Quote from Forum Archives on October 3, 2001, 10:03 pm

Posted by: masinick <masinick@...>

Dear friends,

Here is a good article from Crosswalk.com about putting on the
full armor of God - a title based on the scripture passage from
Ephesians 6:10-18. I encourage you to read the article and think
about what it means.

Your Brother in Christ,
Brian

Crosswalk.com Spiritual Life Channel

Wearing the Armor of God

By Rev. Gordon McClellan President of ChristianNetworks.org
September 28, 2001

It is important to understand what the Bible says about evil, and
how we can combat it.

Crosswalk.com Spiritual Life Channel - There has been much talk
about evil lately. It is important to understand what the Bible
says about evil, and how we can combat it in our own lives.

First, we must recognize that there is an evil force in the
world. The Book of Revelation makes this clear. It says,
"Therefore rejoice, you heavens and you who dwell in them! But
woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to
you! He is filled with fury, because he knows that his time is
short." (Revelation 12:12 ) The Apostle Paul often indicated in
his writings the ways that evil had disrupted his work. In his
First Letter to the Thessalonians, he writes, "We had hoped to
pay you a visit, but Satan stopped us." (1 Thessalonians 2:18)
Jesus too had much contact with the Devil throughout his
ministry, from his own temptations (Matthew 4:1-10) to casting
the devil out of others (Mark 5:1-20). The Bible is clear in its
portrayal of evil as a living force constantly in search of weak
souls to sour and then consume.

For this reason, Paul urges us to "put on the full armor of God
so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes ?
Stand firm 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. With this in mind, be alert and
always keep on praying for all the saints." (Ephesians 6:10-18)

The second point to realize, in the wake of our realization that
evil is a real and powerful force in the world, is that if we do
as Paul says, and wear "the armor of God", we need not fear evil.
Why? As Paul wrote to the Ephesians, "God has rescued us from the
dominion of darkness and brought us into the Kingdom of the Son
he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins."
(Colossians 1:13 ) The Devil knows that his time is short on this
earth, because he knows that there is a readily available
antidote to his power. Put on the armor of God today, and insure
not only your defenses against evil, but that its time on this
earth is indeed short.

Copyright 2001 Gordon McClellan -- All Rights Reserved.

Crosswalk 2001
spiritual.crosswalk.com/CC/CDA/Content_Blocks/CC_Printer_Friendly_Version_Utility/1,,PTID74456|CHID194891|CIID886200,00.html

=====
--
Brian Masinick, "The Mas", mailto:masinick@yahoo.com
Home page: www.geocities.com/masinick/

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