeping the “fire” from going any further. Faith stops those darts that oppose God from moving from your thoughts to your heart and spirit.

Today’s One Thing
What thoughts have you struggled with lately? What does God’s Word say about those things?
When you think those thoughts, form a shield of faith. Imagine yourself catching what is untrue, removing it from your mind, and replace it with the truth by speaking what God says each time that thought comes to you.

For example: The enemy says you are nothing; you have no worth.
God says: You are the apple of His eye (Zechariah 2:8); you are an overcomer, victorious in this life (1 John 5:4).

Go Deeper

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