When we awaken each day, we awaken to a new battle.  This is not heaven. This is earth where Satan has been given power.  In the New Testament he is often referred to as the ruler of this world.  But he does not have dominion over Christians and he certainly does not have dominion over God.

He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son.  (Colossians 1:13). We are now in God's army and God wants to provide us with the necessary skills and equipment to deal some serious damage against the dark forces of this world.  Paul gives us our battle plan.

First, know and utilize the source of your power.

“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.” (V 10-11)

Second, know your enemy.

“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” (V 12)

Satan wants us to forget who our true enemy is because then we will not be effective in dealing with conflicts and circumstances with spiritual triumph.  He wants us to be reactive toward others, unforgiving and judgmental.  We have to keep our focus on the true source of sin, pain, discord and evil in this world and utilize spiritual resources versus flesh resources.  Your enemy is not others.  Your enemy is Satan.

Third, be equipped.  Armor is necessary when you are in the heat of battle.  Expect to be hammered, shot at, swung at, knocked down.  Your enemy is going to look for your areas of vulnerability and try to catch you off guard.  Armor protects your vital organs and helps you withstand the attacks. For spiritual battles, we need spiritual armor.  To every soldier, Paul says you have access to the armor of God.  But, you have to put it on and use it.

The Armor of God:

Belt of Truth: For a Roman soldier, the belt secured equipment, providing a place for a sword to be sheathed.   In addition, the Nelson Study Bible says from the belt "hung strips of leather to protect the lower body." The Matthew Henry Commentary says the belt "girds on [secures] all the other pieces of our armor." Truth should cleave to us as a belt cleaves to our body.  Satan is the Father of lies.  His specialty is deception, trickery, and crafty destructive lies.  How do you know when you are being told lies?  By having access to the truth.  God provides His truth to us through His Word.  The Holy Spirit can provide discernment of truth to us when we are attuned to His teaching.  The more we study God's word and are receptive to the Holy Spirit's voice, the more we will be aware of Satan's deceptions.

Breastplate of Righteousness:  The breastplate was a very important piece of armor because it provided protection to the vital chest organs.  This righteousness is not of our own efforts but the righteousness of Christ that protects us from Satan's death blows.  When Satan tries to accuse us and get us to forget who we belong to, those blows should just bounce off.  We  belong to Christ and have eternal life.  That is a powerful defensive weapon.  Because we belong to Christ, we should be obedient to God's word.  Psalm 23 tells us "He will lead us in the paths of righteousness." 

Shoes (of the Gospel of Peace):  I don't know about you but I don't want to go outside without a good protective pair of shoes on.  When you have a good pair of shoes, you can be sure of your step and you can be confident and bold to march forward.  If necessary you can even run.  God wants us to be always ready to go where He needs us to go.  He wants to send us as "foot soldiers" out into the world as he guides our every step, and the message he wants us to share is the gospel of peace.

"And how shall they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: "How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace, who bring glad tidings of good things!" Romans 10:5

Shield of Faith: “In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one;” (v 16). Oh how Satan wants to get us off guard.  If he can weaken our faith or get us to cast it away because of fear and  doubt, then he can deal a more destructive blow. When doubts come, hold fast to your faith and ask God to help you keep that shield held high. 

Helmet of Salvation:  The spiritual battle is one that involves our minds.  We have to make a decision to accept God's salvation and submit our wills to Him or we choose to let Satan continue to darken and cloud our minds.  Protecting our thought patterns is vital to our spiritual victory. Satan wants us to be confused and deceived.  God wants us to have "right" thinking, to know His will, to know truth. 

Sword of the Spirit:  We are told this sword is the "Word of God". 

"For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart." (Hebrews 4:12)   Meditating on God's Word and memorizing God's Word will empower you to become a stronger, more effective soldier as God's Word molds you into being more and more like Christ.

Paul tells us that when we have on the full armor of God, we can "stand firm"

He also encourages us to be on those front lines of spiritual warfare by being prayer warriors. “praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints,” (v18)

How's your battle preparation going?  Are you putting on that full armor at the start of your day? Are you ready, alert and eager to be available for God's instructions?  Are you supporting others who are fighting alongside of you with prayer and encouragement.  If not, I encourage you to suit up and face your day prepared to do battle, prepared to be victorious as you find your strength in God. 

The Apostle Paul tells us in Ephesians 4:24, that we are created anew to be like God in true righteousness and holiness which is why Paul goes on to say in chapter 5, “Therefore, be imitators of God, as beloved children.” (5:1) I think everyone can relate to mimicking our parents, for like it or not, I believe all of us have caught ourselves saying something that sounds exactly like our parents sometime in our adult life! OR as parents, we’ve caught our children mimicking us while playing and wondered, “Do I really sound like that?” But what exactly does it mean to be like God? And  imitate Him?

