Nov. 28, 2021 - The Armor of God (Sword of the Spirit)
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As you all know we’ve been making our way through the Book of Ephesians - as a church...
And for the past several weeks - we’ve been lingering over the Armor of God that we are called to ADORN ourselves with...
As we’ve walked through each piece of Armor...
The more we got into it, we could see the connection between these pieces of ARMOR...
…and Jesus Christ Himself.
The belt of Truth
The breastplate of Righteousness
The shoes of Readiness
The shield of Faith
And last week - the Helmet of Salvation
What we’ve seen is that Jesus Christ Himself - lived out HIS ministry on earth - having adorned Himself with this ARMOR...
And we see that as we seek to Adorn OURSELVES with the Armor of God...
We will become MORE AND MORE like Jesus… (living AS He lived)
TODAY - we come to the final piece of ARMOR...
AS we quickly approach the end of this Book...
What is it? - - As you can see - it is the Sword of the Spirit
And so let’s get to our text today - and then dive in...
13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm.
17 and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God,
The SWORD of the Spirit...
The first 5 pieces of Armor - by and large - were all PRIMARILY used as DEFENSIVE weapons...
Belt of Truth - it actually would HOLD the Breastplate IN PLACE - and it would also hold the sword
Breastplate of righteousness
Shoes of Readiness
Shield of Faith
Helmet of Salvation...
All of these items - PRIMARILY used in DEFENSE… although the SHOES of readiness would be used to ADVANCE forward...
TODAY - we see the SWORD of the Spirit...
Now of course a SWORD can be used to DEFEND against attack, but primarily it will be used on OFFENSE...
TO ATTACK
So let’s dive in and see what the Bible says - about God’ Word....
It’s interesting that the Bible - Makes claims about ITSELF - as God’s word!
And so we’ll mainly be camping out in 2 Timothy today...
14 But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it
15 and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.
16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,
17 that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.
SLIDE: God’s Word: Weapon that Never Fails
God’s Word
God’s Word
What did v14 say?
14 But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it
The call here from Paul to Timothy was that Timothy CONTINUE in what he had learned...REMAIN in the truth...
This is more than just a call to 'Keep Believing'....there's an emphasis here from Paul to RESIDE in this truth....there's a commitment here...
I know people...Christians...who are always looking for the NEXT thing.
the next NEW thing...The next NEW wave in Christianity!
Charles Spurgeon has said:
Rest assured that there is nothing new in theology except that which is false; and that the facts of theology are today what they were eighteen hundred years ago.
Spurgeon is spot on here!!
NOW - We can fall into this as well...
We have Bible Studies...One bible study might be about reaching the lost...but when it's over we might say - OK, What's NEXT?
What's next?? - and we forget to live out what we had just heard!
Always saying- what's next…It’s DANGEROUS...
BECAUSE - it could lead to - - Always HEARING but never DOING!
James tells us - if all you do is hear the WORD (truth) but never DO the word....you're deceiving yourself.
And so Paul's call to Timothy is - CONTINUE in what you've learned...There's no ALTERNATE gospel out there that will save you....
REMAIN in the WORD of God - His truth - ...because it's ABSOLUTE truth! It will never fade away!
6 A voice says, “Cry!” And I said, “What shall I cry?” All flesh is grass, and all its beauty is like the flower of the field.
7 The grass withers, the flower fades when the breath of the Lord blows on it; surely the people are grass.
8 The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever.
When it comes to God’s WORD...there's nothing new under the sun...
89 Forever, O Lord, your word is firmly fixed in the heavens.
Now, we look at society, and it wants to tell us MANY different things about TRUTH...
That truth is RELATIVE...
What the world REALLY thinks is - There is NO absolute truth...
But clearly....NO ONE believes that ALL truth is RELATIVE...
No one would say - Well, gravity is true for you, but not true for me...and then go jump off a 50 story building...
And if we just think about it - The statement itself - "Truth is relative....there is NO absolute truth"......is a SELF-REFUTING statement...
When someone says - There is NO absolute truth - - the Question BEGS to be asked...."Is that a true statement?"
NOW - People all over the world EVERY DAY about what IS true and what’s NOT true...
TODAY - our topic is God’s WORD...
And we know the World DENIES the validity of God’s WORD -
But we just read in Scripture that God’s Word will STAND FOREVER!!
SO - how do we handle that…?
Is there a way - to SPEAK to the VALIDITY of God’s WORD??
Answer - yes!
SLIDE: Truthfulness of God’s Word: Evidence - The Person of Jesus Christ
Truthfulness of God’s Word
Truthfulness of God’s Word
The Scriptures tell us that Christ spoke like NO OTHER man...His words were BEYOND ALL human philosophy!
No one could have made up this person of Christ.
How do you explain His resurrection?
With 500 eye witnesses WHO DIDN'T expect Him to rise from the dead!
How do you explain apostles who saw Jesus die...who were then RUNNING for their lives...hiding...To then becoming WORLD CHANGING evangelists...unafraid of death?
Would they have responded that way to preserve a LIE??
NO!
The only explanation is the resurrection!
How do you explain the OT giving 350 prophecies of Jesus Christ...
