Shielded by Faith: Battling the Enemy with God’s Armor
Every single day, God calls us to "take up the whole armor of God," and this is something we must actively do every single day because the enemy takes no days off with his attempts to try to cause us to stumble. As we all strive to live more in the Spirit and develop the spiritual fruits of our internal labor to reap these benefits, it's important for us to understand the connection between the fruits of the Spirit and walking every day protected by God and everything He has provided for us to use as protection along our journeys.
I have been in a season of building up my faith and becoming more resilient to the enemy's schemes. In my quiet times, I have been completing a Bible study focused on living more in the Spirit because oftentimes I find myself too much in my flesh, trying to fight these battles and not putting energy into living intentionally in the Spirit. I am reminded today that in Ephesians 6:12, "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," and then God's Word goes on to share exactly what we have at our disposal to be equipped to enter the spiritual battle against the enemy.
As I ask myself, "Which aspect of God's armor do I need to re-up in order to maintain my footing in this battle?" God highlights verse 16:
In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.
As I observed and meditated on this scripture, I thought to myself, wow. God is specifically telling us why we need to use this shield of faith. We won't always know where the arrow is coming from. When shooting an arrow, the person won’t, and usually isn’t, in the view of the person who is shot with one. Having this shield of faith that God is telling us to have is the only thing that can protect us from these "flaming arrows." In my own walk, I'm learning the deeper importance of faith as it relates to having resilience and strength when the enemy attacks me. This verse became something so visual to me as I began to think about medieval shows like Game of Thrones or House of Dragons, and in my mind, I remembered war and battle scenes where members of a specific army, from way above, would have these flaming arrows and be told, "SHOOT!" and there a flaming arrow would go, penetrating into the bodies of the opposing army coming on land. I couldn't help but think of that person being me, as vulnerable as ever, being shot down by the enemy's arrows. Maybe not physically dying, but realizing that now a part of my spiritual strength has been wounded because of my own lack of faith.
I realize that I need to grow stronger in this area. Visualizing myself with this armor and noticing that my shield is not as big as it needs to be in the daily battle with the enemy, if I had any chance of sustaining myself and winning this battle for the Lord, I needed to have more faith in myself and believe that God wouldn’t send me into a battle that I could not win. And we know that with God with us, who can be against us? But, this belief and conviction starts with having the faith to believe this is true.
After suffering the loss to my own shortcomings time and time again in specific areas, I've begun to lose faith in myself that I could enter a certain battle. Because that's all this thing is. You hear about certain Battle Hills of this and Battle Fields of that in these shows, and for me, it was helpful to visually think of every sin mentioned in Galatians 5:19-21 and 2 Timothy 3:1-5 as its own battlefield with its own armor that you have ready to fight in that space.
Galatians 5 Battle/War Fields
Sexual Immorality – The Battle of Lust’s Dominion
Impurity – The War of Stained Hearts
Debauchery – The Siege of Indulgence
Idolatry – The War of False Thrones
Witchcraft – The Curse of Sorcery’s Hold
Hatred – The War of Bitter Roots
Discord – The Clash at Unity’s Rift
Jealousy – The Uprising of Envy’s Grasp
Fits of Rage – The Fires of Wrath
Selfish Ambition – The Struggle for the Self-Made Crown
Dissensions – The Divide at Peace’s Edge
Factions – The Fracturing of Brotherhood
Envy – The War of Coveted Desires
Drunkenness – The Fall at Intoxication’s Hollow
Orgies – The Night of Reckless Feasts
When I reflect on the battle I so often lose because of my lack of faith, because I realize that my shield is too small to protect me, it's "The War of False Thrones" – Idolatry.
Idolatry is when I place my trust in anything other than God—whether it’s material possessions, false gods, or my own desires. These things reveal a lack of true faith in Him. I tend to think I can fight these battles on my own, that I’m capable of handling the battlefield by myself. But the truth is, I can’t. I must remember that God has chosen me for this fight because He knows that through this battle, I can glorify Him. It's time for me to step aside and allow God to move through me, to cover me with His whole armor, and to trust that He is the one leading the charge.
2 Timothy 3:1-5 Battles/War Fields
Lovers of Themselves – The Siege of Self-Worship
Lovers of Money – The War for Greed’s Treasure
Boastful – The Skirmish of Empty Glory
Proud – The Heights of Arrogance
Abusive – The Scourge of Cruelty’s Grip
Disobedient to Their Parents – The Rebellion at Authority’s Gate
Ungrateful – The Rift of Withered Thanks
Unholy – The Defilement of Sacred Ground
Without Love – The Drought of Compassion
Unforgiving – The Fortress of Hardened Hearts
Slanderous – The Whisperer’s War
Without Self-Control – The Ravage of Unchecked Fires
Brutal – The Reckoning of Ruthless Blades
Not Lovers of the Good – The Siege of Forsaken Virtues
Treacherous – The Betrayal at Loyalty’s End
Rash – The Charge of Reckless Impulse
Conceited – The Mirror’s Dominion
Lovers of Pleasure Rather than Lovers of God – The Fall to Flesh’s Allure
Form of Godliness but Denying Its Power – The Mask of Hollow Faith
Reflecting on this battle list, I realize that the sin which most closely mirrors faithlessness in my own life is:
"Form of Godliness but Denying Its Power" – The Mask of Hollow Faith.
When I think about this, I see how it speaks to the times when I might outwardly appear religious or godly, but in my heart, I fail to truly trust in God. It’s easy to go through the motions—praying, attending church, saying the right things—but when I’m not genuinely relying on His power to move in my life, I deny the very essence of what faith should be. This behavior points to spiritual emptiness, a lack of true belief, and reflects the moments when I depend on my own strength instead of trusting in God's power. This sin resonates deeply because it highlights the times I’ve been caught up in routine, rather than fully surrendering to God, not realizing that true faith involves trusting Him completely and allowing Him to work in my life.
And so, I encourage you to think about what battle you are currently in because there is a reason God tells us to put on this armor. The enemy takes no days off, and we must fight for our relationship with God and ultimately our salvation as well.
I'll leave you with this:
Psalm 28:7 (NIV) – Trust in God as Strength and Shield
"The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and he helps me. My heart leaps for joy, and with my song I praise him."
This scripture highlights the shield of faith in a personal and intimate way, showing how trust in God brings protection and strength. Let's lean on Him to be our strength in whatever battle we are facing in this season, and more specifically, let's build up our faith because in any battle, we can have a flaming arrow thrown at us that will come from a seemingly unknown place. We can use God's shield of faith to protect us, which is the only thing that can.
Let's stay faithful, mis mariposas!
P.S. If you want to nerd out like I did this morning, check out this video God put on my heart to search and watch. It's a video that, according to its description, "is an exhaustive description of what [fire arrows] were and how they made them work, woven through with a series of tests and demonstrations and showing the sources."
The use of the word "flaming arrows" in v16 intrigued me, and so as a visual person, I had to do some digging!
✞