Did you ever hold an infant in your arms and watch how they study your features? All their senses are in tune to you!  I remember as a brand new mom in the hospital being encouraged not to wear any perfume or fragrance, for my child would be seeking to become familiar with my scent! It’s the same with us as God’s children; we need to consume ourselves with God. We must somehow find the times to shut out the world throughout our day and focus on our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ. Paul goes on to list a few ways we should be like Him.

Imitate His love towards others:

In verse 2 Paul writes, “Walk in love, even as Christ also loved you, and gave himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling fragrance.”

If we want to know what God is like, we have to study Jesus, for Scripture says He, “...is the radiance of his glory, the very image of his substance...” (Hebrews 1:3) So, if we are going to be like God and imitate His love, we will act as Jesus did. Paul also tells us that the “sweet-smelling fragrance” of love will be evident in giving of ourselves. (I like that.)

Imitate God by allowing His light to shine through you:

Beginning in verse 8 Paul writes, “For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light  (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth)  and find out what pleases the Lord.” Do you remember studying your parents so well that you knew what would please them and what would cause their err? Can you remember just the tone of their voice would instantly cause you to wondered, “O no! What did I do!?”

Scripture tells us that, “...God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all.” (1 John 1:5) It follows, then, that if we are to be like God, His light will shine through us. Jesus also told His disciples, “You are the light of the world... Even so, let your light shine before men; that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 5:14-16)

Paul also reminds us that the fruit of God’s light is goodness, righteousness and truth. All three of these virtues flow from the attributes of God, for God is good (Psalm 25:8, Nahum 1:7), He is righteous (Romans 3:26) and He is true (Numbers 23:19, Psalm 31:5, Hebrews 6:18). It’s this light which makes things visible, and expose the deeds of darkness around us.

Imitate God’s Love, Reflect God’s Light and Walk in His Wisdom:

Beginning in verse 15 and following Paul tell us that we need to, “Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise,  making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.  Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.  Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit,” (5:15-18). I believe Paul gives us the secret here in verse 18 on how all this can be possible for all of us! He tells us to “be filled with the Spirit”. Allowing Him to come take control.

I remember going for a walk with my dad as a young girl and trying to keep up with his long, quick strides. I was forced to take two to three steps for his one, and he seemed to be walking so briskly! I even tried to stretch my legs to equal his strides, but I couldn’t keep that up for very long either. Until finally, I think my father caught onto what I was trying to do, and he reached down and took my hand and slowed his pace just a bit, which made it so much easier for me to keep up and the rest of our walk became so much easier and enjoyable! I believe our heavenly Father does the same for us! He knows left on our own, it will be challenging to keep up, so He reaches down and gives us His Spirit to help us keep up with Him. Take hold and let Him take charge and I can pretty much guarantee that the rest of your journey will be better than before!

"God's Mystery Revealed" { Ephesians 3 }

While Paul was imprisoned in Rome because of his missionary efforts on behalf of the Gentiles, he continued his ministry by writing letters to several churches. These letters became known as Paul's "prison epistles". One of these letters was to the church at Ephesus in which Paul beautifully explains who we are and all that we have as a result of God's grace.

Paul begins by revealing the divine mystery of Christ. A mystery not previously revealed, now made known through "His holy apostles and prophets in the spirit". (v 5) And what is this mystery? "...that the Gentiles are fellow heirs and fellow members of the body, and fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel, of which I was made a minister, according to the gift of God's grace which was given to me according to the working of His power." (vs. 6-7) What a wonderful revelation! No longer are believing Jews and Gentiles separated before God, but instead we are joined together into one church. Both now share equally the promises of God, promises previously reserved for Jews alone. And most importantly this could only happen through the gospel, "in accordance with the eternal purpose which He carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord, in whom we have boldness and confident access through faith in Him." (vs. 11-12)

How amazing is our God who loves each and everyone of us so much and, "who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth" ( 2 Tim. 2:4), that He provided the way to reconciliation through His Son Christ Jesus. Not only does loves us, He wants to bless us in unimaginable ways. A realization that humbles even Paul who says, "To me, the very least of all saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unfathomable riches of Christ." (v 8) Paul, a man who once tried to destroy God's people, was not only forgiven by God but given the great privilege of spreading His message and building His church. And in love and obedience, that's just what Paul did. He went about preaching and writing about the inexhaustible riches and generosity of Jesus. His task being to bring out into the open and make plain the secret plan of God, which was executed perfectly through Jesus and His sacrifice on the Cross. A task Paul performed proudly saying, "Therefore I ask you not to lose heart at my tribulations, for they are your glory." Paul didn't want the Ephesians to feel sorry for him, for he was being used in a way greater than he could ever imagine.