...Half of them coming true historically and recorded in the NT......the other half will come true at His 2nd coming!
The truthfulness of God’s Word - Evidenced in the person of Christ!
But what else?
SLIDE: Truthfulness of God’s Word: Evidence - Science
Truthfulness of God’s Word
Truthfulness of God’s Word
Now - you may be thinking - uh oh...he was fine until he mentioned SCIENCE....
Listen - Science is an apologetic FOR the truthfulness of scripture...!
At the time the passages in Isaiah were written, it would have been universally believed that the earth was flat...
But what did Scripture say?
22 It is he who sits above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers; who stretches out the heavens like a curtain, and spreads them like a tent to dwell in;
The Bible says the stars can't be numbered....in a day when Scientist had numbered them at 1023...
We know that Science is built upon assumptions....
That the future will be like the past..We have laws that are Absolutes...
...never changing...
Laws of Nature...
Laws of Logic...
Scientific Laws.......
Never changing....
The interesting thing - is that Atheism has no justification for Science...Atheism says that ALL of Existence came about BY CHANCE...
Meaning, 10 seconds from now, 2 + 2 COULD equal 10....AND - the composition of WATER COULD become - H2O2...AND - the gravitational pull of the earth could turn OFF....
Now, the Atheist doesn't even CONSIDER that these things will happen - EVEN though their world view promotes it!
INSTEAD - the atheist LIVES his life on the Christian Worldview....that God holds the universe together by the word of His power...
They live their lives on the Christian Worldview...and yet DENY God with merely their lips...and their wickedness. (Romans 1)
And so regardless of what people say - SCIENCE points TO God!
And it's an EVIDENCE for the veracity of Scripture.
What else?
SLIDE: Truthfulness of God’s Word: Evidence - Experience
Truthfulness of God’s Word
Truthfulness of God’s Word
If you've been changed by the power of the truth of God found in the Bible, please stand.
Look around.
Refute that.
How do you explain that?
The Bible does what it says it will do.
It changes lives...
God’s WORD - is a WEAPON that never fails!!
Not only that…but...
SLIDE: God’s Word: Brings Wisdom for Salvation
God’s Word
God’s Word
14 But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it
15 and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.
And this is where we need to make sure we have a correct view of the Scriptures...Here's what i mean...
It is possible to take the Bible itself....and make it an idol...
Back in the 1st century, we see Jesus speaking to the Jews...
38 and you do not have his word abiding in you, for you do not believe the one whom he has sent.
39 You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me,
40 yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life.
The Jews SEARCHED the Scriptures....they held the Scriptures in high esteem...
They spent time memorizing the text...
They could repeat it....verbatim...
YET, they didn't BELIEVE in the One for whom the Scriptures spoke of - Christ...
The Scripture was their IDOL...
They were content in their head knowledge....and in THAT contentment, they believed they had eternal life...
YET - all the while their hearts were FAR from the Lord...
See, as verse 40 says - LIFE is found in Jesus....not IN the text of Scripture...Memorize this ALL YOU WANT - that doesn't mean you have eternal life....
AND SO - -
when our text from today says - v15
15 and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.
the words on the page don't make you wise...for salvationTRUTH makes you wise for salvation...HOW?
through FAITH - WHAT KIND OF FAITH?Faith in Christ Jesus
And so we see that salvation comes through FAITH in Jesus Christ...But let's look at how WISDOM rises up in God's children...
True WISDOM comes from - where?
5 If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.
Wisdom is given by God alone!
AND - wisdom is RECEIVED THROUGH God’s word!
130 The unfolding of your words gives light; it imparts understanding to the simple.
16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.
Wisdom is also RECEIVED through - SUBMISSION to God...
33 The fear of the Lord is instruction in wisdom, and humility comes before honor.
AND - wisdom is IMPARTED by the Holy Spirit
17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him,
And so when we see that TRUE WISDOM comes from God alone...
It makes complete sense to read in our text from today...
15 and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.
That through FAITH in Christ - we would receive the Spirit of wisdom...
and grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord...as we pursue Him in this life...
And so it's BY FAITH in JESUS - that...
Through God's word we gain wisdom...Through submission to God we gain wisdom...
We need THE TRUTH of Scripture to GROW from Scripture...and that comes from God alone...The Truth of God will make us wise for salvation...
And in making us WISE....this leads to our 3rd MAIN point for today...
SLIDE: God’s Word: Equips the Saints
God’s Word
God’s Word
16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,
17 that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.
From this we see that there's a purpose that springs forth from the truth's of God...
Now - In these verses we don't see the ULTIMATE purpose, but we'll get to that.
Timothy knew that Scripture was inspired...He knew it was from God...
Timothy would have HEARD THIS from when he was growing up as a child...
Paul's point here - is to REMIND Timothy that Scripture is profitable...ON THE BASIS that it's from God...!
How is it profitable?
it EQUIPS the saints....
It TEACHES us...
The Scripture is a positive source of Christian doctrine...And you can imagine....
with Paul and Timothy having to deal with FALSE teachers,
Paul knew highlighting the Scriptures as a place for TRUTH was also to highlight that we SHOULDN'T disregard truth just because someone chooses to TWIST it...
