Spiritual Warfare: Armed to Stand

Dr Alfonse Javed
Jun 22
10 min read

God gives us the means not just to endure but to stand as His triumphant Church, rooted in truth, ready with peace, shielded by faith, secured by salvation, and armed with the Word of God.

Ephesians 6:14-17 - 14 Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. 16 In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; 17 and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

Have you ever been in a situation where you had to arm yourself for a battle? In Pakistan, my dad’s church was constantly under attack and the government permitted us to arm ourselves to defend against the enemy. One time, when I was about 17, we didn’t have enough men to defend the church, so my brother and I were asked to carry rifles and stand on the roof of the building. Thank God we were not attacked because we didn’t know how to use the guns.

The problem is that when it comes to spiritual warfare, many Christians are either unaware of the armor of God mentioned in Ephesians 6 or don’t know how to use it. They need to know what it is and how to use it to stand against Satan’s schemes and his flaming arrows targeting our faith, identity, and purpose.

In Ephesians 6:10-24, the basis for our mini-series on Spiritual Warfare, Paul wanted believers to know that God didn’t adopt them as His children through the redeeming work of Christ only to leave them unaware, untrained, and unarmed to fight the spiritual cosmic war.

The big idea is that God hasn’t left us defenseless— rather, He provided us with divine armor, forged by God Himself, so that we may stand armed against the schemes of the devil and his flaming arrows targeting our faith, identity, and purpose.

The question is, what is this armor, what does it do, and how do we use it? Ephesians 6:14-17 calls us to three actions: stand firm with conviction by putting on the armor of truth and righteousness, step forward in confidence by putting on the armor of readiness for the gospel of peace, and stay fighting with courage by taking up the armor of reliance on God’s Word.

Stand Firm with Conviction by Putting On the Armor of Truth and Righteousness (Ephesians 6:14)

Ephesians 6:14 reads, “Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness.” Just as Christ used everyday illustrations to share divine truths, I imagine that Paul, in the Roman prison watching Roman soldiers, decided to use their body armor to share the divine truth about the armor of God. He starts with the belt and breastplate.

The Belt of Truth

For Roman soldiers, the belt, known as the cingulum, held the sword, protected vital organs, and kept everything together. In spiritual warfare, the belt of truth holds our lives together and without it, we fall apart.

Paul explains what this truth is in Ephesians 4:20-21, “20 But that is not the way you learned Christ!—

21 assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus.”

In John 14:6, Jesus said, “I am the Truth.” So, Jesus is the truth that we need to wrap around us like a belt to hold everything together. He is the core armor we need.

Another purpose of the belt on Roman soldiers was to hold their tunics in place so that they could move freely as they fought. Jesus, as the belt of truth, does that too. John 8:31-32 reads, “31 So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” When we know Jesus as the truth, that He is the standard for all truths and we abide in Jesus and He in us, then He sets us free from the hold of Satan, sin, and shame, so that we can fight freely.

I believe that Paul was so concerned about truth because he witnessed what we see today in our society: subjective truth. Even within many churches, truth has become subjective. Paul wants the church to anchor herself on the absolute, revealed, and unchanging divine standard of truth— Jesus. In a world filled with lies, half-truths, and deceptive ideologies, Jesus as the truth becomes the foundation that protects us from falling into deception.

When we don’t live in truth, we become vulnerable to Satan’s schemes, including his deception, compromise, and instability. This is not merely about doctrinal accuracy; it is about truth lived out (Ephesians 4:25).

In Romans 13:14, Paul makes it more clear, “put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.”

The Breastplate of Righteousness

As the name indicates, the breastplate protected the chest area. In spiritual warfare, the purpose of the breastplate of righteousness is to guard our hearts, the seat of our emotions, desires, and will. It protects us against unhealthy emotions, fleshly desires, and the will to disobey God’s Word.

When Satan accuses us of being sinful and reminds us of our past sins and mistakes, we need this armor. If you continue to struggle with the demons of the past, you need this armor because no matter what sins you have committed before Christ, the blood of Jesus has washed them away.

The next time Satan whispers lies, use the armor of righteousness, not self-righteousness, but the righteousness of Christ imputed to you and lived out in holy obedience. This armor is both imputed righteousness that justifies us before God and practical righteousness that sanctifies us daily, which requires action from us in collaboration with the Holy Spirit. Without righteousness, or in self-righteousness, your heart becomes an easy target for shame, guilt, condemnation, and the lies of the devil.

Recently, a new musical movie came out on Netflix. The movie is about demon hunters. One lyric that caught my attention by the evil character said, “I am the only one who loves your sins.” Satan is normalizing sin, and in our culture, his lie is that families should affirm and accommodate sinful, immoral sexual behavior and identities because that is their truth.

Application

Without truth and righteousness, we will be tripping over cultural lies. So, we stand firm with conviction of truth and righteousness to know the truth from the lies.

Step Forward in Confidence by Putting On the Armor of Readiness for the Gospel of Peace (Ephesians 6:15)

Ephesians 6:15 reads, “and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace.” The confidence that we need to step forward to advance on the battlefield comes from the peace that the gospel offers.

First, this gospel of peace is not inner tranquility but rather the peace Christ brought between God and man by demolishing the enmity between us and God. In spiritual warfare, peace with God becomes the foundation for confidence before men and demons.

Second, the gospel-peace gives us both footing in the fight and freedom to move forward with such confidence that even the gates of hell cannot prevail against us (Matthew 16:18).