In response to the revealing of this great mystery, Paul falls to his knees in prayer before the Father, the Creator of all things in Heaven and earth. He prays the most beautiful prayer of love and strength for all believers. A prayer that, "He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to the fullness of God." (vs. 16-19) Paul wants for every believer not only to be strengthened by God's Spirit, but to experience fully His unconditional love and all the unfathomable riches that He has to offer.  

Paul ends this chapter by saying, "Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen." (vs. 20-21) God is able to answers our prayers in ways that are beyond anything we could ever hope for. "The Lord has wonderful plans for your life, so do not be discouraged by disappointments along the way. Keep following Him faithfully, and continue believing that He will answer your prayers in a manner that is better than anything you have ever dreamed or envisioned. Remember, when you fight your battles on your knees, you'll win every time." (Dr. Charles Stanley)

 Adam Clarke explained how God’s work in the Church gave glory to the wisdom, power, and love of God.  We should praise God for His glorious Church!!

· There is nothing as noble as the Church, seeing that it is the temple of God.

· There is nothing so worthy of reverence, seeing God who dwells in it.

· There is nothing so ancient, since the patriarchs and prophets worked to building it.

· There is nothing so solid, since Jesus Christ is the foundation of it.

· There is nothing so high, since it reaches as high as to the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.

· There is nothing so perfect and well proportioned, since the Holy Spirit is the architect.

· There is nothing more beautiful, because it is adorned with building stones of every age, every place, every people; from the highest kings to the lowest peasants; with the most brilliant scientists and the simplest believers.

· There is nothing more spacious, since it is spread over the whole earth, and takes in all who have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

· There is nothing so Divine, since it is a living building, animated and inhabited by the Holy Spirit.

Blessings my sisters!!

As Christians, we have our new spiritual identity " in Christ."  It makes me think of a set of old Russian nesting dolls that I used to play with as a child.  When all of the little dolls were placed inside or "hidden in" the biggest doll, all you could see was the one big doll. 

All the blessings and privileges that Christ has become ours as well because When God looks at us he sees us " in Christ", the perfect accepted body of the crucified and risen Christ.  Just in this chapter alone, look at all that we get to experience and partake of because we are in Him.

" In Him" we are:

Blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places  

Chosen before the foundation of the world

Holy and blameless before God

Adopted as sons ( and daughters)

Redeemed ( through the blood of Jesus)

Forgiven of our sins 

Have God's rich grace lavished upon us

Provided wisdom and insight

Given an inheritance

Sealed with the Holy Spirit

Doesn't it make you feel blessed and privileged just to read this minimal list.  I believe Paul really wanted us to grasp this mystery of being hidden in Christ and to be empowered by the knowledge of having our identity in Christ.

Christ truly is the cornerstone of our salvation.  In a world torn apart by the destructive power of sin, Christ is the one who will restore order, peace, healing and unity.

“making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.” (V 9-10)

Through Christ, we have hope.  This hope is in the finished redemptive work of Christ and the authority given to Christ as he was raised from death and set in a position of power and authority to rule the world. So much was accomplished in God's grand plan...

“that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.” (v 20-23)

Because He lives, we have life.

Because He reigns, we reign.

We have so much given to us! We have so much to be grateful for.  We have so much to praise Him for. 

All because we are " in Him".

If you are feeling defeated, I encourage you to look at a more extensive list of the "in Christ" or " in Him" references throughout God's Word. They were put there to remind us of who we are and how blessed we are because of Jesus. 

As we move along through Paul’s letters to the churches we’ll begin to see a pattern in many of them where Paul decides to conclude with a list of commands. In the Book of Galatians, he closes by giving a series of proverbs, sort of speak, for he wants his readers to be guided by the Spirit and not a list of laws, so he gives them principles that will require a bit of thought;

“Brothers, if a man is caught out in some moral slip-up, you whose lives are dominated by the Spirit must correct such a man with the spirit of gentleness, and, as you do it, you must think about yourselves, in case you too should be tempted. Carry one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ. For, if anyone thinks of himself as important while he is of no importance, he is deceiving himself with the fancies of his mind. Let every man test his own work, and then any ground of boasting that he has will be in regard to himself and not in comparison with others. For each man must carry his own pack.” Gal 6:1-5

Paul clearly knew the troubles that arise in any Christian society and that the best of Christians can “slip up”. The word Paul uses is, paraptoma which doesn’t mean a deliberate sin; but a slip that might come on a slippery surface and not a premeditated decision to sin.  

So let’s take a look at all that’s expected of us concerning our brothers and sisters in Christ:

The Bible never specifically defines "the law of Christ". However, most Bible teachers believe “the law of Christ” is what Christ stated in the greatest commandments in Mark 12:28–31, “‘Which commandment is the most important of all?’ Jesus answered, ‘The most important is, “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.” The second is this: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” There is no other commandment greater than these.’”