It REBUKES us....(reproof)
The Scripture shows us who we are at the core...
it EXPOSES ERROR...But not JUST that....
The Scriptures don't just blow the whistle and call the foul...They lovingly give us NEW direction....
TRUTH to follow...
Whether for ourselves....or for those around us IT gives us new direction...- Which lead to the next use of Scripture
It CORRECTS us....
On the one hand the Scripture shows us OUR ERROR...But it doesn't leave us in despair...
It LEADS us back to the narrow way...the RIGHT path
It TRAINS us in righteousness...
Like a parent who develops Christian character in a child...The Scriptures TRAIN us...
And that's the thing - As D.A. Carson has said -
"No one stumbles into holiness"...We need to be trained! (*compare - children don't need to be trained to covet)
And so THIS is what Scripture does for the saints!
BUT for what purpose...?
What does verse 17 say?
17 that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.
(A) purpose of biblical TRUTH is that the saints would be EQUIPPED for EVERY GOOD WORK...
AND SO -
We’ve seen that...
God’s Word:
Weapon That Never Fails
Brings Wisdom for Salvation
Equips the Saints
But - NOW - To close out today - let’s look at what Jesus Himself - thought of the scriptures...
SLIDE:
Jesus believed the Old Testament Scripture was the authoritative Word of His Father.
We KNOW this to be true…because of what Jesus said about the OT...
17 “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.
18 For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished.
We can see here the authority that Jesus places on the OT scriptures...
NOT only that...
But He also referred to DOZENS of OT persons and events and He always treated OT history as historically accurate!
He AFFIRMED the writing of Genesis as being from the Father when He said...
4 He answered, “Have you not read that he who created them from the beginning made them male and female,
5 and said, ‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’?
6 So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.”
SO what’s Jesus doing here?
He’s ASSUMING the creation story is - TRUE!!
Not only that - but He does something pretty amazing...
SLIDE:
Many of Jesus’ theological arguments depended on the truthfulness of the OT account.
12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
Jesus here - at the sermon on the mount - Just got done saying that PERSECUTION will come if you follow Jesus...
And He points to the TRUTH that the prophets had been persecuted as well!
He’s pointing to the truthfulness of the OT
41 The men of Nineveh will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and behold, something greater than Jonah is here.
42 The queen of the South will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and behold, something greater than Solomon is here.
Jesus here - TEACHING that He HIMSELF is greater than the 3 greatest institutions in Israel...
Priest, prophet, and King...
And in DOING SO - He affirms that Jonah was an actual historical event...
Jesus also...
SLIDE:
Jesus saw His entire life as a fulfillment of Scripture.
The entirety of Jesus’ life - LEADS up to His arrest in the garden...
The guards come to take Him away...
Peter TRIES TO DEFEND Jesus...
And Jesus says...
53 Do you think that I cannot appeal to my Father, and he will at once send me more than twelve legions of angels?
54 But how then should the Scriptures be fulfilled, that it must be so?”
His ENTIRE LIFE _ was the Fulfillment of Scripture!!
And IN His living...
SLIDE:
Jesus used Scripture to resist temptation.
1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.
2 And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry.
3 And the tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.”
4 But he answered, “It is written, “ ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ ”
5 Then the devil took him to the holy city and set him on the pinnacle of the temple
6 and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written, “ ‘He will command his angels concerning you,’ and “ ‘On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.’ ”
7 Jesus said to him, “Again it is written, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’ ”
8 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory.
9 And he said to him, “All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.”
10 Then Jesus said to him, “Be gone, Satan! For it is written, “ ‘You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.’ ”
11 Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and were ministering to him.
Jesus here - facing temptations we ALL face...
We’re ALL tempted to:
BELIEVE that we depend on creation for - life
BELIEVE that God must PROVE Himself to us...
BELIEVE that we ourselves sit on the throne...
And Yet - Jesus Himself - used Scripture to ATTACK the fiery darts of the devil!!
Why would Jesus do this?
Because - AS WE’VE SEEN TODAY...
SUMMARY:
God’s Word:
Weapon That Never Fails
Brings Wisdom for Salvation
Equips the Saints
And so KNOWING this - we need to know that the Bible - IF all of these things FOR US...
It can also be ALL of these things FOR OTHERS...
Is THIS WORD...
God’s WORD - more important to us - than our DAILY food?
May it be so!
It quenches all the flaming darts of the devil...
AND - not only did Jesus USE IT to defend the faith - to combat temptations of this world...
But He also WIELDED the sword - the Word of God to attack the darkness just ahead of Him...
WE can do the same...
WE can speak God’s word into the darkness...
We don’t have to WAIT for someone else to attack Christianity...
We can ATTACK the darkness!
Some of us like to be BOLD in many areas of life...
I remember being (trying to be ) BOLD when it came to sports...
Some of us can be VERY BOLD when it comes to different areas of life...
YET - when it comes to God’s Word - and wielding the sword of the Spirit INTO the darkness...
we’re just a wet noodle...
May we be BOLD for Christ…SPEAKING and DISPLAYING His word to the World!!
Let’s pray!!