This readiness is illustrated by the shoes of Roman soldiers. They wore hobnailed boots that provided traction, even on bloody, slippery ground. It's like wearing crampon shoes that people use to climb snowy, icy mountains today. We need the shoe armor to step forward.

Application

Commit to wearing gospel peace. It will keep you firm in trials, stable in storms, and confident in God when you walk in the valley of the shadow.

Stay Fighting with Courage by Taking Up the Armor of Reliance on God’s Word (Ephesians 6:16–17)

Ephesians 6:16-17 tells us, “16 In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; 17 and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” Notice that Paul shifts from armor that we “put on” to armor that we “take up” in all circumstances. This means, whether you are battling with forces you see or you can’t see, these weapons are in our arsenal and we use them as we need them. Also, these three active weapons reflect spiritual readiness in daily battle.

The Shield of Faith

Paul turns his attention to the shield of the Roman soldiers. The Greek word for “shield” (thureon) refers to a large, door-like shield, designed to extinguish flaming arrows. When under attack, the soldiers put their shields together to build an iron wall to protect them as they advance into the enemy’s camp. In spiritual warfare, faith is not a private thing; it needs to be practiced in a community and locked in with other believers.

The Helmet of Salvation

Next, Paul turns his attention to the helmet of the soldiers. Just as a helmet was necessary to protect the heads of soldiers, which saved their lives, the helmet of salvation in spiritual warfare guards our minds against things that can create doubts that can lead to spiritual decline or spiritual death. When we know we are saved, sealed, and destined for glory, it gives us the courage to endure suffering and resist despair.

The Sword of the Spirit

Paul says that the sword of the Spirit is the Word of God. Hebrews 4:12 reads, “… the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword...” The best example of wielding this armor in spiritual warfare is found in Matthew 4, there when Satan came to tempt Jesus. For every temptation, Jesus said, “it is written.”

Do you train yourself with the sword, God’s Word? Do you read it and practice it daily in all circumstances? In 2 Timothy 3:16, Paul reminds us, “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness.” The problem is that too many Christians spend more time reading books written by people— some of them are written by godly Christian authors. I am not against those books but they are not inspired Word of God, only God’s Word (the Bible) is inspired.

Application

Faith is not just defensive— it’s dynamic, extinguishing the lies, doubts, and fears Satan throws at you. God doesn’t promise a life without attack, but He promises a faith that overcomes. This faith is not blind optimism; it is the Spirit-given trust in the promises of God rooted in His Word. So, train yourself in His Word.

As we close, imagine a soldier standing on the frontlines of battle—no helmet, no shield, no armor, utterly exposed. Wouldn’t he be defeated before the fight even begins? If you are living like that today— spiritually unarmed, emotionally fatigued, and mentally unprepared— while the enemy of your soul fires flaming arrows at your mind and heart— arrows of doubt, fear, lust, bitterness, and insecurity to target your faith, identity, and purpose, there is good news for you.

In His sovereign love, God hasn’t left you defenseless. He chose you, He redeemed you, and He sealed you with His Holy Spirit to empower you; not just to survive spiritual warfare, but to stand firm with conviction, step forward in confidence, and stay fighting with courage to claim victory. You do that with faith, not faith in faith, but faith in Jesus Christ.

Action Step

For those who have never put their faith in Jesus for salvation and righteousness is, take action today and accept the truth of Christ. Without Him, there is no foundation to stand firm, step forward, and stay fighting against the schemes of the devil. Put your faith in Jesus and Jesus will fight for you.

Appeal

Don’t be a passive Christian. God does not call us to passive Christianity, but to spiritually armed resistance. In Ephesians 6:14–17, God gives us the means not just to endure but to stand as His triumphant Church, rooted in truth, ready with peace, shielded by faith, secured by salvation, and armed with the Word of God. So, let’s not be passive spectators of His glory, but active participants in His cosmic plan.

Last week, I was reading some military news about Israel. It said the most dangerous weapon in Israel’s possession is its soldiers. Yes, they have all sorts of highly advanced weapons, but nothing surpasses trained Israeli soldiers. I think the reason for that is their conviction. They are convinced that for their survival, they must fight. Therefore, a week ago, their conviction enabled them to get into Iran to launch their attacks from within.

The question is, are you convinced that the survival of your life depends on the truth? If you are not convinced by the truth of Jesus, then you simply cannot live out a righteous and holy life. Is the gospel shaping your steps? Or has it become a distant memory since you accepted Jesus? Are you grounded and anchored in peace and advancing? Do you practice the sword of Spirit, which our text says is the Word of God, daily? Do you lift the shield of faith and lock it in with other believers when trials come? Do you trust God’s character even when the battlefield is dark?

Study Questions

Why is the “belt of truth” listed first in the armor? What happens when our understanding of truth is distorted?
How does the righteousness of Christ protect us from guilt, shame, or legalism?
What is the difference between the peace of God and peace with God? Why does that matter in spiritual warfare?

Deeper Study Questions

How does peace with God produce courage and mobility in your spiritual life?
What are practical ways you can grow in truth and righteousness this week?
What are some “slippery places” where your spiritual footing has been challenged?
What “flaming arrows” have you faced recently— lies, accusations, fear?
How does a secure understanding of salvation guard your thoughts and choices?
When was the last time you used Scripture like a sword— in spiritual battle, temptation, or encouragement?