Paul, writing to the saints at Ephesus and to the faithful in Christ Jesus, gives specific instructions about this warfare:

          "Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.  Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but  against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual       wickedness in high places.  Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.  Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;  Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword  of the Spirit, which is the word of God: Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and            supplication for all saints." (Ephesians 6:10-18.)

     Prayer is mentioned last and has already been mentioned because it seems to me to be of primary importance in the life of a disciple. We cannot put Satan to rout with prayer alone.  Although God fights for us, let me repeat that God does not do for us what we can do for ourselves.  We must begin the effort, calling upon the Lord, then He has promised to help us if we can not overcome by our own strength.  It appears to me that today truth is more needful in the battle than any other one weapon.  John said that he had no greater joy than to hear that his beloved were walking in truth. (3rd John 4.) To walk in truth is to believe every text in the Bible and seek to conform our thinking to God's revealed words.   For warriors in Paul's time there was need for a girdle around their loins to strengthen then, to help give them the stamina that they needed for the battle.  The truth of God's word today can do the same for us.  When we fail to be armed with the truth, it is easy for Satan to lead us captive and destroy all of our peace and blessings.

     Righteousness is merely "doing right"; keeping our conduct such that no one can truthfully accuse us of not walking circumspectly before God and men.  The old adage, "I had rather see a sermon than hear one any day," really applies to us putting on the breastplate of righteousness.  A breastplate protected from the darts of the enemy; it was insurance against an arrow hitting a vital spot.  If we are going to be effective disciples, we are absolutely going to have to keep God's moral laws.  Good intentions are not sufficient, we must keep ourselves unspotted from the world.  If we do, Satan is not going to be able to readily ensnare US.

     When one hears the voice of the Son of God (see John 5:25), and by it is born again, he is thereby given a spark of living faith which is eternal.  It is possible for faith to be overthrown (literally "upset") but not destroyed. (See II Timothy 2:18.) Faith, being the gift of God and the fruit of the spirit, all who are born again can lay hold upon it, or take it as Paul admonishes in the armor outfitting, that they may use it to ward off, or prevent from striking a vital part, the fiery darts that the wicked hurl at God's children.  The shield was commonly worn on the arm and could be moved, maneuvered and turned to stop the flight of darts or arrows aimed at the body.  Faith can overcome the verbal assaults that are being poured out constantly against those who are making the effort to walk as disciples.  Nowhere are we told to add faith, we are told to use it and the Lord will increase it to the extent that we will be able to withstand every fiery onslaught that our adversary can hurl at us.

      Although we are not told to add faith, we are told to add to our faith.  When the spirit quickens anyone; i.e., when anyone is born again, the spirit implants within that person certain attributes.  Paul lists them in Galatians 5:22: viz., "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no lay." These things are the inward armaments that God provides. Everyone who has been born again has a measure of these things and needs to cultivate them that they may grow.  The Apostle Peter tells us to add to these innate characteristics things that can help us fight the adversary with the outward armor that we put on.

          "And besides this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; and to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; and to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity." (II Peter 1:5-7.)

     These inward properties need to be acquired and perfected as much as possible before we try to put on the outward; however, they overlap to a great extent.  It is much easier to wear the outward if the inner attitudes are right.

     It is almost amazing to me to see the perfection of God's plan for his people to have a joyful, abundant, happy life in this world.  I marvel at the perfect harmony between the inward and what he has prescribed for the outward, and then stand in consternation because so few of his children will follow the instructions he has given.  No wonder so many hang their harps on the willows and cannot sing in their hearts.  If we do our part, we can be disciples indeed and have "in this world manifold more."

    There seems to be many today who do not recognize the need for the gospel and obedience to its teachings in order for God's children to walk as they must if all their benefits are to be received.  The first thing that one should receive through the gospel is justification by faith -- having the assurance within that his standing before the eternal Judge is the same as that of his elder brother, Jesus Christ.  This sets him free to walk to try to help others, rather than to try to establish his own righteousness. (See Romans 10:1-4.) When one's feet are really shod with this preparation, he can truly be a blessing and that is the primary aim of discipleship.  When God called Abram first, he told him one of the primary purposes of that call was that Abram should be a blessing. (See Genesis 12:2.) When our feet are truly shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace, we have both the ability and the obligation to be a blessing and this is an excellent way to avoid the onslaughts of Satan.  There is more satisfaction in serving others who need it than in any other activity, and where there is satisfaction, there is very little room for temptation.

      The helmet of salvation must be put on to be of benefit.  The term "salvation" has come to mean being born again to most who profess to be Christians.  By some stretch of the imagination, we can see a salvation in the new birth, but actually the new birth is a creation, whereas a salvation is the preservation of something that is already in existence.  Not one of God's children will truly be saved until his fleshly body is made into the very image of God's only begotten Son, but when one has the assurance, the earnest of the inheritance which one received by believing the gospel and obeying it, then being sealed by the Holy Spirit, he has the helmet of salvation.  Satan cannot make much headway with those who are really secure in their Christian walk.  A true disciple keeps his helmet on at all times because it is truly comfortable, and also very becoming to everyone who wears it properly.

     All of the foregoing deals with defensive armor.  It was all designed for the wearer to face the foe -- there is no covering for the back.  Jesus said, "No man, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God." (Luke 9:62.) No wonder God provided no protective armor for the back, but gave us everything that we need for our protection when we face the foe. 

     Also, he gave us the one offensive weapon that we need -- the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.  This is not the living Word, it is the written, preached word.  It was the weapon which Jesus used to put Satan to flight.  If it worked on him, it will work on his lieutenants.  This is the only weapon we need, but we do need to practice with it.  We need to learn all we can about the weapon which,, when properly wielded, will put every enemy that we shall face to flight.

     We must remember: "For every man shall bear his own burden." (Galatians 6:5.) You cannot bear, nor wear, my armor; neither can I bear yours.  Presently, there seems to be a tendency to let the minister bear the armor of many church members who have given public assent to becoming a disciple, but have not been willing to wear the armor.  We have become an automated society in so many ways that we seem to think that as long as we go to church on Sunday, tithe, or contribute financially and help in special events, that we can turn the remainder of our service over to the pastor and the organization.  Religion was not designed for any, except "do-it-yourself" people.  The full joy of discipleship comes only to those who don the whole armor and stay in the fray every day of their earthly existence.  The joy of discipleship comes from the service, in it and not for it.  When we examine the lives of God's servants, whether in the examples in the scriptures or in the acquaintances we have today, we find that the most rewarding ways of life are those that conform to the pattern left for us by the life of Jesus, the faithful apostles and the prophets before them. 

     The faithful referred to in the eleventh chapter of Hebrews could teach us much about the ways of discipleship.  They had God on their side; had fortified their thinking by God's word, and had put on the whole armor.  This is so needful for us today.