The law of Christ then, is to love God with all of our being and to love our neighbors as we love ourselves. Paul is saying that by carrying one another’s burdens we will be fulfilling “the law of Christ!”. That sure places a weight of importance on bearing with one another and their burdens, doesn’t it?

4.) We need to be sober in how we think of ourselves and realize we are no better than anyone else and just as capable of “slipping” at any given time.

5.) We should put our works to the test to see if they measure up to all God has called us to do. Only, let us measure ourselves and our work up to Christ, and not against another believer’s, for in doing so, we won’t run the risk of either becoming prideful, or envious of others.

I especially love what Paul added in verses 6-10,

“He who is being instructed in the word must share in all good things with him who is giving instruction. Don't deceive yourselves; no one can make a fool of God; whatever a man sows this he will also reap. He who sows to his own lower nature will from that nature reap a blighted harvest. He who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap life eternal. Don't get tired of doing the fine thing, for, when the proper time comes, we will reap so long as we don't relax our efforts. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are members of the household of the faith.” -Gal 6:6-10

Paul, probably better than anyone, knew sometimes those on the front lines grow weary. He knew that the enemy is far more concerned with those on the front lines of the faith and will be constantly attempting to take them down, for they pose the greatest threat to his work, so Paul offers some encouragement to the weary worker;

At one time, as young Christian and a stay-at-home mom, I failed to place much value on the work I was doing everyday. Let’s face it, you clean the house only to clean it again the next day and the next… make a bed only to make it again the next and so on. Life as a stay-at-home mom can become pretty mundane, but there are those days when things happened that made it all seem worth it all. It’s the same with working in the ministry or with anything we do. There will always be days which cause us to wonder why we’re bothering to do what we do and other days where we wouldn’t trade what we’re doing for the world!

Sometimes the rewards don’t come often enough and it’s in those moments that I like to think that all my efforts are being deposited into a “heavenly saving account” that will pay great dividends sometime in the future! 

Now that my children are grown and have families of their own, I’ve reaped some of those early deposits and I can attest to the fact that God is faithful! There will come a day for all of us when we will say, “It was worth it all!” I promise!

The Gift of Adoption {Galatians 4}

By Lisa Moore

In the previous chapter Paul explains that as believers we are all one in Christ and heirs to God's promises. In this chapter Paul expands on what it means to be an heir, and the liberty we as believers have in Jesus.

He begins by saying, "Now I say, as long as the heir is a child, he does not differ at all from a slave although he is owner of everything, but he is under guardians and managers until the date set by the father." (vs. 1-2) In ancient Roman times, there was no specific age when a son became a man and was entitled to the legal rights as an heir. Usually it was the father who decided when the son was ready. Until then, even though he was destined to inherit everything, the son didn't have the freedom or even the authority of a high ranking slave. Paul says that we too were like children under control of the "elements of the world", meaning bound by the Law. We were waiting for God's perfect timing to set us free.

"But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law" (v. 4) Throughout their many trials and tribulations, Israel prayed and pleaded with God to send the promised Messiah. But God waited until the time was right for the world to receive His Son.This time came after Rome had conquered much of the known world creating extensive "highways" which connected the nations. This allowed travel by both land and sea permitting early Christians to spread the Gospel far and wide. Also "Alexander the Great", a Greek ruler, spread the Greek culture throughout the lands creating a common language.This meant missionaries were able to communicate the message of the Gospel to many different groups of people. And so determining the ripeness of the season, God sent Jesus, "So that He might redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons." (v. 5) 

Jesus came to be our perfect substitute. He came to take our place; paying our sin debt allowing us to be redeemed to the Father. Because of His sacrifice, we are not only forgiven of our sins, freed from the burden of the Law, we are also adopted as sons and daughters into God's heavenly family forever. Imagine that! Such indescribable grace and mercy. For as John says in 1 John 3:1, "See how great a love the Father has bestowed upon us, that we would be called children of God.." No longer called slaves, but rather "heirs through God".

But it gets even better. In one of my favorite verses Paul says, "Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying 'Abba! Father!" (v. 6) Abba is an Aramaic term which closely translated means Daddy. God wants to be our Abba. He wants a close personal relationship with us, so He sends His Spirit to indwell us. "God sends His Spirit to show us what it means to be His children, to bless us with His great love, to reveal His purpose for creating us, and to empower us for all the great plans He has for our lives" (Dr. Charles Stanley) 

What a privilege to be able to call God our Abba! To be able to cry out to Him in our times of need. To have an eternal and secure relationship with Him. As sinners, on our own we can never be worthy of being in His family.  But because of the work of Christ, not only does God accept us, He calls us His own. Our adoption is the act of God's pure goodness and grace of His will to the praise of His glory. And I gift I am forever thankful for.